IPA IP 2021 Question 16
A question IPA Japan published in 令和3年度 ITパスポート試験 公開問題 問16, translated into English. ITPEC is based on the same exams.
Which of the following is an appropriate description of merchandising?
Explanation
Activities that provide goods and services in a form that matches buyers’ needs — that is what merchandising means in retail marketing.
Merchandising is the set of activities a retailer or maker carries out so that the right goods are offered at the right place, time, quantity and price: choosing the product assortment, purchasing, pricing, and displaying and promoting goods in the store so that they match what customers want.
Answer (c)
Why not others:
- •(a) — dividing the market by needs and motives and choosing a target is market segmentation and targeting
- •(b) — managing the whole flow of goods from shipment to sale as one channel is physical distribution or logistics management (supply chain thinking)
- •(d) — opening stores densely in one area to cut delivery costs and raise presence is the dominant strategy
Key rule: Merchandising = offering the right goods in the right form, place, time, quantity and price to meet buyers’ needs; segmentation, logistics and dominant store opening are separate techniques.
Business Strategy Management · AI-written, may contain errors
This question comes from the past questions IPA Japan publishes, translated into English by ITPEC Practice. ITPEC Practice is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with IPA or ITPEC. See the original paper (PDF) or Report an issue.