10 Questions

Question #1: You are not allowed to acquire a new customer next year from Google, Facebook, Retargeting, or if you are cataloger any of the catalog co-ops. Describe what your strategy is?

Question #2:  Your business lost 8% of sales last year. Your analysis shows that Merchandise Productivity fell by 10%. Describe how you address this issue with your Merchandising Team, a group of individuals who believe you are Marketing the brand to the "wrong customer"?

Question #3:  You do not execute an email campaign for an entire month via an A/B test. You learn that sales are identical in the no-mail group as in the mail group. Describe how you respond to the results of your test?

Question #4:  You learn that 33% of last year's customers purchase again next year, and the best observed metric since 1999 is 37%. Describe how much of your resources you allocate to customer acquisition efforts next year?

Question #5:  You measure that 30% of last year's retail buyers will purchase online next year. Meanwhile, just 15% of last year's online buyers will purchase in a store next year. What tactics do you use to protect sales volume in stores, or do you just close stores and continue paying debt on the stores you close?

Question #6:  You learn that you improved your conversion rate online from 4% to 4.2%, but sales did not change - you simply reduced the number of visits required for a customer to purchase something. You spent $100,000 to improve conversion rates but did not increase sales. How do you explain your performance to Management?

Question #7:  A person with no experience at email marketing whatsoever is promoted ahead of you, and is now responsible for email marketing. Describe your approach for working with this individual?

Question #8:  You A/B test and learn that you can increase sales by 18% by personalizing your website and email campaigns. Your Creative Director tells you that "it is important to provide a consistent brand experience across channels, and personalization does not allow for a consistent brand experience".  How do you respond to this comment?

Question #9:  Every vendor tied to the paper industry tells you that catalog marketing works, even if your customer is 29 years old and shops almost exclusively via mobile. How do you respond to the vendor community when they take you out to lunch to encourage you to embark on a catalog marketing program?

Question #10:  Your EVP of Marketing left the company to "pursue other opportunities and spend more time with family." Alright. This is the third EVP of Marketing to leave the company in five years. Describe why you would or would not apply for this position?