1. MARKETING
1.02B Explain the role of customer service as a
component of selling relationships.

2. DISTINGUISH BETWEEN CUSTOMER SERVICE AS A
PROCESS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE AS A FUNCTION.
 Customer service in selling
 Is a process rather than a function
 Is a relationship rather than a department
 Enhances/Facilitates customer’s use of goods and
services

3. DESCRIBE HOW BUSINESSES CAN USE CUSTOMER
SERVICE TO BEAT THEIR COMPETITION
 Customer service and competition
 Customer service is where the real competition among
businesses begins
 Product quality and price can be easily matched.

4. DISCUSS FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE CUSTOMER
EXPECTATIONS OF CUSTOMER SERVICE
 Customer service means different things to different
customers.
 Every customer has their own unique expectations
based on:
 Past experience
 Repeat customers will expect the same or higher quality or
customer service
 Comparing one service with the competitors service
 Word-of-mouth
 Word-of-mouth is extremely powerful in business and sales
 Prospects may visit your business based on recommendations
from family, friends, and acquaintances
 Expect to receive the same quality of customer service that
other received

5. DISCUSS FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE CUSTOMER
EXPECTATIONS OF CUSTOMER SERVICE
 Advertising
 A business invests in advertising to let potential
customers know that their products and services
are the best
 Personal Selling
 Determine what is of value to the customer and
what they need help with.

6. EXPLAIN HOW CUSTOMER SERVICE FACILITATES
SALES RELATIONSHIPS
 Benefitsof customer service
 Builds profits through:
Partnerships with current customers
Loyalty
Strive to provide high quality customer
service
Generating new customers

7. IDENTIFY THE PRE-SALES OPPORTUNITIES FOR
PROVIDING CUSTOMER SERVICE THAT CAN
FACILITATE SALES RELATIONSHIPS.
 Pre-SaleCustomer Service
 Suggestion Selling
 Adds value to a customer’s
experience by suggesting
additional products or
services that will enhance
his/her primary purchase
 Ex: suggest a strap that goes
along with a guitar
 Builds solid partnerships with
customers

8. IDENTIFY THE PRE-SALES OPPORTUNITIES FOR
PROVIDING CUSTOMER SERVICE THAT CAN
FACILITATE SALES RELATIONSHIPS.
 Product information
 Providing help in customers purchase decisions for
high priced items
 Vacations
 Houses
 Expensive electronic equipment
 Successful salespeople make sure that customers
have all the information they need to make a
sound, well-informed decision
 Happy customers = repeat customers
 Promises that can be kept
 Customers remember the promises made to them
during sales
 If you can’t keep those promises, you will have
unhappy customers and damaged client relationships

9. IDENTIFY POST-SALES OPPORTUNITIES WHEN
CUSTOMER SERVICE CAN BE PROVIDED TO
FACILITATE SALES RELATIONSHIPS
 A. Post-Sale Customer Service
 1. Order processing
 a. It is the salespersons responsibility to ensure customer’s
orders are processed correctly
 b. Establish a relationship with the people that process orders so
you can easily check on the status of orders to make sure
customers are getting what they requested.
B. Shipping and delivery
 1. Can be a major source of frustration for customers
 2. With so many variables things can go wrong
 a. items arriving too early or too late
 b. items lost in transit
 c. items can arrive damaged or accidentally be
shipped to the wrong customer
 3. Even the best salesperson cannot control all the
variables or ensure that nothing will ever go wrong.

10. IDENTIFY POST-SALES OPPORTUNITIES WHEN
CUSTOMER SERVICE CAN BE PROVIDED TO
FACILITATE SALES RELATIONSHIPS
 Installation
 Salespeople need to stay involved to reduce frustration and
minimize problems
 Customer is promised free installation, but the delivery person is unaware
of this. Salespeople can clear up these kinds of misunderstandings
quickly.
 Warranty Issues
 Successful salespeople take responsibility to make sure
customers understand exactly what their warranties cover.
 Maintenance and repair
 Certain products need routine service and may also need
specialized repairs over time
 Ex: cars need regular oil changes, and over time, repair work.
 May be offered as part of overall sales package
 Successful salespeople make sure their customers understand
 what maintenance and repair services are available
 how to take advantage of them

11. IDENTIFY POST-SALES OPPORTUNITIES WHEN
CUSTOMER SERVICE CAN BE PROVIDED TO
FACILITATE SALES RELATIONSHIPS
 Credit/Financing
 Problems with obtaining credit and financing are a main
cause of customer-service complaints for sales organizations.
 Technical assistance and support
 Ex: computers and Internet service
 Customer training
 Some products require customer training, even classes
 a salesperson may need to visit a business to show employees
how to use a new copier
 hosting a week long conference to facilitate the use of a certain
software package
 Providing appropriate customer training is a mark of a
successful sales organization

12. DISCUSS ACTIONS A SALESPERSON CAN TAKE TO
MAKE THE MOST OF HER/HIS CUSTOMER SERVICE
ACTIVITIES.
 A. Solicit feedback
 Ask about customer satisfaction
 Provide convenient, user-friendly ways for customer to provide feedback.
 Solicit feedback on a regular basis
 B. Keep in touch
 The best salespeople recognize the necessity of keeping in contact with
their customers to maintain the partnerships they have established.
 a. follow-up phone calls
 b. thank you cards
 c. personal visits for major clients
 C. Be prompt
 Extraordinary salespeople can set themselves apart by treating questions
and complaints as high priorities and responding quickly
 Responding promptly to complaints can be the difference between one
time customers and repeat customers
 D. Have a good attitude