mkt exam 1 part 2

A change in the competitive environment will always impact:

...

A firm's inability to adopt the latest technology in its field is a type of:

....

It is estimated that, on average, marketing costs account for __% of overall product costs. These costs are not associated with manufacturing, product design, or any of the other __ functions. Instead, the expenditures go toward the performance of __ universal functions of marketing.

50, production, eight

Which of the following is TRUE regarding marketing plans?

A marketing plan should be flexible

The five dimensions that make up the ________ include competitive, technological, economic, political-legal, and social cultural.

marketing environment

The __ component specifies what the company wants to accomplish with its marketing activities.

marketing objectives

As the company plans to expand globally, Milagros and her team must engage in __ , the process through which they decide their price points, which products they are going to carry at their flagship stores around the world, and the company's promotional campaigns. As Milagros's team outlines their short- and long-term __ , they also have to map out the __ that will help them reach their targets. Milagros notes that the CEO of the company has a seven-year vision and __ for the company, so all of their activities must be in alignment with those proposals, and they must make sure that they have enough funds and resources to implement their ideas. One of the other employees reminds the team that __ is just as critical because it will help the company build the foundation in the immediate future to reach longer-term goals.

marketing planning, goals, objectives, strategic plans, and tactical planning

The performance evaluation component establishes the __ standards for evaluating the success of the company's marketing strategies.

measurement

Marketing strategies are built around four variables—product, price, distribution, and promotion, which are known as the marketing ___

mix

Consumerism exerts legal, __ , and economic pressures on businesses.

moral

The marketing strategies component spells out how the company plans to achieve its marketing

objectives

Drafting programmatic reports on last year's Urban Youth Coalition Conference involves

operational

Hiring a new chief executive officer (CEO) to usher in an era of microfinance programs for entrepreneurial youth involves neither __ nor tactical planning.

operational

Scheduling staff to attend the morning plenary on the effects of globalization on the environment and climate change involves

operational planning

Ink cartridges for printers have a limited life and often equipped with smart chips that discourage refilling. This is an example of:

planned obsolescence.

__ is probably the most regulated aspect of marketing strategy.

pricing

Increasingly sophisticated production techniques facilitated the transition from the _____ era to the ____era

production, sales

Applying for a sustainable development grant aimed at creating community gardens involves

tactical planning

Strategic plans focus on organizational objectives that will typically affect a firm for the __________.

long term

Deciding whether the organization will merge with Grassroots, Inc., a multinational company involves neither operational planning nor

tactical planning

The four basic consumer rights include the right to be heard, the right to be safe, the right to choose freely, and:

the right to be informed.

Uber represents an example of a _____ force for the traditional taxi cab business model.

threat of new competitors

Marketers must pay attention to changes in sociocultural forces in order to send effective marketing messages to their target market. Sociocultural forces occur incrementally, making it easy to miss the shift until it is fully integrated. These can include a change in population characteristics such as age, gender, ethnicity, income, education, and marital and parental status. The degree to which these changes take place determines the amount of diversity present in a particular market, which, in turn results in different consumer buying behaviors. Cultural values affect the way people think about and make purchases, and largely result from one's family. Consumerism is a movement to protect consumers' rights, whose values can be heard from individuals, organizations, or groups. Which of the following statements provides a correct example of consumerism?

A snack and beverage company is reacting to consumer complaints about high sugar content in their products

You are the head of the corporate acquisitions team at a major biotech company in Atlanta, Georgia. Your team has identified a couple of attractive acquisition targets that you would like to recommend to the Board of Directors for consideration. However, before you make a recommendation, you want to make sure that none of the acquisitions will raise any regulatory issues. In order to evaluate all potential regulatory issues, which one of the following analytical actions should you have your team complete prior to making any recommendations?

A thorough analysis of the provisions of the Celler-Kefauver Act, the Clayton Act, and the Sherman Antitrust Act

Marketers must continually acquire information about trends, events, and societal dynamics occurring in the marketing environment outside of the firm in order to identify and interpret potential positive and negative forces that may impact the firm's marketing strategies. The following statements provide examples of trends related to environmental forces. Which of these examples is correct?

Advances in biotechnology, cosmetic surgery, and cancer drugs are related to technological forces.

You work for a company that manufactures and distributes home design products directly to customers. Annually, the company executives facilitate meetings with middle and supervisory-level management to ensure that all staff are on the same page. This year, you have proposed that to ensure that all company employees understand the goals of the company, each person has to go through a list of tasks and decide whether top management, middle management, or supervisory-level management is responsible for that task. Which of the following tasks would most likely be the responsibility of middle management?

Assess infrastructural gaps in the community to determine how company can be socially responsible. AND Develop a tool to help track customer complaints about lost and late shipments.

There's Nothing Like Knitting is a unique new shop that sells unusual varieties of wool. Thanks to heavy advertising leading up to its grand opening, the shop was crowded with eager knitters during its first two weeks. But suppliers were late in shipping their products, so TNLK soon ran short of merchandise. The owners brought backup goods from their warehouse, but the ceiling of the flimsy storage building had leaked and the wool was wet and moldy. Angry customers demanded refunds and didn't come back. Now TNLK is on the brink of bankruptcy. TNLK's problems reflected breakdown in which of the functions of marketing?

Buying, transporting, and storing

The Marketing Objectives section of the marketing plan provides critical guidance for the organization's marketing activities. However, this section cannot stand alone; marketers also need the insights contributed by other sections. Which of the following statements describes information that the Marketing Objectives section of the marketing plan leaves out?

Competitors to watch

Your best friend is a contestant on the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? He just exercised one of his "lifelines" by calling you for help with a marketing-related question. Your friend reads the following question to you: Which one of the following statements about Porter's five forces model is true?

The model does not include government power.

Which of the following is TRUE regarding a firm's strengths?

A strength reflects a capability within the company.

You are conducting an analysis of competitive forces facing the pharmaceutical company you work for. You're especially struck by the fact that companies in your industry generally need government patents and approvals from the US Food and Drug Agency before they can legally market many of the most profitable products. These realities primarily influence the competitive force identified in Porter's five forces model as __ , which is based on __ for entering a market or industry.

threat of new competitors, level of difficulty

Before relationship marketing can achieve its ultimate goal—turning customers into advocates—it needs to:

turn customers into loyal supporters.

When the economy slows, marketers are more likely to succeed with products that are __ rather than __

value-priced, premium priced

You work for a music CD distributor that specializes in rare albums that many other distributors do not carry. Because of mp3s, mp4s, and online music streaming and downloading sites, sales have decreased significantly. You realize that the Internet can either help your company or further hinder its mission and goals. You use Porter's five forces as a model to assess the impact of the Internet on your business; you look at potential new entrants, bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of substitute products, and rivalry among competitors. Choose the impact of the Internet likely to make your business more challenging.

Consumers can now find rare music online.

All these statements are true about the benefits of B2C digital marketing except which one?

Customers can exchange products and services with other customers

You work for an automobile manufacturing company whose sales have been low as a result of the economic downturn. Company executives are strategizing as to how to stimulate sales. Which of the following steps should they take to improve business?

Decrease prices and offer more promotions.

The director of marketing at your company has asked an intern to determine if the firm's Facebook advertising is profitable. Being unfamiliar with the different measures of e-commerce profitability and success, the intern has come to you for advice. What should you advise her to do?

Divide the cost per click on your Facebook ad by your conversion rate

You have been hired to advise a food company that is considering whether it should sell one, both, or neither of its two breakfast brands. Here are the facts you are given: Brand A commands a market-leading share in the oatmeal category. A has a large and stable base of loyal customers. However, this category is unlikely to grow in the foreseeable future, as oatmeal preparation takes time and consumers are increasingly focused on convenience. Brand B is a market leader in the small but rapidly expanding category of grab-and-go breakfast wraps. However, it won't be easy to stay ahead of the competition; unless B is sold, the company will need to invest heavily in research and development of healthy fillings and innovative packaging. What is your best advice?

Do not sell either Brand A or Brand B

You own an expensive restaurant and have a thriving business until the economic recession hits. Sales immediately plummet as your diners disappear. Some friends argue that a big advertising campaign focused on the quality of your food would bring the customers back, but you don't agree. Choose the statement(s) you'd use to accurately explain your point of view.

During a recession, consumers limit expenditures on items that aren't necessary, like restaurant meals. AND During a recession, consumers are more likely to respond to discount deals than to ads touting the quality of a purchase that isn't a necessity

If the government agency that you work for wishes to implement a system that allows for computer-to-computer information exchanges between buyers and sellers, which of the following forms of e-business in the B2B market would be most appropriate?

Electronic Data Interchange

Your company just attended a symposium on sustainability; and as company president, you are interested in raising the level of social responsibility in all that the company does, whether manufacturing goods, marketing, or offering services that improve the lives of individuals in the communities you serve. Which of the following steps can your company take to ensure that its practices are socially responsible?

Eliminate the use of paper-based circulars and rely solely on Web-based and social marketing strategies to promote products.

Which one of the following statements best describes the basic goal of marketing?

Marketing creates value by providing different types of utility to customers

You work for a multimillion-dollar supermarket chain whose executives have been strategizing around ways to enhance their relationships with customers. Which of the following steps would you take to address this need if your company is committed to the practices of the relationship era?

Institute a loyalty program that rewards regular customers through a point system

If your company wishes to communicate a consistent message to its customers with its traditional marketing and digital strategies then it should focus on which of the following opportunities of digital marketing?

Integrated marketing

The pyramid of corporate social responsibility states that there are four dimensions of social responsibility: economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic. The socially responsible marketer accepts different responsibilities for each of these dimensions in terms of how she carries out her marketing activities. You have been asked to make a presentation to management that will highlight your company's ethical responsibilities. Which of the following topics do you plan to discuss?

It is important to recognize that corporate integrity and behavior go beyond mere compliance with laws and regulations

Which of the following could be classified as a marketing objective?

achieve a 15% increase in customer retention compared to last year

Nike has been able to capitalize on its relationship with basketball star LeBron James, not only by endorsing him, but by also developing a LeBron James Collection composed of T-shirts, socks, basketball apparel, and sneakers. The LeBron X shoe line has been especially successful: When released, the base shoe was priced at about $180, while a version embedded with Nike-plus sensors—which track how high a player can jump and how far he or she can run—sold for $260. Which of the following statements about the LeBron X shoe line is NOT accurate?

Nike's effort to sell the line is primarily an example of person marketing.

Procter & Gamble wants to determine both the market share of Iams and the customer lifetime value of Iams buyers. These measurements are calculated based on different variables. Customer lifetime value calculations are complex, but are usually based on the frequency and dollar amounts of an individual customer's purchases, how long the relationship endures, how purchasing patterns change over the course of the relationship, the cost of servicing customers, the profitability of each customer over time, and whether existing customers bring in new customers through word of mouth or other means. A number of possible measurements are listed below. Choose those answers that are not focused on customer lifetime value.

Number of competitors and how much pet food each competitor sells per year. AND Percentage of industrywide annual sales represented by Iams products

Scenario: Your company makes skiing equipment and apparel. You recently launched a number of new features and capabilities on your website that are aimed at the active skier target market. One of the most popular features is the one that sends an alert to skiers when forecasted weather conditions at their favorite ski venues are most favorable for skiing. There are also alerts that contain information about the size of daily crowds at these venues. Which of the following digital capabilities are you directing your head of marketing to base the strategy on?

Personalization

International retailer IKEA is known not only for value-priced furniture and home goods, but also for the unique children's playrooms and family cafeterias offered in all its stores. These amenities enhance which type(s) of utility for IKEA customers?

Place

Starbucks has opened many outlets in hotels and airports. What type of utility is Starbucks creating for customers?

Place

In a memo giving the time and date for your company's marketing strategy session, you see that the only topic on the agenda is "Promotion." Knowing that promotion is only one variable in the marketing mix, you contact the memo writer to suggest additional topics that will cover all the relevant variables. What topics do you suggest?

Price, Product, and Distribution

Scenario: You are the head of purchasing for a large automobile manufacturing firm in Detroit, Michigan. You are responsible for sourcing and purchasing hundreds of components, parts and other supplies from hundreds of different vendors around the world. You are leading a company-wide project with the primary objective of improving your firm's ability to collaborate with its vendors on projects and to share information with them more efficiently. Which of the following forms of e-business in the B2B market should you implement to achieve the objective of this project?

Private Exchanges

You are taking a crash course in e-business in order to compete for a plum job opening in the field. However, you missed the class on popular B2B e-business tools and asked a friend to give you her notes. Which of the following points were made during the session?

Private exchanges offer the ability to collaborate on projects and share information

Your investment banker has presented you with the following list of business characteristics of a small company your company is considering acquiring: Market leadership Large inventories Lack of management depth Cost advantages Management turnover Excess manufacturing capacity relative to market Based on this list of characteristics, which of the following statements is true?

The list contains more weaknesses than strengths.

Marketers must continually assess changes in the competition and make changes in their own competitive strategy because the competitive environment often determines success or failure of a product. Which of the steps below can a marketer for a large retail discount store (e.g., Target, Walmart, Sears) implement as part of the store's competitive strategy as children are headed back to school? Choose the step that you think will be most profitable.

Run Early Bird Special discounts on end-of-summer weekends for local school supply lists, toiletries, and clothing.

A __ assesses strengths and weaknesses within the organization and external opportunities and threats.

SWOT analysis

Shutterfly is an Internet-based image publishing service based in Redwood City, California, and is mostly known for its photo book line. Like other business firms, Shutterfly conducts a SWOT analysis of its internal strengths and weaknesses, and external opportunities and threats. Choose the SWOT analysis element that represents a Shutterfly strength.

Shutterfly constantly upgrades its digital technology and apps.

A summer intern has been assigned to help you draft your firm's marketing plan. You are pleased, until you overhear her tell a coworker: "I'd like to work on either strategies or tactics, since there's no real difference between them." When you meet with the intern, you correct her mistake. Which of the following statements do you make?

Strategies are longer-term courses of action, while tactics are shorter-term actions.

Venmo is a mobile application that enables people to send and receive money for free as long as they have a bank account, supported debit card, or a Venmo balance to fund payments. Venmo also allows the use of credit cards for a fee. To ensure security, the company uses bank-grade security systems and data encryption to prevent unauthorized transactions or access to personal information. Venmo operates as a mobile wallet, and though it provides services comparable to Western Union and PayPal, it can be managed through smartphones, thus appealing to a wide audience of retailers and others who depend on efficient money exchange. In an analysis of Venmo for your marketing class, you argue that it exemplifies how technological change creates marketing opportunities. What is the core of your argument?

Technological change often enables companies to greatly improve customer service.

Marketing ethics and social responsibility are important to the success of marketing strategies. Marketing ethics defines the principles and standards that define acceptable conduct in marketing. Which of the following decisions is not related to marketing ethics?

The Director of Marketing wants to withdraw a product because it is no longer profitable or competitive

The legal and regulatory forces in the marketing environment consist primarily of laws that are enforced by a variety of agencies operating at the federal, state, and local levels of government. Which of the following laws and agencies is (are) incorrectly linked to an area of regulatory responsibility?

The FDA prohibits adulteration of food, drugs, and additives AND The CPSA sets standards for business-to-business products.

You just got hired by the Federal Trade Commission, and you're the envy of all your friends. You feel good when you overhear your roommate describe your new job to another student. However, in his enthusiasm, he made a couple of mistakes. Which of the following points about the FTC did your roommate get wrong?

The FTC sets safety standards for consumer products. AND The FTC operates at the state level as well as the federal level. AND Because of its enormous power, the FTC is known informally as the Federal Power Commission.

You have been hired as a marketing director for Terraineous, a hiking apparel and footwear company. Your most urgent problem is that sales of its newest product, a hiking boot, are failing to meet projections. In analyzing the situation, you learn that the company is falling short in customer service; no one has been designated to answer buyers' questions about how to clean and care for the boot. When you meet with the CEO, you want to pinpoint exactly which variable of the marketing mix is at the root of this problem. What should you tell her?

The problem stems from the product variable, because this variable may involve decisions about customer service.

During their planning process, the staff at a well-known resort decide to try something they have never tried before. The director of marketing and the operations manager decide that it would be vital to have input from as many people and as many diverse perspectives in the planning process as possible. Thus, the company invites a mixture of loyal customers, community members, suppliers, and employees from different departments, and other partners to a town hall to discuss the company's next steps. Moreover, those who could not physically attend the meeting are asked to participate via a discussion set up through the company's social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, and via teleconferencing. During the meeting the facilitators discussed previous goals and how those goals could be achieved. Some of the strategies they had been using in the past to reach their targets did not work; consequently, they needed to outline new milestones to support the company's vision for the next 10 years. According to the scenario, which of the following is true?

The scenario outlines a tactical planning process because the meeting facilitators are focused on developing objectives that support the company's 10-year vision.

You would like to invest in one of the profitable business units of a multinational corporation. In a meeting with management, you explain that you'll only consider a unit categorized, according to the BCG matrix, as a question mark. Here are your choices: Unit A has revenue of $27 billion and a profit of $6 billion. While its product is based on a new technology that is rapidly increasing in sales, the product currently lags the market share of competitors. Unit B has revenue of $30 billion and a profit of $7 billion. Its market share is strong and growing. While its product is based on an outdated technology, the product has a loyal following for now. Which of the corporation's two profitable units meets your criterion?

Unit A

From the following list of six marketing questions, choose those related to the Environmental & SWOT Analysis element of the marketing plan:

What other products will my chips be competing with in the marketplace? AND What are the most popular chip snacks in my area, and how are tastes changing?

Jan was planning to take her kids to Disney World, but decided instead to book a family-oriented cruise on Carnival Cruise Lines. The competition between Disney World and Carnival Cruise Lines is __

indirect

For decades Superior Ski Hotel was a thriving New England resort, relying on families who returned faithfully year after year. Its marketers had complete confidence in the loyalty of their longtime customers, so their only promotional campaigns focused on attracting new customers by offering steep discounts on first-time stays. But as competition intensified, Superior began to lose business. Eventually the hotel was forced to close. Which of the following principles of relationship marketing did the company neglect?

While it's important to attract new customers, it's even more important to encourage current customers to keep coming back

You have been hired by a successful but somewhat old-fashioned retailer with a new CEO who is anxious to get involved in B2C e-commerce. However, he needs to convince the board of directors that online shopping is more than just a fad. All of the following arguments are valid for him to use except which one?

While most consumers still prefer traditional brick-and-mortar shopping, analysts predict that this preference will change in the coming decade.

You have been working as an intern for your father's construction company and have been asked to sit in on the company re-visioning meeting. Because this is your first time in a marketing planning meeting, you are somewhat confused about the jargon being used. One of the employees explains to you the difference between strategic planning and tactical planning, and asks you to provide examples so she can make sure you understand the concepts. Which of the following is an example of a strategic plan?

Within the next 10 years, we want to open 20 locations

You have just graduated from college and are searching for jobs online. Your ideal position would be in cause marketing. Which of the following positions would come closest to your ideal?

Your state's Department of Environmental Protection is seeking a candidate who will plan an ad campaign to promote the theme "Save Our Trees: Don't Waste Paper."

Sylvia often takes photos of her meals at restaurants and posts them to Instagram and Facebook as well as shares them with her Snapchat friends. This practice often creates positive word-of-mouth about the restaurants and is known as _____ marketing.

buzz

A major marketer of rice offers a range of varieties to satisfy the distinctive tastes of Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese consumers. By catering to its different Asian buyers, the marketer is demonstrating sensitivity to __ diversity.

cultural

Leverage is a situation where the firm's ________ strength matches an ________ opportunity.

internal, external

People might think that __ is good for consumers because prices fall. However, this condition ultimately hurts the economy by causing __

deflation, layoffs

The processes of marketing create, communicate, and _______ value to customers.

deliver

Changes in a population's __ characteristics, like age and ethnicity, help define individual behavior.

demographic

Dick's Donut Shop faced __ competition when a Dunkin Donuts franchise opened across the street.

direct

Vendors who sell essentially identical products or services are known as a firm's __

direct competition

Netflix is a popular media streaming service and also produces a variety of original content for its subscribers such as House of Cards and Orange is the New Black. The decision by Netflix to release an entire series at one time rather than release one episode per week—thereby changing the availability of its original content is part of its _____ element of the marketing mix.

distribution

Before a firm can be ethically responsible, it first must be:

economically and legally responsible

The question of channel control may pose a serious __ issue

ethical

Marketing __ refers to a marketer's standards of conduct and __

ethics, values

The Olympic Games attract some of the world's best known marketers, who pay millions of dollars in return for being identified as official sponsors. They engage in the type of nontraditional marketing known as:

event marketing

During an economic slowdown, consumers are usually unwilling to all of the following except

focus on functional, more affordable purchases.

During a recession, consumers' buying power normally__

increases

In 2011, New Balance claimed it created a sneaker that would help wearers burn calories by activating muscles in their legs. Studies found that there were no health benefits from wearing this new sneaker. This is an example of an ethical issue in:

promotion.

The central focus of the marketer's activities is to develop mutually beneficial relationships with customers and potential customers. If the marketer is able to convince the customer to buy the firm's products, then the customer's lifetime value to the firm is enhanced. Marketers also seek to encourage customers to _________________ the firm's products because that will ____________ the customer's lifetime value to the firm. Which of the following terms/words best express what marketers should do to enhance a customer's lifetime value to the firm?

recommend; increase

The Robinson-Patman Act, which prohibits price discrimination in sales to wholesalers, retailers, or other producers, aims to:

regulate competition.

Carlos is an account manager with Stryker, a leading medical device manufacturer. Carlos typically meets with orthopedic surgeons and hospitals to influence adoption of his company's products. Which function of marketing is most associated with Carlos' position with Stryker?

sales

To qualify as a recession, a period of economic contraction must last at least __ months.

six

According to the BCG portfolio management tool, business units classified as "dogs" should be:

sold to another firm

Marketing ethics are primarily concerned with marketers':

standards of conduct and values

The Apple iPhone is the top seller in its category in the American market, but Apple must invest heavily to ensure the brand's future growth. The Apple iPhone is a:

star.

Nicolai, the owner of Emerita's Pizzeria, informs you that during the __ process, company stakeholders asked themselves the following question: Where do we want the company to be in five years? The __ staff decided to focus on recruiting new clientele, increasing profitability and productivity, and finding ways to give back to the community. To achieve these goals, all of the company's staff, stakeholders, and customers needed to be on board. You realize that as a __ employee on the frontlines, your interaction with customers is going to be especially important because you are a representative of the company. You also realize that during __ , it will be critical to figure out ways to monitor customer satisfaction on a day-to-day basis. Perhaps, it would be useful to use social marketing as a tool to engage customers. Nicolai informs you that he will be meeting with __ staff to decide on the best ways to support larger company goals. One of the items Nicolai hopes that his staff will focus on during __ is coming up with new tools to expedite the pizza-making process and procedures that cut costs.

strategic planning, top level, low level, operational planning, midlevel, tactical planning

What does the acronym SWOT represent?

strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats

Businesses compete indirectly when they produce goods and services that are __ for those of another business.

substituable

n a monopoly, a single seller dominates trade in a good or service for which there are effectively no:

substitutes.

American Eagle's customers are typically aged 14 to 25, which describes its _________.

target market