Marketing CHAPTER 9
During the market introduction stage of the product life cycle, it takes time for customers to learn that a new product is available; therefore, a firm must invest heavily in ______
promotion
Late entrants who come into the market at maturity must try to take a share of an already saturated market. They attempt to do this by investing heavily in ______
promotion
True or false: the sales & profits of an individual brand always follow product life-cycle pattern
FALSE
When introducing a new product in the market introduction stage, which of the following must a marketing manager consider?
How to promote the product; which distribution channels to select; and the cost of product development
Which of the following occur in the market maturity stage of the product life cycle?
Industry profits decline, and competition gets tougher
Which of the following should impact marketing strategy planning?
Where a product is in its life-cycle stage; and how fast the product is moving to the next stage
An ongoing commitment to improving processes and products one step at a time is referred to as ______ improvement.
continuous
During the market growth stage of a product, a company will want to focus promotional efforts on _____ customers.
persuading
Products influenced by fashion typically have _____ life cycles.
short
As a market moves into the market maturity stage, which of the following might provide a firm in that market with sources of competitive advantage?
A somewhat better product; lower production costs; and successful promotion strategies
Which of these characteristics help a new product move quickly through the early stages of the product life cycle?
Comparative advantage, ease of use, and matches values of target customers
Which of the following typically occur in the market introduction stage of the product life cycle?
Customers are not seeking the product, firms inform customers about the product, and sales are low
Some companies use data and ______ to support continuous improvement.
artificial intelligence
Continuous improvement = an organization strives to _____ .
constantly make things better
In general, product life cycles, as a whole, are ______
getting shorter
If a new product has a greater comparative advantage over products already on the market, sales will tend to ______
grow more rapidly
The product life-cycle concept ______ indicates precisely how long each stage will last.
never
When a firm determines that a product will no longer be profitable enough for the firm to meet its objectives, it may need to develop a _____ strategy.
phase-out
The first company to introduce a new product to a market is known as a _____
pioneer
The cost of ______ is lost customers.
poor quality product
The four stages new-product ideas go through are known as the _______
product life cycle
The major responsibility of most product managers or brand managers is ______
promotion
Sales of an individual product or brand will ______ follow the product life-cycle pattern (Strategy planners should not expect sales of an individual product to follow the product life-cycle pattern)
rarely
A typical employee training program for a service-providing organization will include ______ .
role playing on various customer problems and requests
Direct contact between the customer and the company occurs most often among ______ organizations.
service-providing
Because introducing a new product is expensive, a marketing manager may try to _____ the market → charging a relatively high price to help pay for the introductory costs.
skim
Product life cycle patterns apply to the sales of a given product idea in a _____
specific product-market
Finding a new use for an existing product in a mature market has the potential to ______ .
stimulate sales growth
Rapidly changing _____ is one reason why product life cycles are getting shorter.
technology
Characteristics of product managers:
they often coordinate with other employees and third-party service providers; they are common in large companies with many products; and they are sometimes responsible for the entire marketing effort of a product.
A firm that attempts to provide superior customer service by focusing on quality throughout each of its activities is engaging in ______ .
total quality management (TQM)
Moments of direct contact between the customer and the firm, also known as _____ , are opportunities for the company to deliver superior value.
touch-points
A good _____ program can include role-playing on handling customer problems.
training
In service industry, ______ & ______ are two keys to improving service quality.
training, empowerment
The duration of the whole product life cycle tends to ______ .
vary greatly across products
Matthew received a pacemaker to help the arrhythmia he is experiencing with his heart. The pacemaker provides a continual stream of information that is monitored by specialists at the heart clinic and if they notice any indicators of concern, they contact Matthew and he reports to the clinic for assessment. What is helping the heart clinic improve the quality of care Matthew is receiving?
Data
Which of the following are ideas consistent with total quality management?
Everyone in the company should care about the quality; poor quality equals lost customers; and it is less expensive to do things right the first time.
True or false: marketing managers should focus on informing customers about their brand during the market growth stage of the product life cycle
FALSE (Should focus on persuading customers to buy their product instead)
Johnson Controls (JC) is finally earning a profit on a new product it introduced to business buyers a year ago. More and more customers are purchasing the product, and the product faces little serious competition. Industry competitors have begun to take notice, however, and have recently introduced competing products. In which stage of the product life cycle is Johnson Controls operating?
Market growth
Match stage of product life cycle with the characteristics of the product-market
Market introduction = Verizon introduces a phone with a 3D screen; no other firm has one Market growth = several firms sell compact fluorescent light bulbs; sales and profits are growing Market maturity = there is a battle of the brands in frozen pizza, with all brand offerings being relatively similar Sales decline = only a few firms still make disk drives for computers; sales and profits are dropping fast
product life cycle stages
Market introduction → Market growth → Market maturity → Sales decline
In what stage of the product life cycle do many firms slash prices or modify existing products to add value and maintain market share?
Maturity
Which market situation is typical of the market growth stage of the product life cycle?
Monopolistic competition
Which of the following occur in the sales decline stage of the product life cycle?
Price competition becomes vigorous, new products replace old, and strong brands can make profits
Most of Stardust Co.'s competitors have left the market because of declining sales. Stardust has introduced new products, but has continued producing the old products because a small group of loyal customers still use them. This product-market is in which product life cycle stage?
Sales decline
A common challenge faced by product managers is ______ .
conflict with the marketing efforts of product managers responsible for other related brands
At Royal Palms Resort in Hawaii, General Manager Roger Selig gives employees authority to take all necessary steps, including spending up to $1000, to fix any guest's problems without having to check with a manager. Selig is practicing ______ with his employees.
empowerment
Authorizing employees to correct a problem on their own is called ______ .
empowerment
Total quality management requires ______ to focus on quality and meeting customer needs.
everyone in the organization
A phase-out strategy should be implemented _____ .
gradually
A product idea can be in a different ______ in different markets.
life-cycle stage
TQM is based on the idea that the cost of poor product quality is ______ .
lost customers
Ultimately, the cost of a poor quality product or service is ______ .
lost customers
In one of a firm's product-markets, industry sales have leveled off and competition has been getting tougher. This product-market appears to be in the _____ stage of the product life cycle.
market maturity
During the ______ stage of the product life cycle, promotion becomes more important due to increased competition.
market promotion
Competitive advantage is especially important in _____ product-markets.
mature
Sometimes in a _____ market, a firm may find a new use for an existing product that aids in boosting sales and avoiding sales decline.
mature
Many firms respond to the increased competition of the market _____ stage of the product life cycle by slashing prices in order to maintain market share.
maturity
The ______ and ______ position oversees product promotion and often takes over the jobs formerly handled by advertising managers.
product manager, brand manager
Companies that respond quickly to products introduced by pioneers and offer a superior marketing mix are known as ______ and can be more profitable over time
second-movers
