Question 1

Wal-Mart is a cost-leader in terms of its highly efficient supply chain and its ability to negotiate steep volume discounts from manufacturers.The retailer executes ________ by passing those savings on to consumers in the form of lower prices.

Accepted Answer

Wal-Mart's cost leadership strategy is based on the efficiency of its supply chain and its ability to negotiate steep volume discounts from manufacturers, which allows the company to offer lower prices to consumers. Therefore, the pricing strategy used by Wal-Mart is efficiency pricing, where the emphasis is on reducing costs to offer lower prices to customers.

Question 2

The essence of successful marketing is the image that a product has in the mind of the consumer,that is,its ________.

Accepted Answer

Positioning refers to how a product is perceived by consumers in relation to other products in the market. It plays a key role in successful marketing as it determines whether a product is seen as valuable and desirable or not. While features, attributes, quality, and value are all important factors in marketing, they cannot drive success on their own without a strong positioning strategy.

Question 3

In the figure and ground principle of Gestalt psychology,________.

Accepted Answer

According to Gestalt psychology, the ground is usually perceived as indefinite, hazy, and continuous, while the figure stands out as distinct and central to the image. This is because the ground is seen as the background against which the figure is presented. However, the figure-and-ground relationship can vary depending on the context and perception of the observer. Therefore, option E is the correct choice.

Question 4

Which of the following is true of selective perception?

Accepted Answer

Selective perception refers to the tendency of consumers to selectively pay attention to stimuli that are consistent with their own beliefs, values, and needs. Consumers tend to actively seek out messages that reassure them and confirm their prior purchase decisions. This is why advertisements that emphasize the benefits or advantages of a product or service are more likely to be noticed and remembered by consumers.

Question 5

Individuals express their need for ________ by organizing their perceptions so that they form a complete picture.

Accepted Answer

Closure refers to the process of organizing perceptions to form a complete picture or idea. It is the need to fill in missing information or gaps in order to make sense of a situation. Therefore, individuals express their need for closure by organizing their perceptions.

Question 6

Listening to the radio on the way home from work,Paul is particularly aware of an ad for McDonalds because he is getting hungry.This is an example of ________.

Accepted Answer

Selective attention is the process of paying attention to certain stimuli while ignoring others. In this scenario, Paul is paying attention to the McDonalds ad because he is hungry, while ignoring other ads on the radio.

Question 7

Consumers subconsciously screen out stimuli that they find psychologically threatening,even though exposure has already taken place.This is consistent with the perception factor of ________.

Accepted Answer

Perceptual defense is the tendency of consumers to screen out stimuli that they find psychologically threatening, and this occurs even though exposure to that stimuli has already taken place. This can happen due to factors such as past experiences, personal values, and cultural norms. Selective attention refers to the tendency of consumers to focus on certain stimuli while ignoring others. Selective exposure is the deliberate seeking out of certain stimuli while avoiding others. Perceptual differentiation refers to the ability to distinguish between stimuli that are similar. Perceptual organization refers to the grouping of stimuli into cohesive units.

Question 8

Joe passes many billboards on his way to work,but rarely even recognizes that they are there because he is paying attention to the road.By blocking the stimuli of the billboards from his conscious awareness,Joe is engaging in ________.

Accepted Answer

Joe is engaging in perceptual blocking, which is the process of ignoring or filtering out stimuli that are not relevant to the task at hand, such as focusing on driving rather than noticing billboards.

Question 9

________ enables marketers to determine how their products or services appear to consumers in relation to competitive brands.

Accepted Answer

Perceptual mapping is a technique that allows marketers to visually display how their brand is perceived by consumers compared to competing brands. It helps identify competitive advantages and areas for improvement in brand positioning.

Question 10

In product placement scenarios,marketers place an advertised product into a TV show or film by having it used by the cast,integrated into the plot,or associated with a character.In product placements,the product is considered the ________ and the show is the ________.

Accepted Answer

In the context of product placement, the product being advertised is the "figure" because it is the focus of attention, while the TV show or film in which it is placed serves as the "ground," providing the context or background against which the product is featured. This terminology comes from Gestalt psychology, which differentiates between the figure (the focal point) and the ground (the background or context).

Question 11

When stimuli are highly ambiguous,an individual will usually ________.

Accepted Answer

When stimuli are highly ambiguous, individuals tend to interpret them according to their own needs, wishes, and interests. This is known as subjective interpretation or selective perception. They tend to focus on aspects that align with their pre-existing beliefs and values, and ignore or downplay those that do not.

Question 12

After buying a Mini Cooper,Kate began paying more attention to advertisements for Mini and spent more time on websites reading about how much Mini drivers love their cars.This is an example of ________.

Accepted Answer

Selective exposure refers to the process by which people select which stimuli to pay attention to. In this case, Kate is paying more attention to advertisements and websites related to Mini because she now owns one, indicating selective exposure.

Question 13

Consumers need to protect themselves from being bombarded with stimuli by simply tuning out such stimuli from their conscious awareness.This is known as ________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Consumers need to protect themselves from being...

Question 14

________ refers to consumers' heightened awareness of stimuli that meet their needs or interests,and minimal awareness of stimuli irrelevant to their needs.

Accepted Answer

Selective attention is the term used to describe consumers' tendency to focus on stimuli that are relevant to their needs or interests while filtering out stimuli that are irrelevant. This heightened awareness of relevant stimuli is a key factor in the consumer's decision-making process.

Question 15

________ creates an overall image of the company around which multiple products can be featured individually.

Accepted Answer

Umbrella positioning creates a strong and cohesive image of the company, helping to establish trust and familiarity with consumers. Under this umbrella, multiple products can then be featured individually.

Question 16

Canada requires tobacco firms to feature graphic health warnings on cigarette packs.In a perception context,this is to try to combat ________ where people no longer pay attention to the warning labels on packets.

Accepted Answer

Perceptual defense refers to the tendency for people to selectively ignore messages that are threatening or unpleasant. The graphic health warnings on cigarette packs are designed to combat this tendency by making the warnings more attention-grabbing and difficult to ignore.

Question 17

In 2009,the Axe brand launched a line of hair care products to complement its existing assortment of body washes and deodorants,hoping to leverage the Axe brand equity to expand into a new category of men's personal care products.This is an example of a manufacturer taking advantage of ________.

Accepted Answer

The manufacturer is leveraging the Axe brand equity to expand into a new category of men's personal care products, which is an example of the halo effect. The halo effect occurs when consumers perceive a brand positively in one category and extend that perception to other categories, even if the brand does not necessarily have expertise or experience in those categories.

Question 18

When one retailer put a picture of an aloe vera leaf and the wording "aloe vera" on the surface of the mattress,consumers assumed that aloe vera was a component of the mattress cover and the retailer had great difficulty dispelling this misconception.This is an example of ________.

Accepted Answer

The persistence of first impressions refers to the tendency for people to stick to their initial beliefs, even when presented with evidence that contradicts them. In this case, consumers initially assumed that aloe vera was a component of the mattress cover based on the picture and wording on the surface of the mattress, and they had difficulty changing this belief even after being told that it was not true.

Question 19

Marketers take advantage of ________ when they extend a brand name associated with one line of products to another.

Accepted Answer

The halo effect is a cognitive bias where people tend to perceive a positive image of a person or company based on their past experiences or reputation. When marketers extend a brand name associated with one line of products to another, they take advantage of the halo effect by using the well-established positive reputation of the brand to promote the new product line. This makes it more likely that consumers will have a positive perception of the new product and be willing to try it out.

Question 20

To simplify life,people have a natural tendency to select stimuli from the environment and organize them into groups and perceive them as a unified whole.In a perception context,this is known as ________.

Accepted Answer

Perceptual organization refers to the process of grouping and arranging sensory stimuli into a coherent perception or understanding. This helps to simplify the complex and overwhelming amount of information in the environment, allowing individuals to make sense of their surroundings.

Quiz 6: Consumer Perception