| Course | MKT-3100 Principles of Sales |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 5 |
| Paper type | Module 5 written assignment: customer service |
| Length | About 477 words, 4 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | Bachelor of Science in Professional Studies |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MKT 3100 Module 5
The Call After the Cooler Failed: Servicing the Sale and the Economics of Keeping Customers
Student Name
Bachelor of Science in Professional Studies, Thomas Edison State University
MKT-3100: Principles of Sales
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
The Call After the Cooler Failed: Servicing the Sale and the Economics of Keeping Customers
The Failure
Three weeks after we installed a new reach-in refrigerator at a busy Fort Lee restaurant, it stopped cooling on a Friday afternoon. The owner lost about $1,800 of food and called me angry. He had bought from us for eight years.
Handling the Complaint
Manning et al. (2018) recommend handling complaints by listening without interrupting, acknowledging the problem and the customer's feelings, finding a solution and following through. I went to the restaurant within two hours. I listened to the owner, agreed that the failure was unacceptable and called our service partner, who found a defective compressor relay and fixed it that evening. Because the unit was under warranty, the repair cost the owner nothing, but the lost food was not covered. I arranged for our company to credit $1,800 to his account, and I called him the following Monday and Friday to confirm the unit was holding temperature.
Servicing Every Sale
The failure showed me that I had treated the sale as finished at installation. I have since set up a routine for every sale over $5,000: a call within three days of installation, a visit within 30 days to check performance and staff training, a reminder before the first scheduled maintenance and a call before the warranty expires. Manning et al. (2018) describe servicing the sale as the stage where partnerships are built, because the customer learns whether the salesperson's promises hold.
Why Retention Matters
Reichheld and Sasser (1990) argued that reducing customer defections can raise profits sharply because loyal, long-tenured buyers spend more each year, are cheaper to look after and bring in referrals; in the service businesses they studied, a five-point reduction in defections raised profits by 25 to 85 percent. Relationship marketing pays off in loyalty and measurable results, according to the meta-analysis by Palmatier et al. (2006), with the effects strongest when relationships are built through expertise and communication.
In my territory, my 140 accounts produce about $2.6 million in annual sales. Losing the Fort Lee restaurant would have cost about $40,000 a year in sales plus the referrals he makes to other owners. Winning a new restaurant takes months of prospecting, and many new restaurants close within a few years.
Long-Term Relationships
The Fort Lee owner has since referred two other restaurants to me. The service I gave after the failure did more to build the relationship than the original sale. He also now calls me first when he has a problem, rather than calling a competitor, which is the clearest sign that the relationship survived the failure.
Conclusion
Customer service is where selling becomes partnership. Handling the cooler failure well, and building a routine to service every major sale, protects accounts that retention research shows are the foundation of a profitable territory.
References
Manning, G. L., Ahearne, M., & Reece, B. L. (2018). Selling today: Partnering to create value (14th ed.). Pearson.
Palmatier, R. W., Dant, R. P., Grewal, D., & Evans, K. R. (2006). Factors influencing the effectiveness of relationship marketing: A meta-analysis. Journal of Marketing, 70(4), 136-153. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.70.4.136
Reichheld, F. F., & Sasser, W. E., Jr. (1990). Zero defections: Quality comes to services. Harvard Business Review, 68(5), 105-111.
What the MKT 3100 Module 5 instructions ask for
The fifth written assignment covers customer service: servicing the sale, handling complaints and building long-term relationships. Expect to apply these concepts to real or realistic customer situations, including a complaint. Walk through each step and what you did there, or would do, and back your reasoning with the textbook and studies of retention and relationship marketing. Quantifying what a customer is worth to your business makes the case for service concrete. A real complaint you handled or observed gives the paper its best material, but a realistic composite works if you label it. Show each step of the response, then explain what system would prevent or catch similar problems. Estimate what the customer is worth to the business.
How the MKT 3100 Module 5 example is put together
The paper opens with a specific service failure. A section describes complaint handling step by step, including follow-up. A section turns the lesson into a service routine for every major sale. A section uses retention and relationship marketing research to explain the economics, with the account's value calculated. The paper closes with the relationship that followed and a conclusion tying service to partnership. The paper moves from a single incident to a routine, which shows the writer learning from the complaint. The account's value is estimated, which connects service to the economics of the territory, and research on retention generalizes the lesson. Its conclusion links service to partnership.
Where the marks sit in the MKT 3100 Module 5 rubric
Service papers earn credit for correct use of customer service concepts, application to a real complaint, research support and readable prose. Papers that show complaint handling step by step, and that build a system from one incident, demonstrate practical understanding. Quantifying the value of retaining a customer, supported by research, shows business thinking. Connecting service to the partnership era of selling ties the module to the course's theme. Mentors also look for follow-up after the complaint is resolved, since the customer's confidence is rebuilt only when the fix holds. Specific dates and actions make the response credible. Mentors value a complaint described honestly, including what went wrong.
MKT 3100 Module 5 help: mistakes that cost marks
Students lose points by describing service in general terms, by handling complaints defensively or by ignoring what a customer is worth. Others treat the sale as complete at delivery. Describe a specific complaint and each step of your response. Set up a routine for following up on sales. Estimate a customer's value to your business. Explain why keeping customers matters. Do not promise customers what the company cannot deliver; check with managers before offering credits or replacements. Record what you learn from each complaint so patterns can be found. Thank the customer for telling you about the problem. A free first sample on your own MKT-3100 Module 5 assignment is available on request.
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MKT 3100 Module 5 questions, answered
Where can I find a free MKT 3100 Module 5 sample paper?
A refrigeration failure at a key account, the complaint handling and a post-sale service routine are covered in the assignment above.
What does servicing the sale mean?
Following up after delivery to ensure the customer is satisfied and the product performs as promised.
How should a salesperson handle a complaint?
Listen, acknowledge the problem and the customer's feelings, find a solution and follow through.
Why does customer retention matter?
Buyers who stay for years tend to order more, need less service per sale and send new accounts your way, so each defection prevented adds profit.
What is relationship marketing?
Building long-term relationships with customers through trust, expertise and communication.