Question

LEGO’s Mission states, “To inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow.”

The 2015 Annual Report from The LEGO group has a picture on the cover of an elementary school aged girl playing with LEGOs. Such an image would have been surprising a decade earlier, as LEGO has traditionally used targeted markets aimed at boys of the same age. Overtime, LEGO received pressure to develop product lines for girls, debunking the assumption that the builders of tomorrow are boys.

In 2011, LEGO launched a new line called LEGO Friends. Along with other female-oriented lines including LEGO Disney, LEGO Friends were marketed for young girls. LEGO also launched a LEGO Friends cartoon series.

The LEGO Friends products were not without controversy. Many parents complained that the figures built for girls were more clunky than the figures available for boys. Parents also complained that while other LEGO lines included characters engaged in heroic, meaningful, important work, the LEGO Friends series initially featured shopping malls, nail salons, and other activities that were not attractive to parents. LEGO failed to recognize that parents who would encourage daughters to play with blocks were the same parents who would reject overly gender-biased products.

In 2013, LEGO Friends added sets that included veterinarian clinics, tree houses, and camping adventures. By 2015, LEGO Friends was one of LEGOs top selling lines, competing with popular sets marketed to boys including with LEGO Star Wars, LEGO City and LEGO Ninjago.

LEGO’s latest attempt to develop products for young girls includes a launch of LEGO DC Super Hero Girls, featuring characters like Batgirl, Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivey. A LEGO press release said, “The aim of DC Super Hero Girls is to provide children with a relatable world filled with aspirational characters, immersive stories and action-packed missions that inspire girls aged 7-10 to be smart, courageous and empowered to be an everyday Super Hero.”

https://www.lego.com/en-us/aboutus/lego-group/annual-report
http://kastorskorner.com/wp/lego-expands-dc-superheroes-sets-2017/
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/03/living/lego-petition-female-minifigures/index.html

1. As LEGO develops new lines of products moving forward, the company should consider using which of the following market strategies?

A. total-market approach

B. multisegment approach

C. concentration approach

D. All of the answers are correct.

E. None of the answers are correct.

2. When initially developing LEGO Friends products, LEGO appeared to define the market based on which of the following variables?

A.geographic

B. psychographic

C. behavioristic

D. demographic

E. None of the answers are correct.

3. While developing products for the LEGO DC Super Hero Girls line, the company should develop a marketing strategy based on which of the following bases, given that girls with certain personality characteristics are likely to be attracted to the products?

A. psychographic

B. demographic

C. geographic

D. behavioristic

E. None of the answers are true.

4. LEGO Friends initial controversy from parents was most related to a weakness in which component of the marketing mix?

A. niche

B. promotion

C. distribution

D. price

E. product

5. LEGO’s decision to develop products for girls was most likely influenced by which of the following external forces?

A. Political, legal, and regulatory forces

B. Competitive and economic forces

C. Social forces

D. Technological forces

E. Geographic forces

Answer 1

1. As LEGO develops new lines of products moving forward, the company should consider using which of the following market strategies?

B. multi-segment approach

Reason: This means targeting each segment of the customers separately

2. When initially developing LEGO Friends products, LEGO appeared to define the market based on which of the following variables?

B. psychographic

Reason: It developed products based on psychographic characteristics of girls and boys

3. While developing products for the LEGO DC Super Hero Girls line, the company should develop a marketing strategy based on which of the following bases, given that girls with certain personality characteristics are likely to be attracted to the products?

A. psychographic

Reason: A marketing mix based on Psychographic characteristics of girls is needed

4. LEGO Friends initial controversy from parents was most related to a weakness in which component of the marketing mix?

A. niche

Reason: Since the small market was not targeted properly

5. LEGO’s decision to develop products for girls was most likely influenced by which of the following external forces?

C. Social forces

Reason: As the products developed for girls were opposed by the society