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END OF CHAPTER MATERIAL
Discussion Questions
1-1 Define marketing and outline the steps in the marketing process. (AASCB:
Communication)
Answer: Student answers will vary based on their personal response. Refer to the MyLab for
1-2 What is marketing myopia? What are the short- and long-term implications for business in
this situation? (AACSB: Communication; Reflective Thinking)
Answer:
Marketing myopia occurs when a business only focuses on existing customer wants and loses
sight of underlying consumer needs. This means that the business will not be prepared when
1-3 Describe the five different competing marketing orientations that a business organization
can adopt to drive its marketing strategy. (AACSB: Communication; Reflective Thinking)
Answer: Marketing management can adopt one of the five different competing marketing
orientations. The production concept holds that management’s task is to improve production
efficiency and bring down prices. The product concept holds that consumers favor products
that offer the most in quality, performance, and innovative features; thus, little promotional
effort is required. The selling concept holds that consumers will not buy enough of an
1-4 Discuss the concept of customer relationship management. Why is it essential that a business
incorporates this in its operations? (AACSB: Communication; Reflective Thinking)
Answer:
Customer relationship marketing is the term used to describe the process of building and
1-5 Why is marketing as important for non-profit organizations as profit-driven ones?
(AACSB: Communication; Reflective Thinking)
Answer: Non-profit organizations will often operate in an environment as competitive as
commercial businesses. They need to raise funds, ensure they are noticed, and attract
Critical Thinking Exercises
1-6 Select an FTSE 100 company. How much did the company spend on marketing activities in
the most recent year for which data are available? What percentage of sales does marketing
expenditure represent for the company? Have these expenditures increased or decreased over
the past five years? Write a brief report of your findings. (AACSB: Communication; Analytic
Reasoning)
Answer: Student answers will vary. The full listing is on the site
http://www.londonstockexchange.com
/exchange/prices-and-markets/stocks/indices/constituents-indices.html. This provides a
1-7 Some believe that social marketing is primarily effective only for bigger companies with
the time and capacity to manage and update their media content. Choose a local business and
evaluate its effectiveness in creating customer engagement. Is the content up-to-date and
relevant? How does it manage its content? (AACSB: Communication; Use of IT; Reflective
Thinking)
Answer: Refer to the MyLab for answers to this and all starred MyLab questions.
1-8 Use the Internet to search for salary information regarding jobs in marketing in your country
or region. What is the national average salary for five different jobs in marketing? How do
the averages compare in different areas of the country? Write a brief report on your findings.
(AACSB: Communication; Use of IT; Reflective Thinking)
Answer: Each country or region should have online agencies offering jobs in the industry.
APPLICATIONS AND CASES
Online, Mobile, and Social Media Marketing: The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge
In the summer of 2014, people with connections to ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) raised awareness
of the condition by urging people to post videos of themselves dumping buckets of ice water
over their heads and challenge others to do the same. The efforts raised millions of dollars in
online donations to the ALS Association for enhanced research and patient services. This real-
time marketing campaign generated 17 million videos uploaded to social media platforms from
159 countries. Celebrities posting videos included Will Smith, Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, and
Mark Zuckerberg. The Ice Bucket Challenge generated 70 billion video views while raising $220
million. The best part? Zero dollars were spent to promote the Ice Bucket Challenge, yet 440
million people saw it. The ALS Association has now turned the wildly successful challenge into
an annual social media campaign, bringing back the original Ice Bucket Challenge
#EveryAugustUntilACure. For more information, visit www.alsa.org/fight-als/ice-bucket-
challenge.
1-9 Real-time marketing is a shift for traditional marketers who can now digitally link brands to
important moments in customers’ lives. Explain how real-time marketing was used in the Ice
Bucket Challenge. Why was this campaign successful? (AACSB: Communication;
Reflective Thinking)
Answer: The Ice Bucket Challenge became an extremely successful example of a viral
campaign. It fed on itself as more and more people, especially celebrities, posted videos and
1-10 Create a real-time marketing campaign for a product or service of your choice to create
customer engagement using online, mobile, and social media. How would you measure the
success of your campaign? (AACSB: Communication; Reflective Thinking)
Answer: Student answers will vary. Focus should include timeliness, genuineness, and
Marketing Ethics: Exaggeration and High Pressure
It is a great temptation for manufacturers to exaggerate the benefits of their products on the
packaging. Sometimes, the claims are overstated. Businesses want to make bold claims to help
them sell more products. Some of the claims are morally wrong, other times they are just
"advertising puff." Other times, a business might resort to high-pressurized sale techniques. In
other cases they might focus on vulnerable customer groups. Businesses need to make a profit,
but is it wrong to try any means to achieve this? Legally, yes it is.
1-11 How would a business begin to frame an ethical marketing process as a template for their
activities now and in the future? (AACSB: Communication; Ethical Reasoning)
Answer: They should begin by defining what they consider to be ethical. They then need to
decide how ethical marketing will be implemented. The next step is to consider which areas
1-12 What is likely to motivate a business to adopt ethical marketing? (AACSB:
Communication; Ethical Reasoning)
Answer: Although some businesses adopt an ethical marketing approach because the
founders or owners believe in it themselves, in many other cases it is because their customers
Marketing by the Numbers: Be on the First Page
The Internet has become a vital marketing medium, and pay-per-click is one of the many ways
for a business to attract traffic. It is risky, and a business can spend a lot of money, get a lot of
visits, but end up with very few actual sales. Search engines allow businesses to buy listings in
their search results; they appear next to the non-paid organic search results. These spots are sold
by auction. If the business bids the most, they get a chance, but only the chance to be ranked
first.
1-13 If you bid $1.25 on a key word related to your product and 14,000 people click on your
PPC, how much will the search engine charge you? (AACSB: Communication; Analytical
Reasoning)
Answer:
1-14 PPC can be expensive, so why is it popular as a marketing method? (AACSB:
Communication; Reflective Thinking)
Answer:
In theory, if the business spends enough to get the top placement, then enough potential
customers will see the business first, click through, and make a purchase. It is fast too; within
Company Case Notes
Argos: Creating Customer Value amidst Change and Turbulence
Synopsis
The track record of Argos as a leading catalog retailer in the United Kingdom is well
acknowledged in the country. It is especially noted for its consistent focus on the satisfaction of
the needs and wants of its target customers. Its acquisition by Sainsbury’s toward the end of 2016
is considered a huge development in the retail sector. With this £1.4billion deal, the focus of the
new management is strictly focused on maintaining and strengthening what Argos has been noted
for over the years—creating customer value profitably. So, as was the case before the
acquisition, Argos is still dedicated to giving its customers efficiency and effectiveness in
service, including fast-track same-day delivery, a wide range of seasoned products, special
promotional offers, and the 21st century digital experience. Argos is also committed to the needs
of stakeholders in society besides their customers, as evident in its various activities toward
preserving societal welfare.
Teaching Objectives
The teaching objectives for this case are to:
1. Explain customer-value creation as the core focus of marketing
2. Introduce students to the link between a company’s commitment to superior customer
value and customers’ satisfaction in the marketplace
3. Illustrate a firm’s marketing management orientation among various competing
alternatives
4. Explain how a firm embraces the changing marketing landscape in a complex marketing
environment
5. Explain the importance of customer relationship management in a firms’ profitability and
overall business success
Discussion Questions
1-18 1. To what extent do you think the acquisition of Argos by Sainsbury’s resulted in delivering
superior value to the customers.
The acquisition has resulted in delivering superior value to customers thanks to the
continuity of the customer-focused approach adopted by Argos and the efforts made
by new management to strengthen this approach in various ways, including
1-19 2. How is the concept of share of customer illustrated in the case study?
While there is evidence that the company meets the needs and wants of the target customers
efficiently and effectively better than competitors, it goes further by addressing the long-run
interest of consumers and society. Examples include
Improving local communities
Reducing the amount of resources used in its operations and the CO2 emissions it
produces.
Giving to charities
1-20 3. To what extent would you agree with the claim that Argos’s marketing management
orientation is a marketing concept? Justify your standpoint with relevant points from the case
study.
In May 2016, a BBC report said that Argos had cited safety concerns and recalled its Mama
and Papa car seat models designed for children. Argos not only apologized for the
1-21 4. What are the key actions taken by Argos which show that the organization is following
the changing marketing landscape?
Digital marketing: It has transformed itself into a “click and collect” business. The
organization is the first retailer in the United Kingdom to make over £1 billion through
Sustainable marketing: It has reduced its CO2 emissions as well as the amount of resources
used in its operations, uses a catalog that is 100% recyclable, uses paper obtained from
1-22 5. In view of the stiff competition in the UK retail sector, suggest various ways by which
Argos could continue to provide better value to its customers?
This is an open question that allows students to demonstrate their knowledge of various
points associated with creating customer value. These can be simply discussed in relation
Teaching Suggestions
A discussion based on this case is optimal when the concepts of needs/wants/desires, customer
value, customer satisfaction, and marketing management orientations have been discussed. After
these concepts have been covered, ask students to consider the classic scenario of making a
choice as to which fast-food option they might choose for a given meal. What did that situation
feel like? Is that decision only based on how certain food items taste? Or, is it based on far more
than that? Ask how many students like Chick-fil-A and why.
This case also works well with the marketing environment chapter (Chapter 3), the marketing
channels chapter (Chapter 12), and the competitive advantage chapter (Chapter 18).
Go to mymktlab.com for Auto-graded writing questions as well as the following
Assisted-graded writing questions:
1-23 When implementing customer relationship management, why might a business desire fewer
customers over more customers? Shouldn’t the focus of marketing be to acquire as many
customers as possible?
1-24 Compare and contrast needs wants, and demands. Which one(s) can marketers influence?
ADDITIONAL PROJECTS, ASSIGNMENTS, AND EXAMPLES
Projects
1. Why is it important to truly understand the customer? Make a list of 10 “wants” that you
have. What would have to occur to move each of these from “wants” to “needs”?
(Objective 2)
2. Review the five alternative concepts under which organizations design and carry out their
marketing strategies. Now, take a look at one of the automobile dealerships in your town.
Which one of these five concepts do you believe they are typically employing? Why?
(Objective 3)
3. Think of a product or retailer to which you are loyal. What has caused this loyalty? What
could a competing product/retailer do to break this loyalty? (Objective 4)
Small Group Assignments
1. Form students into groups of three to five. Each group should read the opening vignette
to the chapter on Emirates. Each group should answer the following questions. (Objective
2)
a. How does Emirates succeed in developing unique customer experiences? Which
chapter marketing objectives does this help the company to achieve?
b. Based on your study of Emirates, do you believe that customers really want long-term
relationships with a company? Why or why not?
Each group should then share its findings with the class.
2. Form students into groups of three to five. Each group should read Real Marketing 1.1:
“Buffalo Wild Wings: Fueling the Sports Fan Experience.” Each group should then
answer the following questions and share their findings with the class. (Objective 3)
a. With plenty of casual-dining choices available, what is it about the Buffalo Wild
Wings customer service philosophy that wins over diners every time?
b. What does Buffalo Wild Wings’ legendary customer service begin with? What are the
most important steps in ensuring that the company delivers on its promise every time?
c. Discuss the connection between selecting and training the right employees, and
consistently delivering outstanding customer service.
Each group should then share its findings with the class.
Individual Assignments
1. Companies are realizing that losing a customer means more than losing a single sale. It
means losing a stream of revenue from that customer over their lifetime. Reread the story
of Stew Leonard (under Creating Customer Loyalty and Retention). (Objective 4)
Is it possible to take his idea of “the customer is always right” too far so that it becomes a
negative on the company? Why or why not?
2. Marketing activities by not-for-profit organizations have increased substantially in recent
years. Organizations such as hospitals and churches now spend significant monies to get
their individual messages out and draw in new customers, clients, members, etc. Discuss
whether or not you consider this a good long-term strategy to grow the organization.
Does the condition of the economy affect your thinking? (Objective 5)
Think-Pair-Share
Consider the following questions, formulate answers, pair with the student on your right, share
your thoughts with one another, and respond to questions from the instructor.
1. How is marketing different from selling? (Objective 1)
2. Do marketers create needs? (Objective 2)
3. What is Target’s value proposition? (Objective 2)
4. What are two companies with which you have an emotional bond? Describe that bond.
(Objective 4)
Outside Examples
1. Five core customer and marketplace concepts are critical to success: (1) needs, wants,
and demands; (2) marketing offers (products, services, and experiences); (3) value and
satisfaction; (4) exchanges and relationships; and (5) markets.
Take a look at Sea Ray boats (www.searay.com). Answer the following questions.
(Objective 2)
a. What needs, wants, and/or demands is Sea Ray attempting to fill?
b. Describe their marketing offers.
c. Describe the relationships they have with their customers.
d. What are their markets?
Possible Solution:
a. Sea Ray is primarily appealing to the wants. Wants are the form human needs take as
they are shaped by culture and individual personality. They are providing products
b. Market offerings are some combination of products, services, information, or
experiences offered to a market to satisfy a need or want. Sea Ray provides a wide
c. Through a review of the Web site, you will realize that Sea Ray makes a strong effort
d. Sea Ray’s markets are quite varied. Depending on the size and type of boat, their
2. One of the great new “marketplaces” of our time is eBay. Spend some time on the eBay
Web site (www.ebay.com). Find a product that you are interested in and follow the
bidding. How much would you be willing to pay? Consider the following questions.
(Objective 2)
a. How is eBay providing value to its customers?
b. Describe the relationship they have with their customers.
c. What are their markets?
Possible Solution:
a. A company’s value proposition is the set of benefits or values it promises to deliver to
b. eBay takes great effort to maintain a close, almost personal relationship with their
customers. They continually provide you with updates on items you are watching,
selling, or bidding on. Additionally, they provide you with information about new or
