BUS 346 Ch 2
Which of the following actions, if it actually happened, would be the most likely to support and enhance an operational excellence macro strategy?
3M Corporation, implementing new software to improve communication with its suppliers.
Which of the following factors, listed in a situation analysis for a major U.S. auto manufacturer, is the best example of a threat?
A New York law firm has filed a $10 million class action suit against the company on behalf of car owners whose gas tanks exploded.
Some universities offer online degree programs, competing with traditional colleges based on the convenience of taking online courses. These online programs are pursuing which macro strategy?
Locational excellence
________ involves the process of defining the marketing mix variables so that target customers have a clear, distinctive, desirable understanding of what the product does or represents in comparison with competing products.
Market positioning
The global athletic footwear market is expected to experience only very slow growth over the next several years. Nike is the market leader, with a market share of approximately 33 percent. According to Boston Consulting Group portfolio analysis, how should Nike treat its athletic shoe business?
Nike's athletic shoe business still requires some investment but is likely to produce excess resources that can be invested in other divisions of the company.
Firms achieve ___________ through efficient procedures and excellent supply chain management.
Operational Excellence
In recent years, cellular (mobile) service providers have worked hard to eliminate dead zones, providing customers with service wherever they traveled. By working to make the network available in more locations, cellular service companies were focusing on __________ value creation.
Placed
__________ involves the process of defining the marketing mix variables so that target customers have a clear, distinctive understanding of what a product does or represents in comparison with competing products.
Positioning
A former advertising campaign for GEICO Insurance used the slogan, "So easy, even a caveman could do it" to emphasize the ease of buying insurance on GEICO's website. This campaign was part of GEICO's
Positioning Strategy
Imagine that you are in a convenience store choosing your favorite comfort food instead of being in a classroom taking this test. You might notice the packaging, colors, labels, even the fonts used on labels. All of these efforts are part of the marketer's
Positioning Strategy
Which of the following is the best way to build a sustainable competitive advantage using product excellence?
Positioning the Product
When Nike, the prominent athletic shoe manufacturer, branched out from selling only athletic shoes to also offering athletic clothing and gym bags, what type of growth strategy did this represent?
Product development
Which of the following factors, listed in a situation analysis for a major U.S. auto manufacturer, is the best example of an opportunity?
Recent consumer studies have indicated that Chinese consumers prefer American cars.
LeBron James, Alex Rodriguez, and other athletes are paid huge sums of money by companies for celebrity endorsements. If endorsements by these athletes create a clear understanding among consumers of the companies' products in comparison to competing products, they can help with the firm's ________________ strategy.
Segmentation
Subway is a large chain of franchise sandwich shops. Marcia owns three Subway stores in a large city. At the end of the year, she notes that sales rose from two to five percent over last year's sales at Stores 1 and 2 but fell two percent at Store 3. Based on this information, how should Marcia reward (or punish) her store managers?
She should seek more information about why the stores had different results before making a decision.
In its discussion of Nike and adidas, two major athletic shoe manufacturers, the text mentions that Nike has purchased Umbro, a sports brand that has appealed mainly to soccer (European football) enthusiasts in the past. This action suggests that Nike intends to compete head to head with adidas, which got its start designing soccer shoes. On a SWOT analysis for adidas, how should Nike's acquisition of Umbro be categorized?
Threat
One example of a customer loyalty program is
a frequent diner card at a restaurant, offering a free appetizer for every $100 in food purchases.
Four companies dominate the cereal industry. These firms produce in large volumes, promote heavily, and control access to the supermarket shelves through slotting allowances, which are payments to retailers in return for shelf space. Combined, these four firms have
a sustainable competitive advantage
Zara is a women's clothing retailer headquartered in Spain, with stores located in many countries. Zara has developed a quick-response system that allows store merchandise to be adjusted rapidly to fit changing customer preferences. Every aspect of Zara's operation is optimized for this system, making it difficult for competitors like The Gap to duplicate. Zara has established
a sustainable competitive advantage
In 2006, Walmart announced that it would begin selling organic food products. In doing so, Walmart was probably trying to
attract a different market segment
The process of dividing the market into groups of customers with different needs, wants, or characteristics is called
market segmentation
When pursuing a market development strategy, expanding into international markets is generally
more risky than expansion in domestic markets.
For many years, Southwest Airlines distinguished itself as the low-cost airline. Now, many other low-cost competitors have entered the market. Similarly, Southwest was one of the first airlines to offer online ticketing. Now, all airlines have online ticketing. These examples suggest that
no single strategy is likely to be sufficient to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
Because it was able to deliver merchandise overnight, in the required quantities and at a lower delivered cost than its competitors, Joe's Sports Shack was given exclusive rights to sell clothing with school logos for the school district. Joe's demonstrates ________ excellence
operational
Because it was able to deliver merchandise overnight, in the required quantities and at a lower delivered cost than its competitors, Joe's Sports Shack was given exclusive rights to sell clothing with school logos for the school district. Joe's demonstrates ________ excellence.
operational
For U.S. businesses with strong export capabilities, expansion of U.S. trade agreements with other countries creates
opportunities
In a SWOT analysis, increasing gasoline prices would represent a potential __________ for manufacturers of electric cars
opportunity
Delta Airlines is among the companies experimenting with selling products and services on its Facebook pages. The idea is to make purchasing even easier for customers who may spend large portions of the day with Facebook active on their computers or mobile devices. There is no need even to navigate to Delta's website--users can book a trip in Delta's Ticket Agent application without ever leaving Facebook. Which element of the marketing mix does this represent?
place and value delivery
Coca-Cola sells two zero-calorie versions of Coke: Diet Coke and Coke Zero. It has chosen to attempt to appeal to men with Coke Zero. In addition to launching an ad campaign featuring men enjoying Coke Zero, Coca-Cola also designed a masculine looking can for Coke Zero, with bold red lettering on a black background. This specially designed can is an example of
positioning
Many small businesses whose competitors are national franchises advertise "we are locally owned" or "we have been here since 1951." This is part of these firms'
positioning strategy
In 2007, Apple Computer introduced its new iPhone, adding a cellular telephone, a camera, and Internet access to its iPod. The company was pursuing a __________ strategy.
product development
Maryam called her auto insurance agent to renew her policy. The agent told her about new types of insurance that are now available--to cover her apartment, or even the engagement ring she just got from her fiancé. The agent was pursuing a ________________ growth strategy.
product development
A ___________ is a group of products that consumers may use together or perceive as similar in some way.
product line
In most companies, portfolio management is typically done at the SBU or ___________ level of the firm.
product line
Google and other search engines allow marketers to bid to have their ads shown when consumers search on keywords related to the firm's products. These marketers are attempting to create value through
promotion.
A product that is in a high-growth market but has a low market share would be classified as ________ on the BCG matrix.
question mark
The first objective in the evaluate performance phase of the marketing planning process is to
review implementation programs and results using metrics.
Which of the following is NOT one of the four major growth strategies marketers typically use?
segment development
When discussing the marketing planning process, STP stands for
segmentation, targeting, and positioning.
Fernando was thrilled to find out that his company had just decided to invest a great deal of money in the product he was managing. He knows that even with its recent high rate of growth and the fact that it dominates its market, he would need more money to establish it firmly. Using the BCG portfolio analysis, his product would be classified as a
star
Taking steps to encourage customer loyalty is one way to
sustain an advantage over competitors.
Even when large discount retailers enter a market, a few small, local retailers survive and prosper. These small retailers have probably developed a ________ that allows them to survive.
sustainable competitive advantage
The automobile manufacturing industry closely watches annual consumer satisfaction surveys. For years, Japanese car companies consistently had the highest levels of customer satisfaction, creating a __________ for these companies.
sustainable competitive advantage
After identifying various market segments that her company could pursue, Lisa evaluated each segment's attractiveness based on size, income, and accessibility. Lisa was involved in
target marketing
When positioning products relative to competitors' offerings, firms typically are most successful when they focus on opportunities
that build on their strengths relative to those of their competitors.
Allen is in the marketing department of a mid-sized firm that develops and sells communications systems. He is proud of the Human Resources area in the company that provides the firm with excellent employees. Allen himself really enjoys his work, but he knows the work of HR helps create an operational advantage for the firm because of all of the following EXCEPT
the company provides products with a high perceived value
Some banks have begun offering special accounts designed to attract junior high school students. These kids save in such small amounts that the accounts cost banks more to maintain than they are worth. But bankers know that consumers are creatures of habit and hope that the young people they serve now will become adult customers. These banks recognize
the lifetime value of customers.
Heather has been assessing a number of her firm's products using, the Boston Consulting Group approach to portfolio analysis. She has been trying to assess the strength in a particular market and is looking at the sales of the product and the overall market as well as the sales of competitors. Heather is trying to determine:
the product's relative market share.
If a price is set too high, it will not generate much ________; if it is set too low, it may result in ________.
volume; lower margins and profits
Manufacturers who use just-in-time manufacturing systems coordinate closely with suppliers to ensure that materials and supplies arrive just before they are needed in the manufacturing process. While just-in-time systems can offer major advantages in terms of inventory costs, they must be carefully managed. If a firm found that its just-in-time system was badly managed, leading to frequent manufacturing delays due to missing parts, this would represent a(n) __________ in a SWOT analysis.
weakness
The idea of value-based marketing requires firms to charge a price that
captures the value customers perceive that they are receiving
In BCG portfolio analysis, products in low-growth markets that have received heavy investment and now have excess funds available to support other products are called
cash cows
Fourteenth National Bank prides itself on offering better service than any of its competitors. If this is accurate, and if customers recognize and value Fourteenth National's superior service, the bank creates and delivers value through
customer excellence.
Anita has gone to the same hair salon for the past ten years. She believes that her stylist, the salon owner, does a better job of cutting and styling her hair than anyone else could. Other salons have opened closer to Anita's home, some offering more plush facilities or lower prices, but she isn't tempted to switch. Anita's attitude toward the salon is an example of
customer loyalty.
In mid-2010, Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) acquired Palm Computing, Inc., a manufacturer of personal devices and smart phones. Before deciding to acquire the company, strategic planners at HP spent time thinking about how Palm and HP would fit together, and how the acquisition might change HP's core goals and objectives. The strategic planners were engaged in the ____________ step of the marketing planning process.
define the business mission
Many of today's college graduates will make their living providing goods and services to baby boomers, the large group of Americans born in the period after World War II. Baby boomers are a _________________ market segment.
demographic
Sodexo is a corporation that manages school cafeterias, university dining halls, mess halls at military bases, concession stands at sports arenas, and other large-scale food service facilities. If Sodexo were to begin to sell individual frozen meals in supermarkets, it would be pursuing a __________ growth strategy.
diversification
Lionel is asked to conduct an STP analysis for his firm. The first step he should perform in this analysis is to
divide the marketplace into subgroups
Understanding the causes of performance, regardless of whether that performance exceeded, met, or fell below the firm's goals
enables firms to make appropriate adjustments.
During a SWOT analysis, a company should assess the opportunities and uncertainties of the marketplace due to changes in several factors, given the acronym CDSTEP. Which of the following is NOT one of these factors?
ethical
Craig sees that his company's quarterly sales and profits are significantly above projections and says, "That's great. Let's keep doing what we've been doing." Craig is ignoring the __________ step of the marketing planning process.
evaluate performance
If a firm wants to develop a sustainable competitive advantage, it should
examine its operations and customer relations to identify significant things competitors cannot easily copy.
Lamar owns four dry cleaning stores in the suburbs of Orlando, Florida. He recently updated his STP analysis and has just finished adjusting his marketing mix based on the STP results. His next strategic marketing decision will likely involve determining
how to allocate resources among his four stores.
Which of the following is the third step in the marketing planning process?
identify opportunities
Carla has been directed by her regional marketing manager to cut prices on seasonal items, place an ad in the local paper, and tell distributors to reduce deliveries for the next month. Which step of the strategic marketing planning process is Carla engaged in?
implement marketing mix and resources
During which phase of the marketing planning process does a firm identify and evaluate different opportunities by engaging in segmentation, targeting, and positioning?
implementation phase
A regional manager at GNC, a chain of retail stores selling nutritional supplements, is reviewing sales data after a recent in-store promotion. The data show success in some stores and limited response in others. The manager will probably next review the company's
implementation programs, to see if the promotion was handled consistently in the different stores.
A competitive advantage based on location is often sustainable because
it is not easily duplicated.
Which of the following is LEAST likely to provide a sustainable competitive advantage?
lowering prices
Gerald's Tire Store sets itself apart from competitors by the extra attention it pays to providing fast, courteous service in a clean, professional-looking environment. Gerald's has used this strategy for over 40 years, expanding to 15 outlets. Gerald's Tire Store has created a ___________________ to create and deliver value and to develop a sustainable competitive advantage.
macro, or overarching, strategy
Value creation through place decisions for a consumer product involves
making sure the product is available in the stores where customers will want to find it, and that it is always in stock so they can buy it when they want to.
Quitman Enterprises sells its business language dictionary to college students throughout the United States. Joseph Quitman, the owner, wants to start selling the book to international students abroad. Quitman wants to pursue a __________________ growth strategy.
market development
Abercrombie & Fitch, a clothing retailer, includes a SHARE link on the product pages of its website. This link encourages an Abercrombie customer to post a link (perhaps showing a new style of jeans) on Facebook or Twitter. Abercrombie & Fitch hopes that the customer's friends (who are probably very much like current customers) will click the link, visit the page, and make purchases. This is an example of a __________ growth strategy.
market penetration
Most banks now have customer relationship software which, when a customer contacts the bank, tells the service representative what types of accounts, loans, and credit cards the customer currently has. Service representatives use this information to sell some of the other services the bank currently offers to these customers. This is a ___________________ growth strategy.
market penetration
When Ramona, the keynote speaker at a major business leaders' conference, arrived in the middle of the night at the Ritz-Carlton, she was exhausted and her suit was wrinkled from her ten-hour plane trip. The night clerk found someone to dry clean Ramona's suit and have it ready for her morning presentation. She has been a loyal Ritz-Carlton customer ever since. In this example, Ritz-Carlton demonstrated the macro strategy of
Customer Excellence
