Marketing Test 2
benefits from the existence of competitors
-Competitors may share the costs of market and product development. -Competitors help legitimize new technologies. -Competitors serve less-attractive segments or lead to more product differentiation. -Competitors may help increase total demand.
factors of the competitive intelligence system
-The system identifies the vital types of competitive information needed and the best sources of this information. -The system collects information from the field and from published data. -The system checks information for validity and reliability, interprets it, and organizes it in an appropriate way. -The system sends key information to relevant decision makers and responds to inquiries from managers about competitors.
fundamental questions that a marketing management team considers when assessing competitors
-What are competitors' objectives and what does each seek in the marketplace? -What is each competitor's strategy? -What are various competitors' strengths? -What are various competitors' weaknesses?
competitor; customer
A company can become so ________ centered that it loses its even more important focus on maintaining profitable ________ relationships.
competitor myopia
A company is guilty of ________ if the company forgets latent competitors and only focuses on current competitors.
low-cost; cost reducing
A company that pursues ________ leadership will react much more strongly to a competitor's ________ manufacturing breakthrough than to the same competitor's advertising increase.
strategic sweet spot
A company wants to find the ________ , the place where it meets customers' needs in a way that rivals can't.
strong
A firm should compete with ________ competitors in order to sharpen its abilities. Succeeding against these competitors often provides greater returns.
in-house
A manager who used to work for a competitor might follow that competitor closely to see what it does in the marketplace. Such a manager would be considered to be your company's ________ expert.
employees
A market nicher can specialize along all of the following market, customer, product, or marketing mix lines EXCEPT?
market niches
Almost every industry includes firms that specialize in serving target subsegments called ________.
second mover advantage
Although it might seem that the market leader has the most going for it, challengers often have what some strategists call a ________. The challenger observes what has made the leader successful and improves upon it.
play by the rules
An industry often contains "good" and "bad" competitors. Good competitors ________.
formulated
As small companies achieve success, they inevitably move toward more ________ marketing. They pore over the latest Nielsen numbers, scan market research reports, and try to fine-tune their competitive strategies and programs.
competitiveness
Benchmarking has become a powerful tool for increasing a company's ________
example of a company exhibiting blue-ocean thinking
Cirque du Soleil's reinvention of the circus as a higher form of modern entertainment
competitors
Companies can identify ________ from both the industry and market point of view.
market
Companies can identify competitors from a ________ point of view. Here they define competitors as companies that are trying to satisfy the same customer need or build relationships with the same customer group.
dimensions that identify strategic groups within the industry
Companies need to know - each competitor's product quality, features, and mix - customer services - pricing policy - distribution coverage - sales force strategy - advertising and sales promotion programs
intrepreneurial marketing
Companies that have been in existence for some time often lose the marketing creativity and passion that they had at the start. They now need to refresh their marketing strategies and try new approaches.
formal
Companies that operate large marketing departments, conduct expensive marketing research, spell out elaborate competitive strategies, and spend huge sums on advertising are using ________ competitive marketing strategies.
middle-of-the-roaders
Companies that pursue a clear strategy will likely perform well. Firms that do not pursue a clear strategy are called ________.
learn about their competitors' strengths and weaknesses
Companies use secondary data, personal experience, benchmarking, and word of mouth to ________.
niching
Computer mouse and interface device maker Logitech is only a fraction the size of giant Microsoft. Yet through skillful ________, it dominates the PC mouse market, with Microsoft as its runner-up.
market leaders
Expanding the total market, protecting market share, and expanding market share are all strategies for ________.
market nichers
Firms that serve small segments not being pursued by other firms are called ________.
challenger
Forty percent of the market is in the hands of Company A. Another 30 percent is in the hands of Company B. Twenty percent is in the hands of Company C, and the remaining 10 percent is in the hands of Company D. Based on these hypothetical numbers Company B is the market ________.
nicher
Forty percent of the market is in the hands of Company A. Another 30 percent is in the hands of Company B. Twenty percent is in the hands of Company C, and the remaining 10 percent is in the hands of Company D. Based on these hypothetical numbers Company D is the market ________.
industry; market
From a/an ________ point of view, Pepsi might see its competition as Coca-Cola, Dr Pepper, 7UP, and the makers of other soft drink brands. From a/an ________ point of view, however, the customer really wants "thirst quenching."
entrepreneurial marketing
Gary Hirshberg of Stonyfield Farm yogurt company stated that "companies can do better with less advertising, less marketing research, more guerilla marketing, and more acting from the gut." At this point, Hirshberg was following which marketing strategy?
strategic
General Electric and Whirlpool each produce a full line of medium-price appliances supported by good service. In contrast, Sub-Zero and Viking produce a narrower line of higher quality appliances, offer a higher level of service, and charge a premium price. The first group and second group of companies are in the same ________ group.
market point of view
Hallmark's Binney & Smith, maker of Crayola crayons, might define its competitors as other makers of crayons and children's drawing supplies. But from a/an ________ , it would include all firms making recreational and educational products for children.
customer value
Having identified and evaluated its major competitors, the company now must design broad competitive marketing strategies by which it can gain competitive advantage through superior ________.
unit costs
Higher shares tend to produce higher profits only when ________ fall with increased market share.
earn higher profits; gain more market share
If the company's offer delivers greater value by exceeding the competitor's offer on important attributes, the company can charge a higher price and ________, or it can charge the same price and ________.
attack; defend
Knowing how major competitors react gives the company clues on how best to ________ competitors or how best to ________ the company's current positions.
competitor myopia example
Kodak's film business didn't suffer at the hands of direct competitor Fujifilm; it lost out to Sony, Canon, and other digital camera makers, along with a host of digital image developers and online image sharing services.
follow; challenge
Many firms prefer to ________ rather than ________ the leader.
developing new users
Market leaders can expand the market by ________, new uses, and more usage of the product.
new uses of the product
Marketers can expand markets by discovering and promoting ________.
entrepreneurial marketing stage
Most companies are started by individuals who live by their wits. They visualize an opportunity, construct flexible strategies on the backs of envelopes, and knock on every door to gain attention.
weak competitors
Most companies prefer to aim competition against ________
close competitors; distant competitors
Most companies will compete with ________ rather than ________.
bad competitor
Most competitors in the music download industry see Apple's iTunes Music Store as a ________ because they created a closed system with mass appeal.
market leader
Most of the market is in the hands of the ________, the firm with the largest market share.
examples of close competitors
Nike and Adidas Wal-Mart and K-Mart Pepsi and Coca-Cola Neiman Marcus and Nordstom
building deep community with customers
Nike has learned that the most important successful marketing strategy is ____.
product leadership
Nokia and Apple are open to new ideas, relentlessly pursue new solutions, and work to get new products to market quickly. They serve customers who want state-of-the-art products and services, regardless of the costs in terms of price or inconvenience. These companies are offering what value discipline?
customer intimacy competitive marketing strategy
Nordstrom, Lexus, American Express, British Airways, and Ritz-Carlton Hotels will do almost anything to build long-term customer loyalty and to capture customer lifetime value. These companies are pursuing ____.
develops new users
NutriSystem has typically targeted its weight loss programs toward women. Recently, however, it stepped up its efforts to attract male customers. This is an example of how the market leader ________.
customer value analysis
PepsiCo conducts a survey on all Coca-Cola drinkers to assess the company's strengths and weaknesses upon their target customers. PepsiCo is using a/an ________.
served market
Profitability increases as a business gains share relative to competitors in its ________.
an indirect attack
Rather than challenging head-on, the challenger can make ________ on the competitor's weaknesses or on gaps in the competitor's market coverage.
blue ocean strategy
Rather than competing head to head with established competitors, many companies seek out unoccupied positions in uncontested market spaces. They try to create products and services for which there are no direct competitors. This is called a ________.
an indirect attack example
Red Bull entered the U.S. soft drinks market with a niche product: a carbonated energy drink retailing at about twice what you would pay for a Coke or Pepsi. Their product was sold in unconventional outlets not dominated by the market leaders.
middle-of-the-roaders example
Sears and Holiday Inn encountered difficult times because they did not stand out as the lowest in cost, highest in perceived value, or best in serving some market segment.
continuous innovation
The best response to competitive threats is ________.
only well-behaved competitors
The implication suggested by strategic actions of "good competitor companies" is that they would like to shape an industry that consists of ________.
specialization
The key to successful niching is ________.
total market expands
The leading firm normally gains the most when the ________.
frontal attack
The market challenger may launch a full ________, matching the competitor's product, advertising, price, and distribution efforts. It attacks the competitor's strengths rather than its weaknesses.
low; high
The market follower must keep its manufacturing costs and prices ________ or its product quality and services ________.
multiple niching
The market niche may dry up, or it might grow to the point that it attracts larger competitors. That is why many companies practice ________.
compete
The more that one firm's strategy resembles another firm's strategy, the more the two firms ________.
creative side
There will be a constant tension between the formulated side of marketing and the ________.
competitor analysis example
To plan effective marketing strategies, the company needs to find out all it can about its competitors. It must constantly compare its marketing strategies, products, prices, channels, and promotion with those of close competitors.
try to expand their market share further, even if market size remains constant
To remain number one, leading firms can take any of three actions. First, they can find ways to expand total demand. Second, they can protect their current market share through good defensive and offensive actions. Third, they can ________.
value innovation
Tomorrow's leading companies will succeed by creating "blue oceans" of uncontested market space. Such strategic moves, termed ________ , create powerful leaps in value for both the firm and its buyers, creating all new demand and rendering rivals obsolete.
differentiation
Wal-Mart, Texas Instruments, and Dell all achieve the lowest production and distribution costs to win a large market share. They utilize a(n) ________ strategy very effectively.
operational excellence
Wal-Mart, Washington Mutual, and Southwest Airlines serve customers who want reliable, good-quality products or services, but who want them cheaply and easily. They are all known for pursuing a value discipline known as ________.
operational excellence definition
When a company provides superior value by leading its industry in price and convenience
market-centered companies
When companies watch both their customers and their competitors, they are called ________.
customer intimacy
When customers are willing to pay a premium to get precisely what they want and company respond quickly to satisfy customer needs, the company has achieved what is called ________.
customer intimacy
When it comes to creating ________, Ritz-Carlton sets the gold standard. "It's all about providing a unique, personal, memorable experience."
high volume; high margins
Whereas the mass marketer achieves ________, the nicher achieves ________.
runner-up firms
________ can adopt one of two competitive strategies: they can challenge the leader or they can play along with competitors and not rock the boat.
market niching
________ is profitable because the needs of the target customer segment are better met than when other firms casually attempt to sell to the same segment.
customer-centered company
a company that focuses on customer developments in designing its marketing strategies and on delivering superior value to its target customers is a ________.
market follower
a runner-up firm that wants to hold its share in an industry without rocking the boat
evolving company orientations
competitor-orientation customer-orientation product orientation market-orientation
The company wants to know the relative importance that a competitor places on
current profitability market share growth cash flow technological and service leadership
customer value analysis is conducted to
determine what benefits target customers value and how they rate the relative value of various competitors' offers
stages approaches to marketing strategy and practice often pass through
entrepreneurial marketing, formulated marketing, and intrepreneurial marketing
market challenger strategies
full frontal attack and indirect attack
competitor analysis involves
identifying and assessing competitors and then selecting which to attack or avoid
competitive positions or roles that firms play in the target market
market leader market challenger market follower market nicher
part 2 of competitor analysis assesses
objectives, strategies, strengths, weaknesses and reaction patterns
value disciplines
operational excellence, customer intimacy, and product leadership
winning strategies
overall cost leadership, differentiation, and focus
competitive advantage
requires delivering more value and satisfaction to target consumers than competitors do
market challengers
runner-up firms that are working to increase its market share in an industry.
competitive marketing strategies
strategies that strongly position the company against competitors and give the company the strongest possible strategic advantage
competitive intelligence
system that first identifies the vital types of competitive information and the best sources of this information
positive aspect of a competitor-centered company
that the company develops a fighter orientation, watches for weaknesses in its own position, and searches out competitors' weaknesses.
negative aspect of a competitor-centered company
the company becomes too reactive. Rather than carry out its own customer relationship strategy, it bases its own moves on competitors' moves.
competitor analysis
the first step in initiating competitive marketing strategies is to conduct ___.
benchmarking
the process of comparing the company's products and processes to those of competitors or leading firms in other industries to find ways to improve quality and performance
a company's close competitors are ____
those that most resemble the company's operations
market leader
usually leads the other firms in price changes, new product introductions, distribution coverage, and promotion spending.
product leadership value discipline
when a company's aim is to make its own and competing products obsolete and serve customers who want state-of-the-art products and services, it is using a ____