Sercives Marketing

SERVICES MARKETING

ASSIGNMENT #2.1 (Module 2)

The differences between a service and a good, such as between a patient’s stay in a hospital and the assembly of the left front fender of a Chevrolet, are significant.  To manage service effectively, you must understand the characteristics that distinguish a service from a good.  The statements on the left-hand side describe goods.  Could the same thing be said about services or does it need to be restated?  Your task is to complete the statements under the “services” column.

Goods:

1.  The customer owns an object.

2.  The goal of producing a good is uniformity—all widgets are alike.

3.  A product can be put into inventory; a sample can be sent in advance for the customer to review.

4.  The customer is the end user who is not involved in the production process.

5.  Quality is measured by comparing output        to specifications.

6.  If improperly produced, the product can be pulled off the line or “recalled.”

7.  The morale of production employees is important.

Services:

1. The customer owns a memory of services. The experience cannot be sold or passed on to a third party.

1. The goal of service is unique set of experiences, expectations, needs and desires from an organization; each customer is “special”

1. A service happens in the moment. It cannot be put into inventory or can be sent in advance for the customer to review.

1. The customer is a producer who is a special partner in creating the service.

1. Quality is measured by the gap between the customer’s level of expectation and how well they rated the services.

1. When services are improperly performed, apologies and reparation are the only means of recourse.

1. The morale of service employees is critical and impacts the services quality.