FAQ’S

1. What is Service Marketing?

Ans.Service Marketing is that human activity which is directed at achieving organization goals and
objectives by satisfying customer needs and wants by performing economic activities whose output is
not a physical product and is consumed at the time it is produced and provides added value in forms
(such as convience, amusement, timeliness, comfort, or health) that are essentially intangibles concerns
of its purchaser.E.g Hospitals, hotels etc.

2. Service V/s Customer Service?

Ans. Service is same as above.

Customer Service-Is the service provided in support of company core products. It includes
answering questions, taking orders, dealing with billing issues, handling complaints, and scheduling
maintaince and repairs. Example-Manufacturing companies, IT companies.

3. Service V/s Goods Marketing

Ans. The Service marketing differs from the Goods marketing under:

1. Intangibility
2. Heterogeneity
3. Simultaneous Production & Consumption.
4. Perish ability.

4. Service Marketing Mix:

Ans. It is a blend of the following things:

1. Product
2. Place
3. Price
4. Promotion
5. People
6. Process
7. Physical Evidence.

5. What are the stages in Consumer Decision Making Process?

Ans. The stages are as follows:

• Need Recognition
• Information Search
• Evaluation of Alternatives
• Purchase & Consumption.
• Post purchase Evaluation.
6. What is Zone of Tolerance?
Ans. It is extent of which the customer recognizes and willing to accept the variation in the service
promised to him is called zone of Tolerance. Some people have high zone of Tolerance and some
have low zone of Tolerance.

7. What are the various Service Quality Dimensions?

Ans. The various Service Quality dimensions are:
1. Reliability
2. Responsiveness
3. Assurance
4. Empathy
5. Tangibles

8. What are Service Encounters or Moments of truth?

Ans. It’s the time when the customer actually comes in to the direct contact with the service
provider. Customer can actually see what kind of service is provided to him by the service provider.
The various types of Service Encounters are:
1. Remote Encounters
2. Phone encounters
3. Face to face Encounters.

9. What is Complaint solicitation in Services?

Ans. In this the complete documentation of the various complaints through many channels and
noticing the most frequent complaints and taking steps to eliminate it.

10. What is Relationship Marketing?

Ans. It is a philosophy of doing business, a strategic orientation that focuses on keeping and
improving current customers rather than on acquiring new customers. This philosophy assumes that
many consumers prefer to have an ongoing relationship with one organization than to switch
continually among providers in their for value.

11. What is 80/20 Customer Pyramid?

Ans. The 80-20 Customer Pyramid Concept is used in Relationship marketing which says that 20 %
of customers produce 80 % of sales or profit.
The various levels of Customer Pyramid are:
1. Platinum-Most Profitable
2. Gold Tier
3. Iron Tier
4. Lead Tier

12. What is Service Recovery?

Ans.Service Recovery refers to the actions taken by an organization in response to a service failure.
It is the activity done to fix the service right for the failure of the service provided the previous time.
13. What is Service Recovery Paradox?
Ans. It says that if the customer is dissatisfied of the service on the previous occasion but experience
a high level of excellent service recovery may ultimately be even more satisfied and more likely to
repurchase than are those satisfied in the first place.

14. Service Guarantee?

Ans. It is an assurance of the quality of or length of use to be expected from product offered for sale
often with a promise of reimbursement.

15. What are various types of New Services?

Ans. The various types of New Services are:

1. Major Innovations: Undefined Services yet to be introduced in market
2. Start up Business
3. New Services
4. Service Line Extensions
5. Service Improvements
6. Style Changes.

16. What is a Service Blue Print?

Ans. A service Blue is a picture or map that accurately portrays the service system so that the
different people involved in provding it can understand and deal with it objectively regardless of
their roles or their individual points of view. They are useful at the design and redisgn stages of
service development.

17. What is Physical Evidence?

Ans. It is the Environment in which the service is deliverd and where the firm and the customer
interact and the tangibles commodities that facilitate performance or communication of the
service.Eg. Hotels, hospitals, Banks etc.

Physical Evidence: Service Escape+ Tangibles

Roles of Service Escapes:
1. Package
2. Facilitator
3. Socializer
4. Differentiator.

18. What is Service Marketing Triangle?

Ans. It is a triangle which depicts the relationshiop between the Company, its Employees & its
Customers. The company I interacts with its customers through external marketing and make
promises,then its also has internal marketing communication with its employees , now the service
marketing triangle says that the employees should be properly communicated by the company for the
promises they have made to their customers so that there is no communication gap when the
employee is actually serving the customer.
 Q19. Who are Boundary Spanners?
Ans. Boundaries Spanners are the people who are working at the front-end. The are the link
between the external customers and the environment and the internal operations of the organization.
In industries such as fast-food, hotels, telecommunication the boundary-spanners are least-skilled,
lowest-paid employees in the organization. In other industries boundary spanners are highly paid,
high educated professionals for e.g doctors, lawyers, accountants, teachers etc

Q20.What is emotional Labour?

Ans. Emotional Labour means delivering smiles, making eye contact, showing sincere interest and
engaging friendly conversation with the people who are essentially strangers and who may or may
never be seen again.Friendliness, courtesy, empathy requires huge amounts of emotional labour from
the front –end employees even when they are having bad day in the office or not at all feeling well,
but he is still expected to treat his customers very well. Example is of McDonald’s.

Q21.What is Customer-Mix?
Ans. Customer-Mix is the mixtures of various types of customers with which the Company has to
deal at a particular, some customers may be very impatient, some are just the opposite, some are
young, some are old, some are peaceful, and some are very noisy. So the organization has to
maintain a proper mix so that no conflict occurs between them.E.g young boys sitting in the
restaurant along side with old family and making noise and disturbing the old lot, so this arise a
conflict which can be avoided if they are made to sit in the different corners of the restaurant.

Q22.What are the various Service –Intermediaries available?

Ans.Service Intermediaries are the people which actually provide the service to the customers on the
behalf of the organization, the various Sources available are
1. Direct or Company owned channels,
2. Franchising
3. Agents and Brokers.
4. Electronic Channels.

Q 23. Why is Pricing difficult in Services?

Ans. The reasons are:
1. Service heterogeneity limits knowledge.
2. Providers are unwilling to estimate prices.
3. Individual customers needs vary.
4. Price is overwhelming in services
5. Prices are not visible.

Q24.What are the various non-momentary costs?

Ans.It represents other sources of sacrifice perceived by the consumers when buying a nd using the
service. Time Costs, search costs and psychological costs often enter in to the evaluation of whether
to buy or rebuy a service, and many times be more important concerns than momentary price.

Q 25. What are the approaches to Service Pricing?

Ans. The different approaches are as follows
1. Cost Based Pricing
2. Competion Based Pricing
a) Price Signaling
b) Going Rate Pricing
3. Demand Based Pricing
It involves setting prices consistent with customer perception of value,
The Four different meanings of Perceived Value:
1. Value is Low Price.
2. Value is whatever I want in a Product or service
3. Value is the Quality I get for the Price I Pay
4. Value is what I get for What I Give.

Q26. What are the various Pricing Strategies?

Ans. 1. Value is Low –Price.
a) Discounting
b) Odd-Pricing
c) Synchro-Pricing
d) Penetration Pricing

2. Value is Everything I want in Service.

a) Prestige Pricing
b) Skimming Pricing

3. Value is the Quality I get for the Price I Pay.

a) Value Pricing
b) Market Segmentation Pricing

4.) Value is all that I get for all that I give.

a) Price Framing
b) Price Bundling
c) Complementary Pricing
d) Result Based Pricing
e) Contingency Pricing
f) Sealed Bid Pricing
g) Money –Back Gaurantee

Q27. What are the ‘Service Quality Gap or the Quality Gap Model?
Ans. Quality Gap model mainly focuses on Customer Gap, the difference between customer
expectations and perceptions. Firms need to close this gap-between customer expectations and
receive-in order to satisfy their customers and build long term relationships between them.To close
this all important customer gap, the model suggests that four other gaps-the provider gaps. These
gaps are as follows:
1. Not knowing what customers expect.
2. Not selecting the right Service Designs and Standards.
3. Not delivering to service standards.
4. Not matching performance to promises.
Miscellaneous Questions

Q28. 1. How would you describe yourself?

Ans .My background to date has been centered around preparing myself to become the very best
financial consultant I can become. Let me tell you specifically how I've prepared myself. I am a
Post –Graduate student with M.B.A in Marketing with minor in Finance at Lovely Professional
University. My past experiences have been in retail and higher education. Both aspects have
prepared me well for this career.

Q29.What specific goals, including those related to your occupation, have you established
for your life?
Ans.I want to be working for an excellent company like yours in a job in which I am managing
information. I plan to contribute my leadership, interpersonal, and technical skills. My long-
range career goal is to be the best information systems technician I can for the company I work
for.

Q30. How has your college experience prepared you for a business career?
Ans .I have prepared myself to transition into work force through real-world experience
involving internship, and entrepreneurial opportunities. While interning with a private
organization in Sonalika, I developed a 15-page marketing plan composed in English that
recommended more effective ways the company could promote its services. . As you can see
from my academic, extracurricular, and experiential background, I have unconditionally
committed myself to success as a marketing professional.

Q31. What influenced you to choose this career?

Ans.My past experiences have shown me that I enjoy facing and overcoming the challenge of
making a sale. Without a doubt, once I have practiced my presentation and prepared myself for
objections, I feel very confident approaching people I don't know and convincing them that they
need my product. Lastly, I like sales because my potential for success is limited only by how
much of myself I dedicate toward my goal. If any profession is founded on self-determinism, it
surely must be sales.

Q32. What motivates you to put forth you greatest effort?

Ans. You would think that because I am interested in sales, only financial compensation would
motivate me to achieve. Although monetary rewards are important to me, I am driven to succeed
internally. More than anything, I want to be respected by my friends and coworkers for being the
best at what I do. Whether I am considered to be the best car detailer in my hometown or the best
columnist for my college newspaper, I want to be recognized as the best

Q33. Are you more energized by working with data or by collaborating with other
individuals?
Ans. I like the validity of information and also like the energy that comes with working with
people. The best thing about working in a group is combining the great minds from different
perspectives and coming up with something extremely great, compared with when you're
working alone. At the same time, information can generate vitality in the project you're working
on. No matter how many heads you've got together, without information, you can't go very far.
The perfect situation would be a combination of working with information and people, and I'm
confident of my abilities in both areas.

Q34. How would you describe yourself in terms of your ability to work as a member of a
team?
Ans.I have had many opportunities in both athletics and academics to develop my skills as a
team player. My tenure as a best relay -Player with my college's relay team serves as a good
example. I learned a great deal about teamwork while competing for relay race because all the
racers in the race must act as one, which meant that we incessantly worked to keep each
movement in the race synchronized. On an individual basis, we still worked toward group goals
through weightlifting.

Q35. . Given the investment our company will make in hiring and training you, can you
give us a reason to hire you?
Ans.I sincerely believe that I'm the best person for the job. I realize that there are many other
college students who have the ability to do this job. I also have that ability. But I also bring an
additional quality that makes me the very best person for the job -- my attitude for excellence.
Not just giving lip service to excellence, but putting every part of myself into achieving it. In
college and at my previous jobs, I have consistently reached for becoming the very best I can
become. I think my leadership awards from my college, and my management positions are the
result of possessing the qualities you're looking for in an employee.

Q36.Would you describe yourself as goal-driven?

Ans.Yes and I demonstrated my goal orientation as president of the local Jaycees-Phagwara, a
community service organization. I am very proud of the fact that I set a goal of signing 50 new
members by the end of the year, and I accomplished that

Q37. What do you expect to be doing in five years?

Ans. Although it is hard to predict the future, I sincerely believe that I will become a very good
financial consultant. I believe that my abilities will allow me to excel to the point that I can seek
other opportunities as a portfolio manager (the next step) and possibly even higher. My ultimate
goal continues to be -- and will always be -- to be the best at whatever level I am working at
corporate structure.

Q38. How would you evaluate your ability to deal with conflict?
Ans .I believe I am quite good at handling conflict. Working in retail and in the residence halls
required that I make many unpopular decisions at times, whether it was terminating an associate
or taking judicial action on a resident. Often the person in conflict with me would be upset and
sometimes physically outraged. I would always make sure that I fully explained the situation, the
policies behind my decision, and why those policies exist. Usually by the end of the
conversation, the person could see the other side of the situation.

Q39. What do you see yourself doing in ten years?

Ans.Ten years from now I see myself as a successful marketing consultant for a world-class firm
like yours. I want to have developed a wonderful bond with my employer I will have proven
myself a highly competent marketing Person and will represent my company in helping others
find solutions to their information-systems needs in a professional and timely manner.

Q40.Do you want to ask something from us?

Ans. As every organization works for Profit Maximisation and other than this they have some
Social Responsibilities too towards the Country, towards the society. So what are you doing in
this regard do you have some plans for the welfare of the society.

Q41.What are your Salary Expectations from the job?

Ans. Yes Salary is a good motivating factor. At the end of the day every one works for money
but As a fresher I just want a good job Profile in a highly reputated organization like yours and
salary is a secondary issue for me ,so what ever start I get I know that I will rise high and my
salary will increase accordingly.

Q42. Rate Yourself on the scale of 0-10?

Ans. I would rate my self as 9 out of 10.Not 10 because no body is absolutely Perfect in every
thing.

Q43.Which is your favourite movie? Please narrate it?

Ans.The interviewer is here actually checking your confidence, your communication skills, and
your speaking frequency.He is actually not listening to the movie, but all the things listed above.
So narrate only that film story which you have actually watched, and you are comfortable in
narrating the story.

Q44.Why did you choose Lovely Professional University for your M.B.A?

Ans. It is a University which is proving its worth year by year. I have seen this university rising
from 2001 till know. It is providing the best the education at the reasonable fees.Moreover it is
very near to home city. So this prompted me to do M.B.A from here.

Q45. Do you have the qualifications and personal characteristics necessary for success in
your chosen career?
Ans.I believe I have a combination of qualities to be successful in this career. First, I have a
strong interest, backed by a solid, well-rounded, state-of-the-art education, especially in a career
that is technically oriented. This basic ingredient, backed by love of learning, problem-solving
skills, well-rounded interests, determination to succeed and excel, strong communication skills,
and the ability to work hard, are the most important qualities that will help me succeed in this
career. To succeed, you also need a natural curiosity about how systems work -- the kind of
curiosity I demonstrated when I upgraded my two computers recently. Technology is constantly
changing, so you must a fast learner just to keep up or you will be overwhelmed. All of these
traits combine to create a solid team member in the ever-changing field of information systems. I
am convinced that I possess these characteristics and am ready to be a successful team member
for your firm.

Q46. What do you think it takes to be successful in this career?

Ans.I believe successful salespeople put forth that extra effort that turns potential clients into
first-time customers. Salespeople who attend to the details by doing whatever it takes to win over
a prospective customer distinguish themselves from the countless others who don't go to any
extra effort. Second, I think that if you label success as an attainable goal, you will never
consistently remain successful. You can only succeed if you learn all there is to learn about your
product, your competitors, and personal selling. Since this learning process is continuous, it's an
unattainable goal. With good reason, salespeople should not consider success an attainable
ending point but an objective that will always linger slightly beyond their reach.

Q47. Please describe the ideal job for you following Post –Graduation?
Ans.My ideal job is one that incorporates both my education and practical work skills to be the
best I can be. Namely combining my P.G in Marketing with my working knowledge of customer
service operations, entrepreneurial abilities, computer skills, and administrative skills. I want to
utilize my analytical expertise to help people meet their financial goals. This is exactly why I am
convinced that I would be a very valuable member of your organization.

Technical Marketing Questions:

Q48.Some questions that you can further Prepare for the Interviews are?

Q .Describe niche market.

Q: How would you brand yourself?
Q: What are the different stages of a product lifecycle? Give examples of 3 products at different
stages. What is will be their next stage?
Q: What competitive skills do you have?
Q: How will you sell a refrigerator to an Eskimo?
Q: What is the difference between marketing and sales?

Q Which environmental variables impact a marketing plan?

Q: What has been your greatest achievement?

Q: What has been your greatest failure?
Q: How do you take challenges?
Q: How would you tackle a customer complaining about a product you sell?
Q: What do you like most about sales?
Q: What are the projects you have ever undertaken?
Q: What do you do in leisure time?
Q: What is the thing you like the most in the world? Why?
Q: What is the thing you dislike the most in the world? Why?
Q: What does success mean to you?
Q: How do you define failure?
Q: How do you define arrogance? Are you arrogant?
Q: What role are you ready to take in a group?
Q: Who has been an inspiration for you?
Q: What is more important to you money or success?
Q: What kind of person are you?
Q: Why did you choose _________ as your major/subjects?
Q: Are you willing to travel?
Q: How much time do you need to join the organization?
Q: Are you aggressive?
Q: What makes you a good manager?
Q: What motivates you the most?
Q: What skills and abilities do you have?
Q: Is there anything you want to ask?
Q: How can marketing lead the way toward customer centricity?
Q: If your company markets through both B2B and B2C channels, describe any channel
differences in approaching customer-centricity.
Q: How could your firm change its organization, processes, and culture to compete more
effectively?
Q: How can you effectively integrate traditional, maturing, and new media, channels, and
tactics?
Q: With whom should you partner to help support this shift to customer-centricity?
Q: How can you leverage new channels, tactics, and media to drive customer engagement and
intimacy?
Q: What steps have you taken to link these divers to your team's compensation?
Q: What did you do to prepare yourself for this interview?
Q: whether advertising through TV, radio is direct marketing?
Q: When was the last time you created a marketing innovation, which energized you, and why
did it do so?
Q: What steps to you take to promote a business idea to your manager?
Q: What is your psychology of selling?
Q: Apart from financial considerations, what is challenging about marketing?
Q:Why is marketing research important?
Q: What have been your most striking findings? What data have really shocked you?
Q: Describe your sales experience.
Q: Do you have any supervisory skills?
Q: List your key accomplishments.
Q: Have you ever been charged with training and coaching other sales professionals?
Q: What success did you experience?
Q: Describe a typical day for you.
Q: What has been your biggest disappointment with a prospect or client?
Q: How much of your current client base consists of repeats and referrals?
Q: What major clients have you closed over the last 6 months?
Q: What sales challenge have you experienced recently?
Q: How do you describe your salesmanship style?
Q: How would you go about persuading a customer that our product was better than any other?
Q: What experience do you have of setting and meeting sales targets, both personally and as a
sales team?
Q: How would you go about identifying consumer / customer needs and wants?
Q: We are looking for a truly inspiring Marketing and PR Executive, someone who can create a
culture of open communication, trust and respect. What strategies would you implement to
achieve this?