Marketing Bu352 Final Exam Review
Question and answers correctly
solved 2025/2026
marketing strategy: 3 things it identifies - correct answer ✔Firms target market
Related marketing mix (4P's)
Building sustainable competitive advantage --> advantage that's not easily copied, able to maintain it for
long time periods
4 strategies for creating sustanable competitive advantage: - correct answer ✔1. customer excellence
2. operational excellence
3. product excellence
4. locational excellence
1. customer excellence - correct answer ✔focuses on retaining loyal customers & good customer
service
It's achieved when firms develop value-based strategies to achieve the above goals
Ex strong brand, unique product, superior customer service = loyal customers
Then, loyal customers it a comp advantage in itself
View customers from a lifetime value perspective, instead of transaction-by-transaction
Loyalty programs create emotional attachment's. +, they provide good data from implementing
customer retention programs
the importance of Customer service must be instilled in employees so that it's instilled in company
culture
2. operational excellence - correct answer ✔having efficient operations, and good supply chain & HR
management
,Get customers what they want, when thy want it, in the required quantities, and at lower delivery costs
--> makes org profitable while giving consumers low price
Having good supply chain relations (w/ vendors, suppliers) important
3. product excellence - correct answer ✔having products w/ high percieved value & effective branding
& positioning
Hard when there's easy product substitues
Position brand/product using distinctive brand imaging, & constantly reinforcing that image through
promotion
4. locational excellence - correct answer ✔good physical and internet prescence
Convenient access to your store is important
Good locations are hard to duplicate --> thus, sustainable advantage
Marketing plan steps (5) - correct answer ✔Planning
1. mission and objectives
2. situation analysis
implementation:
3. identify opportunities
4. implement marketing mix
Control
5. evaluate performance using metrics
marketing plan step 1: mission & objectives - correct answer ✔must anser: what type of business are
we?
what do we need to do to accomplish goals
,key goal: show how firm is creating SCA
marketing plan Step 2: conduct SWOT - correct answer ✔do CDSTEP
do SWOT, market trend, customer analysis, competitor analysis
marketing plan Step 3: use STP to evaluate opportunities - correct answer ✔goal is to identify growth
and profit opportunities
Market segment: group of customers who respond similarly to marketing efforts. It's like the sum of the
segments
BUT
U need to get more distinct
Market segmentation: --> find similar needs, wants, lifestyles, attitudes, values, demographics
Target marketing: what group does ur product primarely appeal to, how big is that segment? Does the
group build on ur strengths?
Positioning: use marketing mix so that customers have a clear, distinct, desirable understanding of
product & what is represents compared to competitors
marketing plan step 4: implement 4P's - correct answer ✔product, place, price, promotion
maketing plan step 5: evaluate performance - correct answer ✔use metrics to evaluate results
financial performance & social responsibility performance important
Product portfolio analysis: BCG Growth-Share Matrix - correct answer ✔The Boston Consulting Group
planning tool that evaluates business units in terms of their growth potential and market share.
, Stars: require heavy resource investment at start. As market growth slows, they use less resources and
begin generating resources --> become cash cows
Cash Cows: LGHS, already had heavy investment, have excess resources (cash, employees) to fuel other
products (like questionmarks)
Question marks: HGLS, managerially intensive, either invest invest many resources to increase market
share, or withdraw resources to stop products -->
Dogs: LGLS, should be phased out unless they are complementary product
growth strategies (4) - correct answer ✔market penetration: Same product/marketing mix technique to
existing customers (target market)
--> Encourage more purchases per visit --> requires lots of adds or more distribution effort
New market development: Existing product/marketing mix to new market segments --> new regions -->
requires greater
distribution effort. must adhere to culture
New product development: New product/marketing mix to current target market. Need new product -->
requires R&D & data collection
Diversificaiton: New product/market mix to new market segment
Related: current new product has something in common w/ current target market or marketing mix
Ie. They use same distribution, same vendors, same ads
They capitalize on businesses strengths
Unrelated: zero common elements with present business. doesnt capitalize on existing resources
Question and answers correctly
solved 2025/2026
marketing strategy: 3 things it identifies - correct answer ✔Firms target market
Related marketing mix (4P's)
Building sustainable competitive advantage --> advantage that's not easily copied, able to maintain it for
long time periods
4 strategies for creating sustanable competitive advantage: - correct answer ✔1. customer excellence
2. operational excellence
3. product excellence
4. locational excellence
1. customer excellence - correct answer ✔focuses on retaining loyal customers & good customer
service
It's achieved when firms develop value-based strategies to achieve the above goals
Ex strong brand, unique product, superior customer service = loyal customers
Then, loyal customers it a comp advantage in itself
View customers from a lifetime value perspective, instead of transaction-by-transaction
Loyalty programs create emotional attachment's. +, they provide good data from implementing
customer retention programs
the importance of Customer service must be instilled in employees so that it's instilled in company
culture
2. operational excellence - correct answer ✔having efficient operations, and good supply chain & HR
management
,Get customers what they want, when thy want it, in the required quantities, and at lower delivery costs
--> makes org profitable while giving consumers low price
Having good supply chain relations (w/ vendors, suppliers) important
3. product excellence - correct answer ✔having products w/ high percieved value & effective branding
& positioning
Hard when there's easy product substitues
Position brand/product using distinctive brand imaging, & constantly reinforcing that image through
promotion
4. locational excellence - correct answer ✔good physical and internet prescence
Convenient access to your store is important
Good locations are hard to duplicate --> thus, sustainable advantage
Marketing plan steps (5) - correct answer ✔Planning
1. mission and objectives
2. situation analysis
implementation:
3. identify opportunities
4. implement marketing mix
Control
5. evaluate performance using metrics
marketing plan step 1: mission & objectives - correct answer ✔must anser: what type of business are
we?
what do we need to do to accomplish goals
,key goal: show how firm is creating SCA
marketing plan Step 2: conduct SWOT - correct answer ✔do CDSTEP
do SWOT, market trend, customer analysis, competitor analysis
marketing plan Step 3: use STP to evaluate opportunities - correct answer ✔goal is to identify growth
and profit opportunities
Market segment: group of customers who respond similarly to marketing efforts. It's like the sum of the
segments
BUT
U need to get more distinct
Market segmentation: --> find similar needs, wants, lifestyles, attitudes, values, demographics
Target marketing: what group does ur product primarely appeal to, how big is that segment? Does the
group build on ur strengths?
Positioning: use marketing mix so that customers have a clear, distinct, desirable understanding of
product & what is represents compared to competitors
marketing plan step 4: implement 4P's - correct answer ✔product, place, price, promotion
maketing plan step 5: evaluate performance - correct answer ✔use metrics to evaluate results
financial performance & social responsibility performance important
Product portfolio analysis: BCG Growth-Share Matrix - correct answer ✔The Boston Consulting Group
planning tool that evaluates business units in terms of their growth potential and market share.
, Stars: require heavy resource investment at start. As market growth slows, they use less resources and
begin generating resources --> become cash cows
Cash Cows: LGHS, already had heavy investment, have excess resources (cash, employees) to fuel other
products (like questionmarks)
Question marks: HGLS, managerially intensive, either invest invest many resources to increase market
share, or withdraw resources to stop products -->
Dogs: LGLS, should be phased out unless they are complementary product
growth strategies (4) - correct answer ✔market penetration: Same product/marketing mix technique to
existing customers (target market)
--> Encourage more purchases per visit --> requires lots of adds or more distribution effort
New market development: Existing product/marketing mix to new market segments --> new regions -->
requires greater
distribution effort. must adhere to culture
New product development: New product/marketing mix to current target market. Need new product -->
requires R&D & data collection
Diversificaiton: New product/market mix to new market segment
Related: current new product has something in common w/ current target market or marketing mix
Ie. They use same distribution, same vendors, same ads
They capitalize on businesses strengths
Unrelated: zero common elements with present business. doesnt capitalize on existing resources
