Q1. Discuss briefly about customer retention strategies in Customer relationship management.

Answer:Customer relationship management (CRM) is a broadly recognized, worldwide implemented strategy to manage a companys interactions with customers, clients and sales prospects. It involves usage of technologies to organize, automate, and synchronize business processes, like sales activities and also those for marketing, customer service, and technical support.

Customer Retention Strategies As 3Lowenstein highlighted what customer loyalty is all about. It is all about driving perceived value, whether rational values like functional, quality, cost, etc., or emotional trust, service, communication, information, brand equity, etc. or a combination of these two dimensions. Many customer retention strategies have been formulated, applied, and reviewed to get a high customer retention rate. Here to retain a customer, what a company does in order keep customers coming back is to build strategies.
Customer retention rate is the number of clients that a company has lost in a predefined time span. This is calculated by existing customers times the rate of customers lost in a certain period, be it annual or quarterly, without including the newly acquired customers. Many companies are struggling over retaining the customers, they always try to find the best customer retention strategies to keep their sales up. Customer retention ideas are thought of, customer retention programs are made, customer relationship tips are followed, but somehow the problem still remains the same. They invest in new technologies, exerting much effort and labor in measuring the return of investment in the expenditures. The puzzle stands, the solutions are brought in, but still the problem remains. Out of all these efforts, there is one thing that seems so obvious and may be considered as the only answer to this entire situation. And that is, doing a good job. Analyzing reasons for losing customers Losing customer means customers stop the interacting with current service provider and turn to the other providers. To know the reason of losing customer is to understand the customer behavioral process. Generally, the evaluation of the service and product affects the customers willing to change company. This is coordinated with customer behaviors including the outside factors, for example, promotion of the competitor and the difference between different customers, Price related reasons: Most customers try to match the price they pay for acquiring a service and the value it could generate. If the customer perceives a mismatch between the price and the value, he/she would opt for competitor service provider. Also, if the price of service for any reason goes beyond his/her reach, he/she would switch over to an affordable service. Thus, the role of price in customer retention is very significant. Product related reasons: the physical components associated with the service could also be a reason for losing customers. If technological advancements, innovative systems and new developments in products do not aid service design or its delivery, then even good service providers cannot perform the service in the desired manner. Services related reasons: Customers concentrate not only on the main service, but also on the accompanying or support services offered at different stages of the service delivery. Any

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dissatisfaction as regards to services would cause the customer to move away from the whole service product. Benefit related reasons: Customers may be attracted by various augmented benefits offered by the competitors. Such benefits may be more appealing and induce customers towards brand changes. Competitor related reasons: Technological advancement, attractive offers, value added services offered by competitors would also draw the attention and induce customers towards switching service providers.

Q2. Explain briefly the 7Ps of marketing mix

Answer:The 7 Ps The 7Ps of service marketing mix are: Product: This should provide value to the customer though it need not be a tangible product. Every good is associated with a service component as is every service with a physical good. However, the degree of association may vary. For example, when a person goes to a beauty salon, the expertise of beauticians is a service where as the instruments, cosmetics and tools used would be goods. When the person comes out, ideally he/she should be satisfied with his/her transformed appearance. A product as a whole is a combination of service element as well as physical product element. For the product to be successful in the market it must be of a good quality, have a brand name, must have guarantee, features and so on.

Benefits Provided by Product

Price: In service marketing, price is fixed for services and depends on the service provider and service delivery. Pricing needs to o be competitive and must necessitate profit. The cost strategy includes discounts and offers. Service rates are often variable and depend on the nature and type of service as well as on customers who may either not entirely use the service or pay only for the service rendered to him/her. For example, if a person buys a movie ticket, he may not wait till the whole movie is complete to come out. Usually, product prices include recommended prices to end-user customers,

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distributor's trade prices, cash/seasonal/festival discounts, bulk discounts, combo offers, credit terms, payment modes and so on. Place: This means where and when the customer buys and consumes the product or service. It is the place where the customer purchases the product and the manner in which product reaches out to the particular place. This happens through various channels like internet, wholesale, and retail traders. In service marketing, it depends on where and how service is delivered to the customer. Most often, customer goes to the service provider or service provider delivers service to customers location. Promotion: This includes adopting various ways to communicate to the customer regarding the product offers of the company. This also includes communicating about the advantages of a product or a service than speaking about its features. Usually adopted promotion techniques include advertising, sales promotions, publicity, direct marketing, exhibitions, displays, packaging, and word-of-mouth. Service marketing even caters to individual customers and designs offers that are tailor made. This is called as personalized or privileged or customized services. For example, matrimonial agencies and sites provide personalized services to their customers. People: People include the customers, employees, and management. An essential ingredient to any service provision is the use of appropriate staff and people. In service marketing, customers also have an active role in the service delivery. A good service provider should ensure that the service as well as its experience delights the customers and not just satisfies him/her. Customers should look forward for such experience and benefit from service Process: Process refers to the systems used to assist the organization in delivering the service. Any process whether it is electronic, mechanical or manual, service providers should ensure that it helps in providing efficient service to the customers without causing any disturbance or delays. A service delivery process must assist in raising service quality/standards and reduce service gaps or customer wait Physical evidence: In service marketing, physical evidence serves as a proof of service experienced. Since services are basically intangible, certain things can add to the experience of service such as complimentary items offered during service, Pamphlets and brochures that create product awareness. Consumers will make perceptions based on their sensory abilities of the service provision, which will have an impact on the organizations perceptual plan of the service.

Q3. Explain the stages in new service development and its implementation.
Answer:Products that are not developed within a framework are less likely to succeed when compared to those developed and implemented within a structured planning framework. The new service development system must have four basic characteristics because of the intangible nature of service. The four basic characteristics are: Service must not be subjective, it should be objective. It should be well defined not vague or ambiguous.

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It must be based on facts rather than opinions. It should be a step wise procedure rather than a philosophical one.

Stages in new service development Front end planning Let us learn the different development stages involved in front end planning, which include: 1. Business strategy development or review: Every organization has a unique vision and mission. A new service can be developed by first reviewing this vision and mission. The new service developed should align itself with the strategic vision and mission of the organization. The growth efforts of the organization must also be considered while developing the new service. 2. New service strategy development: A product portfolio strategy and defined organizational structure for a new product or service development is critical for the success of an organization. The goals, vision, capabilities, and growth plans of the organization need to be considered while developing new types of services. A new service strategy could be defined in terms of markets, types of services, time horizon for development, profit criteria, or other factors. 3. Idea generation: Generation of new ideas is the next step in the process. The new service strategy screen screens the idea developed at this phase. Brainstorming, ideas from employees and customers, lead user research, learning about competitors are the methods used for idea generation. 4. Service concept development and evaluation: The development phase begins once the idea is regarded to fit both the business and new service strategies. For a tangible product, forming the product description and drawings and presenting it to customers would be the next step. Service being intangible, places complex demands on this phase of the process. Describing an intangible service in concrete terms is difficult. 5. Business analysis: Estimating the economic feasibility and potential profit implications form a part of the next step after development. Demand analysis, revenue projections, cost analyses and operational feasibility are assessed at this stage. After learning about the front-end planning, let us now discuss about the implementation. Implementation We shall now learn the different development stages involved in implementation, which include: 1. Service development and testing: This is the step where product prototypes are constructed and customer acceptance is tested. This step presents unique challenges due to the intangible nature of service and the fact that the production and consumption is simultaneous. These challenges can be addressed by involving all those who are involved in the new service in this step of the process. It is in this step that the service is refined and service blueprint is drawn out. 2. Market testing: This is the stage where market acceptance is evaluated by introducing the new service in a test market. Due to the nature of services, it is difficult to test services in isolation. The new services might be offered to employees and their families for a time to assess their responsiveness to variations in the marketing mix. 3. Commercialization: The service goes live and is introduced in the marketplace in this stage of the process. This step involves the building and maintaining acceptance of the new service in the market. Excellent internal marketing will contribute significantly to the success of the new service. 4. Post introduction evaluation: At this point, the information gathered during commercialization of the service can be reviewed and changes made to the delivery process,

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staffing, or marketing mix variables on the basis of actual market response to the offering. Service never remains the same. Hence it is necessary to evaluate the changes so as to improve service quality.

Q4. Discuss the GAP Model briefly.

Answer:The GAP model This model offers an incorporated view of the relationship between the customer and the company. This model is based on a substantial research performed by several service providers. As in the Gronroos model, it shows the perception gap and summaries the contributory elements. The provider gaps are those that happen within the organization. It is the difference between the expectations of the customer and the understanding; the firm has regarding those expectations. Most of the organizations fail to meet the client expectations due to their lack of understanding of those aspirations. The provider gaps include GAP 1, GAP 2, GAP 3, GAP 4 and GAP 5. Each GAP occurs due to the inconsistencies and discrepancies in the quality management process. GAP 1: This is known as the management perception gap. This occurs mainly due to the difference between the service expected by the customers and the perception the management have regarding the customer expectations. Failure in understanding the client expectations leads the services organizations into trouble. The lack of proper understanding of the client expectations might cause a sequence of bad decisions and result in poor quality perception by the clients. Services organizations must examine the gap in a proper way and try to fill it up. GAP 2: This is known as the quality specification gap. This occurs due to the difference between the management perception of client expectation, designs, and the standards of customer driven service. The precise perception of the service providers regarding the customer expectations will not be sufficient to deliver better quality service. Some of the service firms will have effective information and communication network. These firms will be capable of supervising without a gap in the first level. GAP 2 is the second test the firms need to cross. They can achieve this by implementing excellence in performance. Service design and the performance standards are the pre-requisites for achieving the excellence in performance. Translation of service quality is a complex procedure the service providers need to manage. GAP 3: This means service delivery gap and occurs due to the difference between the client driven service designs and service delivery and standards. Even if you formulate guidelines to perform services, it will not assure quality service performance. The standards should be supported by adequate and suitable resources like systems, people and technology. The employee motivation and satisfaction play a prominent role in the entire procedure. GAP 4: This is the Market Communication gap and refers to the service delivery and external communications to the customers. Service firms assure their efficiency through external marketing process to the existing as well as the potential clients. These promises do make an impact on the customer expectations. These expectations will serve as standards against which the client assesses the quality of the delivered service or product.

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Gap 5: This means perceived quality gap and occurs due to the difference between organizations perceived service and the expected service. It is difficult to evaluate the reasons for this gap, but the organizations need to expect some negative results when such a gap occurs. But you can see that this GAP also creates a positive impact. If the perceived quality surpass the accepted quality, the clients will be happy, which in turn will be beneficial for the organization. The GAP model helps the management to identify the real reasons for quality problems and to determine different ways to avoid those gaps. The identification of the possible gaps helps the management in checking various levels and averts the probable mistakes. You can perform an audit of all these errors which creates confidence in the service provider and the organization. These audits enable them to perform well at the crisis situations.

Q5. Discuss about the marketing of services in Banking sector, Airline industry, Hospitality sector.
Answer:Marketing of Banking Services Marketing banks is a combination of functions for providing services to satisfy customers financial needs and wants, more effectively and efficiently keeping in view the objectives of the bank. Banking services is the creation and delivery of financial services appropriate to meet customer's needs. Marketing these services play an important role as they provide revenue to the bank. Then there are three main categories of banks are: Commercial banks: It consists of all those banks that provide banking services to the people and normally charge for the services that they provide. They are further categorized in two as nationalized banks and private banks. Co-operative banks: These banks are also formed with the help of the government. they provide the long term and short term credits to customers. Short term credits are provided by the State Cooperative and District Central Cooperative Banks provide financial services for activities. Long term credit is provided by Primary Cooperative Agriculture banks like Primary Cooperative Agricultural Bank. Development banks: the role of these banks is to provide the capital raising services to the industries. Their main focus is to help the industries to develop by lending them money.

The main aim of all banks is to provide financial services to the people or the target customers. The target customer change base on the sector on which the bank offers services Airlines marketing The Indian Aviation sector is one of the fastest growing aviation industries in the world. It can be broadly divided into the following main categories: Scheduled air transport service includes domestic and international flights. For example Indian Airlines, Kingfisher airlines, Go Indigo airlines.

Non scheduled transport service includes charter operators and air taxi operators. For example Pawan Hans, Air Charters India.

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Cargo service includes air transportation of cargo and mail. For example Quick Jet, Air Cargo Express, Aryan Air.

The aviation sector is witnessing strong competition as the numbers of operators are rising. Marketing strategies employed by the aviation industry are: Marketing planning: Marketing analysis, benchmarking, and competitive analysis are the techniques used for the marketing planning so that the marketing can generate the desired results. Branding: Branding plays an important role in the marketing of the company and its product or service. It differentiates the company and its services from the competitors. So it is of paramount importance to maintain the brand value and put effort in the brand management. Communication strategy: communicative strategies to customers should be clear and with motive. It should deliver what the company wants to deliver to its customer without any ambiguity. Online marketing: Online marketing is one of the premier marketing media for every organization for its marketing needs. The reach of internet is very large and deep and as most of the banking services are online, so the airlines are also getting online to attract maximum customers towards them.

Marketing of the Hospitality Services Hospitality sector includes all those services related to hotels, restaurants, lodges, and bars. The growing economy of India is also helping the hospitality sector to grow at rapid pace. The main reasons for the growth of the Indian hospitality sector are due to: Increase in foreign direct investment. Increase in numbers of foreign visitors. Increase in the income of the Indian family. Emergence of the brand Incredible India.

The Hospitality Club is the Internet based hospitality service that provides guidance for the travelers from all over the world. Information Technology is also used in hospitality sector. The online advertising has offered valuable services to the customer. Here, service provider can offer vacation directories to the customer to have more information on lesser known vacation destinations. Thus smaller restores at these locations can compete with larger resorts at known location. Hospitality service is widely found in hotel industry. Hotels offer contemporary and secure building for their visitors. They provide supporting services such as parking and restaurant facilities, based on the requirements of the visitors.

Q6. Write a short notes on: A. Pricing strategies of service. B. Roles played by the customers during service delivery
Answer:The service providers can adopt a pricing strategy to decide the pricing of the service. Usually, companies have used the cost plus approach to achieving pricing for their services. However,

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many retailers started using the information which they get through their scanners to arrive at pricing rather than following the cost plus approach. The different strategies that are used for pricing of a service: Mark-up pricing: The mark-up pricing strategy can be employed for services that cannot be differentiated. For example, it is not possible to differentiate the service provided by BESCOM for Bangalore. Value for money pricing: In India, the retailer Big Bazaar uses the positioning line Is se sasta aur achha kahin nahin, which means nowhere else you will get such better and cheaper offers. Obviously, the idea of savings convinces huge segment of customers, but the consideration for this strategy is the competence of the retailer to continue being a cost leader. If any other retailer competes this by offering the same products at lower prices owing to the price sensitivity of the customers, they would make quick exits to go and buy from the new cost leader. Image value pricing: This is a very popular method of pricing the products. This method enables to charge premium price for the product.

The Role of Customer in Service Delivery If the customers are present during the production of the service, they can play an active role in delivering the product successfully. If we talk in the manufacturing context, the production facilities will not have the presence of the customer. The manufacturers of a product will not take the real-time inputs of the customers into consideration. But in the services context, customers can play an active role in the production and delivery of the service. They can influence the successful delivery of the product. Roles played by the customers There are three major roles played by the customers. They are: As productive resources. As contributors to satisfaction and quality of service. As competitors. As productive resources: The customers of the services are referred to as partial employees of the services organization. They are the effective human resources who contribute to the productive efficiency of the organization. They can make both negative and positive impact on the productivity of an organization through the quality of their contribution and the quality and quantity of the generated output. Customers as contributors to service quality and satisfaction: Another major role played by the customers is that of a contributor to their own satisfaction and the quality of the service which they receive. In services such as education and personal fitness, desired outcomes cannot be achieved without the active contribution from the part of the customer. Those customers who contribute to the delivery of quality service frequently ask questions and report once there is a failure. They enjoy their own participation in service delivery. They book tickets using internet and do the banking transaction through ATM. Customers as competitors: Another major role played by the service customers is that of a competitor. There are organizations that outsource certain service activities such as data processing, pay roll, accounting, maintenance, and facilities management. They realize that it is better to concentrate on their core activities and leave the support services to others who have

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better expertise. In this case, an organization might decide to stop the outsourcing activities and convert it into in-house.

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