chapter 13

Maria asks Glenda what housecleaning service she would recommend in Oakview. Glenda responds that Pristine Cleaning is great if you can be assured that Janice will be the person assigned to your house. Glenda's recommendation addresses which of the following service features? a) Heterogeneity b) Intangibility c) Perishability d) Inseparability e) Homogeneity

a) Heterogeneity

The necessary interaction between service provider and customer that allows a service to be delivered is called a) customer contact. b) service exchange. c) marketing. d) relationship marketing. e) service contact.

a) customer contact.

The heterogeneity characteristic of services provides marketers with tremendous opportunity to a) customize their services to meet unique individual needs. b) hold down the cost of providing services to customers. c) create standardized packages that will appeal to many customers. d) offer the same service as all of their competitors. e) develop relationship marketing with their customers

a) customize their services to meet unique individual needs.

The fact that the first massage Gretchen gives each day is better than the last massage demonstrates the ______ of services. a) heterogeneity b) customer contact aspect c) intangibility d) inseparability e) perishability

a) heterogeneity

Clean, sharp looking employees with appropriate uniforms help assure customers about service quality and therefore address the _____ of services. a) intangibility b) perishability c) tangibility d) inseparability e) heterogeneity

a) intangibility

Transamerica's pyramid-shaped building in San Francisco is used to symbolize strength, security, and reliability. This type of promotion is designed to address the ___________ characteristic of services. a) intangibility b) perishability c) heterogeneity d) inseparability e) customer service

a) intangibility

Using appointments or reservations for scheduling delivery of services is an attempt to address the ___________ characteristic of services. a) perishability b) intangibility c) heterogeneity d) inseparability e) homogeneity

a) perishability

Client-based relationships are least likely to be developed by a) towing services. b) accountants. c) beauticians. d) orthodontists. e) psychiatrists.

a) towing services.

Which of the following statements about customer contact in services marketing is false? a) Service employees are important in creating satisfied customers. b) High-contact services are less expensive to deliver because they are typically equipment-based. c) The main principle of customer contact is that satisfied employees lead to satisfied customers. d) Service companies can minimize customer dissatisfaction by changing high-contact services into low-contact services. e) Employee training programs are an effective way to ensure good customer contact and reduce problems.

b) High-contact services are less expensive to deliver because they are typically equipment-based.

Hair stylists find it challenging to market their service because the customer must be involved in production (i.e., the haircut). This illustrates which of the following unique features of services? a) Intangibility b) Inseparability c) Perishability d) Heterogeneity e) Homogeneity

b) Inseparability

If a nonsmoker dines in a restaurant without a no-smoking section, then the overall quality of service experienced by the nonsmoking customer probably declines. This is an example of which of the following service characteristics? a) Perishability b) Inseparability c) Heterogeneity d) Intangibility e) Homogeneity

b) Inseparability

What should marketers do to promote the consistency and reliability of their services most effectively? a) Limit the number of employees in their organization b) Train employees and develop standard procedures for dealing with customers c) Encourage employees to be creative in solving customer issues and complaints d) Perform as much of the service as possible before the customer arrives e) Require employees to be shining, happy people all day long

b) Train employees and develop standard procedures for dealing with customers

Which of the following is a low-contact service? a) Childcare b) Website design c) Health care d) Manicure e) Legal services

b) Website design

A first class airline ticket offers a ____ service of transportation as well as _______ services of drink and food service, special boarding rights, and extra customer service. a) primary; secondary b) core; supplementary c) bundled; extra d) complementary; main e) major; minor

b) core; supplementary

If Best Western bundles its rooms with services such as free local phone calls, cable television, wireless Internet access, and complimentary breakfast, these services are known as ___________ services. a) core b) supplementary c) bundled d) business e) complimentary

b) supplementary

Which of the following service characteristics results in variability of service quality yet provides the opportunity for customizing services to match the specific needs of individual customers? a) Homogeneity b) Perishability c) Heterogeneity d) Intangibility e) Inseparability

c) Heterogeneity

Marketers of services must deal with the challenges of balancing supply and demand and planning for peak and off-peak times. What characteristic of services creates these challenges? a) Inseparability b) Customer contact c) Perishability d) Heterogeneity e) Intangibility

c) Perishability

By installing ATMs, banks have increased production capacity and reduced the number of personnel. This results in a decrease in a) perishability. b) intangibility. c) customer contact. d) inseparability. e) customer service.

c) customer contact.

The level of interaction necessary between a customer and service provider in order to complete a service is called a) tangibility. b) client-based relationships. c) customer contact. d) consumer interaction. e) heterogeneity.

c) customer contact.

A sign in a doctor's office waiting room says "Please be courteous of the others waiting with you." The doctor's office is trying to positively influence the _______ aspect of services. a) tangibility b) perishability c) inseparability d) customer contact e) heterogeneity

c) inseparability

Personal trainers cannot complete their work without their clients present because of the _______ feature of services. a) perishability b) intangibility c) inseparability d) heterogeneity e) tangibility

c) inseparability

Kathy Adkins, owner of Adkins Styling Salon, looks at the day's appointment schedule and notices that it is completely full. She wishes some of the empty slots from earlier in the week were available on this Saturday afternoon. Her thoughts deal with the ___________ characteristic of services. a) credence b) heterogeneity c) perishability d) search e) inseparability

c) perishability

When service companies change high-contact services into low-contact services, the a) service becomes more expensive to deliver. b) quality of the service declines. c) service becomes less personalized. d) time required to deliver the service increases. e) service becomes less standardized.

c) service becomes less personalized.

A service is usually offered as part of a bundled package of services with a core service and one or more ________ services. a) basic b) tangible c) supplementary d) auxiliary e) other core

c) supplementary

The owner of the Lords and Ladies hair salon has difficulty in standardizing and controlling the quality of service that the customers in his salon receive. This problem illustrates which of the following unique features of service? a) Intangibility b) Inseparability c) Perishability d) Heterogeneity e) Marketability

d) Heterogeneity

Client-based relationships are most likely to be developed by a) funeral directors. b) electricians. c) installers. d) doctors. e) brick layers.

d) doctors.

Because of a service's ___________, standardization and quality are difficult to control. a) intangibility b) inseparability c) homogeneity d) heterogeneity e) perishability

d) heterogeneity

Machinery such as ATMs and online customer services can reduce the ______ that comes from increased contact with human employees. a) intangibility b) perishability c) inseparability d) heterogeneity e) tangibility

d) heterogeneity

Jason Robinson, a dentist, finds that he is not bringing in enough revenue to cover his expenses. He would like to schedule more patients, but he finds that in almost every time slot, he is seeing an existing patient. Jim's difficulty in expanding his practice involves the aspect of service called a) slotting. b) perishability. c) credence. d) inseparability. e) heterogeneity.

d) inseparability.

Brittany recently moved to a new city and is trying to find a new mechanic to do maintenance and repair on her car. She visits several places to judge their overall appearance, cleanliness, and organization and finally chooses a mechanic. Brittany was trying to overcome the ______ aspect of services. a) heterogeneity b) perishability c) customer contact d) intangibility e) inseparability

d) intangibility

Symbols such as the Travellers' Financial Services umbrella are designed to help customers overcome the ________ of services. a) heterogeneity b) unpredictability c) inseparability d) intangibility e) perishability

d) intangibility

Service marketers make promises to customers, suggesting that the customer place some degree of trust in the service provider. In this way, service marketers are trying to address the challenge of the service characteristic of a) perishability. b) heterogeneity. c) inseparability. d) intangibility. e) customer contact.

d) intangibility.

The fact the services cannot be inventoried and then sold at a later date is called a) intangibility. b) heterogeneity. c) inseparability. d) perishability. e) nonstorability.

d) perishability.

Lauren is a concert promoter who works for pop star Justin Timberlake. She works very hard to make sure most of Justin's concerts are sold out because she understands the concept of perishability, which means a) because the concert is not tangible, customers will have a difficult time judging its quality in advance. b) the production of the concert and the consumption of the concert by the fans cannot be separated so tickets must be sold. c) a high level of interaction will exist between the customers and the musicians, which makes the customers' presence necessary. d) that if the tickets are not sold, seats will remain empty and they can never be sold to anyone again. e) that each concert is different and customers will miss a unique experience if they are not present at the

d) that if the tickets are not sold, seats will remain empty and they can never be sold to anyone again.

H&R Block, a major tax preparation firm, reported having a problem with its employees being inconsistent in the filing of returns. The firm is experiencing a problem with which of the following characteristics of the service offering? a) Tangibility b) Intangibility c) Perishability d) Inseparability e) Heterogeneity

e) Heterogeneity

Which of the following is the best example of a high-contact service? a) Appliance repair b) Newspaper delivery c) Dog training d) Interior decorating e) Plastic surgery

e) Plastic surgery

The main characteristic of a ___________ is that customers are satisfied to the point that they use a service repeatedly over a period of time. a) service relationship b) professional marketer c) high-contact service d) heterogeneous service e) client-based relationship

e) client-based relationship

Many services base their success on building a group of satisfied customers who use their services on a regular basis over long periods of time. This critical component of success is referred to as a) partnerships. b) repeated customer contact. c) inseparable clientele. d) long-term customers. e) client-based relationships.

e) client-based relationships.

The more __________ involved with delivering a service, the greater the degree of heterogeneity. a) mechanical efforts b) phone contact c) perishability d) tangibility e) human labor

e) human labor

Production and consumption of services must simultaneously occur due to the _____ characteristic of services. a) intangibility b) heterogeneity c) customer contact d) perishability e) inseparability

e) inseparability

All of the following are elements of the inseparability characteristic of services except that a) consumers are involved in production. b) centralized mass production is difficult. c) consumption and production are simultaneous. d) many services cannot be performed without the customer being present. e) services are easy to standardize and control.

e) services are easy to standardize and control.