Exam 2: Strategic Planning for Competitive Advantage

The Home Depot's purchase of Hughes Supply Company allows it to better meet the needs of its current business customers.This is an example of product development.

Of the following,what is the most useful objective for Purina cat food?

Pajamagrams was only marketing pajamas to women.Now they offer pajamas for men and kids.This is an example of a _____ strategy.

What is the most critical element in successful strategic planning?

Each labor and delivery room at Dekalb County's new Medical Center has hardwood floors,soft lighting,and mission-style furniture.The facility also features a stone fireplace in the lobby,a bistro-style restaurant,and VIP suites for discerning mothers-to-be.This unique design and furnishings give the Medical Center a:

An advantage that cannot be copied by the competition is called a(n)_____ competitive advantage.

Briggs and Stratton is a Southeastern company that makes small engines.The company is looking at customer trends,its competitors,and the economy to see if there are any threats or opportunities on the horizon.It has also examined its production policies and sales histories to determine its strengths and weaknesses.Briggs & Stratton is conducting a(n):

Zipcar is a car rental service found in many metropolitan areas.It targets people who take mass transit or carpool to work but who occasionally need a car to run errands,visit the doctor,or check on a sick child.Zipcar is one of a few companies currently providing cars that can be rented by the hour.Zipcar has created a(n)_____ advantage.

To be useful,marketing objectives should meet four criteria: realistic,measurable,time-specific,and based on sales.

Before Heinz sold its 9-Lives brand cat food unit,the company identified the product as having a low market share in a high-growth market.The portfolio matrix would classify 9-Lives as a(n):

A marketing audit helps management allocate marketing resources efficiently.

DeFeet International DeFeet International started as a cyclist sock company. The founder, Shane Cooper, said that the existing socks for cyclists were just not of great quality so he made socks for his cycling team by knitting them inside out. The socks were of special materials aimed at giving the cyclist the most comfortable fit. These socks were not the traditional white socks but bright, bold, and flashy colored socks with cool graphics. These high tech socks were priced around $10 a pair. Their web site says "DeFeet is Made for Driven Soles." Soon cycling elites like Lance Armstrong and Greg LeMond were sporting the DeFeet brand. The company branched into running, hiking and snow gear. Their products include socks, armskins, calfskins, boxer briefs, gloves, and shirts for the serious athlete. They also have a custom department where socks, armskins, and gloves can be customized with any motif including sponsor types of logos like Michelin, Pabst Blue Ribbon, or BP. Even kids can enjoy DeFeet's high quality socks. DeFeet's products can be found in retailers across the world, in more than twenty countries, like Israel, Australia, Belgium and the United States. More than two-dozen online retailers also carry their products. -Refer to DeFeet.If you were to define DeFeet's mission which would be most appropriate?

Stump's Hot Olives are manufactured by a family business in Wisconsin and are sold in Midwestern grocery stores,through mail order,and to a few local restaurants.The company has been in operation since 1998 and relies on labor from family and friends to produce and package olives in attractive,reusable glass containers.They use store demonstrations to introduce their spicy olives to new customers.Discuss how this company can establish or maintain at least one of the three types of competitive advantage.

Smucker's purchased Folgers Coffee in 2008.The option to buy Folgers represented a(n)_____ to Smucker's.

Pure Digital Technologies created the Flip,which is a digital camera that is priced around $150.It filled a gap between expensive digital cameras and web cams.The flip plugs straight into your computer and the video can easily be viewed and shared instantly.Creating a new product for a new market is called _____.

Orange growers in Florida have lost millions of dollars due to hurricanes.As a result,some growers have decided to bulldoze their orange groves and put in freshwater lakes for raising shrimp,a product that has a strong popularity and is more weather-resistant.Former orange growers who are now raising shrimp are pursuing a _____ strategy.

By defining its business as "printing books" instead of "empowering imaginations," a children's book publishing company would more than likely experience:

Novartis Novartis, a Swiss drug maker, is planning to purchase a majority stake in Zhejiang Tianyuan Bio-Pharmaceutical Company, a Chinese vaccine maker. Novartis has agreed to pay $125 million for the company that holds a 3% share of China's $1 billion vaccines market. The market for vaccines is growing 20% or more in developing nations of Asia, Africa, and Australasia. In the past, vaccine use has been limited to basic shots against diseases such as polio, tuberculosis, and measles, but as the economies of these countries grow, government and private healthcare spending focuses on preventing diseases such as hepatitis B, cholera and rotavirus, tetanus, and others. Some critics are against the acquisition, claiming that prices will increase. Novartis claims it is not interested in raising prices but rather to expand Tianyuan's product offerings. -Refer to Novartis.If Novartis goes through with the purchase of Tianyuan,it will become a subgroup of its overall pharmaceutical business and organization. Tianyuan will then be considered a(n)_____ of Novartis.

All of the following are elements of the marketing plan EXCEPT:

Clay Market began as a retailer of terra cotta pots and garden figures imported from Turkey and Mexico.It has since added Turkish rugs and fabrics,leather trimmed purses,and a line of women's clothes for its customers.These activities are indicative of a _____ strategy.