Deck 16: Integrated Marketing Communications

Question 1

When Santina purchased a new refrigerator from Sears, she was told by the salesperson that the refrigerator would be delivered to her apartment Thursday between the hours of 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. However, the refrigerator was not delivered until 4:00 p.m. on Friday. The late delivery caused Santina to be dissatisfied with Sears's delivery service. Santina's dissatisfaction with Sears' delivery service resulted from:

A) Inadequate management of service promises
B) Over-promising and over-delivering
C) Inadequate customer education
D) Excessive horizontal communication
E) Differences in policies and procedures across distribution units

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which of the following describes a reason why integrated marketing communications have not been the norm in many companies?

A) Employees circumvent interactive communication norms
B) Communication autonomy often leads to employee ambiguity
C) Customer empowerment is short-term
D) Various parts of the company are responsible for different aspects of communication
E) The servicescape is designed to impede external communication

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Mike hurt his back and has to go to physical therapy every other day. He has a series of exercises he is supposed to do on the days he does not see the therapist. After two months, Mike was not feeling any better and complained to the therapist who at that point realized Mike was not performing all of the stretching exercises that he should be at this point in his rehabilitation. Mike had been handed a booklet when he started his therapy. Because he had only been instructed in how to perform some of the exercises in the booklet but not all of them, he had thought he was not to do the others. Mike feels like he has been wasting his time. The service provider has erred by:

A) Inadequate internal marketing communications
B) Inappropriate external marketing communications
C) Providing inadequate customer education
D) Under-promising and over-delivering
E) Inadequate management of customer expectations

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Inadequate customer communication occurs when:

A) The services have synchronized supply and demand
B) Customers are experienced users of the service
C) The services are low in credence qualities
D) The service is difficult for the customer to evaluate t even after it has been delivered
E) The services are high priced

Question 5

Last summer, Kenta and Sawako spent part of their vacation in St. Louis and Boston, staying at the St. Louis Hilton and the Boston Hilton. When they checked in at the St. Louis Hilton the front desk clerk was very friendly and helpful. However, when they checked in at the Boston Hilton, the front desk clerk was cold and indifferent. The inconsistent front desk clerk behaviors experienced by Kenta and Sawako resulted from:

A) Inadequate management of service promises
B) Over-promising in advertising and personal selling
C) Inadequate external marketing communication
D) Inadequate interactive marketing communications
E) Inadequate internal marketing communications

Question 6

Variations in the supply and demand of services result in:

A) Inadequate management of service promises
B) Over-promising in advertising and personal selling
C) Insufficient word-of-mouth-communication
D) Inadequate horizontal communication
E) Differences in policies and procedures across distribution units

Question 7

A major cause of _____ is the difference between what a firm promises about a service and what it actually delivers.

A) Customer empowerment
B) Poorly perceived service
C) Service downsizing
D) Service autonomy
E) Originator ambiguity

Question 8

Vernon has a used Nordic Track he wants to sell. He has been told to take it to Play It Again Sports. The retail outlet buys used athletic equipment and resells it. Vernon took his Nordic Track to a store near his house and was given $60 for the machine. Later he learned that other Play It Again Sports stores would have paid him at least $100 for the exercise machine and as much as $120. Vernon's dissatisfaction with Play It Again Sports is the result of:

A) Inadequate management of service promises
B) Over-promising in advertising and personal selling
C) Inadequate customer education
D) Inadequate management of customer perceptions
E) Differences in policies and procedures across distribution outlets

Question 9

Every functional area in a Marriott Hotel operates under standard operating procedure manuals where all processes and services are carefully documented. Housekeepers, for example, must perform 64 required steps in cleaning a room. These specific guidelines result in uniformly clean rooms anywhere in the Marriott Hotel chain. By having specific guidelines for cleaning a room, Marriott is avoiding one of the problems associated with:

A) Inadequate management of service promises
B) Over-promising in advertising and personal selling
C) Inadequate external marketing communication
D) Inadequate interactive marketing communications
E) Inadequate internal marketing communications

Question 10

______ occurs when a service firm develops an advertising campaign without input from operations and contact personnel are not able to deliver service that matches the image portrayed in the advertising.

A) Inadequate management of service promises
B) Over-promising in advertising and personal selling
C) Inadequate customer communication
D) Inadequate horizontal communication
E) Differences in policies and procedures across distribution units

Question 11

Which of the following statements about communications and the services marketing triangle is true?

A) External marketing communications include advertising, public relations, personal selling and sales promotions
B) The apexes of the services marketing triangle are customers, employees and the company
C) Interactive marketing communications are exemplified by vertical and horizontal communications
D) All communications methods that relate to the services marketing triangle are either verbal or print
E) Service encounters are an example of internal marketing

Question 12

_____ means transmitting information across functional boundaries in an organization to align all functions with customer expectations.

A) Managing service promises
B) Resetting customer expectations
C) Communicating with customers
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 13

In which of the following services is inadequate customer communication most likely to result in customer dissatisfaction?

A) Fast food restaurant
B) Animal boarding
C) Movie theater
D) Physical rehabilitation therapy
E) Overnight package delivery

Question 14

Customer education is beneficial for closing provider gap 4 when:

A) The supply and demand of the service are not synchronized
B) Customers are experienced users of the service
C) The services are low in credence qualities
D) The services are classified as low-involvement
E) The services are high priced

Question 15

Cookies is a retail store where customers host parties for guests to bake and decorate cookies. Children attending a party staged at Cookies were upset when the adult owners of the store did all of the baking while they watched. The store owner's insurance provider had told her that she was not covered if a minor was injured on her premises. The children's disappointment was a result of:

A) Inadequate management of customer expectations
B) Under-promising and over-delivering
C) Improper vertical communication
D) Differences in policies and procedures in internal marketing
E) Inadequate customer empowerment

Question 16

Which of the following is NOT a company-controlled factor that influences customer expectations?

A) Advertising
B) Personal selling
C) Employee appearance
D) Word-of-mouth communication
E) Pricing strategy

Question 17

Rangu read in the newspaper that he could receive a free month's cable television service if he would agree to use the service for three years. The ad had no other stated restrictions and appeared to apply to the entire county in which Jackson lived. When Rangu went by the cable television office, the salesperson there told Rangu that his area of the community was not eligible for the free month offer. If he wanted cable, he had to pay $400 to have the cable service brought to his house. Rangu experienced a problem with:

A) Under-promising and over-delivering
B) Marketing communications that were not integrated
C) A lack of interactive marketing communications
D) Poor vertical communications
E) Ignorance of the services marketing mix

Question 18

The ad guaranteed that you would be skydiving after only a couple of hours of lessons. Megan was excited at the prospect. After enrolling in the class, she learned that rather than skydiving by herself, which is what the ad implied, she would be skydiving in tandem (belted to another experienced sky diver) due to safety requirements. Megan's disappointment was the result of:

A) Inadequate management of customer expectations
B) Under-promising and over-delivering
C) Improper vertical communication
D) Differences in policies and procedures across departments
E) Inadequate customer empowerment

Question 19

The primary goal of integrated services marketing communications (ISMC) is:

A) Service delivery equal to or greater than promised
B) Lowered customer expectations and higher customer perceptions
C) Servicescape omniscience
D) Homogeneous services
E) Functional internal marketing channels

Question 20

Which of the following is NOT a category of strategy that service providers can use to match service promises with service delivery?

A) Integrate the service dimensions
B) Improve customer education
C) Manage service promises
D) Manage customer expectations
E) Manage internal marketing communications

Question 21

By guaranteeing that all participants in its dance classes will be able to do the foxtrot by the end of their first lesson or their money will be refunded, the Fred Astaire Dance Studio is:

A) Managing its service promises
B) Resetting customer expectations
C) Precisely matching service delivery with service promise
D) Managing its horizontal communications
E) Under-promising and over-delivering

Question 22

Creating tiered value service offerings is a strategy for:

A) Managing service promises
B) Managing customer expectations
C) Communicating with customers
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 23

A chiropractor published a newspaper insert ad that contains almost 1,000 words and described in detail how he has helped patients who have been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and other debilitating diseases to the point where they no longer have to rely on medication and no longer need to have any assistance when walking. The use of this narrative is one way the chiropractor as a service provider can:

A) Avoid having to educate customers
B) Manage its service promises
C) Encourage horizontal communications
D) Avoid over-promising and under-delivering
E) Manage its internal marketing communications

Question 24

Parking for travelers flying out of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta is difficult for those who have the time to look. For those who arrive at the airport with only time enough to catch their flight, parking has been a nightmare until the development of the GoldParker System, which guarantees a convenient parking place to its members. The system is extremely popular among business travelers and works just as advertised. By instituting the GoldParker System, Hartsfield's management is:

A) Managing service promises
B) Lowering customer expectations
C) Communicating with low-involvement customers
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Managing interactive marketing communications

Question 25

The reason Kente chose to stay at a particular a chain of bed & breakfast inns was because its website promises free breakfast ay any inn that did not offer a wake-up service. Yet when Kente stayed at one of the chain's inns, she was allowed to oversleep and missed an important sales call even though she had asked to be awakened at seven when she checked in. The inn manager told her that his hotel did not offer a wake-up service and apologized for her inconvenience. He did not offer her a free breakfast and Kente swore never to stay at the inns again. The chain of inns needs to:

A) Underpromise and overdeliver more services
B) Coordinate its external communications
C) Create more functional internal marketing channels
D) Use more centralization of service definition
E) Use transformational advertising

Question 26

An advertisement for the Four Seasons Hotel featured Marlene Wei, a housekeeper at the Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago. Copy for the advertisement noted that "Marlene is the soul of concern. She cannot sleep well at night unless she is certain you will. Her mission is to enhance your personal comfort and, in turn your professional efficiency the following day". Which strategy for tangibilization is the Four Seasons Hotel using in this ad?

A) Association
B) Physical representation
C) Intimidation
D) Documentation
E) Visualization

Question 27

Cable TV companies that offer subscribers different programming packages are:

A) Managing service promises
B) Creating tiered-value service offerings
C) Communicating with customers
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 28

Which of the following is NOT a strategy a service provider would use if its goal were to manage customer expectations?

A) Create tiered-value service offerings
B) Negotiate unrealistic expectations
C) Communicate criteria for service effectiveness
D) Teach customers to avoid peak demand periods and see slow periods
E) Offer choices

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT one of the properties of intangibility that has been identified by the research of Banwari Mittal?

A) Nonsearchability
B) Abstractness
C) Incorporeal existence
D) Dynamic vs. static
E) Mental impalpability

Question 30

The four strategies of tangibilization are:

A) Documentation, visualization, verification and illustration
B) Illustration, verification, documentation and intimation
C) Association, physical representation, documentation and visualization
D) Association, internalization, testimonials and imitation
E) Intimation, allusion, association and documentation

Question 31

Which of the following statements about the Banwari Mittal's properties of intangibility is true?

A) Services such as dental care have less nonsearchability than babysitting
B) An ATM is high in incorporeal existence
C) Service benefits such as fun and excitement are concrete terms
D) Services like doctors, amusement parks and health clubs are typically described in specific terms
E) Services such as an MRI or a cat scan have a high level of mental impalpability

Question 32

Which of the following services is highest in incorporeal evidence?

A) Event planning
B) A movie theater
C) Vacation cruise
D) Management consulting
E) A drive-through liquor store

Question 33

Eddie Bauer, a catalog retailer, offers customers three different delivery options: 5 to 7 days via standard delivery; 3 to 4 days via express delivery; or 2 days via express plus delivery. The delivery rates are higher for faster service. For example, on orders over $75 standard delivery is $9.95, express delivery is $15.95 and express plus delivery is S18.95. By offering different delivery options, Eddie Bauer is:

A) Making multilevel service promises
B) Managing service promises
C) Managing customer expectations
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 34

Cookies is a retail store where customers host parties for guests to bake and decorate cookies. If the retailer offers a money back guarantee if the party experience is boring. In this way, the retailer is:

A) Creating tiered-value offerings to improve customer education
B) Preparing customers for the service process through customer education
C) Offering service guarantees to manage service promises
D) Featuring the servicescape as a tool for integrating its marketing communications
E) Confirming that performance equals performance standards to manage customer expectations

Question 35

Internet service providers that offer subscribers their choice of hook-up speed and type of spam blockers are:

A) Managing service promises
B) Creating tiered-value service offerings
C) Communicating with customers
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 36

Offering choices to the customer is a strategy for:

A) Avoiding the perception of service inconsistency
B) Managing service promises
C) Managing customer expectations
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Improving customer education

Question 37

Josh's teachers describe him as a mathematical genius. His parents did not get any education after high school. They have hired Josh a tutor even though they do not understand why Josh needs to understand string theory and quantum physics. The tutoring that Josh receives has a high degree of _____ for Josh's parents.

A) Nonsearchability
B) Abstractness
C) Incorporeal existence
D) Generality vs. specificity
E) Mental impalpability

Question 38

An advertisement for the Four Seasons Hotel featured Marlene Wei, a housekeeper at the Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago. Copy for the advertisement noted that "Marlene is the soul of concern. She cannot sleep well at night unless she is certain you will. Her mission is to enhance your personal comfort and, in turn your professional efficiency the following day". By featuring Marlene Wei in an advertisement, the Four Seasons Hotel is:

A) Managing its service promises
B) Resetting customer expectations
C) Improving customer education
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Educating the customer

Question 39

Which of the following products has the highest degree of nonsearchability?

A) Motor oil
B) Fresh doughnuts
C) A wedding veil
D) Theater performance
E) Massage therapy

Question 40

A commercial for Carnival Cruises shows a group of friends scuba diving, rock climbing, dancing and having a really great time. Which strategy for tangibilization is Carnival using in this commercial?

A) Illumination
B) Physical representation
C) Allusion
D) Documentation
E) Visualization

Question 41

Emory Vision Center has a packet of information that it sends to people who are interested in LASIK surgery as well as a doctor who will come speak to your organization about how vision can be corrected. In addition, it publishes a newsletter called The Visionary in which it offers family discounts, clarifies patient expectations and notes awards and honors the center receives. The center also manages a web site that contains news on the latest innovative research techniques. Through its integrated communications with potential patients and patients, Emory Vision Center is:

A) Managing service promises and managing internal marketing communications
B) Resetting customer expectations and educating customers
C) Improving customer education and managing service promises
D) Managing both vertical and horizontal marketing communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations and educating customers

Question 42

Service providers should never encourage word-of-mouth communication.

Question 43

If a company's goal is to deliver service greater than or equal to what was promised, it should avoid offering service guarantees.

Question 44

Because he has a busy practice, new patients for dentist Dr. Kirby Brown are told that, unless there is an emergency, the first available appointment will be in three months. If they accept the appointment, they will be reminded of their appointment by a courtesy call. This first visit will take about an hour. On this visit, their teeth will be cleaned and x-rayed, their gums will be examined and the dentist will talk to them about future dental treatment needs. Dr. Brown is:

A) Managing service promises
B) Managing customer expectations
C) Communicating with customers
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 45

Service providers sometimes need to tell customers that services have been performed for them. To get credit for their actions, service providers need to reinforce their actions with appropriate communication about their accomplishment of the service. Services for which customers must be told that the service has been performed have which of the following characteristics?

A) The service is invisible
B) No part of the service offering is outsourced
C) The customer can easily evaluate the effectiveness of the service
D) The user of the service and the decision maker for the service are the same individual
E) The service is visible

Question 46

When Sarah opened her savings and checking accounts at First National Bank of Chicago, she was given a brochure entitled "How to Lose Wait" that gave her advice on how to avoid delays at the bank and listed her branch's busiest and slowest times. By giving Sarah the "How to Lose Wait" brochure, First National Bank of Chicago is:

A) Managing service promises
B) Resetting customer expectations
C) Improving customer education
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 47

Any company that disseminates information through different communications channels needs to be concerned with integrating this information so that customers receive unified messages and promises about its offering.

Question 48

An insurance company that used advertising showing satisfied customers thanking the company for their prompt payment after a flood would be managing its service promises.

Question 49

Clarifying expectations after the sale is a strategy for:

A) Managing service promises
B) Resetting customer expectations
C) Improving customer education
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 50

Increasing deregulation has led to many companies mismanaging the expectations of their customers.

Question 51

The four strategies of tangibilization are documentation, illustration, intimation and physical representation.

Question 52

By creating cross-functional teams, a service firm is:

A) Managing service promises
B) Resetting customer expectations
C) Communicating with customers
D) Managing internal marketing communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 53

Which of the following is a strategy used for improving customer education?

A) Teach customers to avoid peak demand periods and see slow periods
B) Clarify expectations after the sale
C) Prepare customers for the service process
D) Conform performance to standards
E) Create tiered-value offerings

Question 54

A more complex type of integrated marketing communications is needed for goods than for services.

Question 55

Preparing customers for the service process is a strategy for:

A) Managing service promises
B) Resetting customer expectations
C) Improving customer education
D) Managing horizontal communications
E) Exceeding customer expectations

Question 56

An airline that sells first-class, business-class and tourist-class seats on its planes has created tiered-value service offerings.

Question 57

One way to manage service promises is to offer the customer a variety of choices.

Question 58

Just as all service providers must advertise, all need integration across departments to be able to deliver quality services.

Question 59

The Atlanta Kroger Marketing Area (KMA) publishes a monthly newsletter, Hot Off the Press, to provide information to its employees about food safety and preparation, changes in store policy and exceptional service encounters and the employees who were involved in these encounters. This newsletter is an example of:

A) Vertical communications
B) Vertical integration
C) Horizontal integration
D) Informal communication
E) Interactive marketing

Question 60

Service providers sometimes need to tell customers that services have been performed for them. To get credit for their actions, service providers need to reinforce their actions with appropriate communication about their accomplishment of the service. Which of the following services would need to educate its customers by telling them about the services provided in user friendly terms?

A) Pet grooming
B) A fluoride treatment given to a child
C) A full-body massage
D) Car insurance
E) Gas station

Question 61

Some professional associations manage customer expectations by offering different membership packages to professionals, students and retirees. What is the term used to describe this practice?

Question 62

College campuses typically do not bring in entertainment acts during the period from the Monday before Thanksgiving until the next semester commences and many of the acts they request for September, October and early November are booked months in advance. What could a talent agency for some of the acts that perform on college campuses do?

Question 63

Which provider gap occurs if company communications makes service promises about its people that do not mesh with employees' actual behavior?

Question 64

Give three examples of external marketing communications.

Question 65

The ad for Disneyworld shows enthralled spectators watching the daily Disney character parade and has several guests to the park explaining how much they enjoyed the parade. Why was Disneyworld using testimonials in its ads?

Question 66

What strategies would a large janitorial service use to manage its service promises to avoid discrepancies between its service delivery and its external communication promises?

Question 67

What do services capes; personal selling and service encounters have in common?

Question 68

Once the sale is made, there is no way to improve the education of the customer.

Question 69

A commercial for an ISP (Internet service provider) that shows an individual answering business questions on is portable computer while lounging on a white sand beach is using which tangibilization strategy?

Question 70

In most companies, it is significantly easier to improve horizontal communications than vertical communications.

Question 71

A television production company that asks viewers of a particular show to encourage their friends and relatives to watch next week's episode is using which method to create effective services communications?

Question 72

As defined by the services marketing triangle, what are the two types of internal communications?

Question 73

Measurement and feedback of their measurement is a tool used to manage internal marketing communications.

Question 74

A service provider can improve customer education by clarifying expectations after the sale.

Question 75

It is impossible to manage customer expectations in a business-to-business situation.

Question 76

What's the difference between horizontal and vertical internal communications?

Question 77

Why would a health club create tiered-value service offerings? What are the advantages of such a strategy?

Question 78

The ad for the rental company showed top-of-the-line furniture and appliances with low monthly rental rates. Maureen expected to see similar furniture and appliances when she visited the company's nearby store. But when Maureen entered the store to rent living room furniture and a television, she saw poorly made furniture and appliance seconds. This is an example of which service communication problem?

Question 79

For what communications purpose would a service company create cross-functional teams?

Question 80

List and define the four strategies of tangibilization. Give one example of each.