Sample Midterm

SAMPLE MIDTERM

PLEASE DO NOT PUT YOUR NAME ON THIS EXAM, but indicate your exam number on the sheet which will be circulating.

Part I: Short Answers (Please answer ANY 6 of the following 8 questions. If you answer more than six, only the first six questions will count toward your grade. If you start on an answer and decide to abandon it, please make sure that your answer is crossed out.)

Please discuss the significance of the concept of "market balance." How well balanced do you perceive the U.S. market for fast food to be, and what are the implications of this?
According to the text, what are some interesting characteristics of mail order shoppers identified in a study?
Many stores claim that they save money and pass on these savings to customers by "eliminating the middleman." Please discuss this claim.
According to the text, what are some risks and costs associated with catalog marketing? How would you say these compare to those associated with conventional retailing?
Please discuss which kinds of distribution objectives would be appropriate for Mars Candy (makers of Snickers and various other candies and candy bars).
Within the context of service outputs, please discuss why segmentation is essential, illustrating with the case of the television set (TVs, not programming) industry.
According to the text, what kind of service does Peapod.com aim to offer? Specifically, what kinds of benefits does it believe that its customers are willing to trade off against each other?
Under which circumstances is electronic commerce (e.g., Internet sales) likely to be most successful?
Please discuss issues in optimizing web sites for better ranking on search engines.
Please discuss characteristics for products that are better suited for sale by electronic commerce.