A business decision that uses resources to maximize profit demonstrates which concept?

• A. Marketing mix
• B. Profit motive
• C. Corporate social responsibility
• D. Consumer surplus

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is the profit motive—the drive to use resources in ways that maximize profitability. When a business makes decisions, it weighs how to allocate inputs like labor, capital, and time to earn the most net income. That focus on turning resources into the greatest possible profit is what the profit motive is all about, and it often guides choices in pricing, production levels, and investments.

Marketing mix, while essential for selling products, is about the combination of product, price, place, and promotion used to reach customers—it doesn’t by itself reflect the underlying goal of maximizing profits from resource use. Corporate social responsibility involves acting in ways that benefit society or stakeholders, which can align with profits but isn’t the fundamental motive for using resources to maximize earnings. Consumer surplus is a concept describing the benefit to buyers—the difference between what they’re willing to pay and what they actually pay—not a business decision motive.