DECA Marketing Cluster Sample Exam #3 of 5

Which of the following is an example of quantitative data:

"Tara graduated first in her class." (Tara's class ranking is quantitative data. It's a statistical fact. The other statements are based on opinion or experience. They are examples of qualitative data.)

What device helps to ensure that direct-observation research is collected in a neutral way?

Video camera. (Direct-observation research is a type of marketing research that involves watching customers' in real time to assess their behaviors. For example, a business may want to watch its customers' shopping habits and browsing patterns to determine if the business is merchandising its products effectively. The business may have a researcher use a video camera to record the customers' behavior so that the researcher can review it later in detail. A global-orientation system, a fax machine, and a DVD player are not direct-observation methods that researchers use to collect data in a neutral way.)

What technology is the most effective way to interview a job applicant who is located 1,500 miles away from the company's corporate office?

Videoconferencing. (Holding a video conference allows the interviewer to see the applicant and his/her reactions to the questions. Text messaging and email applications involve typing on a smartphone or a computer. These methods are time consuming and do not allow the interviewer to see or hear the applicant. An intranet is a business's internal computer network.)

What type of software program do businesses use to create text documents?

Word processing. (Most word-processing software programs are designed to be used to create text documents, although some have limited graphic capabilities. Businesses use word-processing software programs to write letters, memos, reports, business plans, and sales contracts. There are many different word-processing software programs available that enable businesses to create, edit, and store important text documents. Presentation software programs are used to develop visual presentations. Web-page editors are software applications that businesses use to create web pages. Communications software programs allow computers to communicate with other computers.)

Which of the following is a true statement about marketing-research studies:

Each marketing-research study is unique. (Each business and marketing-research study is unique, but there are a few common ways that managers and researchers work together to define the problem clearly and correctly. Marketing-research studies can be conducted more or less than once per year. Lower level employees may be very helpful with marketing-research studies. Marketing-research studies need not be difficult to conduct, especially with experienced researchers on hand.)

Information usually comes in either physical form or __________ form.

Electronic. (Information usually comes in either physical form (anything on paper) or electronic form (emails, videos, spreadsheets, etc.). Book, note card, and verbal are not typical forms of information that a business must manage.)

Which of the following is one element of a situation analysis:

Environmental scanning. (A situation analysis is a determination of a firm's current business situation and the direction in which the business is headed. One element of a situation analysis is environmental scanning which involves collecting information about the environment surrounding the business. By scanning the external environment, the business can identify changes that may have an impact on the business. These changes may present threats to the business or opportunities for the business that the business considers during the marketing planning process. Businesses conduct a situation analysis as part of the marketing planning process. Sales positioning and organizational testing are not elements of a situation analysis.)

One of the basic risks in marketing is the possibility of __________ loss.

Financial. (Financial loss, or the loss of money, is the basic risk in marketing. While it is impossible to eliminate all risk in marketing, there are several ways to reduce risk including developing effective marketing plans, information systems, financial plans, and loss-prevention plans. To the owner of a marketing business, any risk is personal rather than impersonal. Promotional expenditures could cause financial loss in some cases. Most marketing businesses are not involved in political activities.)

To protect the integrity of the marketing information they gather, businesses should avoid

Manipulating the research. (Businesses can protect the integrity of the marketing information they collect by interpreting the research correctly and not manipulating it in such a way that it agrees with a predetermined conclusion. Protecting the integrity of marketing information is sometimes difficult because businesses often can make the research support either side of an issue depending on how they interpret it. Most businesses try to interpret the research correctly because consumers are sometimes suspicious of research findings that seem to support the opinions of the business that sponsors the research. Many businesses pay research organizations to collect and analyze data. Surveying a lot of people usually adds to the integrity of marketing information because a broad audience was involved. Working with a publisher does not affect the integrity of marketing information.)

Which of the following is true about a survey-sampling plan:

Represents a larger group. (A sampling plan is the course of action for gathering marketing information from a section or portion of a target market. A business gathers data from a portion of the target market because the market is often too large to obtain data from each market member. Therefore, researchers use the sample group's responses to represent the larger group's opinions and ideas. Sampling plans use different methods to select and gather information. The marketing-research issue or problem and the way the sample data are collected influence but do not eliminate the respondents' bias and error rates. Observation is a method of collecting primary data, which may or may not be more reliable than other research methods.)

Which of the following is an example of a response error:

Rosanna checks two response options for one question on a paper questionnaire. (A response error occurs when a respondent provides an incorrect answer or response. Response errors often occur when respondents do not understand the question or when they hurry to complete the survey and do not read instructions or questions carefully. Because Rosanna provides two responses or answers for one question, the questionnaire contains a response error. A non-response error occurs when a respondent does not answer all of the questions in a survey. Because Jack does not provide his telephone number, the survey contains a non-response error. Providing an opinion during a focus group and pausing before answering a question are not examples of errors.)

Maria is developing her marketing plan for her small, but growing, business. She notes that one of the advantages of her company is that her staff is highly creative and flexible; however, a primary limitation that she faces is that she does not have sufficient financial resources to expand her product line. In which component of the marketing plan would Maria place this information?

SWOT analysis. (A marketing plan is a set of procedures or strategies for attracting the target customer to a business. A component of the marketing plan is the SWOT analysis, which describes the businesses strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Because Maria is describing one of her business's strengths (highly creative and flexible staff) and one of her business's weaknesses (lack of financial resources), she is working on the SWOT analysis. The promotional plan is the set of procedures or strategies for the business's promotional efforts. The marketing mix is the four elements of marketing—product, place, promotion, and price. A financial statement is a summary of accounting information.)

Marketing has an effect on the quality of life and general living conditions of consumers, referred to as their:

Standard of living. (Standard of living is the way or manner in which people live. It is usually measured by the quality and quantity of the goods and services that people own and use. Consumers' buying power is the amount of money they have available to spend. Buying habits are the customary ways in which people make purchases. A value system is based on ethics or principles.)

One way for businesses to obtain needed information efficiently is to:

Access a database. (A database is computerized storage for information and facts. Most businesses maintain a database of information that is relevant to the business, such as lists of customers and vendors, inventory levels, prices of materials, etc. When businesses need information, they access the database to obtain the data efficiently. For example, a business could access a database to find out how many customers in a certain area purchased a specific product during a specified time period. Scheduling an interview, reading a book, and contacting a competitor are not ways for businesses to obtain needed information efficiently.)

Which of the following is essential to all marketing research:

Accuracy. (Accuracy is absolutely essential in gathering, recording, and analyzing marketing-research data if the data are to be of value to the business. Inaccurate data can cause the business to make incorrect or unwise decisions. The frequency with which research is conducted would depend upon the needs of the business. Primary data are facts collected specifically for the problem or project at hand. Secondary data are facts that have been collected for purposes other than the project at hand. A marketing-research project may require either or both kinds of data.)

After The IWP Company receives online orders from its customers, it quickly replies to all of its customers with the following email message: "Thank you for your order. It will be processed within the next 48 hours." The email function that generates these types of messages is called a(n):

Autoresponder. (Autoresponder is a computer program that automatically returns a specified message to anyone who emailed a particular address. The autoresponder function is a way for a business to quickly acknowledge the customer's message and to let him/her know that the company is going to take action within a certain timeframe. It is a way to provide customer service. Instant messaging is a computer program that allows one or more individuals to send typed messages via the computer in real time. Mechanical-reaction and timed reply are fictitious terms.)

What is the device that a business's employees use to obtain information about customers who access the business's website?

Cookies. (Some website computers place information, a "cookie," on a user's hard drive when the user visits the site. The next time a user visits that site, the site's computer recognizes the user because of the cookie. Marketing-information employees use cookies to maintain user information and track how many times a user visits a specific website or buys a product. This type of data allows marketing-information employees to customize websites in order to appeal to the preferences and habits of the consumers who are visiting their sites. A browser is software that allows a computer to access information on the Internet. Spiders are a type of search tool. A bookmark is a term used to describe a website that is marked for later reference.)

Using a computer-generated slideshow to highlight product information would be most appropriate in which of the following business situations:

Formal sales presentation. (Presentation software is often used to provide visual support for oral presentations. Presentation software is often used during sales presentations to provide customers or prospective customers with visual information about the product's attributes and benefits. Graphic depictions of products are especially useful for items that cannot be easily transported to other locations because the audience can see an image of the product. Status meetings, employee performance reviews, and union contract negotiations are not the most appropriate business situations in which to use a computer-generated slideshow to highlight product information. The purpose of a status meeting is to update the team about various aspects of a project. An employee performance review is a tool to provide workers with feedback about their work efforts. Union contract negotiations occur when management and labor representatives meet to reach agreement about the workers' pay, benefits, working conditions, etc.)

Increasing membership by 25% during the next year might be one of the __________ of a health club. A. principles

Goals. (Goals are things or objectives that businesses want to attain. Increasing membership by 25% during the next year is a specific goal. Strategies are plans of action for achieving goals and objectives. Tactics are specific actions that will be used to carry out strategies. Principles refer to rules of conduct.)

Out of 25 survey respondents, 16 people rate a product's durability at five on a rating scale ranging from one to seven. What measure of central tendency does the number five represent?

Mode. (Mode is the answer to a question that respondents give most often. In the situation described, most respondents rated the product's durability at five on the marketing research survey, which makes the number five the mode. A median is the middle value of the established sample criteria. This means that half of the data or responses are below the median value and half are above the median value. Disbursement and deviation are not measures of central tendency.)