Assignment 2 Is Worth 10% of Your Final Grade, and Should Be Completed After Lesson 6

Assignment 2

Assignment 2 is worth 10% of your final grade, and should be completed after Lesson 6. It has three parts.

·  Part A: four short-answer questions worth a total of 20 marks

·  Part B: five case analyses worth a total of 65 marks

·  Part C: one problem worth a total of 15 marks

Part A: Short-Answer Questions (20 marks total)

Answer each question in one to two paragraphs.

1.  What tools and mechanisms can a company use to measure its e-commerce strategies? (5 marks)

2.  What are some of the reasons a company would separate its online operations into a new company? (5 marks)

3.  What Internet-based applications would you recommend to a car manufacturing company’s supply chain manager to communicate with its suppliers? (5 marks)

4.  A traditional antiques and collections store located in Calgary, Alberta, would like to expand its market internationally using the Internet. What are the best advertising tools and actions for moving this traditional business to the Internet marketplace? Explain your choices. (5 marks)

Part B: Case Analyses (50 marks total)

Your analysis of each case should be from two to three paragraphs in length and should not exceed one page

Case 1 (25 marks)

Read Real-World Case “Toyota Scion Goes Social for Advertising and Market Research” (textbook, pp. 189–190), and answer the following questions:

1.  What are the main advertising actions and methods that the company has done to promote their products? (10 marks)

2.  Search the Web and look for other new and recent advertising initiatives and actions that are not listed in the case. (5 marks)

3.  Do you think these actions are successful in building customer satisfaction and loyalty? Explain why or why not? (10 marks)

Case 2 (20 marks)
Read “Lonely Planet Travels from Place to Space” (Online File W13.4 on the textbook companion Web site) to learn about this bricks-to-clicks business model challenge.

1.  How can the firm apply electronic technology to its travel information library? (10 marks)

2.  How was it successful in avoiding channel conflict? Discuss with examples from the case. (10 marks)

Case 3 (20 marks)
IBM has been a huge presence in the computer industry since it was formed in the 1940s. Read “IBM’S E-Business Strategy” (Online File W13.6 on the textbook companion Web site).

1.  Relate this case to strategy initiation, formulation, and implementation. (10 marks)

2.  Do you think IBM is becoming an e-business? Why or why not? (10 marks)

Part C: Problem (15 marks total)

Read “Zara: Fast Fashion Supply Chain Innovator” (online file W6.9 on the textbook companion Web site).

Describe the key actions taken by Zara to improve its supply chain. What are the key success factors that distinguish Zara’s supply chain model from its competitors?

Your response should be from two to three paragraphs in length.