Week 7 assignments

FORUM:  What are some of the elements of customer service? Explain how they are measured.
 
– Looking at innovation and modernization needs of retail managers, how do customer expectations influence customer satisfaction?
 
– Explain how a commitment to customer success is the highest level of customer management. (RESPONSES WILL BE POSTED AFTER INITIAL FORUM IS SUBMITTED. (DUE 24 HOURS)

ASSIGNMENT: This week you work on creating a marketing dashboard. Conduct research to get some ideas and create a one-page dashboard with the key indicators you envision being important to your business. Go to Google –> Images and type in “Marketing Dashboards” or “Marketing Dashboard Templates.” You can input fictitious data in order to populate your template.
Klipfolio
Klipfolio is a business dashboard website designed to help you create and maintain an up-to-date cloud app that shares real-time data. You can sign-up for a free 14-day trial version if you would like. This is simply an example of one of the many tools available and you are not required to use this app to create your dashboard for the assignment, but it is worth checking out.
Create a one-page Dashboard either manually, using Klipfolio or any other Dashboard tool/app.  Save your Dashboard as a .pdf file and submit it under the assignment tab. (DUE 5/24/2020

ASSIGNMENT:  For this assignment, you are required to write a Retail Innovation Final Paper:
 
Requirement:  Identify one new retail innovation currently in the industry. Using the terms, concepts, and theories learned in this course, write a 7 to 10 page (Arial or Times New Roman 12 pitch font with double-spaced lines).     
Research: Additionally, using the APUS Online Library, conduct research and incorporate at least four (4) additional sources other than your readings to support your essay.  Use the APA Style to cite your “in-text” references and to list your references on a reference page.  A copy of APA Style Examples is located in your Student Course Materials folder.  You can view it by clicking on the Course Materials button.  Additionally, the APUS Online Library has the APA Style Manual http://www.apus.edu/Online-Library/tutorials/apa.htm available for your use.
You will need an Adobe Acrobat Reader (Click here for free download)
http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/main.htm to view the APA Style example   At the top of the page, click the Search tab, type in “Free Adobe Reader,” and download the reader.
Your essay will address these items:
A. Who is the retailer and what is the innovation? 
B. How is the innovation allowing the retailer to remain competitive?
C. Identify at a minimum one threat and one opportunity with this new innovation. 
D. How does this new innovation assist with customer service or customer management? 
Save your essay as Last Name_Retail_Innovation_Final_Paper_RTMG301.doc (e.g. Smith_Retail_Innovation_Final_Paper_RTMG301.doc).
When you are ready, scroll down to the bottom of this page.  Upload your essay by clicking the “Browse” button. 
Finally, scroll down again and click on the box next to Submit for Grading and then click the Submit button.  This causes the system to notify me to grade your assignment.
Paper Format:
 A. Title Page – Include a title page with your name, student number, title of your paper, course number, course name, and date.
 
B.  Introductory Paragraph – Include an introductory paragraph that ends with your thesis sentence. 
C. Thesis Sentence – Highlight your thesis sentence in bold font.   Your thesis sentence could read something like this: This essay will describe XXXX Retail Innovation concept and present a plan of mentoring, training, following, implementing etc this action.  You should support your thesis with at least three supporting paragraphs and a summary paragraph.  Be sure to include theories, models, terms, concepts and principles learned throughout the course. Your thesis statement should be the only bold writing in your entire essay.
D. Font and Spacing – Use Arial or Times New Roman 12 pitch font with double spaced lines.
E. Length – Write a 7 to 10 page essay not including the title page and citation page.
F. Reference Page – Include all sources including your textbook on a Reference page.
1. Utilize the APA Style for documenting sources.  You will need to include at least 4 sources in additional to your textbooks. Finally, remember Wikipedia is NOT a scholarly source.
2. Punctuation, essay format (thesis, supporting paragraphs with transition and topic sentences, and summary) grammar and documentation count toward your grade.
3. Review the Grading Rubric below.
4. I will assign a number score ranging from 4 to 1 for each area as follows:
• 4 = Exemplary Level
• 3 = Accomplished Level
• 2 = Developing Level
• 1 = Beginning Level

Response#1 Hello everyone,
I hope this finds everyone doing well.  
Respecting the customer is the most important element in customer service.  Also being able to understand, anticipate their needs, and identify them.  This is where the retailer’s listening skills play an important element by not only listening but also watching the customer body movements.   Having a positive response and then serving their needs by responding accordingly and fulfilling what has been said and serving any promise made.
What customer expects and their satisfaction are closely the same.  The customer feels less satisfied when they expect something from a business but don’t get what they expected.  Their level of satisfaction depends on what they expect from the business.  The employees that are working closely with the customers are the ones that need to be trained and know how to deal with issues and common solutions to meet the expectations of the customers.  They need to be transparent, give timelines, and be real and optimistic, and always follow up.  Management is the influencer of the company and needs to be a leader.
Customer service does not end when the sale is complete.   Having a system set up where the business can do a little brief survey and have information about the customer set up so that they can receive incentives, discounts, and even birthday and holiday cards.  Customer service and customer management go hand in hand by interacting and being friendly, helpful, and positive to the customer.  Surpassing their expectations to where they want to not only come back but also refer you to others. 

Response #2 Good Morning Everyone, 
I hope everyone is doing well this week and remaining safe. 
Some elements of customer service are respecting consumers and responding positively regardless of how patrons may behave or interact. Understand the needs and wants of customers; be able to anticipate the possible behaviors that drive purchases. Listening to not only the customers, but to the staff as well, people voice their opinions both positive as well as negative, and if retailers listen to what their customers want and need to improve their shopping experiences. I also think that the overall service is important, it must be professional yet personable and retailers must fulfill the promises they give to consumers. These things are measured through monitoring returning customers; increases in new customers, customer service surveys are another way to monitor customer service both in person and digitally. In this new age of technology, blogs have been another way to monitor customer service as well.
When people make purchases, they have an expectation as to how they should be treated by staff and the retailer. Customers also have expectations as to how the products or services they are buying should offer specific elements. With more innovation and modernization of retailers, customer satisfaction is the driving force behind the strategies they are using. As we have seen with this pandemic, many retailers had to ramp up their use of technology to fit the needs of customers. The use of services in Instacart is a clear example of the relationship for customer expectations and customer satisfaction. Customers are trusting other people to shop for them and delivery their items to them. If the orders are consistently incorrect, the customer will not be satisfied and may no longer use that retailer, but if the service is good and the customer is, satisfied they will continue to patronize the retailer.
The correlation between customer success and customer management is essential. Customer management is processes and practices that companies use to manage relationships and interactions between them and current and potential customers. Customer success is the way retailers are able to determine happiness and this is done by retaining and gaining new customers. Retailers should make customer success a high priority, because this will determine how customer management is navigated to ensure positive shopping experiences