BA370 ch. 13

zone of tolerance (marketing metric to evaluate five service dimensions)

The area between customers' expectations regarding their desired service and the minimum level of acceptable service

distributive fairness

a customer's perception of the benefits received compared with his or her costs in terms of inconvenience or monetary loss

reliability (service quality dimension)

ability to perform the service dependently and accurately

empowerment

allowing employees to make decisions about how service is provided to customers

tangibles (service quality dimension)

appearance of physical facilities, equipment, personnel, and communication materials

how can firms define the zone of tolerance?

ask the desired and expected level of service for each dimension, customer's perceptions of how well the service performs & that of competitors, and the importance of each service quality dimension

The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado, maintains its five-star rating by focusing on five service characteristics: reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangibles. The Broadmoor conveys trust by empowering its employees. Which service characteristic is the hotel focusing on?

assurance

voice of customer programs

collects customer inputs and integrates them into managerial decisions

inseparable production and consumption aspect of service marketing

consumer is present and part of service process and can rarely try the service before purchasing

An excellent, inexpensive, and readily accessible method for assessing customers' service expectations is

customer complaints

service gaps model

designed to encourage the systematic examination of all aspects of the service delivery process and prescribes the steps needed to develop an optimal service strategy

knowledge gap

difference between customer's expectations and firm's perception of those customer expectations; can close gap by determining what customers want using research

Inwood Hospital uses patient questionnaires to determine that the bedside manner of each of its doctors on staff meets patient needs, thus monitoring the ________ dimension of service quality.

empathy

why can tech have problems when firms use it to fix delivery gap?

if customers don't embrace it or have problems using it

why is effective service recovery important?

increase customer satisfaction, purchase intentions, and positive word of mouth

Service providers must offer cues to help their customers experience and perceive their service more positively because the service is

intangible

how does service marketing differ from product marketing?

intangible, inseparable, heterogeneous, perishable

assurance (service quality dimension)

knowledge of and courtesy by employees and their ability to convey trust and confidence

intangible aspect of service marketing

may be difficult to convey benefits of services

procedural fairness

perceived fairness of the process used to resolve complaints

aspects of recovery

post recovery satisfaction levels are lower than satisfaction level prior to service, and to recover, must listen to customers and involve them in finding a fair solution quickly

Sandhurst Hotels invests heavily in employee training and supports this with a structure for rewarding its workers for their dependability and accuracy. This corresponds to which of the following building blocks of service quality?

reliability

The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado, maintains its five-star rating by focusing on five service characteristics: reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangibles. Employees are trained always to give an estimated time for service, whether it be room service, laundry service, or simply how long it will take to be seated at one of the resort's restaurants. When an employee makes a promise, he or she keeps that promise. Which service characteristic is the hotel focusing on?

reliability

Renatta was employee of the month at Sonic Subs, primarily because she provided excellent customer service by serving food quickly. This relates to what dimension?

responsiveness

Sandhurst Hotels has a customer relationship management system whereby the preferences of regular customers are tracked and used to anticipate customer desires and special requests, which helps to facilitate the registration process. This corresponds to which of the following building blocks of service quality?

responsiveness

perishable aspect of service marekting

services cannot be stored for the future

Which of the following represents the most fundamental difference between a product and a service?

tangibility

five service dimensions to determine service quality, which is necessary to understand what customers want to close the knowledge gap

tangibles, empathy, assurance, responsiveness, and reliability

empathy (service quality dimension)

the caring, individualized attention provided to customers

communication gap

the difference between a company's actual performance and what a company communicates about its performance

standards gap

the difference between the firm's perceptions of customers' expectations and the service standards it sets; can reduce by training employees to meet standards and measuring service performance

delivery gap

the difference between the firm's service standards and the actual service it provides to customers; can be closed by empowering service providers, providing support, and using tech

Many product-dominant firms use quality service

to maintain a sustainable competitive advantage.

heterogeneity aspect of service marketing

variability in a service's quality; service cannot be recalled; some firms replace people with machines to reduce variability

delivery gap example

waiting a long time in checkout line bc clerk kept making errors

responsiveness (service quality dimension)

willingness to help customers and provide prompt service