TEST: casket display and terms

test is 11/10, study hard and the world is yours.

what is merchandise?

goods that are bought and sold

what is merchandising?

purchase, display, and sales of goods

what is a merchandising plan?

types of caskets, vaults, urns, etc. that a director shows, their cost, and how they are displayed

what is customer value based pricing?

effective, customer value based pricing involves understanding how much value consumers place on the benefits they receive from the product, then setting a price that captures that value

what are fixed costs?

overhead costs, do not vary with production or sales level - ex. monthly rent, salaries

what are variable costs?

vary directly with level of production - ex. making cars, parts of cars vary with amount of units produced 

what are total costs?

sum of the fixed and variable costs for any given level of production

what is competition based pricing?

focuses solely on what the competition is charging, and strive to meet or beat those prices

what is pricing determination?

method used by management to establish the selling price for services and merchandise

what is a mark up?

difference between merchandise cost and selling price, also known as gross margin

what is a fixed multiple?

also known as times factor, set number wholesale price is multiplied by

what is a percent?

fixed percent that is added to price

what is a fixed dollar amount?

adding same dollar amount to wholesale cost each time

what is a consumer value index?

percentage derived by dividing the wholesale amount of the merchandise by retail price of the merchandise 

what is a gross casket profit/margin?

retail price minus wholesale cost equals margin

what is a price gap?

difference in the retail price of the next unit below

what is a fixed multiple?

method where the mark up is multiplied by a constant factor, same applied to all caskets

what is a graduated recovery?

pricing method where mark up varies, higher caskets given higher mark up

what is a declining price structure?

pricing method where there is an inverse relationship between markup and the price of the casket, higher priced caskets given lower markup

what is a modified declining price?

same as declining method but with lower markups at very bottom end

what is a mean?

sum of group of numbers divided by number of units

what is a median?

value in an order set of values which represents the midpoint, whereby there an equal number of values above and below the midpoint value 

what is a mode?

number that appears most frequently in a listing of numbers

what is a quartile?

division of total into four intervals, each one representing ¼ of the total

what is a range?

caskets sold in 2nd and 3rd quartile, between a given upper and lower boundary of numbers

what is itemization?

each unit of service and merchandise priced separately 

what is unit pricing?

method of price quotation which creates one total price package for both service and merchandise

what is bi-unit pricing?

method of price quotation showing separately the price of services and the casket

what is functional pricing?

method of price quotation by which charges are broken down into several component parts, such as professional services, facilities, automobiles and merchandise

what is package pricing?

method of pricing where certain items of service and merchandise are grouped together and sold at a specific price 

what is a cash advance item?

any item of service or merchandise described to a purchaser as a ‘cash advanced’ or similar term - any item obtained from a third party and paid for by the funeral provider of the purchaser’s behalf

what is sales frequency?

number of times sales in a given price bracket occurring over a fixed period of time

what is a sales frequency chart?

any chart on which all sales are listed showing the number of sales in any sales bracket

what is the order of preference for where a casket display room should be?

• main floor

• upper floor

• lower floor

what lighting is best for a casket display room?

indirect, recessed incandescent

what foot candles are optimal?

90 - 100, ideally at pillow height

what does foot candle mean?

amount of illumination produced by one candle at a distance of one foot

what is fluorescent?

electric discharge in tube 

what is incandescent?

glowing of heated filament

what is direct?

light directly shining on an object

what is indirect?

reflected illumination of an object

what is a casket stand?

stand or support upon which a casket rests in the selection room, should be sturdy and attractive 

what is a church truck?

wheeled, collapsible support for casket, used in funeral home, church, or other location when moving caskets

what is a casket bier?

typically a stand upon which a casket is placed for viewing and services, but sometimes a means of merchandise display

what is the upper and lower range for caskets that should be displayed at once?

minimum 12, maximum 30, ideally 40-60 sq.ft per casket

what is the consecutive method?

caskets arranged in order of increasing or decreasing price 

what is alternative pricing arrangement?

each group of caskets have a low, medium and high cost casket in one area

what is a demonstration group of caskets?

group of caskets used to educate the selecting party on construction, casket differences, features that affect price, where prices are found

what is a direct selection room procedure?

funeral director remains in selection room through process

what is an indirect selection room procedure?

funeral director does not stay in selection room during process 

what are some ways you could arrange caskets?

consecutively, by material, by alternative pricing, by appearance