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6-29 Creative Homework/Short Project Think about some of the products and services you purchase each
month (pizza on Saturday night or your smart phone bill) as well as a few impulse purchases you
might make (new music from iTunes). Categorize each of these items according to Maslow’s hierarchy
of needs. Explain why your budget does or doesn’t match this hierarchy of needs (i.e., most of your
budget goes toward physiological needs, followed by safety needs and so on). What does this say
about your motivations?
6-30 In Class, 10–25 Minutes for Teams Assume you are a sales manager of products used in
landscaping. Your customers are municipalities that range in size from very large to very small. Your
company offers its customers a wide range of products—everything from simple rakes and shovels to
large heavy-duty tractors and computerized irrigation equipment. Thus, purchases made by your
customers include straight rebuys, modified rebuys, and new-task purchases. You have a meeting
scheduled this week with your regional sales manager. He wants to talk about how you can get the
business for all types of purchases. Develop an outline of your planned discussion on this. Then with a
classmate, present your ideas to your boss in a role-playing situation.
6-31 For Further Research (Individual) In this chapter, we learned that firms may use rich media in their
messages online to create interaction and engagement with consumers. “Surf” the web and find at least
three examples of rich media. Develop a report that describes the three rich media examples you found,
what you believe the advertiser was seeking to gain in terms of interaction and engagement, and your
opinion about the rich media suggestions for use in this ad and how it might be improved.
Students can find examples of rich media and share their findings with the class.
6-32 For Further Research (Groups) We learned in this chapter that when considering a product need,
consumers have an evoked set of brands and a consideration set of brands. With some of your classmates,
conduct a simple research study and explain your results using the following steps. Select a product that
students in college would might purchase.
a. Develop a questionnaire that you will ask student participants to complete. The
questionnaire should ask students to list all of the brands of the product you have selected
that they are aware of. Give them at least five minutes to complete this question.
b. Then ask them to tell you which ones would they seriously consider buying if they were
going to make a purchase today.
c. Develop a report using the results of the survey. What conclusions can you draw from the
research?
APPLYING MARKETING METRICS
B2B customers (clients) are very busy professionals and thus are notoriously reluctant to take time to
provide data to marketers. In order to measure important issues described in the chapter, such as overall
client satisfaction, service quality by the vendor firm, level of customer engagement, repurchase
intentions, and speed and effectiveness of problem resolution, marketers must employ the most
user-friendly and efficient data collection methods available when dealing with these professional
business clients. Otherwise, it is highly unlikely that they will take time to provide any useful data for
market planning and decision making.
6-33 Take a few minutes to go back and briefly review what you learned in Chapter 4 about the different
approaches to collecting data. Propose an approach to collecting the above types of information from a
busy B2B customer in a way that is most likely to result in his or her cooperation. Be as specific as you
can in describing your chosen approach and explain why you selected it.
MyMarketingLab for answers to Assisted Graded Questions.
CHOICES: WHAT DO YOU THINK?
6-34 Critical Thinking Changing demographics and cultural values are important to marketers.
What are some current trends that may affect the marketing of the following products?
a. Housing
b. Food
c. Education
d. Clothing
e. Travel and tourism
f. Automobiles
MyMarketingLab for answers to Assisted Graded Questions
6-35 Critical Thinking Consumers often buy products because they feel pressure from reference groups to
conform. Does conformity exert a positive or a negative influence on consumers? With what types of
products is conformity more likely to occur?
6-36 Ethics Marketers have been shelling out the bucks on sensory marketing techniques for years to appeal
to your subconscious mind. And studies show that it works. But is sensory marketing fair? Some say
it’s a way to enhance the purchasing process, while others say marketers are unethically manipulating
consumers. What are some of the pros and cons associated with sensory marketing? What is your
position?
6-37 Critical Thinking E-commerce is dramatically changing the way B2B transactions take place. What
are the advantages of B2B e-commerce to companies? To society? Are there any disadvantages of
B2B e-commerce?
After reviewing this section in the chapter, students should be able to see that not only are B2B
transactions important, but they have dramatically moved to the Internet. In fact, with all the dot.com
failures in the last several years, very few have been in the B2B sector. Most of the successes on the
Internet come from the business area. B2B e-commerce serves is beneficial to both companies and
society because it allows firms to provide service to customers more quickly and at lower costs than
was possible previously It projected that business marketing via B2B exchanges will grow even more
in the next several years. Business is truly becoming a paperless enterprise thanks to the Internet.
The greatest disadvantages (if the business allows them to happen) are:
Security.
Lack of personal face time with customers.
Cost of setup.
Training of employees.
Cultural change.
Volumes of data amassed.
Hiring of techies to establish programs and monitor them.
The advantages would include:
Cost savings.
Loyalty through technology.
Instant information for employees.
Improved communications.
Improved decision-making.
Improved modeling and creativity.
True partnerships with distributors, suppliers, and customers.
These suggestions are not all-inclusive and are meant to stimulate creative thought on the subject.
6-38 Critical Thinking M-commerce (short for mobile commerce) is a rapidly growing category of
e-commerce that takes place via a smart phone or tablet instead of a desktop or laptop computer. How has
M-commerce changed the way consumers shop? What do marketers need to do now and in the future to
better support their M-commerce customers? What do you think the future of m-commerce will be?
6-39 Critical Thinking The practice of buying business products based on sealed competitive bids is popular
among all types of business buyers. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this practice to
buyers? What are the advantages and disadvantages to sellers? Should companies always give the
business to the lowest bidder? Why or why not?
6-40 Ethics When firms implement a single sourcing policy in their buying, other possible suppliers do not
have an opportunity to compete for the business. Is this ethical? What are the advantages to the
company? What are the disadvantages?
6-41 Critical Thinking In the buying center, the gatekeeper controls information flow to others in the center.
Thus, the gatekeeper determines which possible sellers are heard and which are not. Does the
gatekeeper have too much power? What policies might be implemented to make sure that all possible
sellers are treated fairly?
6-42 Critical Thinking Outsourcing and offshoring are practices often surrounded by controversy. What are
the benefits of outsourcing for businesses? For consumers? What are the disadvantages of outsourcing
for businesses? For consumers? Should outsourcing be regulated to protect American interests both at
home and abroad? Why or why not?
MINIPROJECT: LEARN BY DOING
The purpose of this miniproject is to increase your understanding of the process that consumers go
through when making a purchase decision. First, select one of the following products (or some other
product of your choice) that now or in the future might be in the market for.
6-43 Problem Recognition Describe the problem that might lead you to purchase this product.
6-44 Information Search Use the Internet to gather some initial information about the product you chose.
Visit at least two stores or locations where the product may be purchased to gather further
information.
6-45 Evaluation of Alternatives Identify at least five alternative product options that you are interested in.
Narrow down your selection to two or three choices. Which are the most feasible? What are the pros
and cons of each?
6-46 Product Choice Make a final decision about which product you will purchase. Describe the heuristics
that aided in your decision making.
Deciding on one product and acting on this choice is the next step in the decision-making process.
Consumers often rely on decision guidelines when weighing the claims that companies make. These
heuristics, or mental rules-of-thumb, help simplify the decision-making process. One such heuristic is
“price = quality.” Many people willingly buy the more expensive brand because they assume that if it
costs more, it must be better.
6-47 Postpurchase Evaluation If this is a product you have actually purchased, explain the reasoning
behind your current satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the product. If not, develop several reasons
you might be satisfied or dissatisfied with the product.
6-48 Prepare a report that explains in detail the decision-making process for the product in your purchase
scenario.
Students can present their decision-making process to the class and compare their purchase scenarios.
V: MARKETING IN ACTION CASE: REAL CHOICES AT AIRBUS
Summary of Case
Since early 2015, there have been more than 4,500 worldwide orders for aircraft in the A320neo product
line. In January 2016, German carrier Lufthansa put into use the A320neo’s improved airplanes. Airbus
was first to the market with significant pre-orders and a commanding lead in the single-aisle market.
Airbus’s competition is from Boeing whose 737 MAX has increased fuel efficiency. Boeing, however, is
behind Airbus. The 787 MAX is operating 18 months behind Airbus and did not have its first flight until
after the initial delivery of the A320neo. As of December 2015, Boeing had 3,072 firm orders for the 737.
The A320neo’s problems are causing a delay in delivery schedules. Qatar Airways had been scheduled to
receive the first delivery in late 2015. However, the airline complained of engine problems and refused to
take possession. Airbus had to compensate Lufthansa because the airline was restricted to using the
A320neo only at the airports with additional technical staff. Although the A320neo has been plagued with
problems, the delays in delivery are expected to end. With more than 4,000 awaiting orders, Airbus has
the potential to turn something bad into something good. There are a lot of customer relationships that
need soothing. How does the company get customers not to cancel orders and choose Boeing’s aircraft?
Airbus’s challenges are far from over.
Suggestions for Presentation
This case could be assigned for various out-of-class or in-class discussion activities.
Out-of-Class
Airbus has the potential to turn something bad into something good. There are a lot of customer
relationships that need soothing. How does the company get customers not to cancel orders and choose
Boeing’s aircraft?
In-Class
You Make the Call
6-49 What is the decision facing Airbus?
Students may come up with a number of different decisions that Airbus might make such as:
What can be done to improve the production schedule and avoid delays in delivery?
What can Airbus do to remedy the persistent engine problems of the A320neo?
A more comprehensive decision would be:
Has Airbus stepped away from its focus on customer needs and if so, what should the
company do now?
6-50 What factors are important in understanding this decision situation?
Airbus has a long-standing reputation for quality.
6-51 What are the alternatives?
Students might recommend a variety of different marketing strategies. Some possibilities are:
6-52 What decision(s) do you recommend?
6-53 What are some ways to implement your recommendation?
Students may make a variety of suggestions for implementation depending on their
recommendations. These may include specific promotion activities, specific pricing, research
activities and many others.
MYMARKETINGLAB
Go to mymktlab.com for Auto-graded writing questions as well as the following Assisted-graded
writing questions:
6-54 Creative Homework/Short Project Sometimes advertising or other marketing activities cause problem
recognition by showing consumers how much better off they would be with a new product or by
pointing out problems with products they already own. Discuss problem recognition for the following
product categories. Make a list of some ways marketers might try to stimulate problem recognition
for each product. Present your ideas to your class.
a. Toothpaste
b. A home security system
c. A new automobile
d. An online dating service
e. A health club membership
6-55 Creative Homework/Short Project As a director of purchasing for a firm that manufactures
motorcycles, you have been notified that the price of an important part used in the manufacture of the
