BCS Written Marketing flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Marketing myopia

A narrow product-centred view in which a firm defines its business by what it sells rather than by the customer need it satisfies, leading to lost relevance when substitutes emerge.

Societal marketing concept

A management orientation holding that the firm should deliver customer satisfaction and profit while preserving or improving consumer and social well-being over the long run.

Customer perceived value

The difference between the total benefits a customer expects from an offering and the total costs of obtaining and using it, including money, time, and effort.

PESTLE analysis

A macro-environment scanning framework covering political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental forces that shape opportunities and threats outside the firm's control.

Evoked set

The small subset of brands a buyer actively considers when making a purchase decision, drawn from those recognised but filtered by memory and evaluation.

Cognitive dissonance

Post-purchase discomfort arising when a buyer doubts a chosen alternative or notices attractive features of rejected options, often reduced through reassurance and warranties.

Reference group

Any person or group serving as a comparison point for an individual's beliefs, attitudes, or behaviour, classified as membership, aspirational, or dissociative.

Exploratory research

A flexible, small-sample research design used to clarify a problem and generate hypotheses before more structured descriptive or causal research is undertaken.

Probability sampling

A sampling method in which every population element has a known, non-zero chance of selection, allowing statistical inference from sample results to the whole population.

Chain-ratio method

A forecasting technique that multiplies successive percentages of qualifying conditions to estimate total market demand from a broad base figure such as population.

Delphi method

An iterative qualitative forecasting technique in which experts submit anonymous estimates across several rounds until opinions converge, avoiding dominance by senior or vocal participants.

Market segmentation

Dividing a heterogeneous market into distinct groups of buyers with similar needs, characteristics, or behaviour who might require separate products or marketing programmes.

Points of difference

Attributes or benefits that consumers strongly associate with a brand, evaluate positively, and believe competitors cannot offer to the same degree.

Perceptual map

A visual plot positioning competing brands on two attributes according to customer perceptions, used to identify gaps and crowding in the competitive space.

Concentrated targeting

A strategy in which the firm selects one well-defined segment and tailors its entire marketing mix to that niche rather than serving the whole market.

Product life cycle

A model describing sales and profit patterns across introduction, growth, maturity, and decline stages, each requiring different pricing, promotion, and distribution decisions.

Brand equity

The added value a brand name confers on a product, reflected in awareness, perceived quality, associations, and loyalty that produce differential customer response.

Concept testing

Presenting a new product idea or prototype to target customers to measure comprehension, liking, trial intention, and purchase intention before full development.

Line extension

Introducing additional items within an existing product category under the same brand, such as new flavours, sizes, or formulations, to broaden appeal.

Break-even analysis

A calculation of the sales volume at which total revenue equals total cost, found by dividing fixed costs by the unit contribution margin.

Price elasticity of demand

The percentage change in quantity demanded divided by the percentage change in price; absolute values above one indicate elastic, price-sensitive demand.

Price skimming

Setting a high initial price to capture maximum revenue from early adopters, then lowering it over time to reach more price-sensitive segments.

Penetration pricing

Setting a low initial price to attract buyers quickly, build market share, and discourage entrants, accepting thinner margins in the short term.

Selective distribution

Using more than one but fewer than all available intermediaries, chosen against criteria, to balance market coverage with channel control and brand image.

Vertical marketing system

A channel arrangement in which producer, wholesaler, and retailer act as a unified system through corporate ownership, administered coordination, or contractual agreement.

Economic order quantity

The order size that minimises the combined cost of ordering and holding inventory, balancing replenishment frequency against carrying costs.

Bullwhip effect

The tendency for demand variability to amplify as orders move upstream in a supply chain, causing excess inventory and inefficiency.

Integrated marketing communication

Coordinating all promotional tools and channels so they deliver a single, consistent message about the brand to every target audience.

Gross rating points

A media planning measure equal to reach percentage multiplied by average frequency, expressing total advertising weight against a target audience.

Objective-and-task budgeting

A promotion budgeting method that defines communication objectives, specifies the tasks needed to achieve them, and costs out those tasks to set the budget.

Ansoff growth matrix

A strategic framework pairing existing and new markets with existing and new products to yield penetration, market development, product development, and diversification options.

Marketing audit

A comprehensive, systematic, independent, and periodic review of a firm's marketing environment, objectives, strategies, and activities to identify problems and opportunities.