Four key marketing decision variables are price (p), advertising (a), transportation (t), and product quality (q). consumer demand (d) is influenced by these variables. the simplest model for describing demand in terms of these variables is: d = k – pp + aa + tt + qq where k, p, a, t, and q are constants. discuss the assumptions of this model. specifically, how does each variable affect demand? how do the variables influence each other? what limitations might this model have? how can it be improved?

Lavage rapide is a canadian company that owns and operates a large automatic car wash facility near montreal. the following table provides data concerning the company’s costs: fixed cost per month cost per car washed cleaning supplies $ 0.70 electricity $ 1,400 $ 0.07 maintenance $ 0.15 wages and salaries $ 4,900 $ 0.30 depreciation $ 8,300 rent $ 1,900 administrative expenses $ 1,400 $ 0.03 for example, electricity costs are $1,400 per month plus $0.07 per car washed. the company expects to wash 8,000 cars in august and to collect an average of $6.50 per car washed. the actual operating results for august appear below. lavage rapide income statement for the month ended august 31 actual cars washed 8,100 revenue $ 54,100 expenses: cleaning supplies 6,100 electricity 1,930 maintenance 1,440 wages and salaries 7,660 depreciation 8,300 rent 2,100 administrative expenses 1,540 total expense 29,070 net operating income $ 25,030 required: calculate the company's revenue and spending variances for august.

Why do you think the compensation plans differ at the two firms? in particular, why do you think kaufmann’s pays commissions to salespeople, while parkleigh does not? why does parkleigh offer employees discounts on purchases, while kaufmann’s does not?

Which of the following statements are false regarding activity-based costing? non-manufacturing costs are important to include when calculating the cost of each product. costs are allocated based on a pre-determined overhead rate. transitioning from traditional costing methods to activity-based costing can be complicated and costly. activity-based costing follows the same basic calculation methods as traditional costing approaches. none of the above