For which type of products are concept tests thought to be less effective in predicting the success of a product?

a. Products that are line extensions (same product category and brand)

b. Products that are not easily classified into existing product categories

c. Products that create new consumption patterns

d. Products that do not require major changes in consumer behavior

Answer: c. Products that create new consumption patterns

The objective of brainstorming is to ______.

a. generate a large quantity of ideas through a process of rigorous objective evaluation

b. generate a small set of distilled ideas through a process of rigorous objective evaluation

c. postpone objective evaluation and focus on the sheer quantity of ideas generated

d. postpone objective evaluation but eliminate ideas that do gain unanimous acceptance

Answer: c. postpone objective evaluation and focus on the sheer quantity of ideas generated

A marketing strategy that entails the creation of marketable new products; the process of converting applications for new technologies into marketable products is called ______.

a. product development

b. niche marketing

c. idea screening

d. commercialization

Answer: a. product development

A source suggested to Rubbermaid the idea of the Sidekick, a litter-free lunch box. Rubbermaid could place some of its plastic containers inside a lunch box and sell the box as an alternative to plastic wrap and paper bags. The source saw this opportunity because of being closer to the consumers than the manufacturer was and, thus, more aware of customer needs. Which of the following was likely the source?

a. The product's distributor

b. The product's competitor

c. Customers

d. A company employee

Answer: a. The product's distributor

What do programs like Google X do to promote innovative thinking among its employees?

a. They eliminate the fear of coming up with bad ideas by rewarding failure.

b. They eliminate the possibility of investment in bad ideas by rewarding only successes.

c. They promote the fear of coming up with bad ideas by punishing failure.

d. They promote investment in bad ideas to explore the possibilities learned from them

Answer: a. They eliminate the fear of coming up with bad ideas by rewarding failure.

Which of the following statements describes a customer innovation center?

a. It is an approach to repositioning a company's products using sales figures.

b. It promotes advertising among status-conscious customers.

c. It is a forum for meeting with customers and directly involving them in the innovation process.

d. It is used in the business analysis stage of the new-product development process

Answer: c. It is a forum for meeting with customers and directly involving them in the innovation process.