Exam 18: Creating Competitive Advantage

Fifty percent of the market is in the hands of Company A, 30 percent is in the hands of Company B, 15 percent is in the hands of Company C, and the remaining 5 percent is in the hands of Company D. Based on these hypothetical numbers, Company B is the market ________.

Almost every industry includes firms that specialize in serving target subsegments called market ________.

When companies serve customers who are willing to pay a premium to get precisely what they want and the company responds quickly to satisfy these customers' needs, the company has achieved ________.

________ is 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.

Which of the following statements is most likely true of market follower strategies?

Which of the following is the first step taken in the competitive intelligence system?

A firm should compete with ________ competitors in order to sharpen its abilities. Succeeding against these competitors often provides greater returns.

Companies need to know each competitor's product quality, features, and mix; customer services; pricing policy; distribution coverage; sales force strategy; and advertising and sales promotion programs. These are all the dimensions that identify ________ groups within the industry.

In conducting ________, the company first identifies the major attributes that customers value and the importance customers place on these attributes. Next, it assesses its performance against competitors on those valued attributes.

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 ________.

________ are those runner-up firms that are working to increase their market share in an industry.

Discuss formal and informal marketing strategies and give examples of companies that follow these strategies.

Which of the following is a competitive position or role that firms play in the target market?

Greener-grass Inc. is a lawn care company providing landscaping and lawn maintenance services to customers in and around Kansas City. The marketing team at Greener-grass carefully tracks the moves of competing companies, watching for shifting strategies and new promotions. The marketing team is also in constant touch with customers, using surveys and other feedback methods to find out what kind of services customers value the most. Greener-grass is most accurately described as having a ________ orientation.

In the audio equipment industry, Philips and Sony belong to the same ________.

Benchmarking has become a powerful tool for increasing a company's ________.

Name the three value disciplines.

If a 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 ________.

Customers see competitive advantages as customer advantages.

A market research firm conducts a survey of soft-drink consumers to assess Pepsi's and Coke's strengths and weaknesses in attributes valued by both company's target customers. The market research firm is using a ________.