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GCSE · Business operations

BUS.OP5 The sales process and customer service

AQA 8132 · Calculator allowed · about 55 minutes

Total Marks

Name: _______________________________ Date: ____ / ____ / ______

Answer ALL questions in the spaces provided. Show your working for any calculation: method marks are available even if your final answer is wrong. Wrenfield Home Electronics, used throughout this pack, is a fictional business.

Which one of the following best describes customer service?

A) The way a business's staff support and help customers, before, during and after a sale
B) The price a business charges for a product
C) The design of a business's shop front
D) The number of staff a business employs

(Total for Question 1 is 1 mark)

Which one of the following is normally the FIRST stage of the sales process?

A) Closing the sale and taking payment
B) Identifying what the customer needs or is looking for
C) Providing after-sales support
D) Handling the customer's objections about price

(Total for Question 2 is 1 mark)

State two stages of the sales process, other than closing the sale.

(Total for Question 3 is 2 marks)

A customer in Wrenfield's shop says a television is too expensive. Explain why handling this objection well, rather than ignoring it, might increase the chance of Wrenfield making the sale.

(Total for Question 4 is 3 marks)

A loyal Wrenfield customer spends, on average, 50 pounds per visit and visits the shop 4 times a year.
Calculate the average annual value of this loyal customer to Wrenfield. Show your working.

(Total for Question 5 is 2 marks)

If a customer receives poor service and does not return after their first visit of the year, using your answer to question 5, calculate the value of the future visits Wrenfield loses from this one customer. Show your working.

(Total for Question 6 is 2 marks)

Wrenfield estimates that poor service currently causes 15 customers a month to leave in this way, each losing the value calculated in question 6. Calculate the total monthly value Wrenfield loses because of this. Show your working.

(Total for Question 7 is 2 marks)

Using your answer to question 7, calculate the total annual value Wrenfield loses at this rate. Show your working.

(Total for Question 8 is 2 marks)

Explain one way poor after-sales service, such as a slow response to a customer with a faulty product, could damage Wrenfield's reputation beyond just losing that one customer.

(Total for Question 9 is 3 marks)

Wrenfield is considering a 900 pound customer-service training programme, which it believes would stop 6 of the 15 monthly leavers in question 7 from leaving early. Using your answer to question 6, calculate the monthly saving this training would create. Show your working.

(Total for Question 10 is 2 marks)

Using your answer to question 10, calculate the payback period, in months, for the 900 pound training cost. Show your working.

(Total for Question 11 is 2 marks)

Explain one reason good customer service can encourage repeat purchases at Wrenfield, beyond making the immediate sale.

(Total for Question 12 is 3 marks)

Explain one way Wrenfield's staff could handle a customer complaint about a faulty product well, and why this matters.

(Total for Question 13 is 3 marks)

State two benefits to Wrenfield of having loyal, repeat customers, other than the direct revenue they spend.

(Total for Question 14 is 2 marks)

State two examples of good customer service that Wrenfield's shop staff could provide.

(Total for Question 15 is 2 marks)

Poor customer service is estimated to cost Wrenfield 27,000 pounds a year in lost future custom (question 8). A 900 pound training programme could stop 6 of the 15 monthly leavers, saving 900 pounds a month (question 10) and paying for itself in just 1 month (question 11).
Recommend whether Wrenfield should invest in the 900 pound customer-service training programme. Justify your answer using the figures and points made earlier in this pack.

(Total for Question 16 is 9 marks)

Mark scheme · BUS.OP5 The sales process and customer service

Question 1

B1 A cao
Answer: A

Question 2

B1 B cao
Answer: B

Question 3

B1 one acceptable stage, e.g. identifying the customer's needs
B1 a second acceptable stage, e.g. demonstrating or explaining the product, handling the customer's objections, or providing after-sales service
Answer: Any two, e.g. identifying customer needs; demonstrating the product; handling objections; after-sales service.

Question 4

B1 identifies the point, e.g. a well-handled objection might involve explaining the television's features, a payment plan, or a similar cheaper model
B1 develops the point, e.g. this addresses the customer's actual concern rather than leaving it unresolved
B1 links clearly to an outcome, e.g. the customer is then more likely to feel understood and go ahead with a purchase, rather than leaving to check a competitor
Answer: Handling the price objection well, for example by explaining the television's features, offering a payment plan or suggesting a cheaper model, addresses the customer's real concern, making them more likely to go ahead with the purchase rather than leaving to check a competitor.

Question 5

M1 50 x 4 seen
A1 200 pounds cao
Answer: 200 pounds.

Question 6

M1 200 - 50 seen (ft from question 5)
A1 150 pounds cao
Answer: 150 pounds.

Question 7

M1 15 x 150 seen (ft from question 6)
A1 2,250 pounds cao
Answer: 2,250 pounds.

Question 8

M1 2,250 x 12 seen (ft from question 7)
A1 27,000 pounds cao
Answer: 27,000 pounds.

Question 9

B1 identifies the point, e.g. an unhappy customer is likely to tell other people, in person or through an online review
B1 develops the point, e.g. this negative word of mouth reaches potential customers who have never actually shopped at Wrenfield themselves
B1 links clearly to an outcome, e.g. this could put off future customers before they even visit, widening the lost-revenue impact well beyond the figures calculated in questions 7 and 8
Answer: An unhappy customer is likely to tell others, in person or through an online review, and this negative word of mouth can reach potential customers who have never shopped at Wrenfield, putting them off before they even visit, widening the impact beyond the figures in questions 7 and 8.

Question 10

M1 6 x 150 seen (ft from question 6)
A1 900 pounds cao
Answer: 900 pounds.

Question 11

M1 900 / 900 seen (ft from question 10)
A1 1 month cao
Answer: 1 month.

Question 12

B1 identifies the point, e.g. a customer who is treated well, and feels their needs were understood, is more likely to trust Wrenfield
B1 develops the point, e.g. this trust makes them more likely to return the next time they need an electronics purchase, rather than shopping around
B1 links clearly to an outcome, e.g. this builds the kind of loyal, repeat-visit customer whose annual value was calculated in question 5
Answer: A customer treated well and understood is more likely to trust Wrenfield, so they are more likely to return for their next electronics purchase rather than shop around, building the kind of loyal, repeat-visit customer whose annual value was calculated in question 5.

Question 13

B1 identifies a good way to handle a complaint, e.g. listening to the customer calmly and offering a fair remedy, such as a repair, replacement or refund
B1 develops the point, e.g. this shows the customer that Wrenfield takes their concern seriously rather than dismissing it
B1 links clearly to an outcome, e.g. a well-handled complaint can retain the customer and even strengthen loyalty, avoiding the lost future value shown in question 6
Answer: Listening calmly and offering a fair remedy such as a repair, replacement or refund shows the customer their concern is taken seriously, which can retain the customer and even strengthen loyalty, avoiding the lost future value shown in question 6.

Question 14

B1 one acceptable benefit, e.g. lower marketing costs than constantly attracting new customers
B1 a second acceptable benefit, e.g. positive word-of-mouth recommendations to friends and family
Answer: Any two, e.g. lower marketing costs than attracting new customers; positive word-of-mouth recommendations.

Question 15

B1 one acceptable example, e.g. staff greeting customers promptly and asking what they are looking for
B1 a second acceptable example, e.g. staff clearly explaining a product's features, or offering help setting it up after purchase
Answer: Any two, e.g. prompt, friendly greeting; clear product explanations; help setting up a product after purchase.

Question 16

Level 1 (1-3): Makes simple, undeveloped comments about the training decision, with little or no use of the pack's figures and no clear recommendation.
Level 2 (4-6): Gives a developed argument for or against the training programme, using some of the pack's figures, but does not fully weigh both sides or reach a clearly justified recommendation.
Level 3 (7-9): Weighs the evidence for and against the training programme, using the lost-revenue, saving and payback figures from this pack, and reaches a justified recommendation supported by that analysis.
Indicative content:
- For investing: the training pays for itself within 1 month (question 11) and would keep saving 900 pounds every month after that, a fast and ongoing return on a relatively small 900 pound cost.
- For investing: reducing poor service also protects Wrenfield from the wider reputational damage described in question 9, such as negative reviews putting off customers who have never visited before.
- Against investing: the training only claims to stop 6 of the 15 monthly leavers (question 10), so 9 customers a month would still be lost even after the training, meaning poor service is not fully solved.
- Against investing: 900 pounds may still be a meaningful upfront cost for a small electronics shop, and training does not guarantee staff behaviour actually changes on the shop floor.
- Judgement: given the 1-month payback period (question 11) and the far larger 27,000 pound annual cost of the current level of customer loss (question 8), a reasonable recommendation is that Wrenfield should invest in the training programme, while also monitoring whether it needs a second round of training to address the remaining 9 monthly leavers.

The sales process and customer service - Worksheets, Questions and Revision