Business Studies

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The Purpose of Business Activity

Wants and needs

Needs and survival

Wants - Luxury items

Goods and services

Provided by businesses

Goods - Tangible products

Services - Intangible products we experience

Consumer goods or personal goods

Businesses to consumers

Producer goods

Businesses to businesses

Producer goods - Produced by one business and sold to and used by another

Personal services - Services that businesses sell to consumers

Commercial services - Produced by one business, used by another

Durable and non-durable

Non-durable - Consume immediately

Lasts a matter of weeks or months

Durable goods - Last for years or even decades

Businesses - Organisations started by entrepreneurs to provide goods and services

Best businesses - Satisfy wants and needs the best

Risk of starting a business

Business opportunity

Recognised the demand for a product or service

Not just concern for providing for the needs and wants 

Profit

Earn more selling it than is spent producing it

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The Nature of Business Activity

Business - An organisation that aims to meet our needs and wants

Goods - Tangible products that we can touch

Services - Things we buy to experience

Competitive environment - External environment in which a business operates and competes

Direct competitor - Another business that provides a similar product

Indirect competitor - Provides a different product that customers might choose

Marketplaces

Evolving

Needs and wants of customers

Change over time

Dynamic environment - Must be able to adapt to it to survive

Internet - Changed the way companies operate

Made some goods and services obsolete

Adapt - Artificial intelligence and virtual reality

Satisfy wants and needs

Predict how they'll change

Chose to concentrate on traditional film processes

Still trading today

Bankrupt - Failed to adapt to the dynamic marketplace as well as competitiors

Finite resources

Only so much to excavate

Economic problem

Scarcity

Unlimited want

Limited resources

Impossible for everyone to have everything

Choice

Government

More funding from hospitals

Hiring teachers

Opportunity cost - Loss of alternatives when one option is chosen

New hospitals

Not having new teachers

Choices

Limited resources

Opportunity cost

Operate efficiently

Entrepreneur - Risk of starting a new business

Business opportunity

Recognised the demand for a product or service

New ideas

Changes in technology

Changes in consumers' desires and habits

Business idea

Original

Variation

Increase

Convenience

Superior customer service

Respected brand name

Specialising - Focus on a particular activity

Competitive advantage

Associate brands with products

Increases production

More efficient and effective

Practice

No skills or experience

Businesses

Local business - Selling a small area or community

National level - Several locations within the same country

Multinational - Multiple countries

Larger business - Economies of scale

Lower prices

Local business

More aware of customers' needs

Respond more quickly

Interdependent nature of business

Communicate and work together 

Success

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Classification of Business

Primary sector

Secondary sector 

Tertiary sector

Business activity

Private sector

Public sector

Most common type of industry in a country

Country's level of economic development

Extracting raw materials from the earth

Developing countries

More people

Countries become more developed

Benefits of greater investment

Human and capital infrastructure

More employed in the secondary sector

Raw materials transformed into finished and semi-finished goods

Manufacturing and assembling products

Recent decades

Several countries in Asia

Require more training and skills

Provide higher income

Improve living standards

Many developed countries

Once primary sector-based economies

Changed during the Industrial Revolution

Industrialisation of manufacturing

Huge economic growth

Service-based

Provision of commercial services

Most advanced

Training and skills

Higher incomes

Living standards

Elements of 3 sectors

Many developed countries

De-industrialisation

Decline in the manufacturing sector

Economies continue to grow

Technological advancements

Airline services - Tertiary sector

Oil production - Primary sector

Manufacturing - Secondary sector

Wheat farmers - Primary sector

Advertising and marketing - Tertiary sector

Interdependent and rely on each other

Public sector

Goods and services

Private sector

Founded by entrepreneurs

Public sector organisations

Providing services that improve the lives of their public

Not-for-profit

Funded by tax-payers

Economies of most countries

Mixed economies

Ratio of public and private sector businesses often differs

Predominantly private sector led

More public-sector organisations

Constantly changing and evolving

More seek to grow their economies

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Enterprise and Entrepreneurs

Risks

Rewards

Enterprise

Characteristics that successful entrepreneurs need

Businesses

Goods or services

Satisfy customers' needs and wanfs

Enterprise

An opportunity to sell a product or service to others

Entrepreneur

6 million privately owned businesses

Small or medium-sized enterprises

The risk of setting up their own business

Losing income

Leaving job

Invest huge amounts of time and money into new business

New businesses

Fail in the first 5 years

Cost

Risk

Sales

Interest

Can lose life savings

Unexpected costs

Unforeseen circumstances

Rewards

Risks

Higher income

Profits

Self-determination

Control over their working lives

More flexible hours

Pursuit of passion or interest

Lack of motivation in a current job

Satisfaction

Creating something new

A product or service

Solved a problem or made a difference

Social enterprise

Helping the community

Providing employment

Alleviating a social problem

Motivated by many different factors

Key characteristics they all share

Willing to take risks

Enterprise

A huge amount of commitment and passion

Highly driven and resilient

Face all the challenges

Confident in their idea

Persuasive

Convey message to stakeholders

Self-employed

Able to work on their own initiative

Plan effectively for all eventualities

Flexible enough to adapt plans

Creative

Innovative

Survive the competitive marketplace

Planning and organisational skills

Running a business and hiring staff

Work far more than 40 hours a week

Extremely hardworking

Prepared to make all of the important decisions

A gap in the market

Something no other business is providing

A completely new product or service

An adaptation or twist on an existing idea

Unique selling point (USP)

Established idea

Develop it

Branch out

Offering a wider range of products or services

Innovation and creativity

Add value

How much it costs to make

How much it is sold for

Convenience

A well-known and respected brand name

Better customer service

Enterprise!

Huge economic benefits

Offers help and advice for budding entrepreneurs

Start Up Loan

Up to £25,000

A good business plan

Business Wales

Government

Free support and advice for those starting a business

Non-governmental support

The Prince's Trust

Supported over 80,000 young entrepreneurs

Since 1983

Enterprise programme

Majority

Commercial banks

Capital loans

Business plan

Enterprise will be a success

Funds secured

Vision

Reality

Determination and resilience become crucial

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External Influences

External influences that can affect a business

Anything outside the business that impacts it

A positive or negative

Outside of business's control

Different influences for every business but there are common ones

Political influences

Have a stable government

Different parties

All have their own plans and things they want to achieve

Conservatives and Labour are biggest political groups

Conservatives

In favour of businesses

Labour

In favour of employees

Would each change legislation to help what they think should be done

Increasing minimum wage

Creating more health and safety laws

Cut business tax

Social factors

Society is constantly changing

Families

Father responsible for earning income

Mother staying at home or with a part time job

Approximately 2 children

Social trends

What society and consumers want changes

Consumers

Spend more time online

More vocal about opinions

Different interests to a decade ago

More concerned about the environment

Environmental issues

Way goods are made

How they're promoted

How they're distributed

Pollution

Waste

Resources

Technology

Constantly evolves and continues to advance

More intelligent and efficient robotics

Allow businesses to produce goods quicker and more cheaply

Self-checkout

Using apps to track goods

The internet

How we buy goods

How business promote goods

The way that employees work

The economy

Goes through natural patterns

Economic booms

Employment is high

Incomes are higher

Economy is doing well

Slumps

Economy isn't doing well

More unemployment

Average income lower

Less confidence in the market

Where we are in the economic cycle will affect business decisions

Example of how each influence could impact a business 

Nintendo

Technology company

Famous for making consoles and games

Politically

It's important for them to know who is in power

Conservatives in power

May open factory in UK

Lower taxes

Employee costs shouldn't rise too much

Social influences

The way they promote

Likely be different to 50 years ago

The environment

Most products use lots of plastic

Shipped from Asia

May have to redesign products or produce them closer to customers

Economic issues 

Need to understand how healthy economy is

During an economic slump

Customers can't afford to buy high priced consoles

Company need to adapt tactics

Technological factors

How Nintendo makes products

Machines and robotics they use

The way they transport products

Augmented reality games

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