Question: What is a strategic business unit (SBU)?

> In this chapter, we talked about how airlines use yield management pricing to ensure that every seat is filled on every flight, thus maximizing profits. Go to the websites of at least two different airlines. Check the prices of a flight for each airline

> Assume that you have been hired as the assistant manager of a local store that sells fresh fruits and vegetables. As you look over the store, you notice that there are two different displays of tomatoes. In one display, the tomatoes are priced at $2.39 p

> What is the difference between the core product, the actual product, and the augmented product?

> It is not necessarily true that all new products benefit consumers or society. What are some new products that have made our lives better? What are some new products that have actually been harmful to consumers or to society? Should there be a way to mon

> In this chapter, we explained that knockoffs are slightly modified copies of original product designs. Should knockoffs be illegal? Who is hurt by knockoffs? Is the marketing of knockoffs good or bad for consumers in the short run? Or in the long run?

> Consider the differences in marketing to consumer markets versus business markets. Which aspects of the processes of product adoption and diffusion apply to both markets? Which aspects are unique to one or the other? Provide evidence of your findings.

> Patent trolling is the practice of acquiring patents with the sole purpose of making money off of them either by suing those who infringe on the patent or by licensing the patent. What do you think of the practice of patent trolling? What effect does pat

> Explain two-part pricing, payment pricing, price bundling, captive pricing, and distribution-based pricing tactics.

> For each of the following products, determine at least three different prices that might be charged. Then survey each of the individuals within your group to find out how much of each product they would buy at each price point for each of the produc

> If a company knows that a snack or beverage is typically consumed in a single sitting (such as a bottle of soda or a bag of chips), is it ethical for that company to include on the product’s nutrition label values based on the identification of multiple

> Select one of the product categories below. Identify two different firms that offer consumers a line of product offerings in the category. For example, Dell, HP, and Apple each market a line of laptop computers, while Hoover, Dyson, and Bissell offer lin

> What are the functions of packaging? What are some important elements of effective package design?

> What does it mean to license a brand? What is cobranding?

> What is a brand extension? What is sub-branding?

> What is a brand? What are the characteristics of a good brand name? How do firms protect their brands?

> What is dynamic pricing? What is discriminatory pricing? What is the difference between the two?

> Select a company and identify an existing product sold by that company that could potentially be further developed to meet new consumer needs. Using the selected product, develop an approach to engage consumers in the process of value co-creation with th

> List and explain the categories of adopters.

> You are part of an up-and-coming coffeehouse chain inthe United States, and you know that you need to participate in competitive intelligence activities to learn more about your competitors. Using the Internet, collect at least five distinct pieces of in

> Briefly explain what marketing is.

> In this chapter, we talked about the core product, the actual product, and the augmented product. Does this mean that marketers are simply trying to make products that are really the same seem different? When marketers understand these three layers of th

> How are products managed during the different stages of the product life cycle?

> Explain the product life cycle concept. What are the stages of the product life cycle?

> Why is quality such an important product strategy objective? What are the dimensions of product quality? How has e-commerce affected the need for quality product objectives?

> What are some reasons a firm might determine it should expand a product line? What are some reasons for contracting a product line? Why do many firms have a product mix strategy?

> Describe some of the different ways firms organize the marketing function to manage existing products. What are the ways firms organize for the development of new products?

> What should marketers know about package labeling?

> What are individual and family brands? A national brand? A store brand?

> As an entrepreneur, you know that innovation will play a huge role in your new business. With your team, brainstorm briefly to define what your new business will be—let the sky be your limit. Then create a short outline that defines the various types of

> Why do marketers use trade or functional discounts, quantity discounts, cash discounts, and seasonal discounts in pricing to members of the channel?

> Quality is an important product objective, but quality can mean different things for different products, such as durability, precision, aesthetic appeal, and so on. What does quality mean for the following products? a. Smart phone b. Pop-up tent c. Athle

> Technology is moving at an ever-increasing speed, and this means that new products enter and leave the market faster than ever. What are some products you think technology might be able to develop in the future that you would like? Do you think these pro

> Explain the stages a consumer goes through in the adoption of a new product.

> List and explain the steps marketers undergo to develop new products.

> Many times firms take advantage of their popular, well-known brands by developing brand extensions because they know that the brand equity of the original or parent brand will be transferred to the new product. If a new product is of poor quality, it can

> What it R&D, and what is its importance to marketers and the product development process?

> What is a new product? Why is understanding new products so important to marketers? What are the types of innovations?

> What types of products are bought and sold in B2B markets?

> What is an unsought product? How do marketers make such products attractive to consumers?

> Develop a team report of your findings. In each section of the report, share what you learned that is new or surprising to you compared to what you expected.

> Identify an innovative product that was just recently introduced into the market and using the five characteristics that affect the rate of adoption (relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability, and observability) evaluate the product on

> What is the difference between a durable good and a nondurable good? What are the main differences among convenience, shopping, and specialty products?

> Are there potential risks to involving consumers in the development of new products through processes associated with value co-creation as discussed in the chapter? What factors might make a value co-creation approach more or less suitable for the develo

> What is return on marketing investment (ROMI)? How does considering marketing as an investment instead of an expense affect a firm?

> Explain the steps in the marketing planning process.

> Describe the four business growth strategies: market penetration, product development, market development, and diversification.

> How do firms use the BCG model for portfolio analysis in planning for their SBUs?

> How do marketers customize pricing with pricing segmentation, peak load pricing, and surge pricing? How can marketers price to meet the need of bottom of the pyramid consumers?

> Describe the five steps in the strategic planning process.

> What is a mission statement? What is a SWOT analysis? What role do these play in the planning process?

> Describe the three levels of business planning: strategic, functional, and operational planning.

> What is a marketing plan, and how does it differ from a business plan?

> Most planning involves strategies for growth. But is growth always the right direction to pursue? Can you think of some organizations that should have contraction rather than expansion as their objective? Do you know of any organizations that have actual

> You are interested in the role that Six Sigma plays with regard to product quality. Using the Internet, research the concept of Six Sigma and find at least two case studies on companies that employ Six Sigma in their day-to-day activities. Summarize your

> Explain needs, wants, and demands. What is the role of marketing in each of these?

> When most people think of successful marketing, internal firm culture doesn’t immediately come to mind as a contributing factor. You may have learned about corporate culture in a management course. What is a corporate culture? What are some reasons a fir

> All businesses—big and small—need to plan if theywant to be profitable and sustainable. Contact one of yourfavourite local businesses and make an appointment with someone who has a hand in developing the firm’s business plan. Find out how much time the

> For new products, when is skimming pricing more appropriate, and when is penetration pricing the best strategy? When would trial pricing be an effective pricing strategy?

> Identify a large company, like Disney, that has severalSBUs. Using the BCG model, assign at least one SBU to each category in the model: star, cash cow, question mark, and dog. Include at least two pieces of data for each to justify your categorization.

> Describe the utilitarianism, rights, fairness or justice, common good, and virtue approaches to ethical decision making. What is ethical relativism?

> What are the arguments for standardization of marketing strategies in the global marketplace? What are the arguments for localization? What are some ways a firm can standardize or localize its marketing mix?

> Describe the four globalization strategies representing levels of involvement for a firm: exporting, contractual agreements, strategic alliances, and direct investment.

> What do marketers mean when they refer to technological and sociocultural environments? Why do they need to understand these environments in a global marketplace?

> What aspects of the political and legal environment influence a firm’s decision to enter a foreign market? Why are human rights issues important to firms in their decisions to enter global markets?

> What are a monopoly, an oligopoly, monopolistic competition, and pure competition?

> Develop a presentation that summarizes your efforts for each of the following phases of new product development: a. Phase 1: Idea generation: Create (in your mind) a new product item that might be of interest to college students such as yourself. Develo

> Explain the types of competition marketer’s face: discretionary income competition, product competition, and brand competition.

> Define the terms consumer goods, services, and industrial goods.

> Explain and give an example of cost-plus pricing, target costing, and yield management pricing.

> Explain how GDP, the categories of economic development, and the business cycle influence marketers’ decisions in entering global markets. What are the BRICS countries? What is the Group of Seven (G7)?

> Explain what world trade means. What is the role of the WTO and economic communities in encouraging free trade? What is the role of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in global trade? What is protectionism? Explain import quotas, embargoe

> Why is it increasingly important that firms engage in sustainability? What are some ways strategies for the Four Ps can include sustainability?

> What is ethnocentricism?

> Describe the market conditions that influence a firm’s decision to enter foreign markets.

> Ethical relativism suggests that what is ethical in one culture may not be considered ethical in another. What should the attitude of businesses be when differences occur? Should businesses follow the ethical values and practices of their own country or

> Ford Motor Company has committed to investing $1.6 billionto construct a small car plant in the San Luis Potosi State inMexico. This will result in the creation of more than 2,800 jobsin the country. The Center for Automotive Research states thatU.S. aut

> What happens when you are no longer "the Happiest Placeon Earth"? The Walt Disney Company doesn't want to findout and is "reimagining" its pricing strategy. Responding tothe ever-increasing demand for theme park tickets, especiallyat peak times, Disney h

> What is your viewpoint about measuring creativity? Do you believe it is more constructive or damaging to organizational innovation? Support your opinions.

> Do you know how many different ways there are to enjoy an almond? According toagricultural cooperative Blue DiamondGt0wers, quite a few! After a price spike for almonds earlier inthis decade, a market correction has occurred, prices have fallen,and deman

> Give an example of how the competitive environment influences prices. What about government regulation and consumer trends? What are some ways the global environment can influence a firm’s pricing strategies?

> Can virtual reality go mainstream? Facebook would like to believe the answer to that question is a resounding "yes!• The company has big plans for its virtual reality offering, the Oculus Rift, which is designed to transform how people play games, view v

> What's for dinner? Sprig would like to play a part in a health conscious customer's answer to that question. Sprig is an on demand delivery restaurant that offers balanced meals which are fully prepared and delivered in 15 to 20 minutes. The company focu

> There is always room for more. At least that's what Airbus thinks. It has improved on its A320 product family (the world's best-selling aircraft) and introduced the A320neo (new engine option). The A320neo is available with two different engine configura

> How would you like it if every time you used your medication somebody knevv about it? Novartis wants to collect information in the cloud whenever someone uses its Breezhaler inhaler. The company has entered into an agreement with Qualcomm Life. Inc. to c

> We all know that the world has gone mobile! But how does this change impact the way market research is done? According to the Pew Research Center, 30 percent of cell phone owners use their phones as their primary Internet access point. Consumers are chan

> In marketing, yesterday's success quickly becomes old news. How should one of the world's largest retailers plan to build on its' previous achievements? In the retail marketplace, it is becoming harder for companies to differentiate themselves from the c

> Some of the U.S. population supports free trade, whereas others are unhappy, even angry, that the government has reduced regulations on imports of such products as textiles and furniture, causing factories to shut down and employees to lose their jobs. T

> Explain how unethical marketers might use bait-and-switch tactics, price-fixing, and predatory pricing. What is surge pricing?

> What are trade margins? How do they relate to the pricing for a producer of goods?

> What is a good? What are the differences between tangible and intangible products?

> What is break-even analysis?

> Explain these psychological aspects of pricing: price-quality inferences, odd-even pricing, internal reference price, price lining, and prestige pricing.

> Explain variable costs, fixed costs, average variable costs, average fixed costs, and average total costs.

> Explain how the demand curves for normal products and for prestige products differ. What are demand shifts and why are they important to marketers? How do firms go about estimating demand? How can marketers estimate the elasticity of demand?

> Describe and give examples of some of the following types of pricing objectives: profit, market share, competitive effect, customer satisfaction, and image enhancement.

> What is price, and why is it important to a firm? What is digital currency, such as Bitcoin?

> Some retailers have used decoy pricing to increase the number of sales of a higher priced alternative. Describe decoy pricing. What are some products that would be good choices for decoy pricing? Is this practice ethical? Why or why not?

> Many very successful retailers use a loss leader pricing strategy, in which they advertise an item at a price below their cost and sell the item at that price to get customers into their store. They feel that these customers will continue to shop with th

> In many oligopolistic industries, firms follow a price leadership strategy, in which an accepted industry leader sets, raises, or lowers prices and the other firms follow. In what ways is this policy good and bad for the industry? In what ways is this go

> Several online stores now sell products to consumers at different prices based on the user’s information, such as geographical location—which determines your proximity to competitors and your area’s average income. Although this practice, known as Intern