Zappos: Answer Form

Student Name:

Grading Criteria

1) This assignment requires formal business writing. Your writing tone should be formal.

2)
All sentences must be complete.
Bullet points are not acceptable.

3) Use proper grammar.

4) You must use your own words in your answers. Do not copy and paste sentences from the textbook case or the assigned articles.

5) The majority of your grade will be based on correctness and quality. Regarding quality,
an answer with fewer than four (4) lines on computer viewing (not on smartphone viewing) will be considered as a poor-quality answer.

Q1) Identify key players (e.g., customer groups, supplier companies, major organizations) that Zappos deals with in its operation and, from the marketing perspective, describe what Zappos exchanges with each of the key players in order to make money in its business.

Q2) Visit Zappos.com and browse women’s or men’s section. (If you are a female student, browse the women’s section on its website. If you are a male student, browse the men’s section.) Pay attention to styles of shoes and clothes, brands offered, prices, and models featured on the website. Then, infer Zappos’ target segment(s) in terms of age, income, and lifestyle. Briefly describe your reasons.

Q3) Based on the first assigned article, there are two schools of thought on how to provide good customer service: (1) high-touch approach and (2) self-help approach. What are the pros and cons of each of these approaches?

(1)

(2)

Q4) Zappos offers free shipping and free returns to its customers. What are the advantages and disadvantages of its shipping and return policies?

(1) Advantages:

(2) Disadvantages:

Q5) How are (1) great customer service, (2) free shipping and returns, (3) customer loyalty, and (4) profitability interconnected at Zappos?

Q6) From the Zappos case and the assigned articles, what are the two things that you learned about Zappos’ marketing strategy? [Your answers must be related to marketing strategy, not management or HR.]

(1) Learning Point 1:

(2) Learning Point 2:

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http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-customer-service-quandary-touchy-feely-or-do-it-yourself-1446440460

‘We’re actually trying to figure out how to get customers to call us more often,’ says Zappos Chief Executive Tony

Hsieh. PHOTO: THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

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