Marketing Management Study Guide (Chapters 4, 9, 11, 13 & 14)

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering Market Research Essentials, Branding, Pricing Decisions, Digital & Social Media Promotion, and Legacy Promotion Methods from Marketing Management Chapters 4, 9, 11, 13, and 14.

Market Information System (MIS)

A continuing process of identifying, collecting, analyzing, accumulating, and distributing important information to marketing decision makers; acts as an information bank storing useful data.

Exploratory Research

Research focused on discovery to clarify a problem and gain insight; often used as an early step to help develop hypotheses and survey questions.

Descriptive Research

Research designed to describe or explain a phenomenon and identify associations, such as target-market characteristics, competitor actions, product use, and demographic differences.

Causal Research

Research designed to discover cause-and-effect relationships between variables.

Primary Data

Data collected specifically for the research question at hand, requiring new collection through qualitative or quantitative methods.

Secondary Data

Data collected previously for a purpose other than the current problem, such as existing company data or previously collected information.

Focus Group

A primary data technique usually consisting of 6–10 people led by a professional moderator; open and relatively unstructured, non-representative, and useful for developing surveys and gaining rich discussion.

In-depth Interview

A one-on-one, unstructured or loosely structured interview with an individual selected for a characteristic of interest.

Behavioral Data

Data based on what consumers actually do (what, when, and how often they buy or interact), rather than what they say they will do.

Mechanical Observation

An observational research technique that uses devices such as turnstiles, traffic counters, eye cameras, or other tracking technology.

Brand

A name, term, design, symbol, or other feature that identifies one seller's goods or services as distinct from those of other sellers.

Brand Strategy

The unique set of elements that defines the products sold by a firm.

Brand Equity

The set of assets and liabilities linked to a brand name and symbol that adds to or subtracts from the value provided by a product or service to the firm or its customers.

Brand Awareness

The most basic dimension of brand equity where customers know or recognize the brand, forming the foundation for other relationships.

Brand Loyalty

The strongest dimension of brand equity, characterized by a commitment to repeat purchases; loyal customers may act as brand ambassadors and reduce marketing costs.

Brand Association

Emotional, psychological, and performance ideas that customers connect with a brand.

Perceived Quality

A customer's positive or negative perception of quality that can support product differentiation and higher prices.

Stand-alone Branding

A branding approach where brands operate separately to insulate the company if one brand has a problem, though it costs more to create and maintain.

Family Branding

A branding approach that creates synergy by using one brand across multiple products, though a problem with one product can negatively affect the whole family.

Brand Extension

Using an existing brand name for a new product.

Line Extension

Adding variations within an existing product line.

Category Extension

Using an existing brand to enter a different product category.

Licensing

Allowing another manufacturer to use a brand for a fee or percentage of sales, requiring monitoring for quality and brand-image protection.

Co-branding

A partnership where two or more established brands join together on a product or marketing effort to share strength, enter new markets, and reduce communication costs.

Value

The ratio of the bundle of benefits a customer receives from an offering compared with the costs incurred to obtain those benefits.

Penetration Pricing

Setting a relatively low price to maximize market share, gain sales, and create a barrier to competitors.

Price Skimming

Entering the market at the highest possible initial price to capture early sales, signal quality or prestige, or benefit from first-mover advantage.

Target ROI Pricing

Setting a profit or return target and pricing an offering to achieve it, taking into account whether demand supports that price.

Competitor-based Pricing

Setting prices at, above, or below competitors based on their pricing patterns as a benchmark.

Value Pricing

Setting prices by considering the full offering and differential benefits (image, service, quality, personnel, innovation) to meet or exceed customer expectations.

Price Elasticity of Demand

A measure of customer price sensitivity that evaluates how quantity demanded changes relative to a price change.

Stability Pricing

Setting a neutral price point that avoids irritating competitors or damaging the customer value proposition.

Product Line Pricing (Price Lining)

Setting different prices across related products to reflect varying tiers of benefits, such as hotel room tiers or vehicle models.

Captive / Complementary Pricing

Selling a basic product that requires repeat purchases of related items (such as a printer and ink), or charging a base membership fee plus usage fees.

Price Bundling

Combining multiple products or features into one single package price.

Reference Pricing

Providing shoppers with a comparison price to evaluate, such as listing an original price next to a sale price or placing store and national brands side by side.

Prestige Pricing

Setting a high price point to signal quality, luxury, or exclusivity.

Everyday Low Pricing (EDLP)

A tactical pricing strategy that offers consistently low prices with typically less reliance on frequent promotional discounts.

High/Low Pricing

A tactical pricing strategy featuring regular prices accompanied by temporary promotional discounts to stimulate sales or respond to competitors.

Just Noticeable Difference (JND)

The amount of price increase that can occur without negatively affecting customer demand.

Price Fixing

An illegal practice where competitors collude horizontally or channel members collude vertically to set product prices.

Price Discrimination

Charging different customers different prices without a substantive basis in a manner that harms competition.

Predatory Pricing

Intentionally pricing below cost to drive a competitor out of the market, followed by raising prices once competition is removed.

Consumer Goods Pricing Act (1975)

Federal legislation that repealed state fair-trade and minimum-markup laws.

Promotion

Communication with customers designed to inform, persuade, or remind.

Push Strategy

A promotional approach that focuses on the distribution channel by offering incentives to retailers or salespeople to get the offering into the channel.

Pull Strategy

A promotional approach that stimulates demand directly from end users so customers actively seek out the product.

AIDA Model

A hierarchy of effects outlining customer responses through Attention (cognitive/learn), Interest (affective/feel), Desire (affective/feel), and Action (behavioral/purchase).

Paid Media

Advertising channels paid for by a company (e.g., display, search, native, and social ads) that offer reach, control, and targeting, but may struggle with clutter and credibility.

Owned Media

Communication channels completely controlled by the company (e.g., website, email, blog, and social accounts) providing long-lasting, flexible, and targeted engagement.

Earned Media

Third-party customer exposure (e.g., word-of-mouth shares, reviews, and PR mentions) that is highly credible and cost-efficient, but outside company control.

Interstitials

Full-page digital advertisements that appear before a viewer reaches the intended webpage.

Retargeting

Display advertising served to a consumer after they have visited a related company website or product page.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Actions intended to improve placement in relevant organic search engine results to increase discoverability, credibility, and customer connection.

Institutional Advertising

Advertising designed to promote an entire industry, company, or family of brands rather than a specific individual product.

Pioneering Advertising

Advertising designed to stimulate primary demand for an entire product category; typical during the introduction and early growth stages of the product life cycle.

Competitive Advertising

Advertising that seeks to build sales of a specific brand by persuading, informing, and cultivating positive attitudes; common in growth and early maturity stages.

Comparative Advertising

Advertising that directly compares two or more competing brands, generally used when legitimate claims favor the advertiser but not recommended for market leaders.

Reach

The percentage of individuals in a target market exposed to an advertisement at least once during a specified time period.

Frequency

The average number of times an individual in the target market is exposed to an advertising message.

Sales Promotion

Short-term incentives designed to encourage immediate buying action among consumers or channel members; aligns with the behavioral/action stage of AIDA.

Public Relations (PR)

A systematic effort to influence attitudes, opinions, and behavior, often utilizing unpaid publicity and community involvement.

Personal Selling

One-to-one, two-way communication between a salesperson and a buyer intended to secure, build, and maintain long-term profitable customer relationships.