Exam 6: Business Markets and Business Buyer Behavior

Product value analysis is an approach to enhancing productivity.

Ross Stuart is a purchasing manager in a Texas-based manufacturing company. He sources most of the raw materials needed by his company from Kramer Corp. However, Ross is unhappy with Kramer's prices. Additionally, he thinks that the quality of the raw materials supplied by Kramer is substandard. Which of the following stages in the business buying process is Ross' company currently in?

Marissa Hopkins, a hospital nurse, notices that the gurneys used in the hospital are not durable enough. She informed the hospital authorities about Grace Care Inc., a new company selling lightweight and durable gurneys. In this instance, Marissa played the role of a(n) ________.

If a buying center is most influenced by authority in the business buying process, it can be safely concluded that ________ factors have a major influence on its buying behavior.

Discuss the major influences on business buyers.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following question(s). Alpha Stampings Inc. produces 14 metal stampings for the automotive industry. Due to industry design changes and consumer demands, for the next financial year, six of those stampings will require a slight change: two will have an extra hole punched through the side, two will require an extra plating process, and two will require an additional weld operation. In the meantime, purchasing agent Richard Koehl has been asked to reduce the number of Alpha's steel suppliers in an effort to cut costs. After obtaining updated price quotations and steel samples from his current suppliers, Richard faced a dilemma. Until now, he had selected his suppliers based on quality and price, but the major consideration had been the type of steel required and the specialized production processes of his respective suppliers. Not all of Alpha's suppliers could produce the exact grades of steel needed; some suppliers were better at producing certain types of steel than others. Richard contacted several employees at Alpha who had worked with the various types of steel in the past. The quality control manager and line inspector, for example, could help to determine which suppliers had the capabilities of producing specific types of steel. The production control manager could provide input regarding which types of steel worked best in which presses. The warehouse foreman gave inputs regarding how long various types of steel could be held in inventory before rust spots began to form on their surfaces. Each person contributed the necessary information to help Richard in making his decision. -The demand for Alpha Stampings' products is ultimately based on the demand for new automobiles in the consumer market. This is an example of ________ demand.

Eric Mason, an employee of Huntington Steelworks, is responsible for defining product specifications and providing relevant information for evaluating alternatives in his organization's buying center. Eric, whose opinions affect the buying decisions of his organization to a great extent, is most likely a(n) ________.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following question(s). Alpha Stampings Inc. produces 14 metal stampings for the automotive industry. Due to industry design changes and consumer demands, for the next financial year, six of those stampings will require a slight change: two will have an extra hole punched through the side, two will require an extra plating process, and two will require an additional weld operation. In the meantime, purchasing agent Richard Koehl has been asked to reduce the number of Alpha's steel suppliers in an effort to cut costs. After obtaining updated price quotations and steel samples from his current suppliers, Richard faced a dilemma. Until now, he had selected his suppliers based on quality and price, but the major consideration had been the type of steel required and the specialized production processes of his respective suppliers. Not all of Alpha's suppliers could produce the exact grades of steel needed; some suppliers were better at producing certain types of steel than others. Richard contacted several employees at Alpha who had worked with the various types of steel in the past. The quality control manager and line inspector, for example, could help to determine which suppliers had the capabilities of producing specific types of steel. The production control manager could provide input regarding which types of steel worked best in which presses. The warehouse foreman gave inputs regarding how long various types of steel could be held in inventory before rust spots began to form on their surfaces. Each person contributed the necessary information to help Richard in making his decision. -In this instance, Richard plays the role of a(n) ________.

Digital and social media are useful primarily for consumer products and services companies.

Describe the advantage of selecting multiple sources of supplies.

Business demand ultimately derives from the demand for consumer goods.

Differences between business markets and consumer markets include all of the following EXCEPT ________.

In a straight rebuy, the buyer wants to alter product specifications, prices, terms, or suppliers.

The main differences between business and consumer markets are in market structure and demand, the nature of the buying unit, and the types of decisions and the decision process involved.

What are the major characteristics of government markets?

In the general needs description of the buying process, the buyer describes the characteristics and quantity of the needed item.

Gina Parker owns an ad agency in Baton Rouge. She regularly purchases cleaning supplies for her custodial staff, using the same vendor and ordering relatively consistent amounts of the same products on each purchase. This is an example of ________.

Business markets are similar to consumer markets in that ________.

Members of the buying center at Kid's World, a store for children's clothing, are drawing up a list of desired supplier attributes and their relative importance. Next, they intend to compare several suppliers' proposals to these attributes. In which step of the business buying process is the buying center at Kid's World involved?

Jeremy's, a handbag manufacturer in Lower Manhattan, procures a large stock of leather in anticipation of brisk sales of handbags during December. This is an example of a(n) ________ demand.