Chapter 1 - Lesson 1
Marketing Today
A. The American Marketing Association (AMA) has over 40,000 members worldwide, in more
than 80 countries, with nearly 400 chapters throughout North America and Canada. The AMA
serves all levels of marketing practitioners, educators, and students. Visit the AMA web site to
answer the following questions.
Question 2 :
Briefly outline the code of ethics a marketer should follow in the area of promotions, as
described on the AMA’s site.
Question 3 :
What is the Vijay Mahajan award and who is eligible to receive it?
b. Web site: http://www.target.com/ Like any business, Target Stores must keep customer
needs in mind at all times when developing a marketing mix. Visit the Target Stores web site to
answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: Target Stores
Question 1 :
What type of business is Target?
Question 2 :
In what ways does the Target web site help satisfy the needs of its customers?
Question 3 :
Browse through the Target site, then tell what you think Target’s primary market is. What
elements of the marketing mix can you identify?
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c. Businesses face severe consequences if they do not meet the needs of their customers. Every
year, businesses introduce thousands of new products, most of which are not successful. Read
the related article on the business2.com web site to learn more about failed products.
Suggested keywords: failed products
Web site: http://www.growthink.com/content/10-famous-product-failures-and-
advertisements-did-not-sell-them
Question 1 :
According to the article, why did the BETA system fail?
Question 2 :
Why did the new coke Fail? Explain?
Question 3 :
Are you familiar with any of the products mentioned in the article? Think of a product you
encountered recently that you believe is doomed to failure. In what way did the product fail
to meet your needs? Which of the ''fatal flaws'' did the product have?
d. Other failed business- a little longer list. Go to this WEB site.
http://saleshq.monster.com/news/articles/2655-the-20-worst-product-failures
Question 1: According to the article, Why did the Apple Newton fail? Explain
Question 2: According to the article, Why did the Pepsi Crystal fail? Explain
Question 3: According to the article, What was the DigiScents? Why did it fail? Explain
e. When a business implements a successful marketing strategy, customer satisfaction generally
increases. TeleSight, Inc., is a leading customer research firm, specializing in measuring
customer satisfaction. Browse the TeleSight web site, then answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: TeleSight, customer satisfaction
Web site: http://www.telesight.com/
Question 1 :
Based on information you find on the TeleSight web site, explain how customer feedback
can help a business.
Question 2 :
Have you ever contacted a company to tell about your satisfaction (or lack of satisfaction)
with a product or service? If so, what kind of response did you receive from the company?
If not, explain why.
Question 3 :
Think of a product with which you are particularly satisfied. In what ways does this
product meet your needs? Do you tend to purchase this product (or brand) over and over?
Why or why not?
F. Marketers and advertisers are often criticized for targeting children. The Center for Media
Literacy has posted an online list of common strategies companies use in advertising aimed at
children. Read the list to answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: Center for Media Literacy, children's advertising
Web site: http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/
Question 1 :
Describe the last television advertisement you saw that was aimed at children. Were any of
the ten strategies on the list used in the ad? If so, explain how they were used.
Question 2 :
Do any of the listed strategies seem particularly unethical to you? Why or why not?
Question 3 :
Create a similar list of strategies companies often use in advertising aimed at adults. You
may use any or all of the items on the Center for Media Literacy’s list if you choose.
Provide an example for each item on your list.
G. Most utility companies (such as electric, gas, and water companies) are organized as
monopolies. For this reason, government agencies exert considerable control over these types of
businesses. The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) is a typical regulatory agency. Visit
the PUCO web site to answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: Public Utilities Commission of Ohio
Web site: http://www.puc.state.oh.us/
Question 1 :
Read through the PUCO Mission and Commitments page. (Hint: From the home page, click
the ''more'' link under the mission statement.) Which three of these missions do you
believe are the most important? Why?
Question 2 :
What is ''slamming''? Is this practice legal?
Question 3 :
What categories of companies and industries are regulated by PUCO? Do any of these
surprise you? Why or why not?
H. Marketers need to identify which type of competition a business faces and develop an
appropriate marketing strategy to deal with it. Answer the following questions about competition
as they relate to the online retailer CDNow.
Suggested keywords: CDNow
Web site: http://www.cdnow.com
Question 1 :
Name at least one online competitor to CDNow. Name one traditional ''brick and mortar''
competitor to CDNow located in your community.
Question 2 :
Of the types of competition discussed in your textbook, which type is faced by CDNow?
Question 3 :
Can you think of one competitive advantage a music retailer located in a nearby shopping
mall has over CDNow? Identify one competitive advantage CDNow has over traditional
retailers.
Question 4: When was the last time you brought a CD? Explain why or why not.
I. Groups of similar consumers within a larger market are known as market segments. The You
Are Where You Live website describes every U.S. neighborhood in terms of a wide variety of
lifestyle types. Visit the site to answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: You Are Where You Live, demographics
Web site: http://en-us.nielsen.com/tab/product_families/nielsen_claritas
Or http://en-us.nielsen.com/tab/product_families/nielsen_claritas/prizm
Question 1 :
Choose the PRIZM system and enter your own ZIP Code where shown. What results did
you find? Do the descriptions of your neighborhood seem accurate? Which lifestyle type
(if any) do you think you and your family fit into?
Question 2 :
Now choose the MicroVision system and enter your own ZIP Code where shown. Do the
results differ from those found under they PRIZM system? Explain.
Question 3 :
Enter the ZIP Code 53704 (a section of Madison, Wisconsin) using the PRIZM system.
What kinds of products do you think would appeal to people in this neighborhood. Explain
your answer.
J. Marketing is essential not only to the success of manufacturers and retailers, but to other
organizations as well. It may surprise you to learn that many religious institutions use marketing
strategies to attract and keep members. Mustard Seed Studios is one such company that assists
Christian churches with their marketing needs. Visit the company's web site, then answer the
following questions.
Suggested keywords: Mustard Seed Studios, church marketing
Web site: http://www.mustardseedstudio.com/index.html
Question 1 :
The Mustard Seed Studios site names six specific areas in which it can assist churches.
What are they?
Question 2 :
Browse the site to examine some of the products and services Mustard Seed Studios
offers churches. Which of these do you think would be particularly effective? Ineffective?
Explain your answer.
Question 3 :
Do you think there are any ethical issues involved in using marketing techniques to attract
people to religious services? Explain your answer.
Questions 4: What is meant to a canned approach? Explain
K. The Statistical Abstract of the United States is one of the best external information sources you
can use to find information to use as part of a marketing plan. View selected features from the
online edition of the Abstract to answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: Statistical Abstract of the United States
Web site: http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab
Question 1 :
In what state do workers earn the highest average yearly income? The lowest? (Hint: Click
the ''State Rankings'' link, then click the ''Average Annual Pay'' link.) How might this
information be useful to marketers?
Question 2 :
Suppose you are marketing a product that is useful to people who own their own homes.
Use the information found in the Abstract to find three states that you think would be good
markets for your product. Explain your reasoning.
Question 3 :
What percentage of people in your state are under the age of 18? Over the age of 65?
L. ACNielsen is the world's leading provider of market research, information, and analysis to the
consumer products and services industries. Widely known for providing information about
television viewing habits, the company serves more than 9,000 clients in more than 100
countries. Visit the ACNielsen web site, then answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: ACNielsen
Web site: http://en-us.nielsen.com/
Question 1 :
What encompasses ACNielsen’s Retail Measurement Services? What benefits to
management does this type of market research provide?
Question 2 :
What kinds of customized market research services are offered by ACNielsen?
Question 3 :
What kind of market research is Homescan New Product*Facts? What questions does it
answer?
M. A focus group can provide an advertiser with important consumer reaction about a product or
even about an early draft of an advertisement. The Management Assistance Program for
Nonprofits provides extensive guidelines on how to conduct a focus group; the guidelines apply
equally well to for-profit groups. Visit the site and answer the following questions.
Suggested keywords: focus groups
Web site: http://www.mapnp.org/library/evaluatn/focusgrp.htm
Question 1 :
According to the web site, about how long should a focus group session last?
Question 2 :
What are the three essential ground rules for conducting a focus group, according to
MAP?
Question 3 :
What should the moderator of the focus group do each time a group participant answers a
question?