Service Quality Concepts

Learning Objectives

• To understand the basis of service quality

• To understand the role of expectations in service quality

• To understand the role of service experience in service quality

• To understand the service sequence

The Quality Problem

Service as Process

Intangibility

Simultaneity

Perishability

Service Providing Outcome

Customer as Participant

(Co-producer)

Heterogeneity

Variability, Complexity

How to Determine Quality in this Situation?

i.e. How do I measure a good quality haircut?

The Basis of Service Quality

The perception of the customer determines the

quality of a service(In short: “did I get what I expected – or better?”)

i.e. Is the haircut what I expected?

The Basis of PerceptionPerception is based on Experience of Service

compared against Expectation of Service

If experience matches expectations, then quality is good

If experience exceeds expectations, then quality is great

If expectations exceed experience, then quality is poor

Experience Expectation

ExperienceExpectation

ExperienceExpectation

Expectations vs Experience

Expectation Experience

Process Process

Outcome Outcome

Experience and Expectation of Service have a Process and an Outcome aspect

Getting Something

Experiencing Something

Can you Rely on the Outcome?

Expectation Experience

Process Process

OutcomeOutcome

Superior Outcome may not compensate for poor Process (or vice versa)

Example: Outcome Most Important“They were rude but at least they fixed my car properly”

“They were polite but my car broke down again”

Example: Process Most Important“The concert was great but

the t-shirts were terrible”

“The concert was bad but they sold great t-shirts”

Example: Both are Important“The food was great but

the staff were rude”

“The staff were polite but the food was terrible”

Part 2: How Expectations Work

What Affects Expectations

Expectation

Sales/ Marketing Information

Corporate Brand & Image

What Other Customers Say

Past Experience with Service

Relationship with Service Provider

Experiences with Other Services

The advent of Social Media has magnified the audience for dissatisfied customers

Process

Outcome

Realistic Explicit

Types of Expectations

ExpectationFuzzy

Implicit

Unrealistic Explicit

Make explicit

Mak

e ex

plici

tM

ake

realistic Process

OutcomeDefine

Expectations

Examples of ExpectationsExplicit Unrealistic: “make

me look like Brad Pitt”

Fuzzy: “make me look like a rockstar”

Explicit Realistic: “Short back and sides”

Implicit: “why didn’t you ask me first?”

Make

expli

cit

Make realistic

Make explicit

Part 3: How Experiences Work

What Affects Experience

Experience

Experience is built up through a series of:

SERVICE ENCOUNTERS

also known as

MOMENTS OF TRUTH

also known as

ACTS

Process

Outcome

Service Relationship

SequenceSequence

Episode

The Basis of a Relationship

Experience

Act

Act

Act

Episode

Act

Act

Act

Episode

Act

Act

Act

Episode

Act

Act

Act

Source: Holmlund, Perceived Quality in Business Relationships

The cumulative effect of these Acts defines the overall Service Experience and therefore the

Service Relationship

Process

Outcome

Part 4: The Service Sequence

Example of a Service Sequence

12

3

4

56

7

8 9Expected Service

Above expectation (great service)

Below expectation (poor service)

Zone of Tolerance

A conceptual map of the customer’s experience

New Zone of Tolerance

The Dangers of Delighting Customers

1

2

3

4

5

6 7 8 9

Expected Service

Above expectation (great service)

Below expectation (poor service)

Old Zone of Tolerance

It becomes very difficult to continually delight customers as they come to expect delight as part

of the service. The zone of tolerance shifts.

Final Word on Service Quality

• What the customer thinks is critical to service quality

• The outcome and the process need to meet expectations

• What you do defines quality as much as what you say

• Getting expectations right is important

• Service Quality is dynamically built up over a period of time through a series of Acts.