Chapter 15 - Integrated Marketing Communications 1. What is integrated marketing communications? Explain its purpose. Answer: Integrated marketing communications refer to the coordination of promotion and other marketing efforts to ensure maximum informational and persuasive impact on customers. Coordinating multiple marketing tools to produce this synergistic effect requires a marketer to employ a broad perspective. A major goal of integrated marketing communications is to send a consistent message to customers. 2. Why is face-to-face communication more flexible in comparison with digital, web-based, or telephone communications when marketing a new or existing product? Answer: During face-to-face communication, such as personal selling sales promotions, verbal and nonverbal feedback can be immediate. Instant feedback lets communicators adjust messages quickly to improve the effectiveness of their communications. For example, when a salesperson realizes through feedback that a customer does not understand a sales presentation, the salesperson adapts the presentation to make it more meaningful to the customer. This is why face-to-face communication is the most adaptive and flexible, especially compared to digital, web-based, or telephone communications. In interpersonal communication, feedback occurs through talking, touching, smiling, nodding, eye movements, and other body movements and postures. 3. Explain the communication process. Answer: Communication begins with a source. A source is a person, group, or organization with a meaning it attempts to share with an audience. A source could be an electronics salesperson wishing to communicate the attributes of 3D television to a buyer in the store or a TV manufacturer using television ads to inform thousands of consumers about its products. A receiver is the individual, group, or organization that decodes a coded message and an audience is two or more receivers. To transmit meaning, a source must convert the meaning into a series of signs or symbols representing ideas or concepts. This is called the coding process, or encoding. When coding meaning into a message, the source must consider certain characteristics of the receiver or audience. To share a coded meaning with the receiver or audience, a source selects and uses a communications channel, the medium of transmission that carries the coded message from the source to the receiver or audience. Transmission media include printed words (newspapers and magazines), broadcast media (television and radio), and digital communication. In the decoding process, signs or symbols are converted into concepts and ideas. Seldom does a receiver decode exactly the same meaning the source intended. When the result of decoding differs from what was coded, noise exists. The receiver’s response to a decoded message is feedback to the source. The source usually expects and normally receives feedback, although perhaps not immediately. During feedback, the receiver or audience provides the original source with a response to the message. Feedback is coded, sent through a communications channel, and decoded by the receiver, the source of the original communication. Thus, communication is a circular process. 4. Define decoding in the communication process. What happens when a receiver does not decode a message as intended by the source? Answer: In the decoding process, signs or symbols are converted into concepts and ideas. Seldom does a receiver decode exactly the same meaning the source intended. When the result of decoding differs from what was coded, noise exists. Noise is anything that reduces the clarity and accuracy of the communication; it has many sources and may affect any or all parts of the communication process. Noise sometimes arises within the communications channel itself. Radio or television transmission difficulties, poor or slow Internet connections, and laryngitis are sources of noise. Noise also occurs when a source uses signs or symbols that are unfamiliar to the receiver or have a meaning different from the one intended. Noise may also originate in the receiver; a receiver may be unaware of a coded message when perceptual processes block it out. 5. Identify the major objectives of promotion. Answer: The eight major promotional objectives are: a) create awareness; b) stimulate demand; c) encourage product trial; d) identify products; e) retain loyal customers; f) facilitate reseller support; g) combat competitive promotional efforts; and h) reduce sales fluctuations. 6. What are the differences in trying to stimulate primary demand versus selective demand? Answer: When an organization is the first to introduce an innovative product, it tries to stimulate primary demand—demand for a product category rather than for a specific brand of product—through pioneer promotion. Pioneer promotion informs potential customers about the product: what it is, what it does, how it can be used, and where it can be purchased. Because pioneer promotion is used in the introductory stage of the product life cycle, meaning there are no competing brands, it neither emphasizes brand names nor compares brands. To build selective demand, demand for a specific brand, a marketer employs promotional efforts that point out the strengths and benefits of a specific brand. Building selective demand also requires singling out attributes important to potential buyers. Selective demand can be stimulated by differentiating the product from competing brands in the minds of potential buyers. Selective demand can also be stimulated by increasing the number of product uses and promoting them through advertising campaigns, as well as through price discounts, free samples, coupons, consumer contests and games, and sweepstakes. In addition, selective demand can be stimulated by encouraging existing customers to use more of the product. 7. In what ways can promotion be used to reduce sales fluctuations? Answer: Demand for many products varies from one month to another because of such factors as climate, holidays, and seasons. A business, however, cannot operate at peak efficiency when sales fluctuate rapidly. Changes in sales volume translate into changes in production, inventory levels, personnel needs, and financial resources. When promotional techniques reduce fluctuations by generating sales during slow periods, a firm can use its resources more efficiently. Promotional techniques are often designed to stimulate sales during sales slumps. During peak periods, a marketer may refrain from advertising to prevent stimulating sales to the point at which the firm cannot handle all of the demand. On occasion, a company advertises that customers can be better served by coming in on certain days. 8. Identify and describe the four major promotion mix elements. Answer: The four possible elements of a promotion mix are advertising, personal selling, public relations, and sales promotion. Advertising is a paid nonpersonal communication about an organization and its products transmitted to a target audience through mass media, including television, radio, the Internet, newspapers, magazines, video games, direct mail, outdoor displays, and signs on mass transit vehicles. Personal selling is a paid personal communication that seeks to inform customers and persuade them to purchase products in an exchange situation. The phrase purchase products is interpreted broadly to encompass acceptance of ideas and issues. Personal selling is most extensively used in the business-to-business market. “Public relations” is a broad set of communication efforts used to create and maintain favorable relationships between an organization and its stakeholders. Maintaining a positive relationship with one or more stakeholders can affect a firm’s current sales and profits, as well as its long-term survival. Sales promotion is an activity or material that acts as a direct inducement, offering added value or incentive for the product to resellers, salespeople, or consumers. 9. How does sales promotion differ from promotion in general? Answer: Sales promotion is an activity or material that acts as a direct inducement, offering added value or incentive for the product to resellers, salespeople, or consumers. Examples include free samples, games, rebates, sweepstakes, contests, premiums, and coupons. Sales promotion should not be confused with promotion; sales promotion is just one part of the comprehensive area of promotion. Marketers spend more on sales promotion than on advertising, and sales promotion appears to be a faster-growing area than advertising. 10. Compared to advertising, what are the major advantages and limitations of personal selling? Answer: Personal selling has both advantages and limitations when compared with advertising. Advertising is general communication aimed at a relatively large target audience, whereas personal selling involves more specific communication directed at one or several individuals. Reaching one person through personal selling costs considerably more than through advertising, but personal selling efforts often have greater impact on customers. Personal selling also provides immediate feedback, allowing marketers to adjust their messages to improve communication. Such interaction helps them determine and respond to customers’ information needs. 11. Why is public relations an important form of communication about a company? Discuss negative public relations, and give an example. Answer: Public relations is a broad set of communication efforts used to create and maintain favorable relationships between an organization and its stakeholders. Although many promotional activities focus on a firm’s customers, other stakeholders— suppliers, employees, stockholders, the media, educators, potential investors, government officials, and society in general—are important to an organization as well. To communicate with customers and stakeholders, a company employs public relations. Maintaining a positive relationship with one or more stakeholders can affect a firm’s current sales and profits, as well as its longterm survival. Unpleasant situations and negative events, such as product tampering or an environmental disaster, may generate unfavorable public relations for an organization. For instance, Beef Products Inc. (BPI), which used a pink meaty pulp to increase the leanness of ground beef, nearly went bankrupt after a blogger called its product “pink slime.” After major news channels got wind of the story, customers began leaving BPI in droves, causing the firm to shutter many of its factories. To minimize the damaging effects of unfavorable coverage, effective marketers have policies and procedures in place to help manage public relations problems. 12. Discuss three criticisms of promotion. Answer: Even though promotional activities can help customers make informed purchasing decisions, social scientists, consumer groups, government agencies, and members of society in general have long criticized promotion. There are two main reasons for such criticism: promotion does have flaws, and it is a highly visible business activity that pervades our daily lives. Although complaints about too much promotional activity are almost universal, a number of more specific criticisms have been lodged. One of the criticisms is about the deceptive nature of promotions. Although no longer widespread, some deceptive promotion still occurs; laws, government regulations, and industry self-regulation have helped to decrease intentionally deceptive promotion; customers may be unintentionally misled because some words have diverse meanings. When promotion stimulates demand, higher production levels may result in lower per-unit production costs, which keeps prices lower; when demand is not stimulated, however, prices increase owing to the added costs of promotion; promotion fuels price competition, which helps keep prices lower. Many marketers capitalize on people’s needs by basing their promotional appeals on these needs; however, marketers do not actually create these needs; if there were no promotion, people would still have basic needs such as those suggested by Maslow. 13. The coordination of promotion and other marketing efforts for maximum informational and persuasive impact best defines: A. customer lifetime value. B. integrated marketing communications. C. product lifecycle management. D. visual merchandising. E. arrow information paradox. Answer: B 14. If FedEx-Kinko's decided to outsource all of its marketing efforts to the MaxPro Company, which specializes in advertising, sales promotion activities, and public relations, FedEx-Kinko's would likely be striving to practice: A. one-stop shopping. B. visual merchandising. C. arrow information paradox. D. product lifecycle management. E. integrated marketing communications. Answer: E 15. A person, group, or organization that has a meaning it intends and attempts to share with a receiver or an audience is a: A. communication channel. B. source. C. relay channel. D. decoder. E. sender. Answer: B 16. In the Gillette advertisement that claims, "Gillette, the best a man can get," Gillette is the communication: A. receiver. B. channel. C. decoder. D. source. E. noise. Answer: D 17. Alton is reading a magazine ad of a new cologne. In the ad, he sees little more than a photo of a man riding on a horseback on a beach, and the name of the new cologne, Rugged. With respect to the components of a communication process, Alton is a(n) ________. A. sender B. receiver C. source D. communication channel E. channel member Answer: B 18. Sierra is driving to work on I-95 and notices a billboard for new salads at Wendy's. She reads the message and sees the pictures of the new salads. With reference to the communication process, which of the following is true? A. Sierra is the receiver and Wendy's is the source of this communication. B. Sierra is the source and Wendy's is the promoter of this communication. C. Sierra is the decoder and Wendy's is the receiver of this communication. D. Sierra is the sender and Wendy's is the receiver of this communication. E. Sierra is the communication channel and Wendy's is the source of this communication. Answer: A 19. With respect to the components of a communication process, the process of putting one's thoughts (meaning) into signs (symbols) is called: A. decoding. B. noise. C. interference. D. channelizing. E. encoding. Answer: E 20. Ashley is currently working on a video to introduce a new line of athletic wear for women. She is using signs and symbols to represent the concept and meaning of the new athletic wear. With respect to the components of a communication process, Ashley is most likely working on the ________ for this promotional video. A. feedback process B. coding process C. decoding process D. conversion process E. channel capacity Answer: B 21. As Emily prepares the script for a radio commercial for her boutique, she is engaging in the ________ stage of the communication process. A. encoding B. sourcing C. decoding D. feedback E. receiving Answer: A 22. With respect to the components of a communication process, broadcast media like radio and television as well as printed words on a magazine or newspaper are all considered as: A. communication noise. B. communication receivers. C. encoders. D. communication channels. E. decoding sources. Answer: D 23. The Barrister's Deli decides to run advertisements for its lunch specials on a local FM radio station. Marketing research later reveals that the restaurant's target market listens primarily to satellite radio stations. This promotion program suffered from an error in the selection of: A. shared symbols. B. sales promotion techniques. C. communication channel. D. decoded meanings. E. noise minimizers. Answer: C 24. H&M, a clothing company, communicates to its target customers by advertising in magazines, offering clothing information on its website, creating a periodic online newsletter, Facebook, and Twitter. These vehicles through which the coded message is transmitted from the source, H&M, to the receiver, the prospective customer, are known as a(n): A. fields of reference. B. decoders. C. encoders. D. relay channels. E. communication channels. Answer: E 25. With respect to the components of the communication process, the fax machines used by OES Office Systems to carry its advertising messages to its business customers is an example of a (n): A. communication channel. B. field of reference. C. decoder. D. encoder. E. noise minimizer. Answer: A 26. During the decoding process, the: A. intensity of the transmission becomes stronger. B. receiver attempts to convert signs or symbols into concepts and ideas. C. source attempts to convert signs or symbols into concepts and ideas. D. source provides feedback of an encoded message to the receiver. E. receiver filters noise from the feedback. Answer: B 27. During a one-minute television ad for Nike, the National Weather Service interrupts to announce a flash flood warning for surrounding counties. Such an occurrence is an example of ________ in the communication process. A. encoding B. pioneer promotion C. noise D. deflected transmission E. selective demand Answer: C 28. Which of the following is the best example of noise that originates with the receiver in the communication process? A. Sarah drives through a tunnel, and her radio signals become very weak. B. Maria has been studying English for two years and does not understand the symbolism being used in a commercial. C. Kevin simply tunes out pop-up ads on the Internet so that they don't even enter his awareness. D. Because of poor printing, Claire cannot read an advertisement in her local newspaper. E. A mother fails to hear a new commercial for diapers because her new baby is crying. Answer: C 29. The receiver's response to a message is ________ for the source. A. feedback B. the communications channel C. noise D. channel capacity E. pioneer promotion Answer: A 30. Communication can be viewed as a circular process because: A. during feedback, the receiver can be viewed as the source of the message while the original source becomes the receiver. B. the message goes from encoding by the source to decoding by the receiver. C. during a personal selling situation, both verbal and nonverbal feedback can be very fast and immediate. D. channel capacity is determined by the least efficient component. E. the message goes from person to person. Answer: A 31. In a corner of its magazine advertisement for office copiers, Lexmark places a small box asking for the names and addresses of individuals or companies seeking more information. Lexmark has included this box to facilitate ________ for this communication. A. decoding B. feedback C. encoding D. perceptual attention E. noise reduction Answer: B 32. Each communication channel has a limit on the volume of information it can handle effectively. This limit is known as: A. transmission load. B. feedback. C. channel code. D. channel spacing. E. channel capacity. Answer: E 33. Although a radio announcer can read several hundred words a minute, a one-minute advertising message should not exceed 150 words because most announcers cannot articulate words into understandable messages at faster rates. This illustrates the ________ consideration in effective communication. A. transmission load B. marketing exposure C. channel spacing D. channel coding E. channel capacity Answer: E 34. For many consumers, the pages near the back of magazines with dozens of very small black and white advertisements exceed their: A. channel capacity. B. threshold of awareness. C. encoding abilities. D. transmission limitations. E. noise limit. Answer: A 35. Anything that reduces the accuracy and clarity of communication is known as: A. distraction. B. feedback. C. interference. D. discordance. E. noise. Answer: E 36. Claire Nevsky is in charge of advertising for her company and has produced a 30-second television spot to promote one of the company's new products. One of her assistants just out of college believes that the commercial has too much visual and audio information packed into such a small amount of time. The assistant is specifically concerned about limits in the receiver's: A. noise. B. coding process. C. encoding. D. channel capacity. E. feedback. Answer: D 37. ________ links the purchase of an organization's products to support philanthropic organizations favored by the target market. A. Loyalty marketing B. Cause-related marketing C. Rural marketing D. Selective demand promotion E. Embedded marketing Answer: B 38. When Yoplait Yogurt gives a portion of its profits to Breast Cancer Research, it is using: A. selective demand promotion. B. loyalty marketing. C. rural marketing. D. embedded marketing. E. cause-related marketing. Answer: E 39. Often when a company introduces a new product or line extension, its promotion will focus on ________ in order to initiate the product-adoption process. A. creating awareness B. stimulating demand C. retaining loyal customers D. combating competitive promotional efforts E. reduce sales fluctuations Answer: A 40. By promoting the fact that "orange juice is not just for breakfast anymore," the Florida Orange Growers Association attempted to stimulate: A. primary demand. B. selective demand. C. marketing exposure. D. comparison of orange juices. E. demand elasticity. Answer: A 41. Primary demand is defined as the: A. demand for a product category. B. demand for a new product. C. consumer awareness of a product category. D. extending brands with new product concepts. E. demand for a particular brand. Answer: A 42. When Blue-ray disc players were first introduced to the market, which of the following would have been the logical choice for promotion? A. Selective demand B. Pioneer promotion C. Promotion in a warm market D. Brand extension E. Retention promotion Answer: B 43. Rob is working on the promotional plan for a new bicycle helmet that has added technology to sense when a bicycler has fallen and had a head injury. The technology then releases an audible signal that will help others know that there is an injury which needs treatment. This is considered to be a new product that is in the introduction stage of the product life cycle. Which type of promotion should Rob focus on? A. Reminder B. Selective C. Comparative D. Pioneer E. Repetitive Answer: D 44. Selective demand is demand for a: A. general type of product. B. particular brand. C. new product. D. competitor's product. E. service. Answer: B 45. When Sears promotes the benefits and strengths of its Kenmore brand appliances, it is attempting to build: A. primary demand. B. pioneer promotion. C. a warm market. D. a bargain bin. E. selective demand. Answer: E 46. Retro64 distributes free downloadable versions of its computer games for a very short time. These efforts have a primary promotional objective of: A. encouraging product trial. B. building selective demand. C. retaining loyal customers. D. facilitating reseller support. E. reducing sales fluctuations. Answer: A 47. Mister Sub offers customers a card that allows them to have a free sub for every 7 that have been purchased and provides various discounts throughout the year. The primary promotional objective of programs such as this is: A. encouraging product trial. B. retaining existing customers. C. building selective demand. D. facilitating reseller support. E. minimizing noise in the communication process. Answer: B 48. When Hamburger Helper introduced its Oven Varieties, it gave special offers to supermarkets to purchase the new product and supplemented these offers with consumer advertising. Hamburger Helper's primary promotional objective is to: A. facilitate reseller support. B. reduce sales fluctuations. C. minimize noise in the communication process. D. encourage product trial. E. retain loyal customers. Answer: A 49. Cooperative advertising efforts between manufacturers and retailers demonstrate the promotional objective of: A. stimulating demand. B. reducing sales fluctuations. C. combating competitive promotional efforts. D. facilitating reseller support. E. retaining loyal customers. Answer: D 50. Which of the following is the best example of the promotional objective of combating competitive promotional efforts? A. Joy advertises that its dish soap has more suds than Dawn, Sunlight, and other leading dish soaps. B. Joe Boxer and Kmart collaborate to promote Joe Boxer's lines of clothing and housewares. C. The Pork Council advertises pork as the "other white meat" and a healthier alternative to beef. D. After Ford promotes the towing capacity of its F-series trucks, DaimlerChrysler soon emphasizes the towing capacity of its Dodge trucks. E. Hyundai offers 10-year/100,000 mile warranties on its vehicles in order to give customers confidence in its brand name and automotive offerings. Answer: D 51. Factors such as climate, seasons, and holidays tend to lead to the promotional objective of: A. combating competitive promotional offers. B. facilitating reseller support. C. encouraging product trial. D. retaining loyal customers. E. reducing sales fluctuations. Answer: E 52. Newspaper ads for Blue Haven Pools offering discounted prices during October and discounted cleaning supplies for hot tubs in March are examples of: A. retaining loyal customers. B. promoting new product uses. C. making salespeople more effective. D. stimulating primary demand. E. reducing sales fluctuations. Answer: E 53. A spokesperson for Mott's apple juice encourages television audiences to use its juice in the winter by serving it hot with a cinnamon stick. In this instance, Mott's is using promotion to: A. stimulate primary demand. B. offset competitors' promotional efforts. C. facilitate reseller support. D. retain loyal customers. E. reduce sales fluctuations. Answer: E 54. An advertisement from a ski lodge extolling the benefits of a summer getaway in the mountains uses promotion to: A. combat competitive promotional efforts. B. stimulate demand. C. reduce sales fluctuations. D. encourage product trial. E. retain loyal customers. Answer: C 55. Advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, and public relations are called: A. promotion mix ingredients. B. marketing mix components. C. characteristics of a product. D. advertising tools. E. nonpersonal communication tools. Answer: A 56. Reba Vincent is employed as a consultant for Mary Kay Cosmetics. This illustrates: A. personal selling. B. retailing. C. public relations. D. advertising. E. sales promotion. Answer: A 57. Sara is concerned about the effectiveness of Magnum Inc.'s promotional messages, and is seeking an approach with immediate feedback. Sara is most likely to achieve this through: A. television advertising. B. newspaper advertising. C. public relations. D. sales promotion. E. personal selling. Answer: E 58. Kyle is preparing the promotional plan for Jansport backpacks in early May. This promotion will be executed in the month of August and will be a paid form of nonpersonal communication. It will be communicated to a target audience through a mass medium. Kyle is using the ________ form of promotion. A. advertising B. public relations C. sales promotion D. personal selling E. social media Answer: A 59. Slow feedback, high absolute-dollar outlay, and difficulty in measuring effects on sales are disadvantages of: A. advertising. B. public relations. C. sales management. D. sales promotion. E. personal selling. Answer: A 60. ________ offers the potential benefits of cost efficiency, repetition, and adding product value, while slow feedback is one of its disadvantages. A. Public relations B. Advertising C. Personal selling D. Sales promotion E. Personal selling Answer: B 61. Paid personal communication that seeks to inform customers and persuade them to purchase products in an exchange situation is: A. sales promotion. B. advertising. C. personal selling. D. public relations. E. publicity. Answer: C 62. Michael is planning a promotional program for AirFam. AirFam is a supplier of new energy-saving engines used to produce air conditioners. His company needs to promote these engines to manufacturers of air conditioners, so he is most likely to use ________, because it provides immediate feedback. A. sales promotion B. advertising C. word-of-mouth D. personal selling E. public relations Answer: D 63. With respect to the promotion mix elements, kinesic communication is a component of ________. A. advertising B. public relations C. personal selling D. packaging E. sales promotion Answer: C 64. Head nodding, winking, hand gestures, and arm motions are all forms of ________ communication. A. kinesic B. spacing C. proxemics D. touching E. tactile Answer: A 65. When a salesperson varies the physical distance between himself and a customer he is using: A. kinesic communication. B. sales promotion. C. tactile communication. D. word-of-mouth communication. E. proxemic communication. Answer: E 66. As their meeting concludes, Jamal rises and thanks Gina for taking the time to come by and explain her firm's new line of industrial fasteners. A handshake, which is best described as a form of ________ communication, concludes the session. A. public relations B. word-of-mouth C. tactile D. proxemic E. verbal Answer: C 67. With respect to the promotion mix elements, ________ is a broad set of communication efforts used to create and maintain favorable relationships between a company and its stakeholders. A. advertising B. personal selling C. reseller support D. sales promotion E. public relations Answer: E 68. With respect to the promotion mix elements, communication through the use of brochures, annual reports, and event sponsorships is referred to as: A. advertising. B. personal selling. C. sales promotion. D. publicity. E. public relations. Answer: E 69. The Sharper Image likes to use nonpersonal communication in news story form such as press releases for its new and improved products. This is an example of: A. sales promotion. B. direct marketing. C. personal selling. D. publicity. E. social media promotion. Answer: D 70. All of the following are examples of publicity-based public relations tools except: A. press conferences. B. feature articles. C. news releases. D. annual reports. E. news stories. Answer: D 71. Public relations: A. should be used mostly to counteract any competitive promotions or negative publicity. B. is an element of promotion that should be handled on a continuous basis. C. should be used solely to respond to emergencies that could significantly damage the company's reputation. D. is paid communication that helps enhance a company's image by highlighting its philanthropic efforts. E. is generally not given much weight because the information is generated by the company itself. Answer: B 72. An activity and/or material which acts as a direct inducement, offering added value or incentive to resellers, salespeople, or consumers is known as: A. advertising. B. personal selling. C. public relations. D. sales promotion. E. packaging. Answer: D 73. Albott Laboratories offers ceramic coffee mugs to its physician customers when it promotes a new drug. This example illustrates Albott’s use of ________. A. packaging B. personal selling C. sales promotion D. public relations E. telemarketing Answer: C 74. When McDonald's uses the Monopoly game in which customers receive game pieces with each visit and try to assemble a set of properties to win prizes, McDonald's is utilizing: A. sales promotion. B. advertising. C. guerilla marketing. D. personal selling. E. public relations. Answer: A 75. Hunt's decided to put a much larger share of its promotion budget into ________ because of the heavy reliance it will be placing on coupons in the second quarter. A. advertising B. sales promotion C. public relations D. telemarketing E. personal selling Answer: B 76. Subway is conducting a contest in which customers are asked to name a new sandwich. The winner gets a free sandwich each day for one year and an appearance in one of the company’s TV commercials. This contest illustrates Subway's use of ________ as one of the elements of the promotion mix. A. advertising B. personal selling C. sales promotion D. public relations E. telemarketing Answer: C 77. A consumer contest is an example of: A. personal selling. B. sales promotion. C. advertising. D. word-of-mouth marketing. E. public relations. Answer: B 78. Latisha works for a promotional consultant who develops sweepstakes, games, coupons, and rebate plans for various marketers. According to the information given, Latisha develops: A. advertising techniques. B. sales promotion techniques. C. publicity examples. D. personal selling techniques. E. direct marketing techniques. Answer: B 79. Generally, promotion mixes for companies with extremely limited promotional budgets tend to concentrate on: A. national advertising. B. publicity. C. sales promotions. D. personal selling. E. distributor incentives. Answer: D 80. If a firm's promotional budget were extremely limited, for which of the following reasons would it be more likely to rely on personal selling as its main promotional tool? A. People are more likely to believe a human being than a print ad. B. TV and radio ads are not feasible for smaller companies. C. It can achieve more sales through business customers than through individual consumers. D. It is easier to measure a salesperson's effects on sales than advertising's effects on sales. E. The firm is charging a higher price to cover the expensive salaries of its salespeople. Answer: D 81. Organizations that sell products to industrial markets or a few wholesalers tend to frequently focus their promotion efforts on: A. national advertising. B. word-of-mouth communication. C. public relations. D. sales promotion. E. personal selling. Answer: E 82. The Dyson Company, manufacturer of high-priced vacuum cleaners, has developed a promotional program with both push and pull policies. Dyson only sells its products through retailers who carry high-end household electronics items. For the pull policy, Dyson will most likely use ________. A. rebates to the customer B. personal selling done by the retailer’s employees C. advertising and a bonus to the retailer for every vacuum cleaner sold D. sales promotion E. discounts to the retailer Answer: B 83. If the push policy is used in promoting a product, the firm: A. promotes directly to consumers, wholesalers and retailers. B. promotes only to the next marketing institution down the marketing channel. C. Intends to pull the goods down through the channel by creating demand at the consumer level. D. will focus on persuading consumers to seek its products in retail stores. E. will develop strong consumer demand for its products. Answer: B 84. If a manufacturer decides to use a push policy to promote its products, it is most likely to focus its efforts on: A. retailers. B. wholesalers. C. ultimate consumers. D. other producers. E. institutional users. Answer: B 85. When Hershey Dark Chocolate Kisses were introduced, Hershey promoted directly to consumers and told them to ask for the product at their favorite stores. This is an example of a ________ policy. A. reseller promotional B. push C. sales promotion D. pull E. pioneer promotion Answer: D 86. Ralph Lauren is planning a promotion where it will showcase all of its clothing lines to buyers at retail stores. It also plans to develop a direct marketing campaign that will use social media to introduce its new seasonal styles. Ralph Lauren is using ________ with the retail showcase. A. embedded marketing B. a pull policy C. a push policy D. guerilla marketing E. loyalty marketing Answer: C 87. The use of a pull policy may require heavy expenditures for: A. advertising and sales promotion. B. public relations and distribution. C. personal selling and public relations. D. distribution and advertising. E. sales promotion and personal selling. Answer: A 88. Which of the following is a personal informal exchange of communication that customers share with one another about products, brands, and companies? A. Guerilla marketing B. Word-of-mouth communication C. Product placement D. Embedded communication E. Conversational promotion Answer: B 89. An attempt to create a trend or acceptance of a product through word-of-mouth communication is called: A. guerilla marketing. B. viral marketing. C. buzz marketing. D. personal publicity. E. conversational promotion. Answer: C 90. Andrea receives an e-mail from her sister-in-law that is actually a recommendation for a website with a demonstration of a new home hair-coloring system. She later discovers that her sister-in-law received a free trial kit for passing Andrea's and four other friends' e-mail addresses along to the marketer. This is known as: A. viral marketing. B. buzz marketing. C. guerilla marketing. D. selective demand. E. personal advertising. Answer: A 91. If promotion does not do its job of stimulating demand, then the: A. price of the promoted product is likely to increase. B. price of the promoted product will remain reasonably stable. C. price of the promoted product will decrease. D. cost of promotion will decline. E. cost will remain about the same. Answer: A 92. Promotion can help keep prices lower because: A. demand for the product does not increase. B. promotion of prices intensifies price competition. C. promotion discourages materialism. D. promotion tends to reduce consumers' price sensitivity. E. promotion tends to stabilize a product's price elasticity of demand. Answer: B 93. If children and teenagers are insisting on wearing expensive name-brand apparel, a criticism of promotion can be made that promotion: A. forces people to spend too much. B. forces prices to go up. C. encourages materialism. D. creates needs. E. can be harmful. Answer: C Scenario 15.1 Use the following to answer the questions. When introducing a new vehicle targeted to the under-30 population, Toyota used several different methods of communication. First, it did research in several large cities to find out who the opinion leaders were in that age group. By visiting the local nightlife, one or two people in each city were selected and given a new vehicle to drive for two weeks. They were told to share information about this new vehicle with their friends. After a few weeks, a television campaign was launched with commercials introducing the new vehicle. Toyota also placed ads in magazines that were targeted to the under-30 age group, and used drive-by billboards in the large cities near the nightclub areas. 94. Refer to Scenario 15.1. If Toyota offers the dealership salespeople a trip to Hawaii for anyone who could sell ten of the new vehicles within the first month of their availability, the promotion tactic would be an example of ________ marketing. A. direct B. buzz C. pull D. push E. viral Answer: D 95. Refer to Scenario 15.1. Toyota's act of giving the opinion leaders a new vehicle for two weeks is best described as an example of: A. product placement. B. personal selling. C. loyalty marketing. D. buzz marketing. E. embedded marketing. Answer: D 96. Refer to Scenario 15.1. Suppose that Toyota has decided to contract with the producer of the next James Bond 007 movie to use one of its new vehicles in a chase scene. This would best be an example of: A. personal selling. B. word-of-mouth promotion. C. product placement. D. viral marketing. E. buzz marketing. Answer: C Scenario 15.2 Use the following to answer the questions. The manufacturers of Whizz, a new laundry detergent, are developing their promotional plan for the first year. They know they want to use an integrated communications strategy and are considering the use of advertising through TV and magazines, coupons, public relations, sales promotion, and viral marketing. They are not sure when to use each of these methods however, and have asked for your advice. 97. Refer to Scenario 15.2. If the manufacturers of Whizz were to partner with Whirlpool to place a bottle of Whizz in each new washer that is purchased during the first year, this would be an example of: A. buzz marketing. B. sales promotion. C. viral marketing. D. word-of-mouth promotion. E. loyalty marketing. Answer: B 98. Refer to Scenario 15.2. The makers of Whizz have decided to go to several different colleges and have a contest for the dirtiest shirt. While at the colleges, they will set up several washing machines near the campus bookstore, demonstrating the power of Whizz to get these dirty shirts clean. Each contestant in the dirtiest shirt contest will receive a coupon for a free bottle of Whizz. The winner of the contest will receive a $50 gift card for the college bookstore. This method of promotion is an example of ________. A. viral advertising B. sales promotion C. embedded marketing D. product placement E. direct marketing Answer: B 99. Refer to Scenario 15.2. The makers of Whizz considered a new promotional method for their product. A small box of Whizz was placed in the mailbox of college students as they came on campus in the fall. Along with the Whizz, the students received a coupon for $1.00 off their next purchase. They could receive another coupon for $3.00 off if they went online and emailed five friends at another college, telling them about Whizz. The friends could then go to a website and print a coupon for $2.00 off their next purchase. The emails to the five friends are an example of ________. A. advertising B. personal selling C. sales promotion D. embedded marketing E. viral marketing Answer: E 100. Today, the sharing of information and use of technology to facilitate communication between buyers and sellers are essential for successful customer relationship management. A. True B. False Answer: True 101. A major goal of integrated marketing communications is to send a consistent message to customers. A. True B. False Answer: True 102. While the specific communication vehicles employed in promotion have not changed, the fundamental role of promotion is changing. A. True B. False Answer: False 103. Communication is a sharing of meaning. A. True B. False Answer: True 104. When encoding a message, the source should use signs or symbols that are new to the audience. A. True B. False Answer: False 105. Encoding is the process by which a receiver takes the coded message received from the source and converts it into ideas and concepts. A. True B. False Answer: False 106. Signs and symbols that can have more than one meaning should be avoided. A. True B. False Answer: True 107. The receiver's response to the decoded message is called noise. A. True B. False Answer: False 108. Radio or television transmission difficulties are sources of noise. A. True B. False Answer: True 109. Rapid feedback enables communicators to quickly improve the effectiveness of their communication. A. True B. False Answer: True 110. A communications channel is the vehicle used to transmit the coded message from the source to the receiver. A. True B. False Answer: True 111. When a firm uses mass communication, feedback is rapid. A. True B. False Answer: False 112. Feedback does not exist for mass communication. A. True B. False Answer: False 113. Channel capacity is determined by the most efficient component of the communication process. A. True B. False Answer: False 114. A television advertisement that transmits several types of audio messages and visual materials may be ineffective. A. True B. False Answer: True 115. The role of promotion is to communicate. A. True B. False Answer: True 116. Firms that link the purchase of their product to philanthropic efforts practice cause-related marketing. A. True B. False Answer: True 117. Effective promotional programs require management efforts such as planning, organization, implementation, and control. A. True B. False Answer: True 118. Promotion that focuses on creating awareness is only important when introducing a new product to the market. A. True B. False Answer: False 119. A marketer uses pioneer promotion in the introductory stage of the product life cycle, when there are many competitive brands. A. True B. False Answer: False 120. Demand for a product category rather than for a specific brand is called primary demand. A. True B. False Answer: True 121. Pioneer promotion neither emphasizes brand names nor compares brands. A. True B. False Answer: True 122. Selective demand is demand for a certain brand. A. True B. False Answer: True 123. Promotion to encourage trial use mainly attempts to retain loyal customers. A. True B. False Answer: False 124. Promotion can assist salespeople in finding likely sales prospects. A. True B. False Answer: True 125. A business usually cannot operate at peak efficiency when sales fluctuate significantly. A. True B. False Answer: True 126. When a manufacturer advertises a product to consumers, resellers should view this promotion as a form of strong manufacturer support. A. True B. False Answer: True 127. A promotion mix is a blend of four possible ingredients, which are advertising, personal selling, public relations, and sales promotion. A. True B. False Answer: True 128. Advertising is a paid form of personal communication. A. True B. False Answer: False 129. Advertising is an inflexible promotional method. A. True B. False Answer: False 130. The absolute dollar outlay for advertising is usually low. A. True B. False Answer: False 131. Measuring the effect of advertising on sales is difficult. A. True B. False Answer: True 132. Personal selling makes possible immediate feedback from consumers. A. True B. False Answer: True 133. Proxemic communication is communication through touching. A. True B. False Answer: False 134. Tactile communication is communication through the movement of head, eyes, arms, hands, legs, or torso. A. True B. False Answer: False 135. The phrase, purchase products, includes the acceptance of ideas and issues. A. True B. False Answer: True 136. Public relations is a broad set of communication efforts used to create and maintain favorable relationships between the organizations and its stakeholders. A. True B. False Answer: True 137. Public relations is nonpersonal communication in news story form about an organization, or its products, or both, transmitted through a mass medium at no charge. A. True B. False Answer: False 138. Public relations is a set of tools to be used primarily during crises. A. True B. False Answer: False 139. A news story about a product is an example of sales promotion. A. True B. False Answer: False 140. Coupons are a form of sales promotion. A. True B. False Answer: True 141. An organization's promotion mix is viewed as an unchanging part of the marketing mix. A. True B. False Answer: False 142. If an organization is large and has a large promotional budget, it should utilize all four promotional methods. A. True B. False Answer: False 143. If a company has very limited promotional resources, it is most likely to use mainly personal selling. A. True B. False Answer: True 144. The geographic distribution of a firm's customers can affect the combination of promotional methods used. A. True B. False Answer: True 145. The price of a product influences the promotion mix to be used by the producer. A. True B. False Answer: True 146. The promotional method most commonly used for highly personal items is personal selling. A. True B. False Answer: False 147. A breakfast cereal maker most likely will not use personal selling to promote its product. A. True B. False Answer: True 148. Advertising is one element of the promotion mix that is too expensive for small business firms. A. True B. False Answer: False 149. When a push policy is used in promotion of a particular product, the producer promotes the product only to the next channel member. A. True B. False Answer: True 150. If a pull policy is used in promoting a product, the producer promotes the product only to the next marketing institution down the channel. A. True B. False Answer: False 151. When a push policy is used in promoting a particular product, the producer promotes the product directly to consumers. A. True B. False Answer: False 152. Word-of-mouth communication is not especially important when people are choosing restaurants and automotive, medical, and personal services such as hair care. A. True B. False Answer: False 153. Successful marketers that understand the significance of word-of-mouth communication seek out opinion leaders and try to encourage them to try their products in the hope they will spread favorable word about them. A. True B. False Answer: True 154. Viral marketing is an attempt to incite publicity and public excitement surrounding a product through a creative event. A. True B. False Answer: False 155. Product placement is a form of advertising that strategically locates products or product promotions within entertainment media to reach the product's target markets. A. True B. False Answer: True 156. One reason that promotion suffers from widespread criticism is that promotional efforts are highly visible and affect our everyday lives. A. True B. False Answer: True 157. Deceptive promotional practices today are common because of a lack of regulation. A. True B. False Answer: False 158. If promotion is successful at stimulating demand, it will tend to increase prices. A. True B. False Answer: False 159. Promotion fuels price competition which leads to a raise in prices. A. True B. False Answer: False 160. While promotion does not create needs, it does capitalize on them. A. True B. False Answer: True 161. Customers learn about products through promotion, allowing them to make more intelligent buying decisions. A. True B. False Answer: True 162. Because we are exposed to so much promotion in our daily lives, and the purpose of promoting goods is to persuade people to buy them, a common criticism is that promotion encourages materialism. A. True B. False Answer: True Test Bank for Foundations of Marketing William M. Pride, O. C. Ferrell 9781285429779, 9781439039441
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