The approximate worth of a customer to a company in economic terms is known as the
_____.
a. net present value (NPV)
b. customer lifetime value (CLV)
c. customer present value (CPV)
d. customer future value (CFV)
e. total customer value (TCV)
_____ refer to the characteristics of the person or character delivering a message that
influence persuasion.
a. Primary effects
b. Message effects
c. Peripheral effects
d. Central effects
e. Source effects
Melissa wants to buy a new hair dryer. She considers five models and assigns them
belief ratings from 1= very poor to 10= very good and importance ratings from 10=
most important to 1=least important. She wants the model to excel at any one of the
three features. She sets a mental cutoff, which is equal to the highest importance rating.
According to the disjunctive rule, which of the following models would she select?
a. Model A
b. Model B
c. Model C
d. Model D
e. Model E
ENERGY BAR SCENARIO
Nutrition labels on products provide considerable information for consumers. For
example, a consumer deciding among the many brands of energy bars might compare
three offerings: Crayton Bar, Goodie-meal Bar, and Snacky-Bar. The most important
attribute for this consumer is protein content, followed by calories, taste, sugar, price
and fat content. This consumer would like an energy bar with high-protein content but
low in calories, sugar, fat, and price, and also one that tastes good. Information for all
the attributes is found on the product nutrition label except for the taste attribute. This
information is summarized in the following table:
Refer to Energy Bar Scenario. The consumer is unaware of the taste of the three bars.
Taste is an example of a(n) _____ attribute.
a. search
b. perceptual
c. underlying
d. content
e. determinant
Which of the following theory attempts to explain how environmental elements can
lead to near 180 degree changes in shopping orientation?
a. Reversal theory
b. Trait theory
c. Construct theory
d. Organismic theory
e. Phenomenal field theory
LANDSCAPING SCENARIO
Petals and Palettes is a firm that provides landscaping services. Mr. Edward Roth, the
chief agriculturist of the firm, in an interview to a home and garden magazine, talks
about how landscaping can be a tightrope walk. “Our prices vary vastly according to
what our clients want. A major haul may cost anything between $300,000 or more for
an area spanning a 100 sq.ft. We try and give our clients their money’s worth.” Mr. Roth
explains further, “However, we cannot rule out times when our opinion differs with the
client’s opinion of “worth”. We had a client who wanted his garden to have a “bit of an
air of sophistication without major change.” I suggested switching to a finer, more
delicate grass. However, when it was done he complained that “the grass was still
green” and that he cannot see any “refinement.” So, it’s important to know exactly what
the client wants and get to the specifics of it in detail.” Such stories should not
discourage interested entrepreneurs from foraying into landscaping. “Another client
asked for something novel and a little different. So, we installed only colored leaves.
The idea of a garden with no flowers required a little getting used to for him but he was
pleased with the aesthetics.” The work gives you an opportunity to brighten people’s
lives. “Once, a mother came with the request for a “fairy tale garden” for her daughters.
So, we had water bodies with lilies, lotuses and mermaids; bronze statues of different
characters from famous fairy tales. The mother beamed, “It’s as it should be.” A word of
caution, however, its not just happy endings all the way in the land of landscaping. “We
gave a full refund to a client who wanted us to recreate his childhood. We created a
green and lush environment with swings on trees, but unfortunately, he grew up in an
arid country with sparse vegetation. So, what we gave him “never gave him a feeling of
his childhood” as it was very different from where he grew up.” Refer to Landscaping
Scenario. A mother who wanted a fairy tale garden for her daughters was very happy
with the service provided by Petals and Palettes. According to her, the garden was just
as she wanted it to be. With respect to cognitive categorization, which of the following
reactions best illustrates her response?
a. Assimilation
b. Accommodation
c. Contrast
d. Selection
e. Distortion
Which of the following ways of measuring emotions automatically records visceral
reactions or neurological brain activity?
a. Autonomic measures
b. Self-report measures
c. Introspective measures
d. Administered measures
e. Standardized measures
Carl wants to buy either an XBox 360, a PS3, or a Nintendo Wii. He has identified two
important attributes to compare, price and game options. Carl decided that he would
reject the ones that failed to meet the minimum cutoffs he sets on both the attributes.
Which of following decision rules is Carl employing to choose a video game console?
a. Conjunctive rule
b. Ordinate rule
c. Lexicographic rule
d. Compensatory rule
e. EBA rule
Which of the following types of motivations promotes behaviors that are aimed at
changing one’s current state to a level that is more idealnot simply maintaining the
current state of existence?
a. Preventive motivation
b. Homeostatic motivation
c. Self-improvement motivation
d. Utilitarian motivation
e. Fixative motivation
In the Chinese calendar, 2012 is the year of the Dragon. Chinese consumers are
purchasing various consumer products adorned with dragon motifs as they believe that
it will bring good luck and prosperity. According to the CSV dimension, cultures in
which superstitions and myths are given high value tend to be high in _____.
a. masculinity
b. individualism
c. power distance
d. short-term orientation
e. uncertainty avoidance
Which of the following statements is true of consumer behavior as a field of study?
a. Consumer behavior traces its roots back to the 1700s when the first book in this field
was published.
b. Consumer behavior shares strong interdisciplianry connections with economics,
psychology, and marketing.
c. Consumer behavior excludes from its purview the influence of human sciences like
psychology and sociology to maintain its scientific nature.
d. Consumer behavior allows little scope for conducting original research.
e. Consumer behavior uses quantitative research methods like experimentation and
correlation exclusively.
_____ refers to the extent to which a company actively monitors its customers’ attitudes
over time.
a. Marketing audit
b. Affect monitoring
c. Attitude tracking
d. Planned monitoring
e. Proactive assessment
The practice of using decision-making shortcuts to arrive at satisfactory, rather than
optimal, decisions is called _____.
a. modeling
b. satisficing
c. shilling
d. shaping
e. renquing
MNC SCENARIO
Mr. Adam Smith works as a senior executive for Corebiz Corp., a multinational
company with subsidiaries in many Asian countries. The firm believes in a marketing
strategy that strongly resonates the essence of the local culture in its implementation.
The company relocates Mr. Smith to Beijing to handle their operations in China. A few
months into his stay, Mr. Smith begins to learn the ways of life and appropriate
behavior in China. When Mr. Smith was invited for tea by his colleagues, he observed
people around him and learned the right way to tap his finger and fold a napkin. He also
learned that the Chinese revere their elders and treat them with respect. Even when
there is no kinship involved, an older person should never be addressed with his/her
name. Any show of disrespect, especially “name calling,” is shunned upon by society;
and the person found doing so, risks being ridiculed by everyone. Though these
learnings can sometimes be inconvenient for Mr. Smith owing to the vast cultural
difference between the United States and China, Mr. Smith thinks that it is worth all the
trouble.
Refer to MNC Scenario. In China, any show of disrespect, especially “name calling,” is
shunned upon by society and the person found doing so, risks being ridiculed by
everyone. This is an example of cultural _____.
a. limitation
b. role
c. sanction
d. bias
e. stereotype
COFFEE-MAKER SCENARIO
Jane was visiting her friend and was served a coffee drink at her friend’s house that was
similar to the ones she’s had at coffee shops. Her friend told her that she can make such
coffee drinks with her single-serve pod coffee maker. Jane decided she”d like to buy
one as she wanted to enjoy similar coffee drinks at home, but she didn”t know much
about them. She searched the Internet and visited Bed Bath & Beyond, Sur La Table,
Williams Sonoma, and even Walmart. She realized there were several brands of the
product, such as Tassimo, Keurig, Brevity, Cuisinart, Bunn, Senseo, and Mr. Coffee.
With prices ranging from as low as $20 to several hundreds of dollars, it was difficult
for Jane to decide on a single brand. She was concerned about paying several hundred
dollars for a coffee maker. In the end, she shortlisted Tassimo, Keurig, and Cuisinart
over the others for further consideration, keeping in mind her budget as well as the
product features she was looking for. She deliberately left out Real and Fresh Coffeez,
even though it was believed to be a good brand as she had a bad experience with one of
its products. She did notice that Tassimo featured Well-Fresh coffee while none of the
others did, and she ended up purchasing Tassimo for $130. She bought it because that’s
her favorite brand of coffee and Jane strongly feels that the coffee experience at
Well-Fresh coffee is found nowhere else. In buying Tassimo, Jane hoped to replicate the
Well-Fresh coffee experience at home. Refer to Coffee-Maker Scenario. Jane
deliberately left out Real and Fresh Coffeez, even though it was believed to be a good
brand as she had a bad experience with one of its products. For Jane, Real and Fresh
Coffeez corresponds to the _____ set of alternatives in her awareness set.
a. inert
b. indifferent
c. passive
d. dormant
e. inept
IMMIGRANT SCENARIO
Anita, a second-generation-Asian immigrant, just started college. A self-assured girl,
she displays none of the self-conscious traits one usually sees in her parents. Unlike
Anita, her parents have had it tough with only enough money to make both ends meet.
Till the time Anita was born, they could not afford to live in any of the respectable
residential neighborhoods. Some of the neighborhood authorities make it mandatory for
aspiring residents to submit details like age, ethnicity, sex, occupation, income, region,
religion, and gender. Anita has always seen her parents juggle between two world-views
whenever they had to make up their minds as they try to negotiate between a perceived
sense of guilt for their native country and a perceived sense of loyalty for the host
country. Despite their insistence that she joins an Asian community, Anita joined Delta,
a sorority for geometry lovers. She has always been passionate about geometry and her
membership to Delta, not only defines her on-campus personality, it makes her “cool”
in front of her other peers. Refer to Immigrant Scenario. Anita has always seen her
parents juggle between two world-views whenever they had to make up their minds, as
they try to negotiate between a perceived sense of guilt for their native country and a
perceived sense of loyalty for the host country. Which of the following terms best
describes the negotiation that Anita’s parents deal with?
a. Intracultural
b. Integration
c. Enculturation
d. Bicultural
e. Isolation
Characteristics and traits, including personality and lifestyles, that help define a
consumer are referred to as _____.
a. value enhancers
b. individual identifiers
c. discriminators
d. individual differences
e. exemplars
Which of the following types of marketing techniques involve deceiving consumers
about the involvement of marketers in a communication?
a. Communal marketing
b. Affinity marketing
c. Cause marketing
d. Ambush marketing
e. Stealth marketing
Implicit memory creates _____ effects, which is learning that is developed in the
absence of attention.
a. subliminal
b. mere exposure
c. preattentive
d. mere association
e. distortive
John is evaluating four brands of 3D televisions and has decided that picture quality is
the most important attribute. As all of the alternatives exceeded his minimum cutoff for
picture quality, he then compared them on price. An option which John perceived as too
expensive was eliminated from further consideration as it exceeded the price cutoff he
had set. He then compared the remaining three alternatives in terms of the number of
HDMI inputs and eliminated one which did not possess the minimum number of inputs.
He continued in this manner until he was left with only one of the alternatives which he
finally decided to purchase. Which of the following rules did John employ to decide on
his purchase?
a. Conjunctive rule
b. Disjunctive rule
c. Compensatory rule
d. Lexicographic rule
e. EBA rule
The placement of information in a specific message at the beginning, middle, or end of
the message impacts the recall of the information and is a basic tenet of what is known
as the _____ effect.
a. contrast
b. congruency
c. linear progression
d. serial position
e. bandwagon
_____ are things that can be thought of as part of the consumer.
a. External influences
b. Innate influences
c. Internal influences
d. Social influences
e. Personal influences
Wendy generally buys tuberoses as their smell freshens up her room. She purchases
them even though they are not as pretty as some other flowers. However, when she buys
flowers for her friends, she generally chooses ornamental orchids and anthuriums,
although they don”t smell sweet. Which of the following is most likely responsible for
Wendy’s choice of flowers?
a. Social influences
b. Online resources
c. Product knowledge
d. Expert opinions
e. Situational influences
Richard, a tennis player, has dreams of winning all four Grand Slam titles so that he can
be a member of the exclusive club of players with a Career Grand Slam. This is an
example of a(n) _____ group.
a. primary
b. aspirational
c. associative
d. dissociative
e. informal
Which of the following is used to compare average scores for consumer attitudes from
one culture to the next?
a. Numerical equivalence
b. Attitudinal equivalence
c. Translational equivalence
d. Conceptual equivalence
e. Scalar equivalence
Walmart’s supply chain is as efficient and as economic as possible, which allows it to
offer lower prices than competing retailers. With only a few exceptions, Walmart offers
the same basic products in all of its stores, worldwide. What orientation does this
illustrate?
a. Market orientation
b. Customer orientation
c. Production orientation
d. Segmentation
e. Differentiation
The French believe that their wine is superior to wine produced elsewhere in the world.
This is an example of consumer _____.
a. sinocentrism
b. ethnocentrism
c. imperialism
d. feudalism
e. xenocentrism
Which of the following is true of how mood influences consumer behavior?
a. Consumers in bad moods tend to make decisions faster.
b. Consumers in bad moods tend to outspend their good-mood counterparts.
c. Consumers in bad moods tend to facilitate increased consumer satisfaction.
d. Consumers in bad moods tend to react better to service providers in bad moods.
e. Consumers in bad moods tend to be unaffected by environmental factors.
FINE DINING SCENARIO
Raffin, a fine dining restaurant in Manhattan, has reservation bookings running several
weeks in advance. Sara and her friends had made reservations two weeks in advance.
She had come across many good reviews about the restaurant that she decided to go
there. When the day finally came, Sara was excited as she had been eagerly looking
forward to the dining experience in Raffin. However, when she finally reached there
and approached the reception, she was told that her name was not listed. She was made
to wait for half an hour before she could get a table. Though the problem was sorted
out, Sara was less than pleased as she had made reservations two weeks in advance.
This initial hassle spoilt Sara’s remainder of the evening and she held the poor
management at Raffin responsible. It didn”t help when Sara, an environmentalist,
learned that the management at Raffin simply throws away their waste material without
giving a thought for other more environmental friendly ways of disposing waste. At the
end of the meal Sara was handed a customer feedback card. The card had a
questionhow do you rate your overall satisfaction at Raffin? The answer choices were in
the form of a scale that included completely
dissatisfied/dissatisfied/satisfied/completely satisfied. Sara expressed that she was
completely dissatisfied with the restaurant’s overall services. Refer to Fine Dining
Scenario. At the end of the meal Sara was handed a customer feedback card. The card
had a questionhow do you rate your overall satisfaction at Raffin? The answer choices
were in the form of a scale that included completely
dissatisfied/dissatisfied/satisfied/completely satisfied. Sara expressed that she was
completely dissatisfied with the restaurant’s overall services. This is an example of a(n)
_____ measure.
a. direct, global
b. attribute-specific
c. categorical
d. disconfirmation
e. universal
Which of the following is true about message appeals?
a. Highly explicit content tends to direct attention toward the product.
b. Humorous ads appear to be most effective when the consumer’s attitudes are initially
negative rather than positive.
c. Fear appeals appear to be effective when advertisers show how difficult it is to
implement the desired response.
d. Humor appeals always increase the credibility of a message source.
e. Elements of humor are often used in violent ads to lessen the degree to which the ad
is disturbing.
John’s kids have been pestering him to buy them shoes with wheels. However, he’s
concerned whether using such shoes would be safe for his children or make them more
prone to injuries. Which of the following best reflects John’s concern?
a. Financial risk
b. Physical risk
c. Performance risk
d. Time risk
e. Social risk
An exchange is the acting out of a decision to give something up in return for
something of equal value.
Utilitarian value is derived from a product that helps the consumer solve problems and
accomplish tasks that are a part of being a consumer.
A perceptual map is used to depict graphically the positioning of competing products.
Every product’s value is made up of the basic benefits, plus the augmented product, plus
the “feel” benefits.
It is when societal goals are out of reach given the accepted means of achieving them
that deviance occurs.
Teleological evaluations focus on how people accomplish their goals.
The segment or segments of a market that a company serves to is called the focal
market.
Social psychology essentially deals with the intricacies of mental reactions involved in
information processing within the individual, rather than between individuals.
Relational switching costs refer to the emotional and psychological consequences of
changing from one brand/retailer/service provider to another.
Changing demographics have no impact on consumer behavior.
Explain the formula for predicting attitudes using the attitude-toward-the-object
approach.
Consumers who reach the elaboration stage are least likely to meaningfully encode
information so that intentional retrieval becomes impossible at a later stage.
Sensory memory is considered to be preattentive.
Congruent music lowers consumers’ quality perceptions.
Every concept within a consumer’s associative network is linked to every other concept.
Explain the JND concept and how it can be applied in marketing practice.
Limited decision making usually occurs when there are relatively low amounts of
purchase risk and product involvement.
Marketing communications that present product information in a way that evokes mild
levels of emotions will tend to be less effective in producing recall than
communications that are affectively neutral.
Define autobiographical memory and describe one of yours. Explain how a marketer
might be able to influence consumers to recall positive autobiographical memories.