Deck 18: Measuring and Delivering Marketing Performance

Question 1

A merchandise manager would track sales results of each style or merchandise category in terms of its selling rate and its gross margin performance.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

A strategic monitoring system is difficult to implement because there is usually a substantial amount of time between formulating a strategy and when a strategy takes hold and results are evident.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

A strategic monitoring system alerts management of a significant change in its external/internal environments.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

A firm can use a strategic plan as an early-warning system but not as a diagnostic tool.

Question 5

The first and foremost objective for marketing is often the sales the company or the product-market entry achieves.

Question 6

A sales analysis involves collating and adding aggregate sales data from such categories as products,end-user customers,channel intermediaries,sales territories,and order size.

Question 7

Financial terms are helpful in recognizing the importance of customer satisfaction.

Question 8

Full costing involves assigning only direct costs to the unit of analysis.

Question 9

Performance standards should not be tied to any specific time-periods.

Question 10

The staff organization administers the performance measurement process.

Question 11

Profit is a long-term measure which cannot be manipulated.

Question 12

Focusing on those variables that would most likely affect the company's future position within its industry group is a company-specific decision.

Question 13

Line managers need to be closely involved with the development of the performance measurement system,so that they can be assured of getting the performance data they need,on a timely basis.

Question 14

The advent of e-mail,intranets,and other digital tools for disseminating information has made it easier for far-flung managers to monitor strategic developments.

Question 15

The performance measurement system monitors the extent to which employees achieve their performance targets.

Question 16

Direct costing involves the use of contribution accounting.

Question 17

Performance measurement processes should be consistent across all organizational levels.

Question 18

Profitability analysis requires analysts to determine the costs associated with specific marketing activities to find out the profitability of different market segments,products,customer accounts,and distribution channels.

Question 19

Under benchmarking,a firm's performance in a given area is compared against the performance of other companies which necessarily belong to the same industry.

Question 20

Performance-based measures are often tied to the compensation of those individuals responsible for attaining the specified goals.

Question 21

The marketing environment audit requires an analysis of the firm's present and future environment with respect to its macro components.

Question 22

Which of the following administers the performance measurement process?

A)Staff organization
B)Line organization
C)Personnel department
D)Human resources department

Question 23

Assumptions about events beyond the control of the individual firm but that strongly affect the entry's strategic objectives are particularly important.

Question 24

Which of the following is true of profitability?

A)Profit is a long-term measure which cannot be manipulated.
B)Profits are not affected by factors such as weather.
C)Analysts should use indirect costing to determine the profitability of a product or market segment.
D)A managerial obsession with profitability can prove counterproductive.

Question 25

Category and brand development indices are used in assessing sales performance by territory.

Question 26

All strategies and the action plans designed to implement them are based on assumptions about the future,and are free from considerable risk.

Question 27

Which of the following is helpful in determining the yield derived from the application of additional resources?

A)Full costing
B)Fixed costing
C)Indirect costing
D)Contribution analysis

Question 28

Which of the following is true about direct costing?

A)Direct costing involves certain fixed joint costs that cannot be clearly linked to a single unit of analysis.
B)Direct costing involves the use of contribution accounting.
C)Those favoring the direct costing approach argue there is only one accurate way to assign indirect costs.
D)Direct costing involves the use of occupancy cost.

Question 29

Budget analysis requires that managers continuously monitor marketing expense ratios to make certain the company does not overspend in its effort to reach its objectives.

Question 30

Which of the following is true of performance standards?

A)Performance standards are not measurable in nature.
B)Performance standards need not be tied to a specific time period.
C)At the product-market level,performance standards include sales and market-share determinants.
D)Performance-based measures tied to the compensation of those individuals responsible for attaining the specified goals may be detrimental to the firm in the short term.

Question 31

The objectives and strategy audit evaluates the adequacy of the systems that develop the firm's product-market entry action plans and the control and reappraisal process.

Question 32

Under _____,a company compares some dimension of its performance to that of another firm,be it a competitor or in a totally different industry.

A)profitability analysis
B)indirect cost analysis
C)direct cost analysis
D)benchmarking

Question 33

Which of the following methods identify costs according to various expense categories?

A)Activity-based costing methods
B)Economic value added metrics
C)Traditional costing methods
D)Balanced scoreboard techniques

Question 34

A product sales analysis is helpful when combined with account size and sales territory data.

Question 35

Book Mark Publishing House had released a new book.When the firm wanted to calculate the amount earned from the new novel,it included all variable and fixed joint costs related to the product.This implies that the publisher was using:

A)contribution margin analysis.
B)full cost analysis.
C)merchandise allowance analysis.
D)indirect cost analysis.

Question 36

_____ involves certain fixed joint costs that cannot be linked to a single unit of analysis.

A)Indirect costing
B)Direct costing
C)Marginal costing
D)Contribution margin analysis

Question 37

Optimization of SEM includes bidding a high enough price for a site to be highly ranked,but not so high that the cost of buying the keywords is higher than their value as leads.

Question 38

Budgets provide the basis for a continuous evaluation and comparison of what was planned with what actually happened.

Question 39

Which of the following is the first step in the performance measurement process?

A)Specifying feedback
B)Obtaining data
C)Evaluating data
D)Setting performance standards

Question 40

Analysis by customer locates products,sales territories,and customer types and sizes where small orders prevail.

Question 41

_____ refer to the product attributes which customers use to evaluate the quality of a company's relationship with them.

A)Operating measures.
B)Choice criteria.
C)Contribution criteria.
D)Direct criteria.

Question 42

Which of the following is an example of key variables concerned with external forces?

A)Firm's advertising activities to change attitudes of customers
B)In-store merchandising activities designed to improve product availability
C)Specialization of labor to minimize costs
D)Changes in long-term demand

Question 43

Measures relating to customer preferences and satisfaction are essential as:

A)they are the main financial indicators.
B)an early warning of impending problems and opportunities.
C)they tell the marketing manager what the profitability has been in the past.
D)they provide the marketing manager with a benchmark.

Question 44

Which of the following would help a firm to conduct a line-item margin and expense analysis?

A)Orders
B)Product line
C)Geographical control unit
D)Budgets

Question 45

In an organization,_____ managers responsible for manufacturing,procurement,finance,and so on need sales information.

A)staffing
B)marketing
C)functional
D)advertising

Question 46

The step of _____ involves specifying what information is needed on each of the key variables to determine whether the implementation of the strategic plan is on schedule.

A)tracking and monitoring
B)identifying key variables
C)strategy reassessment
D)taking corrective action

Question 47

Which of the following steps in the process of implementing strategic monitoring takes place at periodic intervals when the firm evaluates its performance to date along with major changes in the external environment?

A)Tracking and monitoring
B)Strategy reassessment
C)Identifying key variables
D)Taking corrective action

Question 48

Which of the following sales analyses helps managers in pinpointing substantial opportunities and develop specific tactics to take advantage of them?

A)Sales analysis by territory
B)Sales analysis by customer
C)Sales analysis by product
D)Sales analysis by order size

Question 49

Which of the following is driven by proprietary algorithms which vary from one search engine to another and are programmed to look for certain things?

A)Cost per click advertising
B)Organic search
C)Pay per click advertising
D)Non-organic search

Question 50

Which of the following refer to the basis for measuring profitability,sales,and various budget items in the easiest way and also provide data for the analysis of the geographic distribution of sales and customer accounts by type and size?

A)In house researches
B)Newsletters
C)Invoices
D)Debit memos

Question 51

At the _____ level,whether for revenue or expenses,results are compared with the standards set in the step of setting performance standards.

A)line-item
B)header
C)schedule line
D)staff

Question 52

Which of the following is the last step in the control process?

A)Evaluating feedback data
B)Obtaining feedback data
C)Taking corrective action
D)Specifying feedback data

Question 53

Which of the following is true about the strategic monitoring system?

A)Strategic reassessment involves specifying what information or measures are needed on each of the key variables to determine whether the implementation of the strategic plan is on schedule-and if not,why not.
B)It is not possible to do strategy reassessment quickly in today's fast-changing world,
C)The key variables that companies need to monitor are those concerned with external forces alone.
D)Critical strategic information can now be monitored on a real-time basis anywhere in the worlD.

Question 54

The basic objective of a _____ is to develop a continuous monitoring system that provides data designed to help answer key questions about the opportunities and threats to each SBU.

A)management control
B)marketing evaluations system
C)contingency plan
D)strategic control system

Question 55

The main purpose of feedback data is to:

A)determine the sales commissions to be paid to salespeople.
B)assess the labor costs associated with manufacturing a product.
C)determine if inventory costs were as anticipated.
D)identify if there is any deviation from a plan.

Question 56

Buttercup Ltd. ,an apparel brand,issues different membership cards to shoppers based on how often they purchase goods from the store and based on how much they spend.This implies that Buttercup Ltd.conducts a _____ sales analysis.

A)territory
B)customer
C)product
D)channel intermediary

Question 57

Which of the following is true about methods for obtaining feedback data?

A)Outside syndicated services are apt to take longer than in-house research projects.
B)Invoice methods are typically the most expensive method of obtaining information.
C)VAT approaches typically are the most time-consuming method of obtaining information.
D)In-house research projects are apt to be more expensive than using an outside syndicated service.

Question 58

Which of the following is the first step in a sales territory analysis?

A)Eliminate weak products and concentrate on strong ones.
B)Take strong and continuous action to eliminate no-longer-profitable items.
C)Identify which orders,in monetary size,are not profitable.
D)Decide which geographical control unit to use.

Question 59

Managers can presume a causal relationship and specify appropriate action when:

A)results are compared with the standards set in the step of setting performance standards.
B)linkages between inputs and outputs are clear.
C)management evaluates feedback data to find out whether there is any deviation from the plan.
D)information is obtained in measured form.

Question 60

Big Bite Inc. ,a fast food joint,arranges for home delivery of their delicacies.However,it does not deliver goods if the consumers buy only a small quantity of goods.Which of the following is Big Bite Inc.engaging in?

A)Sales analysis by order size
B)Sales analysis by territory
C)Sales analysis by product
D)Sales analysis by channel intermediary

Question 61

Describe the marketing functions audit.

Question 62

The _____ audit requires an analysis of the firm's present and future environment with respect to its macro components.

A)marketing environment
B)objectives and strategy
C)planning and control system
D)organization

Question 63

What is a sales analysis?

Question 64

In a marketing functions audit,which of the following questions about advertising focus on?

A)Coverage
B)Media schedule
C)Price elasticity
D)Role of salesforce

Question 65

What are the steps in the performance measurement process?

Question 66

What are the groupings in which most companies analyze data?

Question 67

Explain any three types of audits conducted by large marketing organizations.

Question 68

Which of the following audits deals with the firm's overall structure,how the marketing department is organized,and the extent of synergy between the various marketing units?

A)Marketing environment audit
B)Organization audit
C)Ethical audit
D)Marketing productivity audit

Question 69

Corleone Ltd. ,an outlet that sells leather goods,asks its sales attendants to go home if business is unexpectedly bad and,calls in extra help when it offers year-end discounts.This implies that the outlet is trying to improve customer service and maximize profits by focusing on its:

A)timeliness.
B)order size.
C)store payroll expense.
D)geographical control unit.

Question 70

A new candy called Twirl was launched by a leading food manufacturer,Silver Ring Corporation.The candy was promoted with the help of a wide range of marketing activities.This was followed by a comparison of the relative costs and outcomes of each marketing activity.Which of the following audits would have most likely conducted the study of the cost-effectiveness of the company's marketing activities?

A)Marketing environment audit
B)Organization audit
C)Product manager audit
D)Marketing productivity audit

Question 71

For marketers whose websites are intended to deliver completed transactions,a _____ helps a firm in tracking to measure how each of its web pages are.

A)landing page
B)webmaster
C)paid link
D)paid search

Question 72

Search engine marketing involves _____ for which consumers are likely to search so that one's paid links,on the right-hand side of a search page,come up at or near the top of the paid search listings.

A)ranking a company's web site
B)relevant traffic building
C)optimizing web content
D)buying keywords

Question 73

Explain the importance of a line-item margin and expense analysis.

Question 74

Which of the following steps in the contingency planning process requires a specification of both the level at which an alert will be called,and the combination of events that must occur before the firm reacts?

A)Determining probabilities
B)Activating the contingency plan
C)Tracking and monitoring
D)Rank ordering the critical assumptions

Question 75

In a marketing functions audit,_____ questions focus on experience effects,relative costs,and the actions of major competitors.

A)advertising
B)distribution
C)price
D)product

Question 76

What are the limitations associated with using profitability as a measure of performance?

Question 77

Which of the following is true of search engine optimization and search engine marketing?

A)Search engine optimization involves buying keywords known as AdWords for which consumers are likely to search.
B)Search engine marketing refers to a set of techniques that helps ensure that a company's web pages are ranked highly when consumers search for information using a search engine.
C)Organic search is driven by proprietary algorithms which are similar to every search engine.
D)The results of a company's effective use of search engine optimization are that a company's web pages rank higher in the results returned from consumers' searches.

Question 78

Describe the step of determining probabilities in the contingency planning process.

Question 79

What are the steps in the contingency planning process?

Question 80

What are the four essential questions necessary for designing systems to measure marketing performance at the product-market and line-item levels?