🛍️Principles of Marketing Unit 11 – Services – The Intangible Product

What Are Services?

• Services are intangible economic activities that provide benefits to customers without resulting in ownership of physical goods
• Involve the application of specialized knowledge, skills, and resources to create value for the customer
• Can be performed by individuals, businesses, or organizations across various industries (healthcare, education, hospitality)
• Differ from physical products in their intangibility, inseparability, variability, and perishability (IIVP characteristics)
• Play a crucial role in modern economies, accounting for a significant portion of GDP and employment in developed countries
• Examples of services include professional advice (legal, financial), personal care (haircuts, massages), and experiences (theme parks, concerts)
• Require a different marketing approach compared to physical goods due to their unique characteristics and challenges

Characteristics of Services

• Intangibility: Services cannot be seen, touched, or physically possessed before purchase, making it challenging to evaluate their quality and value
  • Customers rely on tangible cues (service environment, employee appearance) and reputation to assess the service
  • Marketers need to emphasize the benefits and outcomes of the service rather than its physical attributes
• Inseparability: Services are produced and consumed simultaneously, requiring the presence and interaction of both the service provider and the customer
  • The quality of the service depends on the performance of the service provider and the participation of the customer
  • Marketers need to focus on training and empowering employees to deliver consistent and high-quality service
• Variability: The quality and outcome of services can vary significantly depending on the individual service provider, customer, and context
  • Standardization and quality control are more challenging compared to physical goods
  • Marketers need to establish service standards, monitor performance, and gather customer feedback to minimize variability
• Perishability: Services cannot be stored, saved, or resold after they have been performed, leading to challenges in managing supply and demand
  • Unused service capacity (empty hotel rooms, idle hairdressers) represents lost revenue that cannot be recovered
  • Marketers need to use pricing, promotion, and reservation systems to match supply with demand and optimize capacity utilization

Types of Services

• Professional services: Require specialized knowledge and expertise (legal advice, medical care, accounting)
• Financial services: Involve the management and exchange of money and financial assets (banking, insurance, investment)
• Hospitality and tourism services: Provide accommodation, food, and entertainment to travelers and visitors (hotels, restaurants, tour operators)
• Transportation services: Move people and goods from one location to another (airlines, railways, shipping companies)
• Communication services: Enable the exchange of information and messages (telecommunications, internet providers, postal services)
• Personal care services: Enhance the physical appearance and well-being of individuals (hairdressing, fitness centers, spas)
• Repair and maintenance services: Restore or maintain the functionality of products and equipment (automotive repair, appliance repair, IT support)
• Entertainment and leisure services: Provide recreational and cultural experiences (theme parks, cinemas, museums)

Service Marketing Mix

• Expands the traditional 4Ps (product, price, place, promotion) to include 3 additional elements: people, process, and physical evidence
• Product: The intangible benefits and outcomes that the service provides to the customer
  • Marketers need to design services that meet customer needs, differentiate from competitors, and create value
• Price: The amount of money that customers pay for the service, which can be based on various factors (cost, competition, perceived value)
  • Pricing strategies for services include hourly rates, package deals, and subscription models
• Place: The location, channels, and methods through which the service is delivered to the customer
  • Services can be delivered in physical locations (stores, offices), online platforms, or through a combination of both
• Promotion: The communication and persuasion efforts used to inform, educate, and attract customers to the service
  • Promotional tools for services include advertising, personal selling, public relations, and word-of-mouth referrals
• People: The employees and customers who are involved in the service delivery process and influence the quality and outcome of the service
  • Marketers need to recruit, train, and motivate employees to deliver excellent service and manage customer interactions effectively
• Process: The procedures, mechanisms, and flow of activities by which the service is delivered to the customer
  • Processes should be designed to ensure efficiency, consistency, and a positive customer experience
• Physical evidence: The tangible elements that surround the service and provide cues about its quality and value
  • Physical evidence includes the service environment (décor, layout), employee appearance (uniforms), and service-related items (brochures, receipts)

Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction

• Service quality refers to the degree to which a service meets or exceeds customer expectations and delivers value
• Determined by factors such as reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangibles (SERVQUAL model)
• Customer satisfaction is the emotional response and evaluation of a service based on the comparison between expectations and actual performance
  • Satisfied customers are more likely to repeat purchases, provide positive word-of-mouth, and develop loyalty to the service provider
• Marketers need to regularly measure and monitor service quality and customer satisfaction through surveys, feedback forms, and mystery shopping
• Service recovery strategies should be in place to address service failures and restore customer satisfaction (apologies, compensation, problem-solving)
• Continuous improvement and innovation in service quality are essential to maintain competitiveness and adapt to changing customer needs and expectations

Challenges in Service Marketing

• Overcoming the intangibility of services and communicating their value and benefits to customers
• Managing the variability of service quality and ensuring consistent performance across different employees and situations
• Balancing supply and demand in the face of the perishability of services and fluctuations in customer demand
• Differentiating the service from competitors and creating a unique and compelling value proposition
• Dealing with the inseparability of services and the need for direct interaction between employees and customers
• Encouraging and managing word-of-mouth and online reviews, which can have a significant impact on service reputation and customer decision-making
• Adapting to technological changes and integrating digital technologies into service delivery and customer engagement
• Attracting, retaining, and motivating skilled and customer-oriented employees in a high-turnover industry

Service Design and Delivery

• Service design is the process of planning and organizing the components, processes, and interactions that shape the customer experience
• Involves understanding customer needs, defining service concepts, and creating service blueprints that map out the service delivery process
• Service blueprinting is a technique that visually represents the steps, touchpoints, and backstage activities involved in delivering the service
  • Helps identify potential fail points, optimize processes, and ensure a seamless customer experience
• Service delivery involves the actual execution of the service according to the designed processes and standards
• Frontline employees play a crucial role in service delivery and need to be empowered, trained, and motivated to provide excellent service
• Technology can be used to enhance service delivery and customer experience (self-service kiosks, mobile apps, chatbots)
• Service environment (servicescape) should be designed to create a positive atmosphere, facilitate service delivery, and communicate the service brand
• Service innovation involves continuously improving and introducing new services to meet evolving customer needs and stay ahead of the competition

Future Trends in Service Industries

• Increasing digitalization and automation of services, with the integration of artificial intelligence, robotics, and self-service technologies
• Growing importance of personalization and customization of services to meet individual customer preferences and needs
• Shift towards experience-based services that focus on creating memorable and engaging customer experiences rather than just delivering functional benefits
• Emergence of sharing economy and on-demand services that disrupt traditional service models and create new opportunities for service providers
• Greater emphasis on sustainability and social responsibility in service design and delivery, addressing environmental and social concerns
• Blurring of boundaries between products and services, with the rise of product-service systems and servitization strategies
• Increasing globalization and cross-border delivery of services, enabled by digital platforms and international trade agreements
• Growing importance of data analytics and customer insights in service marketing, allowing for targeted marketing, personalized offerings, and improved service quality