Consumer Behavior in Service Encounters

8/2/2019 Consumer Behavior in Service Encounters

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Chapter 2

Consumer Behavior in

Service Encounters


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Where Does the Customer Fit in a

Service Organization? (Fig. 2.1)

Consumers rarely involved in manufacture of goodsbut often participate in service creation and delivery

Challenge for service marketers is to understandhow customers interact with service operations

Flowcharting clarifies how customer involvement inservice encounters varies with type of process - seeFig. 2-1: People processing (e.g., motel stay): customer is physically involved throughout entire

process Possession processing (e.g., DVD repair): involvement may be limited to drop off of

physical item/description of problem and subsequent pick up

Mental stimulus processing (e.g., weather forecast): involvement is mental, notphysical; here customer simply receives output and acts on it

Information processing (e.g., health insurance): involvement is mental - specifyinformation upfront and later receive documentation of coverage


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High-Contact and Low-Contact

Services

High Contact Services

Customers visit service facility and remain throughoutservice delivery

Active contact between customers and service personnel

Includes most people-processing services

Low Contact Services

Little or no physical contact with service personnel

Contact usually at arms length through electronic orphysical distribution channels

New technologies (e.g. Web) help reduce contact levels


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Levels of Customer Contact with

Service Organizations (Fig. 2.2)

Emphasizes encounters

with service personnel

Emphasizes encounters

with equipment

High

Low

ManagementConsulting

Car Repair

InsuranceMotel

FastFood

Nursing Home

AirlineTravel (Econ.)

CableTV

TelephoneBanking

HairCut

Good Restaurant

4-Star Hotel

DryCleaning

Retail Banking

Mail Based Repairs

Internet-basedServices

Movie Theater

Internet Banking

Subway


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Managing Service Encounters--1

Service encounter:A period of time during which

customers interact directly with a service

Moments of truth:Definingpoints in service

delivery where customers interact with

employees or equipment

Critical incidents: specific encounters that result

in especially satisfying/dissatisfying outcomes

for either customers or service employees


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Managing Service Encounters--2

Service success often rests on performance ofjunior contact personnel

Must train, coach, role model desired behavior Thoughtless or badly behaved customers can

cause problems for service personnel (and othercustomers)

Must educate customers, clarify what isexpected, manage behavior


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The Purchase Process for Services(Adapted from Fig. 2-3)

Prepurchase Stage

Awareness of need Information search Evaluation of alternative service suppliers

Service Encounter Stage

Request service from chosen supplier Service delivery

Postpurchase Stage

Evaluation of service performance Future intentions


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Perceived Risks in

Purchasing and Using Services (Table 2.1)

Functionalunsatisfactory performance outcomes

Financialmonetary loss, unexpected extra costs

Temporalwasted time, delays lead to problems

Physicalpersonal injury, damage to possessions

Psychologicalfears and negative emotions Socialhow others may think and react

Sensoryunwanted impacts to any of five senses


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Factors that Influence

Customer Expectations of Services (Fig. 2.4)

Predicted Service

Explicit & ImplicitService Promises

Word-of-Mouth

Past ExperienceDesired Service

ZONEOF

TOLERANCE

Adequate Service

Personal Needs

Beliefs aboutWhat Is Possible

Perceived ServiceAlterations

Situational Factors

Source: Adapted from Zeithaml, Parasuraman & Berry


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Components of Customer Expectations

Desired Service Level: wished-for level of service

quality that customer believes can and should be

delivered Adequate Service Level: minimum acceptable level

of service

Predicted Service Level: service level that customer

believes firm will actually deliver

Zone of Tolerance:range within which customers

are willing to accept variations in service delivery


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Quality Control Problems Make

Services Hard to Evaluate

Search attributes Tangible characteristics thatallow customers to evaluate a product beforepurchase

Experience attributes

Characteristics that canbe experienced when actually using the service

Credence attributes Characteristics that aredifficult to evaluate confidently even after

consumption Goods tend to be higher in search attributes,

services tend to be higher in experience andcredence attributes

Credence attributes force customers to trust that


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How Product Attributes Affect

Ease of Evaluation) (Fig. 2.5)

Source: Adapted from Zeithaml

Most Goods

High in searchattributes

High in experienceattributes

High in credenceattributes

Difficultto evaluate

Easyto evaluate

Most Services

Clothing

Chair

Motorvehicle

Foods

Restau

rantmeals

Lawnfertilizer

Haircut

Ente

rtainment

Computerrepair

Lega

lservices

Comple

xsurgery


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Customer Satisfaction is Central to

the Marketing Concept Satisfaction defined as attitude-like judgment

following a service purchase or series of service

interactions

Customers have expectations prior toconsumption, observe service performance,

compare it to expectations

Satisfaction judgments are based on thiscomparison

Positive disconfirmation if better than expected

Confirmation if same as expected


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Customer Delight:

Going Beyond Satisfaction

Research shows that delightis a function of 3

components

Unexpectedly high levels of performance

Arousal (e.g., surprise, excitement)

Positive affect (e.g., pleasure, joy, or happiness)

Is it possible for customers to be delighted by

verymundane services?

Progressive Insurance has found ways to


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Comprising Three Overlapping

SubsystemsService Operations (front stage and backstage)

Where inputs are processed and service

elements created.

Includes facilities, equipment, and personnel

Service Delivery (front stage)

Where final assembly of service elementstakes place

and service is delivered to customers

Includes customer interactions with operations


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(1) High Contact Service--e.g.,

Hotel (Fig. 2.7)

TheCustomer

TechnicalCore

Interior & ExteriorFacilities

Equipment

Service People

Other

Customers

Other

Customers

Advertising

Sales Calls

Market ResearchSurveys

Billing / Statements

Miscellaneous Mail,

Phone Calls, Faxes, etc.

Random Exposure to

Facilities / Vehicles

Chance Encounters

with Service Personnel

Word of Mouth

Service Operations System

Backstage(invisible)

Front Stage(visible)

Service Delivery System Other Contact Points

Service Marketing System


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(2) Low Contact Service--e.g., Credit

Card (Fig. 2.8)

TechnicalCore

Mail

Self Service

Equipment

Phone, Fax,Web site etc.

The

Customer

Service Operations System

Service Delivery System Other Contact Points

Backstage

(invisible)

Front Stage

(visible)

Advertising

Market ResearchSurveys

Random Exposures

Facilities, Personnel

Word of Mouth

Service Marketing System


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Service as Theater

All the worlds a stageand all the men and

women merely players.They have their exits andtheir entrances and eachman in his time plays

many partsWilliam Shakespeare

As You Like It


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The Dramaturgy of Service Delivery

Service dramas unfold on a stage--settings may

change as performance unfolds

Many service dramas are tightly scripted, othersimprovised

Front-stage personnel are like members of a cast

Like actors, employees have roles, may wearspecial costumes, speak required lines, behave in

specific ways

Support comes from a backstage production


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Role and Script Theories

Role: A set of behavior patterns learned through

experience and communication

Role congruence: In service encounters,

employees and customers must act out defined

roles for good outcomes

Script:A sequence of behavior to be followed by

employees and customers during service

delivery

Some scripts (e.g. teeth cleaning) are routinized,

others flexible

Consumer Behavior in Service Encounters

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