DECA PI Study Guide

Explain the nature and scope of distribution.

- Exclusive distribution- involves protected territories for distribution of a product in a given geographic area. - Selective distribution- limited number of outlets in a given geographic area are used to sell the product. - Intensive distribution- involves the use of all suitable outlets to sell a product.

Explain the nature of marketing plans.

- Explains how you will organize the new business. - Details pricing strategies and promotional plans. - SWOT Analysis: Identifies internal strengths & weaknesses and External Opportunities & Threats

Explain the nature of channel member's relationships

- Intermediaries are the business involved in sales transactions that move products from the manufacturer to the final user. - Channel members can consist of the producer/manufacturer, agents, wholesalers, retails and consumers.

Plan product mix.

Retail stores must plan their product mix carefully because they cannot offer everything a customer may want.

Identify the elements of the promotional mix.

- Personal selling is direct contact between a salesperson and customer. - Advertising is a form of non-personal promotion. - Public relations is the development of a favorable image for a company, its products or its policies. - Sales promotion includes activities that are used to create purchases and sales not related to the other types of promotion. - Direct marketing is sales and promotional techniques that deliver promotional materials individually

Explain the types of advertising media.

- Print media include newspaper, magazine, direct mail, directory, outdoor, and transit. - Broadcast media include television and radio advertising. - Online advertising are all forms of that use the Internet or e-mail including banner and pop-up ads. - Specialty media are items used for distribution with the company's branding message. - Social media includes platforms including Facebook, Twitter, and mobile media applications.

Describe the role of business ethics in pricing.

Business ethics in pricing is based on the choice of doing what is right as it relates to consumer rights. Without thorough research, many consumers do not know the exact value of many products or services. For this reason, businesses should be ethical in their pricing strategies so they don't exploit the consumers' lack of knowledge. For businesses to be ethical, they should be transparent, honest, and responsible for their actions. I understand your concerns. Loss leader pricing may seem unethical to some, but it is by no means illegal, nor is it unethical. It is simply a pricing strategy. Loss leader pricing does not force a customer to purchase a product; it only attracts them to take a serious look at our company's offerings.

Explain the nature of channel strategies.

Channel strategies should be developed in order to best reach the target market. Examples- will you use wholesalers? Online channels? Retail outlets? Where will your customers go to buy your product or service?

Explain the nature of channels of distribution.

Channels of distribution are the path a product takes from its producer or manufacturer to the final user.

Explain the role of promotion as a marketing function.

Companies use promotion to inform people about their products and services as well as enhance their public image.

Develop sales promotion plans. Coupons, contests, .

Coupons, contests, BOGOF, product bundling that increase short-term sales.

Evaluate the effectiveness of advertising.

How much was the advertising campaign? How many people did it reach? What was the cost per exposure? Did sales increase as a result? Brand awareness? How will you measure the impact?

Explain factors affecting pricing decisions.

Internal Factors - result of company decisions and actions. To a large extent these factors are controllable by the company and, if necessary, can be altered. quick change is not always realistic. EX) product pricing may depend heavily on the productivity of a manufacturing facility (e.g., how much can be produced within a certain period of time). The marketer knows that increasing productivity can reduce the cost of producing each product and thus allow the marketer to potentially lower the product's price. But increasing productivity may require major changes at the manufacturing facility that will take time (not to mention be costly) and will not translate into lower price products for a considerable period of time. External Factors - There are a number of influencing factors which are not controlled by the company but will impact pricing decisions. Understanding these factors requires the marketer conduct research to monitor what is happening in each market the company serves since the effect of these factors can vary by market.

Describe the need for marketing information.

Marketing information allows businesses to increase sales and profits. It also helps decide what products to produce, what price to sell them at and who will buy them.

Explain the nature of marketing research in a marketing-information function.

Marketing information system- a set of procedures and methods that regularly generates, stores analyzes and distributes information for use in marketing and business decisions.

Explain the concept of marketing strategies

Marketing strategies are plans that identify target markets and coordinate marketing mix activities in order to effectively sell the product/service. The product positioning and key points of difference must be taken into account when developing these strategies.

Explain the nature and scope of the product/service management function.

Product development includes seven steps: 1. Generating ideas 2. Screening ideas 3. Developing a business proposal, 4. Developing the product 5. Testing the product with consumers 6. Introducing the product 7. Evaluating consumer acceptance.

Explain the concept of product mix.

Product mix includes all different products that a company makes or sells.

Describe the use of technology in the marketing information management function.

Technology allows for the use of online customer surveys and keeps businesses' consumer information well organized.

Identify the components of a retail image.

The components of a firm's image are its target-market characteristics, retail positioning, store location, merchandise assortment, price levels, physical facilities, customer services, community service, mass advertising and publicity, personal selling, and sales promotions. Accordingly, a retail image requires a multistep, ongoing process. For chains, it is essential that there be a consistent image among branches.

Explain the nature and scope of the selling function.

The different types of selling are personal selling, retail selling, business-to-business selling and telemarketing.

Describe the use of technology in the promotion function.

Using color, Typefaces and sizes help make promotion easier. Being able to have everything done through computers is more efficient and not as time consuming.

Explain key factors in building a clientele.

When building a clientele, there are 3 main factors that must be considered. a) The first factor is making the sale, which includes all activities that sales representatives perform when interacting with consumers during the selling process. b) The second factor is after-sales activities, which includes order processing and payment, the customer's departure from the store, follow-up after the purchase, customer service and tracking, and evaluation of employee performance. c) The third factor is customer relationship management, which involves seeking out customers and keeping them satisfied with the use of technology and customer loyalty techniques.

Explain the nature of branding.

a) Elements of branding include a brand name, a trade name, a brand mark, a trade character and a trademark. b)Types of brands include national brands, private distributor brands and generic (Belonging to a certain general class) brands.

Identify the impact of product life cycles on marketing decisions.

a) Introduction stage, growth stage, maturity stage, decline stage. b) Introduction stage- company focuses on promotion and production. c) Growth stage- focuses on consumer satisfaction. d) Maturity stage- company spends more on marketing to fight off competition. e) Management decides how much longer to support the product.

Explain the nature and scope of financing.

a) Personal finance statement- summary of current personal financial condition. b) Net worth- the difference between your assets and your liabilities. c) Asset- anything of monetary value that you own. d) Liability- debt that you owe to others.

Explain legal considerations for pricing.

a) Price fixing- competitors agree on certain price ranges within which they set their own prices. b) Price discrimination- a firm charges different prices to similar customers in similar situations. c) Unit pricing- allows consumers to compare prices in relation to a standard unit or measure. d) Price advertising- FTC's price advertising forbid a company to advertise a price reduction unless the original price was offered to the public on a regular basis.

Explain the nature and scope of the pricing function.

a) Price is the value of money placed on a good or service. b) Return on investment- calculation that is used to determine the relative profitability of a product. c) Market share- a firm's percentage of the total sales volume generated by all competitors in a given market.

Explain the nature of sales forecasts.

a) Sales forecasting is an attempt to estimate the future sales of an existing product. b) Included in the sales forecast are a total estimate of the market, analyzing of competitor and company sales, and the individual share of the business.