20 David J. Smith and Barbara A. VanderWerf RECURRING CASE SCENARIO As a matter of efficiency and effectiveness, there will be a recurring applied scenario from time to time throughout the book. The introduction and background will be provided here, and then as new topics are developed, conditions and questions regarding the business will be addressed as an example. This is the place where real, practical work is done. This is "on the ground." On the Ground Matt Brown and his family own Everything Automotive. The store would be described as a typical auto parts store with expert consulting service. The company has been in the family since 1958, originally started by his grandfather, Joe Brown. There are currently three differentMatt Brown and his family own Everything Automotive. The store would be described as a typical auto parts store with expert consulting service. The company has been in the family since 1958, originally started by his grandfather, Joe Brown. There are currently three different locations: Mountainview, Meadow Valley, and Hildale. Mountainview is the north location and is about 35 miles from Meadow Valley. Consequently, Hildale is located about 20 miles to the south of Meadow Valley. Matt's managing director is Mark Jones, and each of the locations has an onsite manager. Everything Automotive (EA) has been part of the Independent Auto Parts Association for the last 25 years, and this has allowed them to stay somewhat competitive with the large chains of today. As of 2017, Mountainview has been enjoying a six percent prot on average over the last ve years; Meadow Valley's prot has been zero percent during that same time, while the Hildale location has been losing about two percent. Matt Brown believes it is now time to make some decisions as to the future viability and direction of EA. He feels the company has become out of touch with its customers and less competitive with product offerings. Therefore, he has decided to undertake a comprehensive marketing Common Misunderstandings 21 research campaign with an attempt to properly position his product and become more protable. His primary questions right now are: 0 Who are our customers? 0 How do our customers differ at the different locations? 0 What are our customers' preferences and habits? - How do we get and keep more customers? 0 What advertising approach should we be using? These are the big questions. As we move forward through the book, more questions will inevitably appear