Achieving a differentiation means making your offering unique in a way that makes it more valuable to customers, irrespective of the costs of creating that differentiation.

[See p.186]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 2

1pts

A "business model" describes the overall configuration of a firm's business system.

[See p.171]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 3

1pts

Banks spend more money on their head office buildings than most other large corporations because:

[See p.195]

Group of answer choices

They tend to be located in financial centers where property prices are high.

They offer "experience goods", hence they need to signal wealth and stability.

Their CEOs are more committed to the display of wealth than other CEOs.

Because their products are essentially commodities, they need to find alternative ways of differentiating.

Question 4

1pts

As markets become more turbulent and unpredictable, quick-response capability depends primarily upon:

[See p.170]

Group of answer choices

Good forecasting

Early identification of emerging changes

Speed of response

Early identification of emerging changes together with speed in responding to them

Question 5

1pts

The main strategy implication of the Boston Consulting Group's analysis of experience curves was that firms should not lower profit trade profit margins in order to seek sales growth.

[See p.180]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 6

1pts

Designing a differentiation strategy requires understanding every possible interaction between a firm and its customers

[See p.188]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 7

1pts

Sustainable competitive advantage can be established in all types of market-including those financial markets deemed to be "efficient."

[See p.177]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 8

1pts

The difference between "search goods" and "experience goods" depends upon whether customers can ascertain the product's true attributes: on inspection or only after consuming the product

[See pp.194-195]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 9

1pts

Causal ambiguity allows a firm's competitive advantage to be sustained because potential rivals are:

[See p.175]

Group of answer choices

Deterred from directly competing with the advantaged firm

Unable to identify the sources of the advantaged firm's superior performance

Unable to acquire the resources needed to compete against the advantaged firm

All the above

Question 10

1pts

To understand customer' willingness to pay for differentiation, it is important to know what motivates customers, and the criteria they apply when choosing among competing products.

[See pp.190-191]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 11

1pts

Differentiation addresses "how" a firm competes in terms of the way in which it can offer uniqueness to its customers

[See p.189]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 12

1pts

In retailing, the cost advantages of large retail chains (such as Wal-Mart in the US, Tesco in Britain, Metro in Germany, and Carrefour in France) is primarily the result of:

[See pp.179-185]

Group of answer choices

Scale economies in operating large individual retail units.

Lower costs of bought-in products as a result of superior bargaining power.

Higher capacity utilization in retailing and distribution.

Using superior bargaining power to pay lower wage rates.

Question 13

1pts

If the prices of securities fully reflect all the information available, then passive investors are best advised to invest in index-based mutual funds (unit trusts) with the lowest administration costs.

[See p. 177]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 14

1pts

The principal distinction between segmentation and differentiation is that segmentation is a strategic choice by a firm while differentiation is a feature of market structure.

[See p.189]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 15

1pts

Physical characteristics of a product are of little importance in determining its potential for differentiation

[See p.188]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 16

1pts

In supplying "lifestyle" products which are designed to meet consumers' social and psychological needs, the key to differentiation advantage is:

[See pp.190-193]

Group of answer choices

A relentless pursuit of quality.

Thorough market research.

Product integrity.

Market segmentation.

Question 17

1pts

In the automobile industry, scale economies have resulted in the biggest automobile companies-Toyota, General Motors, Volkswagen, Ford, and Hyundai-also being the most profitable.

[See p.182]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 18

1pts

Strategic innovation comprises the introduction of novel products or processes that embody new technology

[See p.170]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 19

1pts

Competitive advantage is invariably revealed by a firm being more profitable than its rivals.

[See pp.168-169]

Group of answer choices

True

False

Question 20

1pts

A firm's competitive advantages can only be sustained if it is protected by some form of "isolating mechanisms."

[See p.173]

Group of answer choices

True

False