Suppose that a retail store conducts a mail survey of its customers and finds that 50
percent of the customers believe store personnel are “courteous.” Which benchmark or
comparison would be most useful for interpreting this result?
a. The annual dollars spent at the store by those customers who believe store personnel
are courteous.
b. How the 50 percent figure compares with that for competitors.
c. The percentage of store personnel who have completed training in customer service
and public relations.
d. How the 50 percent figure compares with industrial or wholesale institutions and
stores.
e. The percentage of store personnel who feel they are courteous to customers.
To maintain the control needed to obtain accurate information, marketers approach
marketing research as a process. Which of the following steps of that process focuses
on uncovering the nature and boundaries of the marketing situation to be studied?
a. Locating and defining problems
b. Designing the project
c. Collecting data
d. Interpreting findings
e. Reporting and analyzing findings
Scenario3.4
Use the following to answer the questions.
WhiteWave Foods, producer of brands such as Silk Soymilk, specializes in
manufacturing innovative and nutritious food products. Silk Soymilk was first launched
in 1996, and is committed to the health of its customers, as well as the health of the
planet. At Silk, they have offset all of their energy consumption with wind power,
preventing over
16,000 tons of greenhouse gasses from entering the atmosphere each year. Silk Soymilk
is made from a mixture of organic and natural, non-genetically modified soy beans,
reducing the amount of pesticides in the air, soil, and water. Since 2002 they have been
sponsoring the FarmAid concert, whose mission is to keep family farmers on their own
land and ensure a safe, healthy food supply for all Americans.
The use of wind power to offset energy consumption by Silk Soymilk’s parent company
demonstrates its commitment to:
a. consumerism.
b. ethical marketing.
c. social responsibility.
d. philanthropic strategy.
e. environmental marketing.
When conducting marketing research in another country, researchers should begin by
using focus groups and other survey methods to refine their understanding of customer
needs and preferences.
a. True
b. False
Sales promotion activities are generally used in conjunction with other promotional
efforts.
a. True
b. False
Customs and taboos are culture-bound and should be taken into consideration when
products are marketed in a foreign environment.
a. True
b. False
The Grummond Group buys air conditioner components in industrialized countries and
sells them to business customers in developing countries where the air conditioners are
assembled. Grummond is most likely classified as a(n) _____.
a. trading company
b. strategic alliance
c. joint venture
d. licensee
e. exporter
Supporting services, such as installation and guarantees, are included in products.
a. True
b. False
A service is intangible and is the result of the application of human or mechanical
efforts to people or objects.
a. True
b. False
Scenario 14.1
Use the following to answer the questions.
Landry Restaurants Inc. owns a number of different franchised restaurants, including
the Rain Forest Cafe and their recent addition, the T-Rex Cafe. Both the Rain Forest and
T-Rex restaurants differentiate themselves from their competitors by offering a unique
dining experience. At the Rain Forest Cafe, you can dine under a ceiling of lush tropical
forest plants, while you are viewing the enormous aquarium with exotic fish.
Periodically, the rain forest explodes with the sound of waterfalls and birds. Giant
stuffed monkeys, parrots, and other jungle creatures are planted within the landscape.
The Rain Forest Cafe also contains a gift shop, where customers can purchase t- shirts,
hats, and other items emblazoned with the Rain Forest logo. The newer T-Rex Cafe has
a similar approach to the uniqueness of the dining experience. The T-Rex Cafe offers
guests a hands-on prehistoric experience, including educational, interactive computer
screens. Customers can also pan for precious gems and fossils in
Discovery Creek or feast on food from the Kitchen of Fire. The T-Rex Cafe also has a
gift shop, where customers can purchase items with the T-Rex logo or build their very
own stuffed dinosaur, through “Build-a-Dino” by the “Build-a-Bear” franchise.
Refer to Scenario 14.1. The Rain Forest Cafe and T-Rex Cafe are usually located in
tourist-dense areas or large shopping malls. Since the restaurants’ primary focus is to
obtain customers who are walking by, they would definitely not want as their locations.
a. strip centers
b. free-standing buildings
c. regional shopping centers
d. the Mall of America
e. a traditional business district
Marissa, a product manager, thinks her company’s InstaCup coffee maker is currently in
the growth stage of the product life cycle. If so, the profits for InstaCup coffee maker
and the number of competitors are growing.
a. are negative
b. have peaked
c. are declining
d. are zero
e. are declining
Safe Auto advertises its automobile insurance as “minimum coverage for minimum
budgets.” Safe Auto is engaging in:
a. non-price competition.
b. demand-based pricing.
c. competitive pricing.
d. price differentiation.
e. price competition.
The type of competitive structure that exists in the case where there are almost no
substitutes for a product is:
a. monopolistic competition.
b. an oligopoly.
c. pure competition.
d. a monopoly.
e. noncompetition.
Scenario 12.4
Use the following to answer the questions.
The BASF Chemical Company in Germany has developed a new rubberized coating.
The product is used on cell phones and other hand-held electronic devices that give
them protection from falls and scratches. BASF plans to market the product directly to
businesses that manufacture the casings for these types of products. BASF currently
uses a system of salespeople headquartered in Germany, while its primary business
customers are in China.
Refer to Scenario 12.4. If BASF were to price its products in barrels from the factory,
before it is loaded on the carrier, this would be an example of pricing.
a. buy-back allowance
b. geographic
c. F.O.B destination
d. F.O.B. origin
e. base-point
How do providers of time-sensitive services smooth the fluctuations in demand from
times of peak demand to times of off-peak demand?