WGU D174 MARKETING MANAGEMENT QUESTIONS
AND CORRECT ANSWERS
Miles and Snow's Strategy Types - Answers - 1. Prospector
2. Analyzer
3. Defender
4. Reactor
Prospector
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm exhibits continual innovation by finding and exploiting
new product and market opportunities.
Analyzer
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm relies heavily on analysis and imitation of the
successes of other organizations, especially prospectors.
Defender
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm searches for market stability and production of only a
limited product line directed at a narrow market segment, focusing on protecting
established turf.
Reactor
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm lacks any coherent strategic plan or apparent means of
effectively competing; reactors do well to merely survive in the competitive markerplace.
Direct Product Extension - Answers - Introduce a product produced in the company's
home market into an international market with NO PRODUCT CHANGES.
**Think foreign marketing or No direct foreign marketing.
Product Adaptation - Answers - Alter an existing product to fit local needs and legal
requirements.
**Think International Marketing (and or Global as they are similar)
Product Invention - Answers - Create a new product specifically for an international
market. Sometimes old products discontinued in one market can be reintroduced in a
new market aka Backward Invention.
What are the 6Cs of Channel Strategy? - Answers - - cost
- capital
- control
- coverage
- character
- continuity
,Global Marketing Themes - Answers - Adjusting only the color and language to local
market conditions.
Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Growth-Share Matrix - Answers - A popular approach
for in-firm portfolio analysis that categorizes business units' level of contribution to
overall firm based on two factors: Market growth rate and competitive position.
Four Cells of BCG Growth Matrix - Answers - 1. Stars (high share, high growth)
2. Cash Cows (high share, low growth)
3. Dogs (low share, low growth)
4. Problem Children/Question Marks (low share, high growth)
Market Information System (MIS) - Answers - A continuing process of identifying,
collecting, analyzing, accumulating, and dispensing critical information to marketing
decision makers.
Essentially, MIS is an "information bank" where data relevant to the company's
marketing efforts are collected and stored until management needs to "withdraw"
What are the steps of the Market Research Process? - Answers - 1. Define the research
problem
2. Establish research design
3. Search secondary sources
4. Collect the data
5. Analyze the data
6. Report the findings
Exploratory Research - Answers - Self-explanatory. IT IS ABOUT DISCOVERY.
- clarifying the research problem
- develop hypothesis for descriptive or casual research
- gaining additional insight
- answering the research question.
Descriptive Research - Answers - Seeks to describe or explain some phenomenon.
- Identifying the characteristics of our target market
- Assessing competitors' actions in the marketplace
- Determining how customers use our product.
Casual Research - Answers - Tries to discover the cause and effect between Variables
A company in a competitive industry needs to conduct an internal and external company
analysis to determine future marketing strategies.
Which form of analysis should the company use? - Answers - A. Porter's Five Forces
B. Requirements
C. SWOT
,D. Portfolio
Correct Answer: C. SWOT
A grocery store's marketing plan states that the company will purchase billboard
advertising space during the first three months of the year.
At which planning level has the statement been written? - Answers - A. Basic
B. Strategic
C. Tactical
D. Dynamic
Correct Answer:
C. Tactical
Threat of New Entrants
(Porters Five Forces) - Answers - New Entrants put pressure on current organization
within an industry through their desire to gain market share. It puts pressure on prices,
costs, and rate of investment needed to sustain.
Barriers to entry restrict the threat of new entrants. High Barries, low threat.
Low Barriers, high threat.
Sources of entry barriers:
- Capital requirements
- Government policies.
- Customer switching costs
-supply-side economies of scale.
Threat of Substitutes
(Porters Five Forces) - Answers - A substitute product uses a different technology to try
to solve the same economic need.
Potential Factors:
- Buyer's switching costs
- Perceived level of product differentiation
- Ease of substitution
- Availability of close substitutes
Power of Customer - Answers - The ability of the customer to put the firm under
pressure (also affects customer's sensitivity to price changes)
Potential Factors:
- Degree of dependency upon existing channel of distribution
, -Buyer switching costs
- Buyer info. Availability
- Buyer price sensitivity
Power of Supplier - Answers - Suppliers of raw material, components, labor, and
services (expertise), to the firm can be a source of power over the firm when there are
few substitutes available.
Potential Factors:
- Supplier switching costs
- Impact of inputs on costs and differentiation
- Presence of substitute inputs.
- Strength of distribution channel
- Employee solidarity
- Supplier competition
Competition in the Industry - Answers - The intensity of the rivalry determines
competitiveness of the industry.
(Positioning depends on how public perceives a product and distinguishes it from its
competitors).
Potential Factors:
- Sustainable competitive advantage through innovation
- level of advertising expense
- firm concentration ratio
- competition between online and offline organizations.
Primary Data - Answers - Data collected specifically for this research question.
Questionnaires, focus groups, social media, surveys.
Secondary Data - Answers - Data collected for some other purpose than the problem
currently being considered.
Comes from public sources like government websites or websites in general, literature,
periodicals, etc.
A social media manager uses information posted by customers on the business's social
networking webpage.
Which type of research data is being demonstrated here? - Answers - A. Minor
B. Primary
C. Secondary
D. Brand
Correct Answer:
AND CORRECT ANSWERS
Miles and Snow's Strategy Types - Answers - 1. Prospector
2. Analyzer
3. Defender
4. Reactor
Prospector
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm exhibits continual innovation by finding and exploiting
new product and market opportunities.
Analyzer
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm relies heavily on analysis and imitation of the
successes of other organizations, especially prospectors.
Defender
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm searches for market stability and production of only a
limited product line directed at a narrow market segment, focusing on protecting
established turf.
Reactor
(Miles & Snow) - Answers - Firm lacks any coherent strategic plan or apparent means of
effectively competing; reactors do well to merely survive in the competitive markerplace.
Direct Product Extension - Answers - Introduce a product produced in the company's
home market into an international market with NO PRODUCT CHANGES.
**Think foreign marketing or No direct foreign marketing.
Product Adaptation - Answers - Alter an existing product to fit local needs and legal
requirements.
**Think International Marketing (and or Global as they are similar)
Product Invention - Answers - Create a new product specifically for an international
market. Sometimes old products discontinued in one market can be reintroduced in a
new market aka Backward Invention.
What are the 6Cs of Channel Strategy? - Answers - - cost
- capital
- control
- coverage
- character
- continuity
,Global Marketing Themes - Answers - Adjusting only the color and language to local
market conditions.
Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Growth-Share Matrix - Answers - A popular approach
for in-firm portfolio analysis that categorizes business units' level of contribution to
overall firm based on two factors: Market growth rate and competitive position.
Four Cells of BCG Growth Matrix - Answers - 1. Stars (high share, high growth)
2. Cash Cows (high share, low growth)
3. Dogs (low share, low growth)
4. Problem Children/Question Marks (low share, high growth)
Market Information System (MIS) - Answers - A continuing process of identifying,
collecting, analyzing, accumulating, and dispensing critical information to marketing
decision makers.
Essentially, MIS is an "information bank" where data relevant to the company's
marketing efforts are collected and stored until management needs to "withdraw"
What are the steps of the Market Research Process? - Answers - 1. Define the research
problem
2. Establish research design
3. Search secondary sources
4. Collect the data
5. Analyze the data
6. Report the findings
Exploratory Research - Answers - Self-explanatory. IT IS ABOUT DISCOVERY.
- clarifying the research problem
- develop hypothesis for descriptive or casual research
- gaining additional insight
- answering the research question.
Descriptive Research - Answers - Seeks to describe or explain some phenomenon.
- Identifying the characteristics of our target market
- Assessing competitors' actions in the marketplace
- Determining how customers use our product.
Casual Research - Answers - Tries to discover the cause and effect between Variables
A company in a competitive industry needs to conduct an internal and external company
analysis to determine future marketing strategies.
Which form of analysis should the company use? - Answers - A. Porter's Five Forces
B. Requirements
C. SWOT
,D. Portfolio
Correct Answer: C. SWOT
A grocery store's marketing plan states that the company will purchase billboard
advertising space during the first three months of the year.
At which planning level has the statement been written? - Answers - A. Basic
B. Strategic
C. Tactical
D. Dynamic
Correct Answer:
C. Tactical
Threat of New Entrants
(Porters Five Forces) - Answers - New Entrants put pressure on current organization
within an industry through their desire to gain market share. It puts pressure on prices,
costs, and rate of investment needed to sustain.
Barriers to entry restrict the threat of new entrants. High Barries, low threat.
Low Barriers, high threat.
Sources of entry barriers:
- Capital requirements
- Government policies.
- Customer switching costs
-supply-side economies of scale.
Threat of Substitutes
(Porters Five Forces) - Answers - A substitute product uses a different technology to try
to solve the same economic need.
Potential Factors:
- Buyer's switching costs
- Perceived level of product differentiation
- Ease of substitution
- Availability of close substitutes
Power of Customer - Answers - The ability of the customer to put the firm under
pressure (also affects customer's sensitivity to price changes)
Potential Factors:
- Degree of dependency upon existing channel of distribution
, -Buyer switching costs
- Buyer info. Availability
- Buyer price sensitivity
Power of Supplier - Answers - Suppliers of raw material, components, labor, and
services (expertise), to the firm can be a source of power over the firm when there are
few substitutes available.
Potential Factors:
- Supplier switching costs
- Impact of inputs on costs and differentiation
- Presence of substitute inputs.
- Strength of distribution channel
- Employee solidarity
- Supplier competition
Competition in the Industry - Answers - The intensity of the rivalry determines
competitiveness of the industry.
(Positioning depends on how public perceives a product and distinguishes it from its
competitors).
Potential Factors:
- Sustainable competitive advantage through innovation
- level of advertising expense
- firm concentration ratio
- competition between online and offline organizations.
Primary Data - Answers - Data collected specifically for this research question.
Questionnaires, focus groups, social media, surveys.
Secondary Data - Answers - Data collected for some other purpose than the problem
currently being considered.
Comes from public sources like government websites or websites in general, literature,
periodicals, etc.
A social media manager uses information posted by customers on the business's social
networking webpage.
Which type of research data is being demonstrated here? - Answers - A. Minor
B. Primary
C. Secondary
D. Brand
Correct Answer:
