SYMBIOSIS INTERNATIONAL (DEEMED UNIVERSITY)

(Established under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956)

Re-accredited by NAAC with ‘A’ Grade (3.58/4) Awarded Category – I by UGC
Seat No.

Institute : (0212) SYMBIOSIS INSTITUTE OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, NAGPUR

Programme : (021241) MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
Batch : 2020-2022
Semester : III (Third)
Course Name : Services Marketing
Course Code : 0212410316
Date : 27.11.2021 Maximum Marks : 40
Day : Saturday Time : 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM

Set 2
Instructions:
1. Students are advised to read the instructions given in Section A & Section B.
2. Students should write the page number on the top-right-side of each page of answer sheets.
3. Students should write the Question Number at the middle- top of the attempted answer and in the left
column so that the examiner cannot miss out the evaluation of that attempted question

Q. Section – A (Attempt any 4 questions from 5 questions of Section A) Marks Course

No. (Compulsory) Outcomes
4 Questions* 5 Marks = 20 Marks Mapped
Q1 Interpret the service marketing triangle 5 CO1
marks

Q2 An automobile services company has their services in entire North India. 5 CO2
Describe the GAP Model of Service Quality in the context of an automobile marks
service company.
Q3 Evaluate the service blueprinting with proper example 5 CO3
marks

Q4 Explain the place and time decisions related to service delivery 5 CO4
marks

Q5 There are many types of services available in our society. Describe the 5 CO1
classification of services based on tangibility, end-user, specialization, profit marks
orientation, and labor intensiveness
 Section – B (Case Study) (Compulsory) 20 marks
Q6 It is a widely accepted notion that the world is indeed flat. Economic boundaries 20 CO1; CO2;
are being demolished. Companies are no longer constrained to their national marks CO3; CO4
markets. The Internet has become a great leveler of field between companies
and customers. Price has yet again taken the central stage. And brands are
under increasing threats from private labels.
Given such a connected world, how can companies maintain their underlying
brand identity in the face of worldwide external shocks like the current global
recession? Should brands practice consistency or continually adapt?
Before answering those questions, take a look at one of the world’s iconic
brands- Starbucks. Starbucks is almost single-handedly responsible for creating
the concept of the third place between home and work where people can relax,
enjoy a cup of coffee and experience the inviting ambiance.
Since its founding days in the early 90s, Starbucks has strived to build its brand
identity by offering customers a relaxing and enjoyable experience. In addition,
Starbucks has also created its brand on things that tend to be out of the box by
consistently defying conventional wisdom.
When companies were aggressively advertising, Starbucks decided not to
advertise. When cost-cutting was the dominant paradigm of the industry,
Starbucks chose to emphasize non-routine procedures to create excitement
among the baristas instead of streamlining processes to minimize cost. Unlike
most other companies, Starbucks made its employees its partners by offering
them stock options and health insurance.
Against rigorous customer surveys, Starbucks chose casual and informal chats
with customers to gather their overall mood. All these clever strategies have
enabled Starbucks to build one of the most iconic brands that have continued to
resonate with customers worldwide for more than fifteen years. That was until
the economic conditions started worsening.
Since early 2008, Starbucks has been forced to bite the dust and succumb to the
aftermaths of the recession. Founder Howard Schultz returned as the CEO. Cost-
cutting and efficiency were made the guiding strategy. More than 800 Starbucks
stores were closed in the US alone. For the first time, Starbucks invested more
than US$200 million in advertising. And for the first time in its history,
Starbucks started price campaigns in select stores to lure customers away from
other price competitors such as McDonald’s and Dunkin Donuts.
These events beg the obvious question. Given such fundamental changes in the
macro-environment, should iconic brands like Starbucks stay true to their
strategic brand vision or continually adapt to regain competitive advantage?
Regaining lost glory and recapturing global brand leadership should be a two-
pronged strategy. Iconic brands should strategically manage the dual process of
continuous innovation on the one hand and reinforce their guiding strategic
brand vision.
Innovation Drives Strong
Brands Innovation is a fundamental building block of iconic brands. Leading
brands create their corporate strategies with an inherent strategic element
encompassing innovation. Such innovation is not limited to bringing new
products to markets. Still, it is expanded to innovation in communication (with
customers and other stakeholders) and innovation in implementing cost-
cutting and efficiency-enhancing strategies. Such continuous innovation serves
dual purposes.
First, innovation enables iconic brands to refine and redefine their cores in line
with the changing needs. Second, innovation allows iconic brands to continually
adapt to customers' changing needs, thereby protecting their competitive
advantage.
Innovation should be practiced along with an organization-wide brand vision,
which acts as the strategic blueprint of the brand’s path. Such a strategic vision
should delineate the boundaries of the brand and chart out the possible
strategies of the brand to attain and maintain brand leadership. Commitment to
such brand vision allows companies in challenging situations to chart out
different strategies (such as either cost-cutting or enhancing value proposition).
Still, it will ensure that the brand does not deviate from its strategic charter. As
innovation prepares the brand to adapt to changing circumstances, brand vision
can guide the brand not to stray away from the core brand promises and dilute
the core brand identity.
Iconic brands can effectively regain their brand leadership by implementing this
dual strategy. Starbucks has already begun on this path. It is innovating in
reaching its customers and enhancing efficiency but maintaining consistency in
its core brand promise of providing an enjoyable experience.
The changing global economic environment has challenged many global iconic
brands. This dual-pronged strategy can help these brands protect their brand
leadership and create a sustainable path to ensuring long-term competitive
advantage.

Questions

a) How did Starbucks use innovation to handle the growing competition? (7)
b) How should Starbucks handle customer complaints? (5)
c) What are the strategies Starbucks should take to enhance customer
participation? (8)