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Types of questioning

When a customer is deciding on what they would like to purchase, you should ask them questions to make it easier for them to help decide what they would like to purchase from your business.

One way to identify customer needs and expectations is to ask questions and there are two types of questions that most types of businesses use to identify what the customer is going to need. These questions are called an open question and a closed question. An open question is a question that helps you gather information about what the customer is looking for and a closed question helps confirm the information on what the customer is looking for and the closed question is always answered in a yes or no so you can know the exact type of item you are looking for. If a customer went into H&M and asked an open and closed question you would get something like these -

An example of an open question is :

What colour shirt are you going to be looking for today?

And an example of a closed question is :

So you are looking to buy a red shirt today?

Then after those questions have been asked by the employee you will give them a recommendation on what you think they should purchase.

Social media listening

Social media listening is when the business takes a look at what customers are saying about their products about their services, product and the brand as a whole.

They will pay attention to comments, reviews and messages on applications such as Facebook, X which is formally known as twitter and also Instagram.

Social media listening helps you find customer needs and expectations by:

Finding out what the customer likes - By reading the positive posts that customers have posted the business can tell what the customer likes more and then can sell more of that item

Spotting problems - If you get negative comments/posts that the customers post like things about the long queues or if one of your items that you have released is either broken or isn't working as well as you hoped

Learning your trends - Customers normally post/comment about what they would like to have created and sold by the company for example if alot of customers are posting and commenting about about wanting eco-friendly packaging

so then the business would look at those posts and comments and realise that they need to release that and will start to slowly release that item that the customers have been requesting.

Answering questions or concerns - Businesses can quickly reply to messages or comments, helping customers feel heard and felt for

Customer surveys

Surveys are a way of asking people questions to see what they think/feel about something to do with your business. They can be done online, on paper or even in person. For example a business might give a customer a short survey to see what they think of their purchases.

Surveys help in many ways including:

Learning what customers want

Finding out what areas you business needs to improve in

Getting honest feedback from your customers

These will all let you know if you business is doing well or not so well according to your customers opinion.

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1.1 Well done Harry you have described different methods that can be used to identify customer needs and expectations.  You have used some examples to support your work.

IP: Keep an eye on what you need to do to achieve the higher grades. Your examples could have been more detailed and related to Brighton Pier as per the brief.

1.1 PASS ACHIEVED

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The reason why it is important to meet customer needs is because if their experience didn't go the way they wanted it you have a high chance of not seeing them again, they will spread their opinions to people in the area and they might not want to go to your business either and finally they would leave a bad review.

For example i will use the Brighton piers ghost train, if a member of the public was to decide to go onto that ghost train and pay the £5 fee and when they got off they thought it was an awful experience and not as scary at all they would never go back to the ghost train which means the attraction looses customers and then the customer would then tell friends and family that it was not good at all then they wont come which means they will loose even more money and finally they can write a bad review and then a lot of people in the local area will see that review and not want to go onto the ghost train.

However if a customer was to go onto the ghost train and enjoy their experience they would come back to that attraction and also tell their family and friends about it and then they would come and if they think the same they would spread that to even more people. They can also leave a positive review about the attraction which will get people in the local area to want to come and try their ghost train.

So overall if the customer needs are not met you will start to lose a lot of business as they will spread their negative thoughts about to the public which will mean they will start to not make enough money which will then make that business a failed business. However if the customer needs are met their business will start to thrive and gain more money to make the experience even better than people said which will make their business a successful business.

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1.2 Well done Harry you have described in detail why it is important to meet customer needs and expectations, giving examples that are linked to Brighton Pier.

IP: Please make sure that you are using a capital I when you are writing about yourself.

1.2 MERIT ACHIEVED

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There are several ways to build a positive relationship with your customers in the work environment.

One of these ways is using a loyalty card system, the loyalty card system is a system that attracts customers to come to your business as the loyalty card will either give you discounts or something for free at the end once you have completed the card. This will make your business thrive for success as the customer will know that the more that they come they will get closer to earning a reward from the place. For example on Brighton pier if the ride section had a loyalty card that would mean that the customer would want to come back more and more to look forward to maybe having a couple of free goes on the ride of their choice.

Another type of way to build a positive relationship with the customers is by responding to individual customer needs. You can do this by acknowledging that you have been in their position and know what it is like to be a customer, you could also provide a certain service for the customer depending on their unique requirements. For example on Brighton pier in the arcade you want would probably have the older kids end up going on the games that pay you in tickets so you can purchase a reward at the end of your experience in the arcade. However the younger kids would most likely end up being on the 2p machines as it is easier for them to understand. Then you will have the gambling slot machines in its own section in the arcade this will attract the adults to come to the arcade. This makes the arcade available to have something for all ages so everyone can enjoy their experience and this will make them want to come back again.

A very good way of building a relationships is by remembering their names if they are a common customer as this will want them to come back to your business even more as you will have a sort of friendship bond with the employee. For example on Brighton pier if a man who goes to the bar often and the bartenders start to know him and have conversations with the man they will start to know his name and make his experience feel better than it would normally be if he was only a rare customer. This would make the man want to come back to Brighton piers bar as he has build a positive relationship with the bartenders working there.

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Great work Harry. You have done a great job at clearly explaining each of the methods used to build customer relationships and also successfully linked these to examples that relate to Brighton Pier.

1.3 MERIT ACHIEVED

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It is important to manage customer expectations because it will make the customer understand what to actually expect when coming to the business you work at.

A reason why it is important to manage customer expectations is because it will increase customer satisfaction. This helps because when you manage customer expectations effectively, you're setting clear and realistic outcomes for what they can expect from your product or service. If expectations are clearly defined and communicated, customers are less likely to feel disappointed when they order from your business or come to your business.

Another reason why it is important to manage customer expectations is because it builds trust and loyalty with the customers towards the business. This helps because trust should be a priority to make any business successful. If you consistently meet or exceed the expectations that have been set customers begin to trust your business more. On the other hand when expectations are not properly managed and promises are not met, customers may seek alternatives. By being transparent about what is achievable, and following through on commitments you show integrity, which helps foster long term customer loyalty. Loyal customers are more likely to recommend your business and make repeat purchases, which is key for growth in your business. For example if Brighton pier was to create a loyalty card for the customers people would come back more often to get closer to a free reward or a discount depending on how many times they need to come.

One final reason why it is important to manage customer expectations is Managing customer feedback. This is a key aspect of maintaining and improving customer satisfaction, and it directly impacts how you manage customer expectations. For example on Brighton pier if someone makes a review on something they would like to have on the pier they can make it happen if more people agree with it and they can add that to make it better and attract even more customers.

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I think the best way to manage customer expectations is by being clear with them. This means showing the customer things like the timeline, the date, and important details they need to know. For example, if a package is being delivered, the customer can check updates online to see when it will arrive and where it's coming from. Another way to manage expectations is by listening to the customer and considering their feelings. It's also important to be honest about any problems that might come up. Following up with the customer is also important to see if they’re happy with the service. For example, if someone buys a ticket for the Brighton Pier ride online, the Pier can email them to confirm their purchase and then send a quick survey asking how they feel about the experience. The survey can include smiley faces to rate the app and a box for feedback, with a note saying the Pier appreciates the feedback and will try to improve based on it.

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