Question 1

Promotions and promotion mix : What about the budget? We want our promotional campaigns to be cost effective enough. I don’t think we can afford celebrity endorsements as of now!

Accepted Answer

No problem We can use network marketing as an alternative The company already has its strong network of customers who can spread the word about its products They can encourage referral rewards for say every three customers who will buy our product or avail our service We can also announce a contest for the customers to buy the product and win a chance to get himself broadcasted for the product advertisement We can ask them to send in their photo along with the contest application form which they get alongwith the product they buy So we don’t have to pay them as we would otherwise have to pay to a celebrity

Question 2

Managing retailing, wholesaling and market logistics : What is logistics management?

Accepted Answer

Logistics management is the part of supply chain management that plans, implements, and controls the efficient, effective, forward, and reverse flow and storage of goods, services, and related information between the point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet customer's requirements

Question 3

Managing retailing, wholesaling and market logistics : What are the essential characteristics of retailing?

Accepted Answer

aDirect interaction with customers: The retailer acts as the final link between the organisation and its customer The retailer knows his customer better than anyone He even suggests the customer what to purchase and allows him credit facilities to encourage frequent buying behaviour in the customer bSmall purchases: The customer purchases goods in small lots from the retail stores So there are frequent visits to the retail store by the customer cInstrument of marketing communication: via which information about the product is disseminated to the needy customers

Question 4

Managing advertising, sales promotion and public relations: What according to you is sales promotion?

Accepted Answer

We can say that sales promotion is a cost effective technique by which an organisation can achieve its sales volume or the marketing objectives by providing value added product and not just an ordinary product to the end user or even the intermediaries It is short term by nature and is suitable enough for generating sales within a short span of time Sales promotion techniques are being increasingly used by retailing organisations some of which include advertising, providing discounts and allowances or a 'buy one get one free offer' etc

Question 5

Managing advertising, sales promotion and public relations : what is public relations in marketing?

Accepted Answer

Public relations includes promotional activities that work to create a strong public image of the company Public relations activities include helping the public to understand the company and its products Public relations if done right can reach a large audience without the expensive cost of traditional advertising and marketing

Question 6

Managing direct and online marketing : What is direct marketing? Give some examples.

Accepted Answer

In direct marketing, there is a direct interaction of the customers with the seller without any intermediaries Here, the role of the intermediaries is nil The medium used is more direct using telephone, mail, internet where the seller can directly reach out to the consumer Examples of such marketing include telemarketing, email, voicemail marketing, door-to-door selling etc This kind of marketing is more time saving as the problem of distance which may otherwise exist between the buyer and seller is eliminated and is also cost effective as it minimizes commuting costs

Question 7

Controlling marketing activities : What is profit ability control?

Accepted Answer

Profitability control is a mechanism of monitoring the sales made, profits earned and expenditure incurred by a company The relative profit earning capacity of a firm’s products and consumer groups can be determined via profitability control Sometimes surpisingly, it may be found out by companies how a small proportion of their products and even customers actually account for a significant percentage of the company’s profits This can be achieved through profitability control At times when the companies earn surplus profits, then such profits may even be ploughed back or reinvested This also forms part of profitability control

Question 8

Controlling marketing activities : What is annual plan control? Why is it needed in an organisation?

Accepted Answer

The annual plan control is one of the four types of marketing control system Annual plan control is essential in order to determine whether all the marketing efforts undertaken by the organisation has been really worthwhile or not It aims to achieve sales volume,profits and all those objectives which have been set up in the beginning of the year In an organisation,the top management and middle level management are responsible for the annual plan control They have to keep a check on the activities undertaken to implement the plans

Question 9

What is Internal marketing?

Accepted Answer

Internal marketing is the process of motivating and empowering the employees of a company to work as a team for the overall well-being of the customers and thereby the company itself This is actually the core to succes of a company A harmonised effort within the company is an utmost necessity to provide customers with services at a desired level If a firm doesn't deliver the service it promises in its marketing campaign, it will fail for sure And it only can keep that promise when all of its employees at all levels realise what actually it is going to deliver

Question 10

What is cross - selling and up - selling?

Accepted Answer

An up - selling is getting the customer to spend more money, buy a more expensive model of the same type of product, or add features or warranties that relate to the product viewed or purchased A cross - sell is to get the customer to spend more money by adding more products from other categories than the product being viewed or purchased

Question 11

What is buying forward?

Accepted Answer

It is an investment strategy that involves the buying of money market instruments or currencies in anticipation of a price rise or a future increase in demand Buying forward allows an investor to take advantage of future and potential profits by buying now at alower price, and selling when prices rise

Question 12

What is market risk?

Accepted Answer

It refers to the possibility for an investor to experience losses due to factors that affect the overall performance of the financial markets Market risk cannot be eliminated through diversification, though it can be hedged against The sources of market risk include natural disasters, recessions, political turmoil, changes in interest rates and terrorist attacks

Question 13

What is market outlook?

Accepted Answer

It refers to a forecast regarding the future trend of a particular company, economic segment, Commodity or stock market exchange Market outlooks are based upon past performance, prevailing economic factors, consumer demand and opinionIt is also called market forecast

Question 14

What is competition in terms of marketing?

Accepted Answer

Competition occurs when two or more organisations act independently to supply their products to the same group of consumers There are mainly two cases when firms can compete One is price where firms are selling identical or very similar products, they must compete on price with each firm trying to undercut the others The other is differentiation A non-price competition depends on making a product different from those of competitors and by giving it distinctive qualities that are valued by the target market This might include branding, styling, special features or higher levels of customer service Good competition provides more options to customers and also brings with it improved customer services

Question 15

What is Benchmarking?

Accepted Answer

Benchmarking is the process of comparing one's business proceses and performance metrics to industry bests or best practices from other industries Dimensions typically measured are quality, time and cost

Question 16

What is marketspace?

Accepted Answer

Marketspace refers to an information and communication based electronic exchange environment It is a relatively new concept in marketing Since physical boundaries no longer interfere with buy/sell decisions, the world has grown into several industry specific marketspaces which are integration of marketplaces through sophisticated computer and telecommunication technologies

Question 17

What is multi - level marketing (MLM)?

Accepted Answer

It is a marketing strategy in which the sales force is compensated not only for sales they personally generate, but also for the sales of the other salespeople that they recruit This recruited sales force is reffered to as the participant's 'downline' , and can provide multiple levels of compensation Other terms used for MLM include pyramid selling, network marketing and refferal marketing Most commonly, the salespeople are expected to sell products directly to consumers by means of relationship referrals and word-of-mouth marketing

Question 18

What is Inbound and outbound marketing?

Accepted Answer

Inbound Marketing : Inbound marketing refers to marketing activities that bring visitors in, rather than marketers having to go out to get prospect's attention 1 Communication is interactive and two-way 2 Customers come to you via search engines, refferals and social media 3 Marketers provide value 4 Marketers seek to entertain and/or educate 5 It is a cheaper way of marketing 6 It is the new trend in marketing 7 People are more in control of what information they receive and how Outbound Marketing In Outbound marketing the company contacts the customer through a message It uses offline methods such as trade shows, mails to customers and calling customers 1 Communication is one-way 2 Customers are sought out via print, TV, radio, banner advertising and cold calls 3 Marketers Provide little to no added value 4 Marketers rarely seek to entertain or educate 5 It is expensive compared to inbound marketing 6 It is one of the traditional methods of marketing 7 In outbound marketing company is in control

Question 19

Which of the following is an example of market failure?

Accepted Answer

Prices do not reflect the full social cost of production is an example of Market failure. A market failure occurs when the supply of a good or service is insufficient to meet demand. This results in an inefficient distribution of resources among market participants. It also occurs if externalities are not accounted for. If a firm fails to maximize its profits this is not a general market failure.

Question 20

Market survey means...........

Accepted Answer

Market Research

Marketing and Sales Questions