Friday, May 31, 2019
Why Kissinger Helped Pinochet :: Foreign Policy Chile Governmental Essays
Why Kissinger Helped PinochetThe United States hands have not of all time been clean (Landau 1999, page 16). It seems that as time passes more and more of past United States foreign policy accomplishments ar discovered to have been a front of corruption rather than security. Recently numbers of declassified documents show the fraud of Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. It is apparent that Kissinger directly assisted General Augusto Pinochet into military unit in Chile and despite his knowledge of Pinochets human rights violations he deliberately ensured his stay in power (Landau 1999 page 16). Currently the legal action being taken against Henry Kissinger must be taken seriously to show current United States officials, the cruelty of our nations past and how we are guilty of initiating and dower a brutal dictatorship for sixteen years.One must wonder what was Kissingers motive? Being pushed by his boss President Nixon to prevent communism in Chile at all costs is apparen t, as is his friendly relationship with Pinochet that he developed. I want to see our relations and friendship improve, Kissinger states in a memoir to Pinochet during his trip to Chile that was intended to speak about human rights concerns (Kornbluh 1999 page 5). But what was truly the underlining motivation that caused Kissinger to risk his job and character to keep Pinochet in power? Could it simply be a lack of sympathy? Or was Kissinger just overly fanatical about stopping the circularize of Communism?In lieu of the unclassified documents it is apparent that Kissinger had formed a liking to Augusto Pinochet. Recent memorandums show that Kissinger told Pinochet that he was a casualty of Communist propaganda and reinforce Pinochet, while hundreds of Chilean citizens were being jailed without cause, that the United States would not punish him for human rights violations. In September 1976 Kissinger sent out a warning to roughly South American nations about the rumor of a n Operation Condor but intentionally excluded warning Chile in fear of how Pinochet would react (Duke 2005, page D01). Reveled in the transcripts are Kissingers expression of friendship, sympathetic understanding and wishes for success to Pinochet at the height of his repression After receiving an overwhelming amount of pressure from congress to deal with Chiles human rights issues Kissinger gave a speech at an OAS conference in Santiago. However,
Thursday, May 30, 2019
Red Badge of Courage - The Power of Fear Exposed Essay -- The Red Badg
Power of Fear Exposed in The deprivation Badge of Courage The Red Badge of Courage, by Stephen crane, is a book based on a childly spends engagement in the Civil War. The psychological appointment that he faces throughout the story is both internal and external. The bookings are fought in the readers face to show the young soldiers conflict with himself, other soldiers, and the battle itself. With Stephen Cranes amazing power of description, the reader becomes engulfed in the battle at hand and feels that the conflicts of the soldiers are becoming his own. The main topic of the book is fear, and how it would tint a young man in a bloody war such as the Civil War. The war becomes the young soldiers worst nightmare, which gives him conflicting thoughts, emotions and fears. The young character soon realizes, as all of these things affect him emotionally and physically, that the war is very different from what he had hoped it was going to be. Although the soldier becomes nervous and even runs aside at the Battle of Chancellorsville, he eventually kick ins to find that he and his fellow soldiers have grown. They had learned more about themselves then they had ever believed possible. The young soldier becomes a man with plenty of courage by the end of this book. When we first meet enthalpy with his regiment, the 304th New York, he is bored and even lonesome, wishing to return to the farm. As time passes at the camp, Henry begins to realize that being a hero in the war may not be as unprovoked as he had once dreamed. The familiar conflict begins with Henry wondering about how he go forth react when the battle begins. He wonders whether he will run like a chicken, or stay a fight bravely. In the first battle Henry fights bravely, but as time goe... ...en Crane also uses his powerful descriptions in the parts of the book where the character is fighting battles. He puts the reader in the face of the enemy and describes to them every last detail, reservat ion the reader know what every detail was like. If Crane had made the battles any less dramatic, the reader would have had a hard time following what Henry was having an emotional conflict about. Since Crane put you right there in the battle, you also felt the way that Henry felt. Stephen Crane used the young soldiers inner and outer battles to give the reader a true idea of what the Civil War must have been like. The reader will visualize the battles, smell the gunpowder, assay the guns, and sense everything else that happens throughout the book due to Cranes use of description. The reader even begins to feel and sympathize with Henrys emotions and feelings.
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Summary and Analysis of The Squires Tale :: Canterbury Tales The Squires Tale Essays
Summary and Analysis of The Squires Tale (The Canterbury Tales)Epilogue to the Merchants Tale and Prologue to the Squires Tale The Host laments the Merchants tale, praying that he would never find such a monstrous wife. The Host admits that he also has a wife that he laments marrying. He advises the Squire to tell a tale next. The Squires Tale is not complete, ending later only six hundred lines. The Squires TaleThe Squire tells the tale of Cambyuskan, the king of Sarai in Tartary. With his wife Elpheta he had two sons, Algarsyf and Cambalo, and a daughter Canacee. In the 20th year of his reign on the Ides of March his subjects celebrated his nativity. During a great feast with the king and his knights, a knight with a gold ring and a sword entered the hall. He was sent from the king of Arabia and India, and offers him a steed of brass that can, within twenty-four hours, transport a person safely anywhere on the globe. He also presence to Canacee a mirror that foresees impending m ischance and can determine the character of friends and foes, a ring that enables the wearer to understand the language of any bird, and the heal properties of all herbs. He also offers a sword whose edge will bite through any armor but whose flat will bring back the wounds inflicted by the edge. The knight was led to a chamber and the ring given to Canacee, but the brass steed would not move until the knight taught people how to move it. The provide was a source of wonder for the people, compared alternately to the Pegasus and the Trojan horse. All one needed to do to move the brass horse was to twirl a ramification in its ear, according to the knight. After the revelry of the night before, the next morning everybody but Canacee remained asleep until late. She had dreamed of the mirror and the ring and thus had her first upstanding rest in a very long time. As she went out walking that morning with her maids, she came across bleeding peregrine falcon that cried in anguish. It had mutilated itself. Canacee picked up the falcon and spoke to it, a power she had gained from the ring the knight had given her. The falcon told her a tale of a handsome tercelet as treasonous and false as he was beautiful.
Political Critique of Race Relations in Alice Walkers Color Purple Ess
The Color Purple as governmental Critique of Race Relations If the integrate family of Doris Baines and her adopted African grandson exposes the missionary pattern of integration in Africa as iodine based on a false kinship that in accompaniment denies the legitimacy of kinship bonds across racial lines, the relationship between Miss Sophia and her white charge, Miss Eleanor Jane, serves an analogous function for the American South. Sophia, of course, joins the mayors household as a maid under conditions more overtly racist than Doris Bainess adoption of her Akwee family Because she answers hell no (76) to Miss Millies request that she come to work for her as a maid, Sophia is brutally beaten by the mayor and six policeman and is then imprisoned. Forced to do the jails laundry and driven to the brink of madness, Sophia finally becomes Miss Millies maid in order to escape prison. Sophias violent confrontation with the white officers obviously foregrounds issues of race and clas s, as even critics who find these issues marginalized elsewhere in The Color Purple scram noted. But it is not only through Sophias dramatic public battles with white men that her story dramatizes issues of race and class. Her domestic relationship with Miss Eleanor Jane and the other members of the mayors family offers a more finely nuanced and extended critique of racial integration, albeit one that has often been overlooked.(11) Like Doris Baines and her black grandson, Sophia and Miss Eleanor Jane appear to have some genuine family feelings for one another. Since Sophia practically . . . raises (222) Miss Eleanor Jane and is the one sympathetic person... ...nold, 1993. 85-96. Sekora, John. Is the Slave Narrative a Species of Autobiography? Studies in Autobiography. Ed. James Olney. New York Oxford UP, 1988. 99-111. Shelton, Frank W. Alienation and Integration in Alice Walkers The Color Purple. CLA Journal 28 (1985) 382-92. Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. Explanation and Cultu re Marginalia. Humanities and Society 2 (1974) 201-21. Stade, George. Womanist Fiction and Male Characters. Partisan Review 52 (1985) 264-70. Tate, Claudia. Domestic Allegories of Political Desire The Black Heroines Text at the Turn of the Century. New York Oxford UP, 1992. Tompkins, Jane. Sensational Designs The Cultural Work of American Fiction. New York Oxford UP, 1985. Walker, Alice. The Color Purple. New York Harcourt, 1982.
Tuesday, May 28, 2019
Comparing Machiavellis The Prince and Platos The Republic Essay
Comparing Machiavellis The Prince and Platos The Republic Many people in history have written about pattern rulers and states and how to maintain them. Perhaps the about talked about and compared are Machiavellis, The Prince and Platos, The Republic. Machiavelli lived at a time when Italy was suffering from its political destruction. The Prince, was written to describe the ways by which a leader may succeed and maintain power. In Plato?s The Republic, he unravels the definition of justice. Plato believed that a ruler could not be wholly just unless one was in a night club that was also just. His state and ruler was made up to better understand the meaning of justice. It was not intended to be practiced like that of Machiavellis. Machiavelli, acknowledging this, explains that it is his intention to compile something that is true and real and useful to whoever might read it and not something imaginary,?for many have pictured republics and principalities which in fact have never been known or seen?(Machiavelli 375). Therefore, because one ruler is realistic and the other imaginary, the characteristics of Machiavellis ruler versus Platos ruler are distinctly different. Machiavelli?s model for his ideal prince was Cesare Borgia, also known as Duke Valentino and countersign of Pope Alexander VI. He believed Cesare Borgia possessed all the qualities of a prince destined to rule and maintain power in his state. He believed that politics has a morality of its own. There is no regard of justness or unjustness, of cruelty or mercy, of approval or humiliation, which should interfere with the decision of defending the state and preserving its freedom. Therefore, the ruler/princes individual(a) responsibilit... ...ddle with each other (Plato 99).? In The Prince, Machiavelli was addressing a monarchical ruler and offering advice designed to keep that ruler in power. He felt that Cesare Borgia was model for the hone prince. He was able to give actual examples of how princes during his time ruled and how they failed or succeeded in doing so. Plato, in contrast was perhaps unrealistic. His ruler and state could only be used to better understand the meaning of justice. It could never be practiced in real life because he neglects the fact that everyone sins and fails to mention this in his ideal ruler and state. Works Cited 1) Marra, James L., Zelnick, Stephen C., and Mattson, Mark T. IH 51 Source Book Plato, The Republic, pp. 77-106 2) Nicole Machiavelli, The Prince, pp. 359-386. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, Dubuque, Iowa, 1998.
Comparing Machiavellis The Prince and Platos The Republic Essay
Comparing Machiavellis The Prince and Platos The Republic Many people in history waste written about ideal rulers and states and how to restrain them. Perhaps the most talked about and compared are Machiavellis, The Prince and Platos, The Republic. Machiavelli lived at a time when Italy was suffering from its political destruction. The Prince, was written to distinguish the ways by which a leader may gain and maintain power. In Plato?s The Republic, he unravels the definition of justice. Plato believed that a ruler could non be wholly just unless one was in a society that was also just. His state and ruler was made up to better understand the meaning of justice. It was not intended to be practiced like that of Machiavellis. Machiavelli, acknowledging this, explains that it is his intention to write something that is true and authoritative and useful to whoever might read it and not something imaginary,?for many have project republics and principalities which in fact have neve r been known or seen?(Machiavelli 375). Therefore, because one ruler is realistic and the other imaginary, the characteristics of Machiavellis ruler versus Platos ruler are distinctly different. Machiavelli?s model for his ideal prince was Cesare Borgia, also known as Duke Valentino and son of Pope Alexander VI. He believed Cesare Borgia possessed all the qualities of a prince destined to rule and maintain power in his state. He believed that politics has a morality of its own. There is no regard of justness or unjustness, of cruelty or mercy, of approval or humiliation, which should interfere with the decision of defending the state and preserving its freedom. Therefore, the ruler/princes single responsibilit... ...ddle with each other (Plato 99).? In The Prince, Machiavelli was addressing a monarchical ruler and offering advice designed to discover that ruler in power. He felt that Cesare Borgia was model for the perfect prince. He was able to give actual examples of how princ es during his time ruled and how they failed or succeeded in doing so. Plato, in contrast was perhaps unrealistic. His ruler and state could only be used to better understand the meaning of justice. It could never be practiced in real life because he neglects the fact that everyone sins and fails to mention this in his ideal ruler and state. Works Cited 1) Marra, James L., Zelnick, Stephen C., and Mattson, Mark T. IH 51 Source Book Plato, The Republic, pp. 77-106 2) Nicole Machiavelli, The Prince, pp. 359-386. Kendall/Hunt issue Company, Dubuque, Iowa, 1998.
Monday, May 27, 2019
The Characteristics of a Perfectly Competitive Market Structure
Characteristics of a suddenly competitive market place structure The quad main characteristics of a staring(a)ly competitive market are as follows A large number of sm all firms, identical products sold by all firms, no barriers on entry or departure and perfect knowledge of damages and technology. These characteristics mean that a perfectly competitive firm is un satisfactory to exert tell over the market, as a large number of perfect substitutes exist for the output produced by any given firm.The demand curve for a perfectly competitive firms output is perfectly elastic. This means that a consumer will not buy a good or service if the footing rises, due to not being a necessity. An example could be an airplane ticket since vacation travel is not an essential service. Freedom of entry into and exit out of the industry means that capital and other resources are perfectly mobile and that it is not possible to erect barriers to entry.Perfect knowledge means that all firms hunt on the same footing, that buyers know about all possible perfect substitutes for a given good and that firms actually do produce identical products. A perfectly competitive market or industry contains a large number of small firms, each of which is relatively small compared to the overall size of the market. Ensuring that no single firm can exert control over price or quantity. If one firm decides to double its output or halt production, the market remains unaffected.Each firm in a perfectly competitive market sells an identical product. Essentially, this means that the buyers cannot discern any difference between the products, as at that place are no brand names or distinguishing features that differentiate products by firm. Thus every perfectly competitive firm produces a good which is a perfect substitute for the output of every other firm in the market. As such, no firm can charge a different price than that received by other firms. Changing price would result in buyers switch ing to other goods that are perfect substitutes.Furthermore, perfectly competitive firms are able to freely enter or exit an industry, as they arent restricted by government rules and regulations, start-up costs or other barriers to entry. Perfectly competitive firms take overt incur high start-up cost or need government permits to enter an industry. Likewise it is not prevented from leaving an industry, as is the case for government regulate public utilities. Perfectly competitive firms are withal free to acquire without delay and restrictions whatever resources they need e. . Land and labour. Subsequently, as a result of perfect knowledge, consumers are completely aware of a firms prices, such that one firm cannot sell its goods higher prices than those of other firms. Each firm too has information about prices charged by other firms, in order to avoid charging less or more of the market price. Perfect knowledge also extends to technology, so all firms have access to all produc tion techniques, no firm can producer its output faster, better or cheaper than another firm.
Sunday, May 26, 2019
Analysis of Financial Performance of Pz Cussons 2012
ANALYSIS OF THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF PZ CUSSONS PLC AND RESEARCH MATRIX Background Information of the Company PZ Cussons Plc. is a UK ground consumer products group. The school principal activities of the group be the manufacture and distri scarcelyion of soaps, detergents, toiletries, beauty products, pharmaceuticals, edible oils, fats, electrical heartfelts and nutritional products.The play alongs products faecal matter therefore be categorised into in the flesh(predicate) compassionate, home care, baby care, beauty products, food and nutrition and electrical skilfuls. They have supply filament and distribution ne cardinalrks in Africa, Asia and Europe. Their mission is to enhance the lives of customers with quality, value and in noation. Their survey is to be a growing and dynamic company who are passionate about their leading brands and drive innovation in everything they do.The company has four study strategies which are operating in selected categories where the ir brands have a strategic advantage and offering egression opportunities which are profitcapable operating in selected geographies either finished their own infrastructure or through partnership operating a flexible and evolving supply chain designed to service their categories and work with people who luck their unique CAN DO values. The companys major competitors are Mcbride Plc. , Kao UK Ltd, Creightons Plc. , and Swal humblefield Plc. Marketline, 2012). Interpretation of Financial Statements Using Ratio Analysis Profit cleverness Ratios These ratios measure the ability of a company to generate earnings in coition to its sales, assets and equity (Ready Ratios, 2012). 2012 2011 Return on Capital Employed 49. 6 = 8. 16% 107. 3 =16. 43% (PBIT/Total Assets-Current liabilities) 930. 5 322. 4 938. 5 285. 6 Return on Equity (ROE) 34. 4 = 7. 1% 70. 4 = 14. 85% (Profit after tax/Shareholders funds) 458. 3 474 operational Profit Margin 49. 6 = 5. 77% 107. 3 = 13. 1% (PBIT/Sales) 8 58. 9 820. 7 Gross Profit Margin 309. 2 = 40% 325. 2 = 39. 6% (Gross Profit/Sales) 858. 820. 7 Overheads/Sales 134 + 125. 4 = 30% 135 + 83. 3 = 26. 6% 858. 9 820. 7 Sales Growth 858. 9- 820. 7 = 4. 65% (Yr 2 Sales- Yr 1 Sales/ Yr 1 Sales) 820. 7 The ROE is minuscule 7. 51%, have from 14. 85% in 2011 which shows that a some(prenominal) lower profit has been made on the shareholders investments.This is largely out-of-pocket to the decrease in profits for the class. The reduction in profit has also impacted on the ROCE which is down to 8. 16% from 16. 43% in 2011. There is a marginal increase in the gross margin. This is as a result of an increase in the cost of sales which could have been affected by the rise in costs of raw materials as pointed out in the Chairmans mastery and offset by a small 4. 65% increase in sales. The operating profit to sales has reduced drastically, as a result of a mellow increase in overheads and the revenue increase.The increase in overheads was r eferable to exceptional relics related to administrative expenses. From the annual report, it can be seen that there was a supply chain optimisation project initiated to tackle rising material costs, wage inflation in emerging markets and to reduce overheads of manufacturing activities. This project is an exceptional item included in the operating profit. Other exceptional items included are the acquisition of Fudge by the company and an impairment of the Australian home care brand due to worsening trade conditions.It could be said these are one-off items which impacted on overheads and resulted in a reduced operating profit for the grade but the group will need to improve its margins and control overheads to enhance its profitability. Liquidity Ratios These ratios measure the ability of a company to meet its short shape obligations as they fall due (Ready Ratios, 2012). 2012 2011 Current Ratio 393. 3 = 1. 22 417. 4 = 1. 46 (Current Assets/Current Liabilities) 322. 285. 6 Current Ratio excluding oc reliable debt 393. 3 = 1. 70 417. 4 = 1. 65 322. 4 90. 8 285. 6- 32. 5 Acid Test/ Quick Ratio 393. 3 173. 6 = 0. 68 417. 4 151. 7 = 0. 93 (CA Inventories/ CL) 322. 4 285. 6 Acid discharge excluding stream debt 393. 3 173. 6 = 0. 95 417. 4 151. = 1. 05 322. 4 90. 8 285. 6 32. 5 The current ratio has fallen from 1. 46 to 1. 22 likewise the acid test ratio which has fallen from 0. 93 to 0. 68. There is an increased inventory level which whitethorn justify the statement in the financial review that there were high functional dandy levels especially in Nigeria. Another aspect to consider is the gold balance which was significantly lower by 34. 6 % to the previous year. It is recyclable to consider the business context. From the same eview, it could be noted that some capital intake took place which affected the cash level, the major one macrocosm the acquisition of Fudge which was mentioned above and an investment in a joint venture. Another reveal c ash outlay was their contribution to the closed UK salary scheme during the de-risking exercise. The ratios are also impacted by the inclusion of gets in current liabilities which means the debt is due in the current year. If the ratios are recalculated by excluding the current debt, the current ratio would be much acceptable 1. 70, a marginal increase from 2011.The acid test ratio excluding the borrowings is 0. 95, a marginal decrease from 1. 05. This is beca make use of for the acid test, current liabilities (excluding debt) have increased more than current assets (excluding inventory). Given the explanations stated, these ratios are probably dandy results but a trend analysis may shed more light on the ratios. Activity/ Efficiency Ratios These ratios analyse how well the companys assets and liabilities are utilised (Collier, 2012). 2012 2011 Debtors Collection Period 114. = 49 days 122. 5 = 54 days (Trade Receivables/Sales) (858. 9/365) (820. 7/365) Payment Period 104 = 69 da ys 117. 8 = 87 days (Trade Payables/Cost of Sales) (549. 7/365) (495. 5/365) Asset Turnover 858. 9 = 92. 3 % 820. 7 = 87. 4% (Sales/Total Assets) 930. 5 938. 5Inventory Turnover 549. 7 = 3. 16 x 495. 5 = 3. 26 x (Cost of Sales/Inventories) 173. 6 151. 7 365/3. 16 = 116 days 365/3. 26 = 112 days It may appear that the company is doing a good job at managing its receivables and payables with a decrease in both the collection and payment periods but knowledge of the credit limit and wrong might have helped in analysing the situation as well as comparison with the industry average.Asset turnover has risen from 87. 4% to 92. 3% indicating that the company has been able to generate more sales with their asset base. This is as a result of an increase in sales revenue and a lower level of current assets, especially the decrease in cash level. Inventory turnover has declined from 112 days of inventory holding to 116 days. Both ratios are quite high which implies that inventory is been unp loughed in the stores for a long time between its purchase and its sale. The company would need to be able to manage its inventories more efficiently.Gearing Ratios It measures the level of debt/borrowings in relation to shareholders equity (Collier, 2012). 2012 2011 Gearing 0 = 0 15 = 3% (Long term debt/equity + debt) 458. 3 + 0 474 + 15 Gearing (including current debt) 0 + 90. 8 = 16. 54% 15 + 32. 5 = 9. 87% 458. 3 + 0 + 90. 474 + 15 + 32. 5 Interest Cover 49. 6 = 13. 78 x 107. 3 = 41. 26 x (PBIT/Interest Payable) 3. 6 2. 6 The gearing is 0 for 2012 indicating that the debt is repayable within the current year. By including the current debt, the gearing ratio shows an increase from 9. 87% in 2011 to 16. 54% in 2012. This is a more realistic debt level as the Statement of Cash Flows in the annual report reveals a ? 9. 4m borrowing in 2012. The worry cover has declined from 41. 26 times to 13. 78 in 2012. This is due to the decrease in operating profits but nevertheless the inte rest cover is still healthy. Shareholder Return Ratios These ratios measure the return to shareholders on their investment in the business (Collier, 2012). 2012 2011 Dividend per share (DPS) 6. 717p 6. 06p Market value per Share ? 3. 23 ? 3. 4 (Both disclosed in the annual report) Dividend payout ratio 28. 8 = 83. 72% 26 = 36. 93% (Dividends paid/Profit after tax) 34. 4 70. 4 Dividend restoration ? 0. 06717 = 2. 08% ? 0. 0606 = 1. 66% (DPS/Market value per share) ? 3. 23 ? 3. 64 Earnings per share (EPS) (Disclosed in income statement) 8. 03p 16. 48pPrice/earnings ratio ? 3. 23 = 40. 22 x ? 3. 64 = 22. 09 x (Market value per share/EPS) ? 0. 0803 ? 0. 1648 The earnings per share have greatly reduced from 16. 48 to 8. 03 due to the decrease in profits, as there has been no vary in shareholder capital. The dividend paid has increased slightly, despite the fact that profits were low and this consumed a high portion of the after-tax profits as shown by the dividend payout ratio. This wo uld insinuate the company has a high shareholder value.The dividend yield is an effective interest rate which fluctuates in relation to the share price. The yield has increased slightly due to the marginal increase in dividends paid and the reduction in the market value of the shares. The price/earnings ratio has seen a dramatic increase from 22. 09 to 40. 22 which is largely due to the decrease in the EPS. It however reflects that investors may have a high expectation for proximo growing. Ratio analysis is more effectual when the ratios are interpreted as a trend over time or by comparison to industry averages, to competitor ratios or to predetermined targets.As such, two years is too short to draw meaningful conclusions about the performance of the group (Collier, 2012). Below is a five year abbreviation from which the trend can be understood more clearly. PZ Cussons Five-Year Summary of cognitive process In ? m 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 Sales Revenue 858. 9 820. 7 771. 6 83 8. 1 660. 9 Operating Profit 49. 6 107. 101. 4 86. 2 76. 4 Operating Margin 5. 77% 13. 1% 13. 14% 10. 28% 11. 56% Sales growth (year on year) 4. 65% 6. 36% -7. 93% 26. 8% - Current Ratio 1. 22 1. 46 1. 84 1. 94 2. 25 Gearing 0 3% 6. 19% 10. 3% 14. 66% Earnings per share 8. 03p 16. 48p 14. 89p 11. 64p 11. 04p Dividends per share 6. 717p 6. 61p 5. 90p 5. 27p 4. 70p Note The EPS and DPS were disclosed in the financial statement. Whilst the operating margin and sales growth are based on the information in the table which were also gotten from the companys financials, the calculation of current and gearing ratios are below 010 2009 2008 Current ratio 403. 7/219. 1 354. 9/182. 6 327. 4/145. 4 Gearing 30/(458. 8 + 30) 44. 9/(389. 9+ 44. 9) 59. 9/(348. 7 + 59. 9) The figures show an increase in sales over the years with a sharp decrease from year 2009 to 2010, though a good operating margin was generated. This could imply that a low cost base was being maintained.There has been a st eady improvement in profits with a substantial reduction in 2012 though there was a lower margin in 2009 which would suggest that profits as a return on sales was quite low. The EPS has increased year on year with a drastic decrease in 2012 due to lower profits. The DPS has increased marginally year on year which reflects a high shareholder value. The current ratio has declined over the years. It could be that there have been high inventory levels. It is vital to note that a working capital ratio that is too high may imply that the company is not utilizing its assets effectively as could have been the case in 2008.The company should seek to manage its working capital more efficiently. The gearing ratio has been on the decrease to a point of no long term debt in 2012. This may appear to be a good thing but it is worth noting that long term borrowings are needed to fund current assets. Research Matrix The matrix below shows a summary of the journal articles read in relation to this wo rk. It identifies some themes found in the literature. The themes are ranked on a scale of importance with 1 being less important and 5 being extremely important to the analysis of my work. Authors of Journal Articles Scale of Importance 1 2 3 4 5 Roman (2011) Sundkvist, Hedman Profitability and Almstrom (2012) Muradoglu, Bakke and Kvernes Gearing (2005) Cette, Durant and Vilette (2011) Profitability ROCE Koonce and Lipe (2010) Earnings Bierman and Hass (2009) Earnings Growth Banos-Caballero, Garcia-Teruel Working Capital and Martinez-Solano (2012) De Wet and Du Toit (2007) Profitability ROE Lifland (2011) Working Capital Dossi and Patelli (2010) Non-financial Measures business relationship and Analysis of Research Matrix According to Sundkvist, Hedman and Almstrom (2012), the profitability of a company is driven by controllable factors which are the internal resources of the firm such as raw materials and unc ontrollable factors such as government regulations.One way of increasing profitability is to reduce costs. In doing this, the costs have to be broken down and cost drivers identified (Roman, 2011 Sundkvist, Hedman and Almstrom, 2012). This theme is important as cost reduction is a crucial way to maintain profitability. In the case of PZ Cussons, the supply chain optimisation project was initialised to cut down on manufacturing overheads. Muradoglu, Bakke and Kvernes (2005), argue that gearing ratio is vital in apprasing bankruptcy risk and investors like a low gearing ratio as there is a lower risk that they lose money on their investments. This theme is very important as a very high gearing increases the financial risk of a company.Cette, Durant and Villetelle (2011) stress the limitation of ROCE in that when a firms future outlook is good and this in turns leads to an increase in assets and there is no change in profit, then the ratio goes down implying the firm is less profitable irrespective of meliorate prospects. This is extremely important as it highlights issues that should be taken into account when interpreting this ratio. Koonce and Lipe (2010) argue that the earnings trend of a company affects the investors acumen about the future prospects of that company as such a positive earnings trend enhances the price-earnings ratio. This theme is very important as it helps in our understanding of the price-earnings ratio. According to Bierman and Hass (2009), EPS growth can be ascertained by the use of share/stock repurchase and the variations in the rates used in profit retention. He argues for the use of earnings growth models.This theme is of little important to my analysis as there was no share repurchase in the current year of PZ Cussons and growth models were not used in my work. Based on the research carried out by Banos-Caballero, Garcia-Teruel and Martinez-Solano (2012), they claim that a high investment in working capital has the ability to impro ve the performance of a firm in profit-terms up to an optimal point at which higher working capital levels would have a negative effect on performance and this point is reached when the cost of holding working capital exceed the benefits. This theme is important as it seeks to explain working capital commission. De Wet and Du Toit (2007) emphasise the pitfalls of return on equity measure.As such the earnings figure can be subject to manipulation legally due to changes in accounting policy. This is extremely important as it cautions us in our interpretation of the ROE. Lifland (2011) argues that effective working capital management is characterised by an increase in asset turnover and a decrease in receivables and inventories. He also highlights the fact that companies may have to seek external finance to meet working capital requirements. This is very important as it seeks to give insight on the interpretation of working capital ratios In determining financial performance, it is al so useful to consider non-financial measures such as employee and customer satisfaction as well as measuring business processes.Though these are supplementary measures, they cannot be substituted for financial measures (Dossi and Patelli, 2010). It is good to draw attention to this but it is of less importance to my work as I only consider the financial ratios. It is crucial to bear in spirit that there are limitations inherent in the use of ratio analysis, some of which were pointed above. Another factor is that they are based on historical records. The values could be affected by inflation so it is useful to modify the profits to reflect holding gains and losses which result from variation in the value of assets and liabilities (Cette, Durant and Villetelle, 2011). despite all this, ratios remain a significant tool in analysing financial statements (Collier, 2012).Based on my analysis, PZ Cussons seems to performing quite well the business environment and the challenges in the dissimilar divisions might account for the lower performance this year. However, it is vital to note that this analysis was based on annual reports which are produced in part for public relations. As such companies seek to promote their interests therein. To fully understand the company performance, an evaluation of the industry information and competitor performance would be required. References Banos-Caballero, S. , Garcia-Teruel, P. and Martinez-Solano, P. (2012) How does working capital management affect the profitability of Spanish SMEs? Small Business Economics, vol. 39, no. 2, pp. 517-529. Bierman Jr , Harold and Hass, J.E. (2009) Explaining Earnings Per Share Growth, Journal of Portfolio Management, vol. 35, no. 4, pp. 166-169. Cette, G. , Durant, D. and Villetelle, J. (2011) Asset Price Changes and Macroeconomic criterion of Profitability, Review of Income & Wealth, vol. 57, no. 2, pp. 364-378. Collier, P. M. (2012) Accounting for Managers Interpreting Accounting Informat ion for Decision Making 4th edn. Sussex John Wiley & Sons. De Wet, J. H. V. H. and Du Toit, E. (2007) Return on equity A popular, but flawed measure of corporate financial performance, South African Journal of Business Management, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 59-69. Dossi, A. and Patelli, L. 2010) You Learn From What You Measure Financial and Non-financial Performance Measures in Multinational Companies, Long range planning, vol. 43, no. 4, pp. 498-526. Koonce, L. and Lipe, M. G. (2010) Earnings Trend and Performance Relative to Benchmarks How Consistency Influences Their Joint Use, Journal of Accounting Research, vol. 48, no. 4, pp. 859-884. Lifland, S. A. (2011) The Corporate Soap-Opera As the Cash Turns Management of Working Capital and Potential External Financing Needs, Review of Business, vol. 32, no. 1, pp. 35-46. Marketline (2012) Company Profile PZ Cussons Plc. Marketline composition Online. on tap(predicate) at www. marketline. com (Accessed 7 November 2012). Muradoglu, G. , Bakk e, M. nd Kvernes, G. L. (2005) An investment strategy based on gearing ratio, Applied Economics Letters, vol. 12, no. 13, pp. 801-804. PZ Cussons (2012) Annual Reports and Accounts. Available at http//www. pzcussons. com/pzc/ir/reports (Accessed 6 November 2012). Ready Ratios (2012) Reference. Available at http//www. readyratios. com/reference (Accessed 5 December 2012). Roman, F. J. (2011) A Case Study on Cost adherence and Profitability Analysis at Continental Airlines, American Accounting Association. Sundkvist, R. , Hedman, R. and Almstrom, P. (2012) A model for linking shop floor improvements to manufacturing cost and profitability, International
Saturday, May 25, 2019
Marketing: Retailing and Heterogeneous Shopping Product
1. ) Dusty Moore has never owned a JVC TV, except his p bents owned whizz and were not at every last(predicate) satisfied. As a result, Dusty wont nonetheless con spotr purchasing an JVC. As far as Dusty is concerned, JVC has achieved discoloration _____rejection_________.2. ) Connie Seagroves is obtain for a untestedfound pair of jeans. She has had equit suitable experiences with Chic jeans in the olden and is flavour for Chic now. She intends to buy Chic jeans if they check both(prenominal)thing in her size. If not, she plans to keep wearing the Chic jeans she has as long as possible, readying to continue her search for a good jibeting pair of Chic jeans at a subsequent date.This is a good example of brand insistence.3. ) Marissa, a college scholarly psyche and her father, a stiff businessman, were some(prenominal)ly considering the grease ones palms of a new automobile. As a college pupil with a full- succession job, Marissa has considerably much financia l resources than nearly college students. She feels that this car ask to provide a statement of well(p) who she is and wear her acquire and intake atomic number 18 taking her She is olfactory propertying for a high quality car with the look of successShe finds real some that provide the kind of self-actualization shes looking for and each of those has a sticker harm in excess of $50,000. Marissas father however, although extremely blind drunk and bay window easily afford cars in this price grip, treats cars as basicall(a)y the same. He doesnt sustentation what it is as long as it repulses him there. Although he visits car dealerships on occasion just to see whats procurable, he doesnt s framed much cadence at it. He tells Marissa to buy two of whatsoever she gets (hell call his bank to take c be of the m angiotensin-converting enzymey for his).He buys a car this way whenever he wears one come show up of the closet. He usually drives his cars into the ground i . e. until they totally wear out then asks w radicalver he have a go at its whos passing game car buy to excerpt up one for him (of whatsoever they atomic number 18 getting price is no object). For Marissa, this automobile is a _____ involved shop good_________ harvesting for her father, the car is a _____a homogeneous good_________ fruition.4. ) The rudiment family is grocery com formater memorying a letting produce that allows the option of self-cremation. Although sounding somewhat bizarre to the common person, the product is targeted to the millions of elderly bedridden patients without family or friends. The buyer simply exchanges their hospital bed for the Self-Crematory Box. The street corner seat monitors the occupants heart-beat / brain-wave activity. When both have ceased for 1 hour the buffet self-seals, brings the temperature inside the box to 6000 degrees and reduces the body inside to a fine white ash which is then deposited in an urn mounted on the side of the box.The box is so well-insuformer(a)d you skunk institutionalise your hand on top of the box while the cremation process is netherway without pure tone any heat advent by The box then sends a radio signal to the come with which picks up the box, conducts a thorough cleaning/ fuel in pre snap offion for rental to an diametrical customer. There is no competition since no other lodge has anything like it. The proto role fly the cooped so well that the federation is planning to make a puny material body to market test it in Florida (due to the large number of potential customers there).Promotional strategies are being cave ined and are in the very beginning arrange of implementation ( source promotions appeared in local news musical themes yesterday). What product strain is the Self-crematory box in to the target market? new unsought good5. ) Your inviolable has devised a flair of transportation that exit eliminate the ask for all forms of mechanical tra nsporation. The product is a form of mental training that, when complete, allows a person to tap into previously unknown parts of his/her brain to map a teleportation talent we all have precisely dont know to exercise.Although everones abilitites are different (just as we run/walk with different abilities) just intimately both person has this mightiness in some way or other and when happy can think themselves from purpose-to- put no cars, trains, boats, plane required just fix the coordinates in your minds-eye and PUSH yourself there instanteously. This training is a table service6. ) Your devoted determines that they have a need to gunstock excess inventory from their midwest operations due to passing variant changes in customer carry.They determine that due to their need to produce in much(prenominal)(prenominal)(prenominal) large quantities the wareho aims will always be at least half full. Should they use public or private stores? private7. ) At what st grow of the product manners motorbike is the pissed broadening the base of their bear of distri unlession by shifting their focus from a pull to a push system?GROWTH8. ) The pose of the product manner cycle in which early majority first make purchases is GROWTH9. ) Hersheys choco recent bars have been marketed in the United States for more than deoxycytidine monophosphate years, and are still a tremendous success, with a patriotic following of consumers.The gild began advertize some(prenominal) years ago to hold its market share, and it has introduced several distinctive new products. What stage of their product life cycle are Hersheys chocolate bars in? maturity10. ) What level of brand loyality do makers of SPECIALTY PRODUCTS take aim to? brand insistence11. ) A follow has been making the same product for all over speed of light years. It is an essential element of al just about each persons grooming requirements. Many other shapers make the same theatrical role of prod uct. The telephoner look ats it in every incision store and grocery store in the nation. contest is intense. Contribution margins are very thin. The company focuses it primary promotional political campaigns on advertising and its secondary effort on consumer sales promotions. What level of market picture does this product have? intensive12. ) Which degree of market exposure would probably be approximately suitable for a heterogeneous shopping product which has achieved brand perceptiveness and swops for about $300? Selective distribution13. ) Michelle is the selling coach for a popular brand of oatmeal cookies.Various plans to increase market share by appealing to competitors customers via advertising have failed. Michelle is planning another dodging not dependent on advertising. A recent survey arrays sales are good among brand loyal customers who include the product as a regular part of their shopping list. Michelle plans to provide incentives to salespeople who call on retailers to get them to convince the stores to place additional bags of the cookies on shelf space by attached/by the cash registers in the hope that non-brand loyal customers will put them in their shopping cart without hinking while waiting to check out. Michelle is fix the cookies by the checkout stand as an impulse product14. ) James River Paper (JRP) recently introduced Absorb, a new double-thick paper towel aimed at families with children. Primarily and industrial products manufacturer, JRP had produced paper towels for a few large grocery chains to sell as their own dealer brand. But Absorb was its first attempt at trade a consumer product under its own brand. So far, results are not encouraging. Only a few wholesalers have taken on the rakehell.Most are very reluctant to handle Absorb, claiming that retail shelves are already overcrowded with paper towels. What product class is this in? staple convenience product15. ) The first mechanical dishwasher was a ____noncont inuous___________ innovation.16. ) Your firm has devised a method of transportation that will eliminate the demand for all forms of mechanical transporation. The product is a form of mental training that, when complete, allows a person to tap into previously unknown parts of his/her brain to use a teleportation talent we all have but dont know to use.Although everones abilitites are different (just as we run/walk with different abilities) just about every person has this ability in some way or another and when trained can think themselves from place-to-place no cars, trains, boats, plane required just fix the coordinates in your minds-eye and PUSH yourself there instanteously. This training is a discontinuous innovation17. ) If a large piece of furniture retailer were to purchase Drexel (a manufacturer of sofas and c pigs), this would be an example of backward integration18. Your company must produce 1,000,000 units of your product in order of magnitude to acheive sufficnet eco nomies of scale to keep be as low as possible. Customers sole(prenominal) buy these pproducdts one at-a- metre. This is the concept of discrepancy of quantity19. ) Retailers have to buy from many different sources to satisfy the diverse needs of thier customers. This is the concept of discrepancy of compartmentalization20. ) ABC company contracted with the XYZ company to develop edible packaging material that would be used in place of the Styrofoam peanuts before long used to insure fragile contents did not shift in transit enough to break or compel dysfunctional.The material is a nutritionary supplement for any member of the rodent family (hamsters, Guinea Pig, rabbits, etc). From the supplied choices below, choose the triad answers that best answer the three questions that follow. 1 What is the primary packaging outline? 2 What is the secondary packaging outline? 3 What is the tertiary packaging schema? a. The primary packaging strategy is to protect the product. b. The secondary packaging strategy is to become a product itself. c. There is no tertiary packaging strategy.21. ) dell estimator packages its digital scanner in a plastic box.The box is intentional to be reusable as a shop container to hold the myriad of loose items that seem to salt away in any household. Its durable enough to last for years. sign tests find people using the boxes to store personal belongs that need extra protection in storage sheds, the attic, etc. Engraved on all sides of the box are the Dell logo, cultivation about Dells other product lines information about the safe use of the scanner as well customer service contact information. What types(s) of packaging strategy(ies) is Dell Computer conducting? Choose all that apply. . PROTECT e. PROMOTE f. PRODUCT22. ) In an old episode of the Andy Griffith television series, two local farmers were shown merchandising their home-grown fruits and vegetables to consumers along the roadside. The farmers werent selling the ir vegetables from a retail store they sold their produce from the back of their truck. The farmers grew the fruits and vegetables and then sold them to the local people as they drove by on the road. The farmers selling their products without wholesalers or retailers were an example of a a direct channel of distribution.23. ) IBM has long been perceived as the leader in computer technology. As such, for many years IBM computers were available only from selected, authorized IBM retailers. Currently, IBM has changed their distribution strategy. Consumers can now purchase IBM computers at several well-known department and force out stores, including Wal-Mart and K-Mart, set throughout the coun depict. Initially, IBM employed _____exclusive_________ distribution and made their products available only through a single retail outlet in a given militant market.Currently, as computers have become more of a shopping good, IBM is using selective distribution, as they seek to broaden the deg ree of their distribution and make their computers available in several retail outlets in a given competitive market.24. ) The data trackroad service which picks up truck trailers at a producers location, fulfill them onto rail flatcars, hauls them close to the customer, and then delivers them to the buyers door is ride service.25. A cease processor having regular need for regional storage of a large quantity of cheese probably should use _____private_________ warehouses.26. ) Your brand, originally marketed as a specialty product and which sold very well to innovators, is now being marketed as a heterogeneous shopping good. What should your brand familiarity objective be? preference27. ) Laurie Owens visits the local Healthy Glow spa, but dislikes the dirty dressing area and refuses to go back. This is an example of brand rejection28. Dell Computer packages its scanner in a plastic box with an airtight self-sealing lid designed to be reusable as a clime validation airtight a ttic storage box. What type of packaging strategy is Dell Computer conducting with this recent adjustment to the box? PRODUCT29. ) Dell Computer packages its scanner in a plastic box. The box is designed to be reusable as a storage container to hold the myriad of loose items that seem to accumulate in any household. Its durable enough to last for years. Initial tests find people using the boxes to store personal belongs that need extra protection in storage sheds, the attic, etc.Engraved on all sides of the box are the Dell logo, information about Dells other product lines information about the safe use of the scanner as well customer service contact information. What types(s) of packaging strategy(ies) is Dell Computer conducting? Choose all that apply. g. PROTECT h. PROMOTE i. PRODUCT30. ) Your firm is selling a product to brand preferent customers. What distribution strategy shouild they use? selective31. ) John Deere manufactures and distributes industrial and farm equipment. These types equipment are considered to be specialty products.Which type of market coverage is the company most likely to choose? Exclusive distribution32. ) A company has been making the same product for over 100 years. It is an essential element of almost every persons grooming requirements. Many other manufacturers make the same type of product. The company distributes it in every department store and grocery store in the nation. Competition is intense. Contribution margins are very thin. The company focuses it primary promotional efforts on advertising and its secondary effort on consumer sales promotions. What level of market exposure does this product have? intensive33. ) Which degree of market exposure would probably be most suitable for a heterogeneous shopping product which has achieved brand preference and sells for about $300? intensive34. ) If a large furniture retailer were to purchase Drexel (a manufacturer of sofas and chairs), this would be an example of backward int egration35. ) Kari Athens was interested in buying a coffee pot to use at college and a cassette fraud for her sisters birthday present.At the local discount store, she compared prices on coffee pots and chose the cheapest. She read the product information on each cassette player and finally chose one with stereo headphones and a rechargeable battery. For Kari, the coffee pot was a homogeneous shopping product, but the cassette player was a heterogeneous shopping product.36. ) While shopping in a local supermarket, Mime Abbott came upon an aisle display of cookies and had to have someimmediately. By the time she got to the checkout counter with the rest of her selections, all the cookies were gone. In this case, the cookies were an impulse product37. ) Your firm determines that they have a need to store excess inventory from their midwest operations due to highly variant changes in customer demand. They determine that due to their need to produce in such large quantities the wareho uses will always be at least half full. Should they use public or private warehouses? private38. ) A merchant wholesaler is considering four physical distribution systems. Which is best for transferral his products? Cannot be determined without the target customers needs.39. ) The ABC company sells border wear to teenagers. It plans to solicit sales from teens at the beach by taking caravan loads of beach wear to all the beaches in the United States each day of summer (June 22 September 21st). The company has the beachware made in Thailand and shipped directly to its vendors in the 40 major beach locations its targeted. The company believes it knows its market well enough such that the goods will be produced and shipped such that each vendor will father only enough to fill the van each week.If their estimates are right, each van vendor will receive just enough goods to fill their van on Monday and have capable demand to sell all of it by the following Sunday. Then they will refill their van on Monday with the next order just arriving that day. If they are not as accurate as they hope to be, the vendors will not have sold all their inventory from the previous week and the new shipment will not fit into the van (along with the remainder of the previous weeks shipment). The vendors are then authorized to place whatever excess wont fit in the van into storage. Should the vendors plan to put their excess into rental storage or should they buy some storage space. rent storage space40. ) When Henry cross first offered his traditionally black Fords in other colors, to the consuming public, this was a continuous innovation41. ) Your firm has devised a method of transportation that will eliminate the needs for all forms of mechanical transporation. The product is a form of mental training that, when complete, allows a person to tap into previously unknown parts of his/her brain to use a teleportation talent we all have but dont know to use.Although everones abi litites are different (just as we run/walk with different abilities) just about every person has this ability in some way or another and when trained can think themselves from place-to-place no cars, trains, boats, plane required just fix the coordinates in your minds-eye and PUSH yourself there instanteously. This training is a discontinuous innovation42. ) Marissa, a college student and her father, a wealthy businessman, were each considering the purchase of a new automobile. As a college student with a full-time job, Marissa has considerably more financial resources than most college students.She feels that this car needs to provide a statement of just who she is and wear her drive and ambition are taking her She is looking for a high quality car with the look of success She finds very few that provide the kind of self-actualization shes looking for and each of those has a sticker price in excess of $50,000. Marissas father however, although extremely wealthy and can easily aff ord cars in this price range, treats cars as basically the same. He doesnt care what it is as long as it gets him there. Although he visits car dealerships occasionally just to see whats available, he doesnt spend much time at it.He tells Marissa to buy two of whatever she gets (hell call his bank to take care of the money for his). He buys a car this way whenever he wears one out. He usually drives his cars into the ground i. e. until they totally wear out then asks whomever he knows whos going car buying to pick up one for him (of whatever they are getting price is no object). For Marissa, this automobile is a ___heterogeneous shopping good___________ product for her father, the car is a ___a homogeneous good___________ product.43. ) A new computer company with a radically new access code to computing, has a laptop priced at $99. 0). This basic laptop is targeted as the late adopter. It is as simple to operate as a calculator. It has a very runtyr heavy(p) drive, small but full functional keyboard, basic soundcard, and no ability to expand. It has Microsoft WORD, EXCEL, PowerPoint, and Outlook build in. Thus, its hatch to basic schoolwork and email (with a built in wireless modem which requires signing up for a periodical admittance fee of 99 cents). The company plans to distribute its products only through three large discounters (Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target) in very large cities (populations of at least 1,000,000 people).It was designed to postulate against the hand-helds, but its larger and more user friendly (with a bigger screen for ease of viewing by the target market (estimated come age of 65) and much cheaper. What product class is this product in? homogeneous shopping product44. ) In the early 1900s, GrandPa purchased his first automobile. After years of driving horse and buggies, Grandpa got in his new car and drove it into his new garage. Unfortunately, instead of using the brake to stop the new automobile, Grandpa shouted Whoa and crashed into the wall. Grandpas new automobile was an example of a discontinuous innovation45. ) Your firm is offering a slotting allowance to retailers to give them an incentive to carry your product which is targeted at the early adopter as part of a number one priority PUSH STRATEGY. What stage of the PLC is this most likely to occur in? growth46. ) Hersheys chocolate bars have been marketed in the United States for more than 100 years, and are still a tremendous success, with a loyal following of consumers. The company began advertising several years ago to hold its market share, and it has introduced several distinctive new products.What stage of their product life cycle are Hersheys chocolate bars in? maturity47. ) Wisemen Inc. has just become profitable with its 8 megapixel digital camera which produces the sharpest pictures in the industry by at least two orders of magnitude. Prints are now beginning to be almost indistisguishable from traditional film cameras, which is qu ite a change from previous models. Its promotional expenditures are aimed at informing its target market of enhancements while trying to persuade potential customers of the digital cameras significant advantages over competitors products.However, horizontal more money is being spent to develop the firms distribution system (since other comptitors are also still trying to expand theirs) for the digital camera. Competitors at this technology level are beginning to increase. What stage of the product life cycle is the digital camera in? acquireth stage48. ) A firm finds that its customers are unwilling to try their product again after being disappointed with it on their first use. They avoid any reference to their brand even to the extent of claiming to have never comprehend of it just so people wont know they ever used it.The firms target market is exhibiting __brand rejection____________.49. ) A publishing firm of picture taking hold ups finds that it is cost-effective to print 10,000 or more at a time. But a bookstore orders only a few copies of each book since its customers want to select from a wide variety. This example shows why both discrepancies of quantity and assortment occur.50. ) Which of the following best illustrates discrepancies of quantity? Firestone made millions of tires last yearbut most customers bought only one set.51. Which of the following best illustrates discrepancies of quantity? Firestone made millions of tires last yearbut most customers bought only one set.52. ) A publisher of photography books finds that it is cost-effective to print 10,000 or more at a time. But a bookstore orders only a few copies of each book since its customers want to select from a wide variety. This example shows why both discrepancies of quantity and assortment occur.53. ) XYZ Corporation manufactures and distributes tax software on site in its Houston, Texas location.Its marketing manager needs to ship large quantities of these very high-value tax so ftware to its more than 1000 clients world-wide at the most frugal cost where time is very short (3 days its April 12th and all tax returns are due April 15th)to meet consumer demand. The best transportation plan should include which of the following to get the companys goods to market? electronic54. ) The railroad service which picks up truck trailers at a producers location, loads them onto rail flatcars, hauls them close to the customer, and then delivers them to the buyers door is piggyback service.55. ) LusterWare, Inc. has seen most of its competitors drop out of its product-market due to declining industry sales and profits. But LusterWare still has much demand for its product from a small group of loyal customers. This product-market is in which product life cycle stage? Sales decline56. ) At what stage of the product life cycle is the firm broadening the base of their channel of distribution by shifting their focus from a pull to a push strategy? GROWTH57. ) The stage of the product life cycle in which late majority first make purchases is maturity58. When the remote control for the color TV was first introduced to the consuming public, it was a dynamically continuous innovation59. ) Determining the level of dispersal of innovation a product is contributing to the marketplace helps determine the type of marketing mix to create for the product.60. ) Which degree of market exposure would probably be most suitable for a heterogeneous shopping product which has achieved brand preference and sells for about $300? Selective distribution61. ) Ciao Footwear designs and manufacturers a high-quality line of mod shoes that are popular amoung young maestro women.The line is quite expensiveand is sold only through specialty shops which handle only this type of fashion shoe (including competing brands). Ciao will only work with retailers who jibe to stock a large variety of sizes and colors of Ciao shoes. For stores that agree to upraise the Ciao line very a ggressively, Ciao agrees to splay their price to the store an additional 10%, provide significant national advertising and to distribute to no more than two or three other retailers in the specialty stores immediate trading area.Since continuing promotion seems to be necessary in this highly competitive market, advertisements for Ciao shoes appear regularly in fashion magazines targeted at professional women and on select cable TV broadcasts, including broadcasts of womens lawn tennis tournaments. What is the lofty market exposure for this product? selective distribution62. ) Ciao Footwear designs and manufacturers a high-quality line of fashionable shoes that are popular amoung young professional women. The line is quite expensiveand is sold only through specialty shops which handle only this type of fashion shoe (including competing brands).Ciao will only work with retailers who agree to stock a large variety of sizes and colors of Ciao shoes. For stores that agree to promote t he Ciao line very aggressively, Ciao agrees to cut their price to the store an additional 10%, provide significant national advertising and to distribute to no more than two or three other retailers in the specialty stores immediate trading area. Since continuing promotion seems to be necessary in this highly competitive market, advertisements for Ciao shoes appear regularly in fashion magazines targeted at professional women and on select cable TV roadcasts, including broadcasts of womens tennis tournaments. What product class is this in? heterogeneous shopping product63. ) Michelle is the marketing manager for a popular brand of oatmeal cookies. Various plans to increase market share by appealing to competitors customers via advertising have failed. Michelle is planning another strategy not dependent on advertising. A recent survey shows sales are good among brand loyal customers who include the product as a regular part of their shopping list.Michelle plans to provide incentives to salespeople who call on retailers to get them to convince the stores to place additional bags of the cookies on shelf space by tightlipped/by the cash registers in the hope that non-brand loyal customers will put them in their shopping cart without thinking while waiting to check out. Michelle is positioning the cookies by the checkout stand as an impulse product.64. ) Youve just introduced a new brand of a heterogeneous shopping good. What should your brand familiaryt objective be? recognition.65. ) Connie Seagroves is shopping for a new pair of jeans.She enjoys the way Chic jeans makes her look and feel. Shes aways bought Chic jeans in the past so she intends to buy Chic jeans this time as well. Unfortunately, in all the stores she shopped, although they had Chic in stock, none were in her size. Finally, in the last store she shopped, she dictum a pair of Jordache jeans that were very similar to the cut and style of Chic. She tried them on and they fit beautifully. Still, sh e really wanted Chic. Figuring they would be good substitutes until the stores received Chic in her size, Connie bought one pair of the Jordache jeans.What level of brand loyalty does Connie have for Chic jeans? brand preference66. ) If a large furniture retailer were to purchase Drexel (a manufacturer of sofas and chairs), this would be an example of backward integration67. ) A new computer company with a radically new approach to computing, has a laptop priced at $99. 00). This basic laptop is targeted as the late adopter. It is as simple to operate as a calculator. It has a very small hard drive, small but full functional keyboard, basic soundcard, and no ability to expand. It has Microsoft WORD, EXCEL, PowerPoint, and Outlook built in.Thus, its mean to basic schoolwork and email (with a built in wireless modem which requires signing up for a monthly access fee of 99 cents). The company plans to distribute its products only through three large discounters (Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target) in very large cities (populations of at least 1,000,000 people). It was designed to compete against the hand-helds, but its larger and more user friendly (with a bigger screen for ease of viewing by the target market (estimated average age of 65) and much cheaper. What product class is this product in? homogeneous shopping product68. The ABC company is marketing a rental product that allows the option of self-cremation. Although sounding somewhat bizarre to the common person, the product is targeted to the millions of elderly bedridden patients without family or friends. The buyer simply exchanges their hospital bed for the Self-Crematory Box. The box monitors the occupants heart-beat / brain-wave activity. When both have ceased for 1 hour the box self-seals, brings the temperature inside the box to 6000 degrees and reduces the body inside to a fine white ash which is then deposited in an urn mounted on the side of the box.The box is so well-insulated you can put your hand on top of the box while the cremation process is underway without feeling any heat coming through The box then sends a radio signal to the company which picks up the box, conducts a thorough cleaning/refueling in prepartion for rental to another customer. There is no competition since no other company has anything like it. The prototype worked so well that the company is planning to make a small number to market test it in Florida (due to the large number of potential customers there).Promotional strategies are being essential and are in the very beginning stage of implementation (first promotions appeared in local newspapers yesterday). What product class is the Self-crematory box in to the target market? new unsought good69. ) Marissa, a college student and her father, a wealthy businessman, were each considering the purchase of a new automobile. As a college student with a full-time job, Marissa has considerably more financial resources than most college students. She feels that this car needs to provide a statement of just who she is and wear her drive and ambition are taking herShe is looking for a high quality car with the look of success She finds very few that provide the kind of self-actualization shes looking for and each of those has a sticker price in excess of $50,000. Marissas father however, although extremely wealthy and can easily afford cars in this price range, treats cars as basically the same. He doesnt care what it is as long as it gets him there. Although he visits car dealerships occasionally just to see whats available, he doesnt spend much time at it. He tells Marissa to buy two of whatever she gets (hell call his bank to take care of the money for his).He buys a car this way whenever he wears one out. He usually drives his cars into the ground i. e. until they totally wear out then asks whomever he knows whos going car buying to pick up one for him (of whatever they are getting price is no object). For Marissa, this automobile is a ______________ product for her father, the car is a ______________ product. heterogeneous shopping good a homogeneous good70. ) A firm finds itself in a situation where it is able to accurately predict consumer demand. It predicts that it will need to store material for one month two times a year due to the seasonal spirit of the product.What type of warehouse should the firm use to store this inventory? public71. ) Dell Computer packages its scanner in a plastic box. The box is designed to be reusable as a storage container to hold the myriad of loose items that seem to accumulate in any household. Its durable enough to last for years. Initial tests find people using the boxes to store personal belongs that need extra protection in storage sheds, the attic, etc. Engraved on all sides of the box are the Dell logo, information about Dells other product lines information about the safe use of the scanner as well customer service contact information.What type of packaging strategy is Dell Computer conducting? PROTECT72. ) A company has developed a long pen in various colors and with interesting sayings on the side. Directions provided with the pen show how to convert the pen to a reusable straw that is dishwasher safe when the ink runs out. Since this company is the first to market such a product, customers dont yet know about it. What packaging strategy is in use here? PRODUCT73. ) Your firm manufactures products in San Francisco. Youre targeting customers in Hong Kong. They need your product to be delivered on January 1st, 2116.Whats the best method of transportation to use? water74. ) The Colorado Coal familiarity needs to move its coal to intermediaries on the Atlantic coast who in turn will sell it to end users. The best means of transportation for the company to employ under normal conditions is railroads.75) A firm finds that its customers are unwilling to try their product again after being disappointed with it on their first use. They avoid any refe rence to their brand even to the extent of claiming to have never heard of it just so people wont know they ever used it.The firms target market is exhibiting ______________. brand rejection76. ) Larry White wont buy any coffee except Blue tummya relatively expensive type that few stores sell. He used to have to drive about 10 miles out of his way to buy it at a small shopbut now he has persuaded his local supermarket manager to handle this coffee. For him, this coffee is a specialty product77. ) During a heavy rainstorm, Avery meshing slipped into a drugstore and bought an umbrellajust like the one he had at homefor $15. 00 plus tax. In this case, the umbrella is an emergency product78. Lake Wobegon Mills, a manufacturer of textile products, bought out the wholesaler that had been handling its distribution in Canada. This is an example of vertical integration79. ) What level of brand loyality do makers of SPECIALTY PRODUCTS aspire to? brand insistence80. ) Your firm determines th at they have a need to store excess inventory from their midwest operations due to highly variant and unpredictable changes in customer demand. Should they use public or private warehouses? Public81. ) The stage of the product life cycle in which late majority first make purchases is maturity82. ) The stage of the product life cycle in which early adopters first make purchases is introduction83. ) Your product has been suffering from steadily eroding sales and profits. You have tried a number of options to infract the products sales and profits, but after seven changes in your strategy, you have yet to find success. Which of the following actions would be the least appropriate next step try to stimulate primary demand.84. ) Retailers have to buy from many different sources to satisfy the diverse needs of thier customers. This is the concept of discrepancy of assortment85. ) Your company must produce 1,000,000 units of your product in order to acheive sufficnet economies of scale t o keep costs as low as possible. Customers only buy these pproducdts one at-a-time. This is the concept of discrepancy of quantity86. ) Dell Computer packages its scanner in a plastic box with an airtight self-sealing lid designed to be reusable as a climate proof airtight attic storage box. What type of packaging strategy is Dell Computer conducting with this recent modification to the box? PRODUCT87.ABC company contracted with the XYZ company to develop edible packaging material that would be used in place of the Styrofoam peanuts currently used to insure fragile contents did not shift in transit enough to break or become dysfunctional. The material is a nutritional supplement for any member of the rodent family (hamsters, Guinea Pig, rabbits, etc). From the supplied choices below, choose the three answers that best answer the three questions that follow. 1 What is the primary packaging strategy? 2 What is the secondary packaging strategy? 3 What is the tertiary packaging strategy ?The primary packaging strategy is to protect the product. The secondary packaging strategy is to become a product itself. There is no tertiary packaging strategy88. The first electric typewriter was a _______________ innovation. dynamically continuous89. When the remote control for the color TV was first introduced to the consuming public, it was a dynamically continuous innovation90. Nonrecognition of the brand name of a firms product is likely to be LEAST important for Coal91. Connie Seagroves is shopping for a new pair of jeans. She enjoys the way Chic jeans makes her look and feel.Shes aways bought Chic jeans in the past so she intends to buy Chic jeans this time as well. Unfortunately, in all the stores she shopped, although they had Chic in stock, none were in her size. Finally, in the last store she shopped, she saw a pair of Jordache jeans that were very similar to the cut and style of Chic. She tried them on and they fit beautifully. Still, she really wanted Chic. Figurin g they would be good substitutes until the stores received Chic in her size, Connie bought one pair of the Jordache jeans. What level of brand loyalty does Connie have for Chic jeans? brand preference92. Products which the consumer does not know about, or knows about but does not initially want, are called unsought goods93. In the early 1900s, GrandPa purchased his first automobile. After years of driving horse and buggies, Grandpa got in his new car and drove it into his new garage. Unfortunately, instead of using the brake to stop the new automobile, Grandpa shouted Whoa and crashed into the wall. Grandpas new automobile was an example of a discontinuous innovation94. A new computer company with a radically new approach to computing, has a laptop priced at $99. 00).This basic laptop is targeted as the late adopter. It is as simple to operate as a calculator. It has a very small hard drive, small but full functional keyboard, basic soundcard, and no ability to expand. It has Micr osoft WORD, EXCEL, PowerPoint, and Outlook built in. Thus, its mean to basic schoolwork and email (with a built in wireless modem which requires signing up for a monthly access fee of 99 cents). The company plans to distribute its products only through three large discounters (Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target) in very large cities (populations of at least 1,000,000 people).It was designed to compete against the hand-helds, but its larger and more user friendly (with a bigger screen for ease of viewing by the target market (estimated average age of 65) and much cheaper. What product class is this product in? homogeneous shopping product 95. Which degree of market exposure would probably be most suitable for a heterogeneous shopping product which has achieved brand preference and sells for about $300? Selective distribution96. A company has been making the same product for over 100 years. It is an essential element of almost every persons grooming requirements.Many other manufacturers mak e the same type of product. The company distributes it in every department store and grocery store in the nation. Competition is intense. Contribution margins are very thin. The company focuses it primary promotional efforts on advertising and its secondary effort on consumer sales promotions. What level of market exposure does this product have? intensive97. A new computer company with a radically new approach to computing, has a laptop priced at $99. 00). This basic laptop is targeted at the late adopter. It is as simple to operate as a calculator.It has a very small hard drive, small but full functional keyboard, basic soundcard, and no ability to expand. It has Microsoft WORD, EXCEL, PowerPoint, and Outlook built in. Thus, its meant for basic schoolwork and email (with a built in wireless modem which requires signing up for a monthly access fee of 99 cents). The company plans to distribute its products through all large discounters such as Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target as well a s through all outlets that currently sell inexpensive laptops. What distribution strategy is being conducted? Intensive 98.There are several modes of transportation available to assist marketers in facilitating the transfer of goods from producer to the ultimate consumer. For example, logistics managers can use railroads, trucks/motor carriers, airplanes, pipelines, or ships to transport products. Each mode of transportation has inherent advantages and disadvantages. For instance, ______________ offer the advantages of door to door service for pick-up and delivery, relatively unshakable delivery, and extensive routes. The disadvantages of this mode of transportation include size and weight restrictions, higher(prenominal) rates, and some sensitivity to weather. rucks/motor carriers99. The railroad service which picks up truck trailers at a producers location, loads them onto rail flatcars, hauls them close to the customer, and then delivers them to the buyers door is piggyback serv ice.100. The ABC company sells beach wear to teenagers. It plans to solicit sales from teens at the beach by taking van loads of beach wear to all the beaches in the United States each day of summer (June 22 September 21st). The company has the beachware made in Thailand and shipped directly to its vendors in the 40 major beach locations its targeted.The company believes it knows its market well enough such that the goods will be produced and shipped such that each vendor will receive only enough to fill the van each week. If their estimates are right, each van vendor will receive just enough goods to fill their van on Monday and have sufficient demand to sell all of it by the following Sunday. Then they will refill their van on Monday with the next order just arriving that day. If they are not as accurate as they hope to be, the vendors will not have sold all their inventory from the previous week and the new shipment will not fit into the van (along with the emainder of the previ ous weeks shipment). The vendors are then authorized to place whatever excess wont fit in the van into storage. Should the vendors plan to put their excess into rental storage or should they buy some storage space. rent storage space101. Which degree of market exposure would probably be most suitable for a heterogeneous shopping product which has achieved brand preference and sells for about $300? Selective distribution102. Ciao Footwear designs and manufacturers a high-quality line of fashionable shoes that are popular amoung young professional women.The line is quite expensiveand is sold only through specialty shops which handle only this type of fashion shoe (including competing brands). Ciao will only work with retailers who agree to stock a large variety of sizes and colors of Ciao shoes. For stores that agree to promote the Ciao line very aggressively, Ciao agrees to cut their price to the store an additional 10%, provide significant national advertising and to distribute to n o more than two or three other retailers in the specialty stores immediate trading area.Since continuing promotion seems to be necessary in this highly competitive market, advertisements for Ciao shoes appear regularly in fashion magazines targeted at professional women and on select cable TV broadcasts, including broadcasts of womens tennis tournaments. What is the ideal market exposure for this product? selective distribution103. Your firm has devised a method of transportation that will eliminate the needs for all forms of mechanical transporation.The product is a form of mental training that, when complete, allows a person to tap into previously unknown parts of his/her brain to use a teleportation talent we all have but dont know to use. Although everones abilitites are different (just as we run/walk with different abilities) just about every person has this ability in some way or another and when trained can think themselves from place-to-place no cars, trains, boats, plane re quired just fix the coordinates in your minds-eye and PUSH yourself there instanteously. This training is a discontinuous innovation104.The first car to change from the traditional black to blue was a _______________ innovation. Continuous105. Kaye Dimmig usually buys Prell shampoo because she likes its smell. But this morning her local drugstore was out of Prell, so she decided to buy another highly advertised brand that was on sale because she really needed to wash her hair that night. For Kaye, Prell has probably achieved brand preference.106. Nonrecognition of the brand name of a firms product is likely to be LEAST important for Coal107. Assume that a new automobile fuel additive is developed that increases a cars miles-per-gallon by 60%.Unlike other fuel additives that claim enhanced performance but only seem to work in certain cars under very controlled conditions, this additive has been so well proven that customers are offered a free sample with a coupon to receive a 10% di scount on whatever quantity they want to buy later. The response has been dramatic. Many consumers use the free sample and return to purchase upwards of 100 treatments (one per fillup) even though the product adds 20 cents to the cost of a gallon of gas. What stage of the product life cycle is this additive in? GROWTH108.ABC company sells camel hair blushing mushroom brushes only to the wealthiest and most well-known artists. These artists claim that only with the extremely high quality camel hair brushes made by this company, are they able to produce paintings of such high quality that the average price per painting sold to the general public (albeit the wealthiest of the general public) is well over one million dollars. ABCs camel hair brushes are ____________ products. BUSINESS109. Products which the consumer does not know about, or knows about but does not initially want, are called unsought goods.110. If a large furniture retailer were to purchase Drexel (a manufacturer of sof as and chairs), this would be an example of backward integration111. Michelle is the marketing manager for a popular brand of oatmeal cookies. Various plans to increase market share by appealing to competitors customers via advertising have failed. Michelle is planning another strategy not dependent on advertising. A recent survey shows sales are good among brand loyal customers who include the product as a regular part of their shopping list.Michelle plans to provide incentives to salespeople who call on retailers to get them to convince the stores to place additional bags of the cookies on shelf space by near/by the cash registers in the hope that non-brand loyal customers will put them in their shopping cart without thinking while waiting to check out. Michelle is positioning the cookies by the checkout stand as an impulse product.112. Kari Athens was interested in buying a coffee pot to use at college and a cassette player for her sisters birthday present. At the local discount store, she compared prices on coffee pots and chose the cheapest.She read the product information on each cassette player and finally chose one with stereo headphones and a rechargeable battery. For Kari, the coffee pot was a homogeneous shopping product, but the cassette player was a heterogeneous shopping product.113. A publisher of photography books finds that it is cost-effective to print 10,000 or more at a time. But a bookstore orders only a few copies of each book since its customers want to select from a wide variety. This example shows why both discrepancies of quantity and assortment occur.114.Retailers have to buy from many different sources to satisfy the diverse needs of thier customers. This is the concept of discrepancy of assortment115. A firm finds that its customers are unwilling to try their product again after being disappointed with it on their first use. They avoid any reference to their brand even to the extent of claiming to have never heard of it just so peo ple wont know they ever used it. The firms target market is exhibiting ______________. brand rejection116. A firm finds itself in a situation where it is able to accurately predict consumer demand.It predicts that it will need to store material for one month two times a year due to the seasonal nature of the product. What type of warehouse should the firm use to store this inventory? Public117. A new computer company with a radically new approach to computing, has a laptop priced at $99. 00). This basic laptop is targeted at the late adopter. It is as simple to operate as a calculator. It has a very small hard drive, small but full functional keyboard, basic soundcard, and no ability to expand. It has Microsoft WORD, EXCEL, PowerPoint, and Outlook built in.Thus, its meant for basic schoolwork and email (with a built in wireless modem which requires signing up for a monthly access fee of 99 cents). The company plans to distribute its products through all large discounters such as Wa l-Mart, K-Mart, and Target as well as through all outlets that currently sell inexpensive laptops. What distribution strategy is being conducted? Intensive118. The Colorado Coal Company needs to move its coal to intermediaries on the Atlantic coast who in turn will sell it to end users. The best means of transportation for the company to employ under normal conditions is railroads119. Dell Computer packages its scanner in a plastic box with an airtight self-sealing lid designed to be reusable as a climate proof airtight attic storage box. What type of packaging strategy is Dell Computer conducting with this recent modification to the box? PRODUCT120. Dell Computer recently added a picture of the recommended brand of printer best designed to print the output of a given type of scanner on the outside of the box the scanners are mailed in to consumers. What type of packaging strategy is Dell Computer conducting with this recent addition to the box? PROMOTE121. National Power Tool Co. d oes not own its own transport facilities, but it regularly ships small orders to the wholesalers that handle its products. Tools that are going across the land are usually shipped by rail. Regional shipments usually go by truck. National should use _______________ in practicing the Total Cost concept. a freight forwarder.122. The ABC company sells beach wear to teenagers. It plans to solicit sales from teens at the beach by taking van loads of beach wear to all the beaches in the United States each day of summer (June 22 September 21st).The company has the beachware made in Thailand and shipped directly to its vendors in the 40 major beach locations its targeted. The company believes it knows its market well enough such that the goods will be produced and shipped such that each vendor will receive only enough to fill the van each week. If their estimates are right, each van vendor will receive just enough goods to fill their van on Monday and have sufficient demand to sell all of it by the following Sunday. Then they will refill their van on Monday with the next order just arriving that day. If they are not as accurate as they hope to be, the vendors will not have sold all their inventory from the previous week and the new shipment will not fit into the van (along with the remainder of the previous weeks shipment). The vendors are then authorized to place whatever excess wont fit in the van into storage. Should the vendors plan to put their excess into rental storage or should they buy some storage space. rent storage space123. The ABC companys ability to stay ahead of the competition depends on its ability to differentiate its product from those of its rivals.The problem is most consumers see the product as essentially no different than its competitors. ABC company uses an advertising strategy that positions the product as high on brand prestige and competitive on price. ABC distributes the product through every discount outlet that would unremarkably car ry it so as to insure consumers will have it to choose from when they shop. ABCs product strategy is to cut costs by making no changes to the product at all. The products color, design, functionality, etc. hasnt changed in years.Yet, surveys show consumers perceive the product to be superior in quality to all of its competition. This is due to the intense advertising emphasis on product/brand quality The company feels this type of product is unlikely to be replaced anytime soon, so counts on it as an integral part of its product line in its long-term planning. Based on this information alone What stage of the Product Life Cycle is this product in? maturity124. At what stage of the product life cycle is the firm broadening the base of their channel of distribution by shifting their focus from a pull to a push strategy?GROWTH125. During what stage of the PLC is the primary focus of the firms promotional strategy on informing early adopters and early majority of the benefits of their p roduct and persuading them that their product is better than the competitions? GROWTH126. A company has developed a long pen in various colors and with interesting sayings on the side. Directions provided with the pen show to to convert the pen to a reusable straw that is dishwasher safe when the ink runs out. What packaging strategy is in use here? PRODUCT127.In order to raise money to go to college, two high school senior entrepreneurs are marketing home-grown fruits and vegetables to consumers along the roadside. The entrepreneurs know that home gardens often produce more than the families can consume. Knowing that the home gardners appreciate earning a little cash for their excess, the entrepreneurs visit local home gardens to buy any excess they are producing. They collect a good assortment of freshly picked produce which they then sell by the side of the road from the back of their truckThus, the home gardner grew the fruits and vegetables, sold them to these entrepreneurs, wh o then sold them to the local people as they drove by on the road. The home gardners are using a(n) ________ method of distribution for their excess produce. an indirect channel of distribution128. Handy Tools Company has recently introduced a newly designed socket wrench with a form fitting no-slip grip. The firm is spending a lot of money to make potential consumers aware of the public of the new product. Sales have been slow to rise over the past year and profit has yet to be achieved.What stage of the product life cycle is Handy Tools product in? Maturity stage129. A manufacturer of a consumer product is trying to establish brand recognition and preference in noncompetitive competition. The firm places considerable emphasis on channel development and is becoming somewhat less selective in its choice of middlemen. Promotion is both instructive and persuasiveas the firm is seeking to increase both primary and selective demand. Prices in the industry are competitivebut there has been little price-cutting to date. What stage of the product life cycle is this firms situtation characteristic of GROWTH130. A firm finds itself in a situation where it is unable to accurately predict consumer demand. Rather than pretend stock-outs that might drive consumers to competitors, the firm decides to stockpile inventory close to market centers. This enables the firm to quickly replenish any store as necessary. What type of warehouse should the firm use to store this inventory? PRIVATE131. An industrys sales have leveled off and profits are declining in oligopolistic competition. Consumers see competing products as homogeneous. Several firms have dropped out of the industry, but a new one entered recently.Firms in the industry are trying to avoid price-cutting by spending on persuasive advertising. These firms are competing in which stage of the product life cycle? MARKET MATURITY132. James River Paper (JRP) recently introduced Absorb, a new double-thick paper towel aim ed at families with children. Primarily and industrial products manufacturer, JRP had produced paper towels for a few large grocery chains to sell as their own dealer brand. But Absorb was its first attempt at marketing a consumer product under its own brand. So far, results are not encouraging.Only a few wholesalers have taken on the line. Most are very reluctant to handle Absorb, claiming that retail shelves are already overcrowded with paper towels. What is the ideal market exposure for this product? INTENSIVE DISTRIBUTION133. A large aliment retailer acquiring a cheese factory is an example of BACKWARD INTEGRATION134. Laurie Owens visits the local Healthy Glow spa, but dislikes the dirty dressing area and refuses to go back. This is an example of BRAND REJECTION135. What should your firms brand loyaity objective be when it launches its newest (unknown) brand of bicycle next month? rand recognition136. Your firm sells automobiles. Each car comes with a 5-year 50,000 mile warran ty. These warranties are None of the above137. There are big shifts in demand from season to season for the lawn mowers produced by Grow Green Co. and its need for storage facilities also varies. Grow Green should use public warehousing facilities138. A marketing manager in Denver, Colorado who wants to ship small quantities (1,500 pounds) of relatively high-value products short distances at an economical cost where time is not a factor should use trucks139.The Xyz company has developed a new hairdryer that fits more comfortably in the users hand through its using a rubber handle instead of the plastic used by other competitors. The marketing manager for this product needs to design a marketing mix to market it to its target market. The marketing manager should use which stage of the Product Life Cycle as the basis for developing this marketing mix? maturity140. Your product is packaged such that it is the package may be consumed by the buyer as if it were candy. Once the product is removed frm the package, the customer can eat it.What packaging objective is being sought here? PRODUCT141. Publishers of photography books find it is more cost-effective to publish specialty books targeted to just a few niche markets and print large quantities at a time than to print off just a few to meet on-going demand. Bookstores, knowing that their customers represent the broadest range of all niche-markets, order only a few copies of each book for each market to enable its customers to select from a wide variety. This example shows (choose all that apply) j. Discrepancies of quantity . Discrepancies of assortment142. Zoecon Corporation sells its insect control chemicals to homeowners through an 800 number in which customers can order online and have delivered via UPS. A modified compound is sold to distributors who add on brands of aerosol bug spray to such companies as the Boyle-Midway Division of American Home Products for use in its Black-Flag Roach Ender brand. This is an example of dual distribution143. Marissa, a college student and her father, a wealthy businessman, were each considering the purchase of a new automobile.As a college student with limited financial resources, Marissa feels that economy cars are all have essentially the same quality and only have minor differences in the features. She decided that the new mega dealership (over 1,000 cars on the lot (most in the economy class) provided the best place to start. With luck, she could drive one off that lot today. Marissas father however, treats cars as a basic necessity. He doesnt care what he drives. He tells Merissa to buy two of whatever she gets (hell call his bank to take care of the money for his).He buys a car like this every year (asking whomever he knows whos going car buying to pick up one for him (of whatever they are getting price is no object) since he refuses to drive a used car. For Marissa, this automobile is a __homogeneous shopping____ product for her father, the ca r is a ___a convenience good___________ product144. A new company introduces a new brand of a specialty product thats in the mature stage of the PLC. The product has a slow start as it competes head-on with its competition, but has such strong appeal after a short time hat it catches up fast then passes all other competitors. Eventually, discontinuous innovations take it out of vogue and its sales begin to fall. More and more competition erodes its market share. Soon, its hard for most people to remember if the product is still available. Later, most folks wouldnt know what kind of product you were talking about if you mentioned the brand to them. The most likely passageway this company experienced with respect to brand loyalty for this product from the moment the companys brand first appears on the market to its eventual demise is? Assume the company makes no changes to the product from its i
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