An experience such as a vacation can be defined as a market offering.
Commercial sources of information typically legitimize and evaluate products for
buyers.
Gender segmentation has long been used in clothing, cosmetics, toiletries, and
magazines.
Value-based pricing uses the sellers’ perception of value as the key to pricing.
Consumers welcome e-mail marketing messages; opportunities to control the messages
they receive are frequently ignored.
The biggest involvement in a foreign market comes through exporting—entering
foreign markets by selling goods produced in the company’s home country.
During the presentation step of the selling process, the salesperson tells the “value
story” to the buyer, showing how the company’s offer solves the customer’s problems.
Social media sites primarily exist for broad topics, making it difficult for marketers to
appeal to smaller communities and niche markets.
Competitive exchanges such as comparison advertisements can provide useful
information to consumers and advantages from brands. However, they also might
reflect negatively on the entire industry.
Disintermediation occurs when radically new types of channel intermediaries displace
traditional ones.
When a company chooses what principle to follow on issues of ethics and social
responsibility, there are two common philosophies to use as guides: let the free market
and legal system decide or let individual managers and companies choose.
Good service recovery can turn angry customers into loyal ones.
Viral marketing allows marketers to send tailored messages to targeted customers who
have chosen to receive them.
In a subsistence economy, fast growth in manufacturing results in rapid overall
economic growth.
A voluntary chain is a wholesaler-sponsored group of independent retailers that engages
in group buying and common merchandising.
Sales of products decline because of technological advances, shifts in consumer tastes,
and increased competition.
A good marketing message will try to move consumers through several steps of the
buyer-readiness stages in a single message.
For few companies, the package itself has become an important promotional medium.
GreenTree Lawn and Garden Products is engaged in marketing strategy development.
The first part of the marketing strategy statement created by management should outline
the product’s planned price, distribution, and marketing budget for the first year.
The single most important demographic trend in the United States that marketers should
understand is the changing family structure of the population.
Shopper marketing involves focusing the entire marketing process—from product and
brand development to logistics, promotion, and merchandisings—toward turning
shoppers into buyers at the point of sale.
Internal factors affecting pricing include the company’s overall marketing strategy,
objectives, and marketing mix.
A marketing channel works most effectively when each channel member performs the
tasks it does best.
Each department in a company can be thought of as a link in the company’s internal
value chain.
The World Trade Organization established the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade,
which replaced the WTO in 1995 and now oversees the original WTO provisions.
The most obvious advantages that Internet-based survey research offers over mail and
personal interviewing approaches are high speed and low costs.
The number of products supplied indicates the length of a channel.
In evaluating different market segments, a firm should look at three factors: segment
size and growth, segment structural attractiveness, and company objectives and
resources.
Viviana wants to be the first to own the new fashion style of shoes. Viviana is an early
mainstream adopter.
Data ages quickly.
In an endorsement style of execution, the endorsers can be characters that represent the
product.
On the BCG matrix, “question marks” are high-growth, high-share businesses or
products.
Customer-perceived value is defined as the customer’s evaluation of the difference
between all the benefits and all the costs of a market offering relative to those of
competing offers.
Communications technologies such as cell phones and the Internet give companies new
media for interacting with targeted consumers, but these technologies also give
consumers more control over the advertising messages they receive.
Companies need to respond to a competitor’s price change if its own market share and
profits will decrease because of the change.
Early mainstream adopters accept new ideas after the average person.
Business buyers are subject primarily to economic influences when they make their
buying decisions. Emotional or personal factors rarely are involved.
In a retailer cooperative, independent retailers band together to set up a jointly owned,
central wholesale operation and conduct joint merchandising and promotion efforts.
The direct mail medium has very low cost per exposure.
Habitual buying behavior involves consumers searching extensively for information
about brands and evaluating brand characteristics.
A ________ is a small store, located near a residential area that is open long hours
seven days a week and carries a limited line of high-turnover goods.
A) convenience store
B) chain store
C) department store
D) supermarket
E) specialty store
A catalog retailer in the United States has identified African American professionals
between the ages of 35 and 45 as a group of potential customers for its products. The
retailer plans to direct its marketing efforts toward this group of consumers. Which of
the following market segmentation variables did the catalog retailer most likely use?
A) demographic
B) psychographic
C) user status
D) loyalty status
E) usage rate
Target return pricing uses the concept of a(n) ________, which shows the total cost and
total revenue expected at different sales volume levels.
A) BCG matrix
B) break-even chart
C) SWOT analysis
D) demand curve
E) experience curve
Which of the following is a geographical pricing strategy?
A) basing-point pricing
B) segmented pricing
C) dynamic pricing
D) Internet pricing
E) location-based pricing
A manufacturer that offers cash or gifts to dealers for encouraging the purchase of its
products is using ________.
A) coupons
B) push money
C) promotional products
D) premiums
E) bonuses
A company that pursues ________ will react much more strongly to a competitor’s cost
reducing manufacturing breakthrough than to the same competitor’s advertising
increase.
A) product differentiation
B) low-cost leadership
C) customer intimacy
D) a middle-of-the-roaders strategy
E) product leadership
Refer to the scenario below to answer the following question(s).
The Treble Clef sells music books, musical instruments, and novelty gifts of a musical
nature. In recent years, owner Gary Zahn has served as the local representative of
several musical instrument manufacturers, providing a contact person for three local
schools. He sends a sample of a manufacturer’s products to schools that request a
demonstration or presentation. “If we don’t have it, we can definitely get it for you,”
Gary tells all Treble Clef visitors and customers.
Most walk-ins are particularly interested in a specific piece of sheet music from a
particular era or just browsing among the hundreds of music knick-knacks in the store.
Gary spends most of his time making presentations to beginners at the local schools and
making biweekly visits to the schools to deliver instruments, make minor repairs, or
pick up instruments to ship to the manufacturer for more complicated repairs.
After establishing a loyal customer base, Gary was convinced that a Treble Clef Web
site could benefit a variety of customers. He began with a simple Web site that provided
information about the store and the types of gifts and services available. The site
received so much response that Gary added a question-and-answer option. Questions
poured in, ranging from “Where can I get sheet music for ‘Hello, Dolly’?” to “Do you
carry clarinet reeds?” to “My saxophone needs two new pads. When will you be at
Elmhurst School to repair it?” The Web site is now able to accept credit card orders, and
gifts can even be wrapped and shipped for no extra charge.
“This Web site idea was fantastic!” Gary admitted. “It allows us to be so responsive.
And our novelties sales have doubled!”
Gary wants to expand the reach of his business. An effective approach to reaching the
most likely potential customers would be ________ marketing. The message will
include a link to Treble Clef’s Web site.
A) e-mail
B) viral
C) kiosk
D) mobile
E) catalog
Which of the following is most likely a manufacturer-sponsored retailer franchise
system?
A) international fast food chains like McDonald’s and Pizza Hut
B) Starbucks outlets operating within Target stores
C) Toyota and its network of independent franchised dealers
D) licensed bottlers that bottle and sell soft drinks to retailers
E) hotel chains like the Ritz Carlton and Shangri-La
Which of the following is NOT a category of consumer products?
A) unsought
B) specialty
C) convenience
D) luxury
E) shopping
________ includes all the activities involved in selling products or services directly to
final consumers for their personal, nonbusiness use.
A) Franchising
B) Retailing
C) Brokering
D) Wholesaling
E) Disintermediation
Which of the following is an example of an internal stimulus that would most likely
lead to problem recognition?
A) A buyer gets a new idea from an advertisement.
B) A buyer gets a new idea at a trade show.
C) A buyer is unhappy with a current supplier’s product quality.
D) A buyer receives a call from a salesperson offering better service.
E) A buyer learns about a new product at an industry convention.
Refer to the scenario below to answer the following question(s).
Reliable Tools Company is a manufacturer of hubs and axles for the trailer and heavy
truck industry. Although Reliable Tools only has 15 customers, the company is the sole
supplier of hub and axle components to those customers. Monthly sales at Reliable
Tools are approximately $1 million. “You might say we have all our eggs in one
basket,” says owner Arthur Deetz.
It is critical that a competent sales force be maintained in order to nurture those few but
large accounts. Ninety-five percent of Reliable Tools’ customers are located in
Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana, which means that travel time to all customers is relatively
short. However, given the nature of the industry, time spent with each customer is
crucial.
Which of the following promotions would be most appropriate for Reliable Tools to use
in its attempt to promote its products and generate new business leads?
A) rebates and price packs
B) premiums
C) specialty advertising
D) samples
E) conventions and trade shows
Which promotional tool is the most immediate, customized, and interactive?
A) segmented advertising
B) sales promotion
C) direct marketing
D) horizontal diversification
E) public relations
McDonald’s “Commitments to Offer Improved Nutrition Choices” strategy has added
healthy food options to its menu, phased out traditional artery-clogging trans fats,
launched a major multifaceted education campaign, and addressed environmental
issues. This strategy best exemplifies the ________ concept.
A) sustainable marketing
B) direct marketing
C) mercantilism
D) strategic planning
E) consumer business
________ can be a poor predictor of a person’s health, work or family status, needs, or
buying power.
A) Occupation
B) Education
C) Ethnicity
D) Religion
E) Age
Starbucks introduced a less-than-perfect mobile payments app, then worked out the
flaws after the launch. The company chose speed to market over a perfect app at
introduction. This illustrates ________.
A) why many companies engage in crowdsourcing
B) the influence of fast-changing market developments
C) why prototypes are so important
D) how idea screening can make a product a commercial success
E) the importance of different sources for idea generation
Bruno Servers has decided to decrease its prices on its popular higher-range servers.
The company can reasonably expect ________ to increase.
A) fixed costs
B) variable costs
C) demand
D) additional value
E) overhead costs
________ are manufacturer-owned and operated stores that offer prices as low as 50
percent below retail on a wide range of mostly surplus, discounted, or irregular items.
A) Category killers
B) Factory outlets
C) Specialty stores
D) Superstores
E) Power centers
Sunny Brews is a coffeehouse chain based in Boston. It recently introduced Eva, a mild
roast, which became immensely popular. This exemplifies ________.
A) benchmarking
B) diversification
C) mass customization
D) product development
E) downsizing
A product-oriented company focuses on ________.
A) the competitors’ products
B) the customers’ needs
C) its own products
D) the selling process
E) the competitors and the customers
Which of the following refers to a marketing intelligence technique?
A) interviewing customers randomly
B) increasing the annual budget for R&D
C) investing heavily in primary research
D) implementing product diversification
E) benchmarking competitors’ products
A number of top fashion-modeling agencies would most likely be charged with
________ for jointly determining what commissions they charge for models.
A) prestige pricing
B) competitive pricing
C) price bundling
D) dynamic pricing
E) price fixing
Which of the following is most likely a shortcoming of advertising?
A) It is the most expensive promotion tool.
B) It cannot reach masses of geographically dispersed buyers.
C) It is impersonal and lacks the direct persuasiveness of company salespeople.
D) It cannot trigger quick sales.
E) It cannot be used to build up a long-term image for a product.
Which type of store is much larger than regular supermarkets and offers a large
assortment of routinely purchased food products, nonfood items, and services?
A) off-price retailer
B) specialty store
C) factory outlet
D) superstore
E) convenience store
________ logistics involves moving products from the factory to resellers and
ultimately to customers.
A) Customer-centered
B) Reverse
C) Upstream
D) Outbound
E) Inbound
The major purpose of test marketing is to provide management with the information
needed to make a final decision about ________.
A) the entire marketing program
B) which market to compete in
C) whether to launch the new product
D) how to compete in the market
E) how long to compete in the market
Since business marketers have fewer buyers than consumer marketers, business buyers
often face ________ than do consumer buyers.
A) less complex buying decisions
B) shorter buying processes
C) informal buying processes
D) more complex buying decisions
E) fewer product details
Attributes that a buying center may look for in a supplier include all of the following
EXCEPT ________.
A) product quality
B) off-shore manufacturing
C) service quality
D) on-time delivery
E) competitive prices
Why is markup pricing most likely impractical?
A) Calculating costs is complicated due to fluctuations.
B) By tying the price to cost, sellers oversimplify pricing.
C) When all firms in the industry use this pricing method, prices tend to be similar.
D) The method ignores demand and competitor prices.
E) With a standard markup, consumers know when they are being overcharged.
Five characteristics are important in influencing an innovation’s rate of adoption. Which
of the following is NOT one of those characteristics?
A) relative advantage
B) compatibility
C) consumability
D) complexity
E) communicability
________ is a new product development approach in which one company department
works to complete its stage of the process before passing the new product along to the
next department and stage.
A) Team-based product development
B) Simultaneous product development
C) Sequential product development
D) Horizontal integration
E) Vertical integration
What causes a specific brand’s life cycle to change quickly?
A) costs of raw materials
B) changing demographics
C) shift in company strategy
D) competitive attacks and responses
E) new technology
How can marketers reach the Generation Zers effectively?
How do socially responsible firms positively impact consumers and the environment?
Describe the political-legal factors that a company should consider before deciding to
conduct business in a foreign country.
Briefly describe the history of legal concerns about packaging and labels.
What is a business portfolio? What are the steps involved in business portfolio
planning?
Differentiate between a product idea, a product concept, and a product image.
As competition and costs increase, and as productivity and quality decrease, what are
the three major marketing tasks facing service companies in contemporary times?
Why is the use of direct-response television growing in popularity?
Discuss the first two levels of the environmental sustainability portfolio that pay off in
the short term.
Why is a firm’s organizational climate an important part of building a successful sales
staff?
How might a firm benefit from implementing an “intrapreneurial” program?
Explain the controversy surrounding cause-related marketing.
Explain the concept of the price ceiling.
Why do population shifts interest marketers?
Cultural factors exert a broad and deep influence on consumer behavior. The marketer
needs to understand the role played by the buyer’s culture, subculture, and social class.
Distinguish between culture, subculture, and social class.
What are the two advantages of an innovation management system for developing new
products? Provide four strategies for a company to use to establish a successful system.