61) A radio ad by the dairy farmers of Washington State stated that the milk produced in the state
was of higher quality because of the way the farmers treat their cows. They said that the
difference comes from how comfortable they make their cows. Among others, this differentiation
could certainly appeal to animal lovers and those moving toward organic products. This is an
example of ________.
A) personnel differentiation
B) channel differentiation
C) service differentiation
D) product differentiation
E) image differentiation
62) A company which can differentiate itself by designing a better and faster delivery system
that provides more effective and efficient solutions to consumers is most likely using ________
differentiation.
A) services
B) channel
C) image
D) product
E) employee
63) Suppliers who are dependable in their on-time delivery, order completeness, and order-cycle
time are most likely to be differentiated based on ________.
A) resilience
B) innovativeness
C) insensitivity
D) reliability
E) expertise
64) Suppliers who are better at handling emergencies, product recalls, and inquiries are most
likely to be differentiated based on their ________.
A) innovativeness
B) thoroughness
C) resilience
D) insensitivity
E) reliability
65) A supplier creates better information systems, and introduces bar coding, mixed pallets, and
other methods of helping the consumer. The supplier is most likely to be differentiated on its
________.
A) innovativeness
B) reliability
C) insensitivity
D) resilience
E) accuracy
66) Which of the following traits of a brand’s ability to become a lovemark relates to drawing
together stories, metaphors, dreams, and symbols?
A) intimacy
B) mystery
C) insensitivity
D) sensuality
E) practicality
67) Which of the following traits of a brand’s ability to become a lovemark keeps the five senses
of sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste on constant alert for new textures, intriguing scents and
tastes, music, and other such stimuli?
A) sensuality
B) intimacy
C) mystery
D) practicality
E) sensitivity
68) Which of the following traits of a brand’s ability to become a lovemark implies empathy,
commitment, and passion?
A) practicality
B) sensuality
C) morality
D) mystery
E) intimacy
69) Randall Ringer and Michael Thibodeau see ________ as based on deep metaphors that
connect to
people’s memories, associations, and stories.
A) cultural branding
B) narrative branding
C) brand journalism
D) emotional branding
E) personal branding
70) Which element of a brand story framework do Randall Ringer and Michael Thibodeau relate
to the time, place, and context of the brand story?
A) cast
B) pitch
C) narrative arc
D) setting
E) language
71) Which element of a brand story framework do Randall Ringer and Michael Thibodeau relate
to the way the narrative logic unfolds over time, including actions, desired experiences, defining
events, and the moment of epiphany?
A) language
B) pitch
C) cast
D) setting
E) narrative arc
72) Which element of a brand story framework do Randall Ringer and Michael Thibodeau relate
to the authenticating voice, metaphors, symbols, themes, and leitmotifs?
A) narrative arc
B) context
C) language
D) setting
E) cast
73) Which of the following statements about the branding guidelines for a small business is true?
A) A small business must creatively conduct low-cost marketing research.
B) A small business must avoid leveraging secondary brand associations.
C) A small business must separate the well-integrated brand elements to enhance both brand
awareness and brand image.
D) A small business must disintegrate the brand elements to maximize the contribution of each
of the three main sets of brand equity drivers.
E) A small business must focus on building more than two strong brands based on a number of
associations.
74) All marketing strategy is built on segmentation, targeting, and positioning.
75) Positioning is the act of designing the company’s offering and image to occupy a distinctive
place in the minds of the target market.
76) The result of positioning is the successful creation of an employee-focused value proposition.
77) Positioning requires that marketers define and communicate only the differences between
their brand and its competitors.
78) The competitive frame of reference defines which other brands a brand competes with.
79) Category membership is seen as the products which function as close substitutes of a brand.
80) A company is more likely to be hurt by current competitors than by emerging competitors or
new technologies.
81) The industry concept of competition reveals a broader set of actual and potential competitors
than competition defined in just the market concept.
82) Using the industry approach, competitors are defined as companies that satisfy the same
customer need.
83) To analyze its competitors, a company needs to gather information about both the real and
the perceived strengths and weaknesses of each competitor.
84) Associations that make up points-of-difference are based exclusively on product features.
85) Points-of-parity are attributes or benefits consumers strongly associate with a brand and
believe that they could not find to the same extent with a competitive brand.
86) Points-of-parity may be shared among two or more brands.
87) Category points-of-parity are unique to a brand.
88) Category points-of-parity may change over time due to technological advances, legal
developments, or consumer trends.
89) Category points-of-parity are associations designed to overcome perceived weaknesses of the
brand.
90) A competitive point-of-parity negates competitors’ perceived points-of-difference.
91) Trying to be all things to all people leads to highest-common-denominator positioning,
which is typically effective.
92) Straddle positioning refers to a brand using different positioning with different categories of
competitors.
93) Occasionally, a company will be able to straddle two frames of reference with one set of
points-of-difference and points-of-parity.
94) Perceptual maps provide quantitative portrayals of market situations and the way consumers
view different products, services, and brands along various dimensions.
95) The purpose of brand mantras is to ensure that employees and external marketing partners
understand what the brand is to represent to the customers.
96) Brand mantras must communicate both what a brand is and what it is not.
97) Brand mantras are typically designed to capture the brand’s points-of-parity, that is, what is
unique about the brand.
98) Brands are never affiliated with categories in which they do not hold membership.
99) There are situations in which consumers know a brand’s category membership but may not
be convinced the brand is a valid member of the category.
100) The typical approach to positioning is to inform consumers of a brand’s membership before
stating its point-of-difference.
101) The product descriptor that follows the brand name is often a concise means of conveying
category origin.
102) If Barry compares his organization’s products to those of leaders in the field, then he is
conveying category membership by “comparing to exemplars”.
103) A good illustration of negatively correlated attributes or benefits is good taste versus bad
taste.
104) A leverageable advantage is one that a company can use as a springboard to new
advantages.
105) Competitive advantage is a company’s ability to perform in one or more ways that
competitors cannot or will not match.
106) The means of differentiation that are often most compelling to consumers relate to aspects
of the product and service.
107) Companies cannot achieve differentiation by differentiating their channels, as this is not the
purpose of a distribution channel.
108) A good positioning should contain points-of-difference and points-of-parity that have
rational but not emotional components.
109) Brand storytelling is a less-structured approach to brand positioning.
110) Narrative branding is based on deep metaphors that connect to people’s memories,
associations, and stories.
111) Cultural branding is essential for small firms, but ineffective for large companies.
112) Small businesses must focus on building one or two strong brands based on one or two key
associations.
113) While creating a loyal brand community is useful for large companies, it is not cost-
effective for small firms.
114) What are the requirements for deciding on a positioning strategy?
115) With respect to positioning, explain points-of-parity and points-of-difference.
116) With the help of an example, explain straddle positioning.
117) Describe three methods by which a brand can communicate category membership.
118) Briefly describe four brand differentiation strategies.
119) Explain three variables a firm should consider when analyzing potential threats posed by
competitors.
120) Name and briefly explain three less-structured alternatives to competitive brand positioning.
121) What are the five elements of narrative branding as described by Randall Ringer and
Michael Thibodeau?
122) Randall Ringer and Michael Thibodeau see narrative branding as based on deep metaphors
that connect to people’s memories, associations, and stories. Briefly describe their framework for
a brand story.
123) How does a loyal brand community support the positioning and branding of a small
business? Provide an example to support your explanation.
124) With the help of an example, explain why a company’s competition may not be from
companies in the same category.
125) Belling is a chain of coffee shops. List possible competitors first from an industry point of
view and then from the market point of view.
126) There are three key consumer criteria that determine whether a brand association can truly
function as a point-of-difference. When the Westin Stamford hotel in Singapore advertised that it
was the world’s tallest hotel, it attempted to create a point-of-difference (POD). Explain why the
hotel may not have been successful in its attempt to create its POD.
127) Belling is a chain of coffee shops. Give an example of a category point-of-parity and a
competitive point-of-parity for the company.
128) Belling is a chain of coffee shops. Give an example of a point-of-parity and a point-of-
difference for the company.
129) Give an example of the use of straddle positioning.
130) Define a brand mantra and provide an example of a brand mantra.
131) Give an example of how a brand can be affiliated with a category in which it does not hold
membership.
132) Belling begins most advertising messages by announcing category benefits and then
moving on to its specific positioning. Offer one reason why Belling may adopt this strategy.
133) How can coffee shop chain Belling convey its category membership? List the methods it
can use to achieve this.
134) As a company seeks to establish a category membership designation, how does the
company approach points-of-difference? What is done first?
135) Provide three examples of negatively correlated attributes and benefits.
136) Define leverageable advantage with an example.
137) How does a company differentiate its market offerings using employee differentiation?
Provide an example of a company using employee differentiation.
138) Companies can achieve competitive advantage through the way they design their
distribution channel. What three areas are considered in this design process?
139) Belling wants to analyze the threats posed by its competitors. Which three variables must it
monitor to achieve this?
140) Sally’s is a boutique bakery that specializes in cupcakes. How can Sally’s create channel
differentiation to stand apart from its competitors?
141) Sally’s is a boutique bakery that specializes in cupcakes. How can Sally’s create image
differentiation to stand apart from its competitors?
142) Sally’s is a boutique bakery that specializes in cupcakes. Give one method by which Sally’s
can conduct low-cost market research.
143) Sally’s is a boutique bakery that specializes in cupcakes. Give some methods by which
Sally’s can position itself without spending a lot on promotions.