Exam 18: Ethical Marketing in a Consumer-Oriented World: Appraisal and Challenges

A good marketing plan will work well throughout the different stages of the product life cycle.

Better performance of our market-directed MACRO-marketing system may require:

Which of the following area does not relate to "Place" in the Four Ps?

A marketing plan will:

Which of the following statements about future trends in marketing is True?

Which of the 4Ps in the marketing mix is most directly related to the publicity for a B2B campaign?

In measuring consumer satisfaction, marketing managers should remember that:

Evaluating marketing effectiveness is impossible.

Regarding our MACRO-marketing system, advertising:

Which of the following statements about ethical behavior in business is true?

Consumers--as well as business firms--should behave in a more socially responsible manner to improve the performance of our macro-marketing system.

In the United States, the basic objective of our market-directed economic system has been to satisfy consumer needs as they, the consumers, see them.

The text argues that international competition will actually improve macro-marketing systems worldwide.

The legal environment sets the maximum standards of ethical behavior in a society.

Use this information to answer the following question that refer to the PSI case. Pump Systems, Inc. (PSI) produces two major kinds of water pumps. The smaller pumps range in price from $5-$30, and are used in drinking fountains and soft-drink machines. Most of these pumps are bought by manufacturers of these machines and built into their product. PSI also builds larger pumps used in swimming pools and reservoirs. The prices of these items range from $250-$500. These are usually purchased by contractors who build the pools and reservoirs. PSI sells nationally through sales reps located in the large industrial centers. These reps handle the selling function for PSI in their geographic areas and provide market information. They usually do the same thing for 10 to 20 similar manufacturers of noncompeting products--and are paid on a commission basis. There are no other producers of the smaller pumps in the United States--because PSI has patent protection. As a result of this, management has decided to follow a policy of pricing high--to maximize profits--while the patent lasts. Several competitors are in the market for the larger pumps. Industry prices and profits of these pumps have dropped in the past few years as a result of firms trying to increase their market shares. The product design has remained fairly stable over the last few years--and one firm dropped out as it saw that it would lose more money with its "me-too" product. Industry sales are increasing--but at a very slow rate. The price of these products is determined by adding a standard markup percentage to the variable cost of the items--to cover fixed costs and profit. For instance, pump Z has variable costs of $250 per unit, and a markup of 40 percent of this cost is added to the $250 to get its selling price. Management has estimated that fixed costs applicable to this product are $200,000 per year. PSI publishes a product catalog which is revised annually. Also, it exhibits in most trade shows. PSI follows a policy of charging the same price to all customers--so all will have the same costs at their own plants. All purchases are shipped directly from PSI's factory to its customers--and title passes at PSI's factory. In the PSI case, what kind of products are the small pumps for customers who use them to replace worn pumps in their own machines?

A S.W.O.T. analysis identifies the "special weapons or tactics" used by the competitor in a product-market that has the most profitable marketing mix.

Use this following information to answer the following question that refer to the Sure Foot case. Sure Foot, Ltd. produces high-quality shoes and boots for serious hikers. Sure Foot's shoes have suggested retail prices ranging from just under $40 to about $150. Usually, the retailer buys the shoes for about 50 percent less than the list price, and the retailer pays the freight charges from Sure Foot's plant in Maine. Sure Foot's credit terms are 2/10, net 30. Although Sure Foot's brand appears on every shoe--the firm does very little mass selling, except for a limited program of cooperative advertising and some sales promotion at walking events. Sure Foot's shoes are carried by "better" sporting goods stores all across the nation--although usually in fairly small quantities. Its main showroom is in Boston, where two salaried salespeople handle most of the firm's large accounts. Sure Foot's products are also sold by seven independent "field reps" who are paid a 5 percent commission on all sales. Each of these field reps is responsible for a several state territory--emphasizing mostly the small stores in or near major cities. The field reps carry Sure Foot's products as a minor line--but none of their lines are competitive with each other. The walking shoe market is supplied by 7 large firms and 50 or more smaller firms. While these firms are competitive, they do vary their materials, styles, prices, and promotion. The "high-quality" market is supplied by only 5 firms--Sure Foot being the largest. While these firms are also competitive, they generally offer a more limited assortment of materials, styles, and prices because the "high-quality" part of the market is not as large--and does not appear to be growing any more. Sure Foot's "field reps" are:

Marketing inefficiencies are due to all of the following reasons EXCEPT

Suppose you were able to start new cities on a planet in outer space. Suppose also that these cities will be self-supporting. Further, they will be democratic--with the objective of maximizing consumer welfare--measured by the level of consumer satisfaction. The economic decisions will be made through the "market mechanism." Which of the following statements might be made by some of the settlers?

Which of the following does NOT support the idea that MICRO-marketing often DOES cost too much?