Suppose that you have just opened a new Ford sales showroom and repair shop. Which of your employees would be paid wages, which would receive salaries, and which would receive commissions?
> Identify and describe the major ingredients of a promotion mix.
> What is integrated marketing communications, and why is it becoming increasingly accepted?
> What are the most common marketing channels for consumer products? For industrial products?
> What is the difference between manufacturer brands and store brands? Between family branding and individual branding?
> What are the four stages of the product life-cycle? How can a firm determine which stage a particular product is in?
> If you were the financial manager of Stars and Stripes Clothing, what would you do with the excess cash that the firm expects in the second and fourth quarters?
> Of the three financial ratios discussed in this chapter, which do you think is the most important financial ratio? Why?
> What can be said about a firm whose owners’ equity is a negative amount? How could such a situation come about?
> Bankers usually insist that prospective borrowers submit audited financial statements along with a loan application. Why should financial statements be audited by a CPA?
> How might buyers’ perceptions of price influence pricing decisions?
> 1. Social Media Exercise 1. Do you think social media is an effective way to engage employees who are in large organizations? Why or why not? 2. Do you think social media would work well in smaller companies? Why or why not? 3. Do you think that using so
> How can confidential data and information (such as the wages of individual employees) be kept confidential and yet still be available to managers who need them?
> In what situations might a producer use agents or commission merchants rather than its own sales offices or branches?
> What is physical distribution? Which major functions does it include?
> What can nonstore retailers offer their customers that in-store retailers cannot?
> List the services performed by wholesalers. For whom is each service performed?
> What are the three levels of market coverage? What types of products is each used for?
> Why do firms use event sponsorship?
> What are the major differences between consumer and trade sales promotion methods? Give examples of each.
> What are the major tasks involved in managing a sales force?
> For what purposes is labeling used?
> What does the purchaser of a product obtain besides the good, service, or idea itself?
> What is the difference between a line extension and a brand extension?
> Why must firms introduce new products?
> Why do products have to be deleted from a product mix?
> What major factor determines whether a product is a consumer or a business product?
> For what type of products are psychological pricing strategies most likely to be used?
> Under what conditions would a business most likely decide to employ one of the differential pricing strategies?
> Under what conditions would a firm be most likely to use non-price competition?
> Some firms do not delete products until they become financially threatening. What problems may result from this practice?
> Identify and describe the main types of discounts that are used in the pricing of business products.
> Why do marketers need to understand buying behavior?
> What are the five major categories of pricing strategies? Give at least two examples of specific strategies that fall into each category.
> Compare and contrast the characteristics of price and non-price competition.
> What new information technologies are changing the ways that marketers keep track of business trends and customers?
> How is a marketing-oriented firm different from a production-oriented firm or a sales-oriented firm?
> How does the marketing environment affect a firm’s marketing strategy?
> Is marketing information as important to small firms as it is to larger firms? Explain.
> Is it a good strategy to focus most marketing efforts on the most profitable customers?
> How does employee participation increase motivation?
> Describe the steps involved in the MBO process.
> What combination of motivational techniques do you think would result in the best over-all motivation and reward system?
> What is a marketing plan, and what are its major components?
> Of the laws discussed in the text, which are the most important, in your opinion?
> Why are there so many laws relating to HRM practices?
> As a manager, what actions would you take if an operations employee with six years of experience on the job refused ongoing training and ignored performance feedback?
> What are the major benefits and limitations associated with the use of self-managed teams?
> How accurately can managers plan for future human resources needs?
> Why is it so important to provide feedback after a performance appraisal?
> How is a job analysis used in the process of job evaluation?
> According to expectancy theory, what two variables determine motivation?
> According to equity theory, how does an employee determine whether he or she is being treated equitably?
> Describe the forces in the marketing environment that affect an organization’s marketing decisions.
> What are the five levels of needs in Maslow’s hierarchy? How are a person’s needs related to motivation?
> How is a forecast of human resources demand related to a firm’s organizational planning?
> How did the results of the Hawthorne Studies influence researchers’ thinking about employee motivation?
> 1. Describe how financial leverage can increase return on owners’ equity. 2. For a corporation, what are the advantages of corporate bonds over long-term loans? 3. Describe the three methods used to ensure that funds are available to redeem corporate bon
> 1. What are the advantages of financing through the sale of stock? 2. From a corporation’s point of view, how does preferred stock differ from common stock? 3. What is venture capital? An angel investor? A private placement?
> 1. How important is trade credit as a source of short-term financing? 2. Why would a supplier require a customer to sign a promissory note? 3. What is the prime rate? Who gets the prime rate? 4. Explain how factoring works. Of what benefit is factoring t
> 1. Describe the traditional banking services provided by financial institutions. 2. What are the major advantages of electronic banking services? 3. How can a bank or other financial institution help American businesses to compete in the global marketpla
> 1. What is the function of a cash budget? A capital budget? 2. What is the difference between equity capital and debt capital? 3. Describe the four sources of funds for a business. 4. How does a financial manager monitor and evaluate a firm’s financing?
> 1. How does short-term financing differ from long-term financing? Give two business uses for each type of financing. 2. What is speculative production? How is it related to a firm’s cash-flow problems?
> 1. For a business firm, what type of activities does financial management involve? 2. To be successful, what traits and skills does an employee in the finance industry need?
> What is the purpose of market segmentation? What is the relationship between market segmentation and the selection of target markets?
> 1. What are the benefits of comparing a firm’s current financial information with information for previous accounting periods, with industry averages, and with financial information for competitors?
> 1. What is the purpose of the statement of cash flows? 2. In a statement of cash flows, what is included in the operating activities section? In the investing activities section? In the financial activities section?
> 1. What is the difference between a balance sheet and an income statement? 2. Explain how a retailing firm would determine the cost of goods sold during an accounting period. 3. If a retailer has revenues of $700,000, cost of goods sold that total $270,0
> 1. How are current assets distinguished from fixed assets? 2. Why are fixed assets depreciated on a firm’s balance sheet? 3. How do you determine the dollar amount of owners’ equity for a sole proprietorship, or a partnership, or a corporation? 4. If a b
> 1. What purpose do audits and GAAPs serve in today’s business world? 2. How do the major provisions of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act affect a public company’s audit procedures? 3. Based on the information in this section, would you choose accounting as a career
> 1. List the five functions of an MIS. 2. What are the components of a typical business report? 3. What types of information could be illustrated in a visual display? In a tabular display?
> 1. How do the information requirements of managers differ by management area? 2. What happens if a business has a management information system that is too large? 3. What happens if a business has a management information system that is too small?
> 1. In your own words, describe how information reduces risk when you make a personal or work-related decision. 2. What are information rules? How do they simplify the process of making decisions? 3. What is the difference between data and information? Gi
> 1. Experts predict that the Internet will continue to expand along with related technologies. What effect will this expansion have on businesses in the future? 2. Give an example of an unethical use of computer technology by a business. 3. What is the di
> 1. What are the two fundamental e-business models? 2. Assume that you are the owner of a small company that produces outdoor living furniture. Describe how you could use the B2C business model to sell your products to consumers?
> What are the major components of a marketing strategy?
> 1. What are the four major factors contained in the definition of e-business? 2. How do e-businesses generate revenue streams, reduce expenses, and earn a profit?
> 1. What are the steps required to develop a social media plan? 2. What is the difference between quantitative and qualitative measurements? Which type of measurement do you think is the most reliable when measuring the effectiveness of a company’s social
> 1. In your own words, describe how social media can help businesses to connect with other businesses and consumers. 2. For a business, why are crisis and reputation management, listening to stakeholders, and targeting specific types of customers importan
> 1. What is a blog? How can a business use blogs to develop relationships with customers? 2. What types of content can be used on a media sharing site? What factors should be considered when developing content for a media sharing site? 3. Describe two way
> 1. According to material in this section, what are the reasons why people use social media? 2. How has social media changed the environment for business firms?
> 1. What are the common tools of public relations? 2. What is publicity, and why do organizations use it? 3. What are the four common types of publicity?
> 1. Why do marketers use sales promotion? 2. What are the two classifications of sales promotion methods? 3. What factors affect the choice of sales promotion used?
> 1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using personal selling? 2. Identify the three types of salespersons. 3. Describe the six steps of the personal-selling process.
> 1. Describe the major types of advertising by purpose. 2. Explain the eight major steps in developing an advertising campaign.
> 1. What are the major elements of a promotion mix? 2. How can each element help a firm reach a target market?
> In what ways are team cohesiveness and team conflict related?
> 1. What is the major goal of integrated marketing communications? 2. Why is integrated marketing communications being increasingly accepted?
> 1. How is inventory management a balancing act between stock-out costs and holding costs? 2. Explain the seven major warehousing activities. 3. What is the goal of materials handling? 4. Describe the major characteristics of the primary transportation mo
> 1. Describe the major types of retail stores. Give an example of each. 2. How does nonstore retailing occur? 3. What are the four most common types of shopping centers, and what type of store does each typically contain?
> 1. What services do wholesalers provide to producers and to retailers? 2. Identify and describe the various types of wholesalers.
> 1. How does supply-chain management encourage cooperation between buyers and sellers? 2. How has technology enhanced the implementation of supply-chain management?
> 1. How do the different types of middlemen link a producer to a user within a marketing channel? 2. Describe the six distribution channels. Give an example of each. 3. Explain the three intensities of market coverage. Which types of products are generall
> 1. Describe the three types of pricing associated with business products. 2. Differentiate between FOB origin and FOB destination pricing. 3. Explain the five types of discounts for business products.
> 1. Identify the five categories of pricing strategies. 2. Describe two specific pricing strategies in each category.
> 1. List and explain the three kinds of pricing methods. 2. Give an advantage and a disadvantage for each method.
> 1. Explain the various types of pricing objectives. 2. Which ones usually will result in a firm having lower prices?
> How might adoption of the marketing concept benefit a firm? How might it benefit the firm’s customers?
> 1. What factors must be considered when pricing products? 2. How does change in price affect the demand and supply of a product? 3. Differentiate price competition and non-price competition. 4. Why is it important to consider the buyer’s sensitivity to p
> 1. Describe the major types of brands. 2. How do brands help customers in product selection? How do brands help companies introduce new products? Explain the three levels of brand loyalty. 3. Define brand equity and describe the four major factors that c
> 1. What are the ways to improve a product mix? Describe two approaches to use existing products to strengthen a product mix. 2. Why is it important to delete certain products? The largest number of product ideas are rejected during which stage? 3. What i
