Reference no: EM132295365 , Length: 5
Assignment -
Read the file: France's Famously Crusty Baguette Goes Soft
Background: Is the customer always right? Is the customer sometimes wrong and just needs to be educated? Is the customer right, but just wrong for us, as they are not a part of our target market? Should we "fire" customers who regularly do not provide a profit contribution to our business? (These are questions you should address in your own mind as you think about Dominiques request to you. You may even want to address some of these things when writing your memo.)
Questions such as the above, have been debated by marketers for many years, with no definitive answers. Most people who have studied marketing academically will say that the customer is always right. Yet, those who have worked in business understand that there are some customers who almost invariably cost the business more than they produce in revenue. Perhaps they require a lot of hand holding, extraordinary levels of support, etc. Should we continue a relationship with them? What if they are willing to pay extra for the level of product and service that they demand?
Situation: Dominique Boulanger, who is a close friend of yours from your undergraduate university days, and is now the Assistant to Pascal Barillon, Vice President of the Professional Chamber of Parisian Bakers. (PCPB) The PCPB is influential in the yearly review of Le Décret Pain, which sets forth many requirements for the baking of bread in France. Dominique has asked your opinion, as someone with some knowledge of marketing, if the current law should be changed to address the question as to how long a Baguette should be baked.
Task: Your job is to write a memorandum to your friend Dominique Boulanger, providing your very best advice regarding his question to you. Be sure to provide backup information to support what you say, mainly based on our readings and learning from this semester. While you should answer his question about Le Décret Pain, the best answers may go beyond the direct answer to explain the reasoning behind your answer. If Dominique accepts your advice, he should be armed with background information to defend himself.
Memorandum Format -
To: [Audience]
From: [Person and/or Department issuing the memo]
Date: [Date Sent]
Subject: [Subject of the Memo]
[Opening - Get to the point in the opening paragraph. Keep things simple and short. Make it easy and fast to read. Visit the Memo Template page on Vertex42.com for more tips. ]
[Summary - Summarize any historical or contextual information needed to support the opening paragraph.]
[Conclusion - End with a call to action.]
CC: [Send copies to anyone affected by the memo.]
Attachments: [List any attachments to the memo. Only list items referred to in the body of the memo.]