Customer Expectation of Service

Customer expectations are beliefs abo

ut service delivery that serve as stand

ard or reference points against which p

erformance is judged

.

Among the aspects of expectation

that need to be explored &

understood for successful services

marketing

What types of expectations do

cust hold about services

What factors most influence the

formation of these exp????

Issues involving customer service

expectation???

Meaning And Types of Service Expectations

Ideal ExpectationsOr desires

Normative “Should”Expectations

Experience Based Norms

Acceptable Expectations

Minimum tolerable Expectation

Everyone says this restaurant is good & I want to go somewhere very special for my anniversary

As expensive as this restaurant is, it ought to have excellent food and service

Most times this restaurant is very good, but when it gets busy the service is slow

I expect this restaurant to serve me in an Adequate manner

I expect terrible service from this Restaurant but come because the Price is low

Therefore we have different levels of

expectations

For purpose of discussion we will focus

on two types

Desired Service

Adequate service

Desired Service

Desired service –level of service

customer hopes to receive -wished for

DS is blend of what the customer

believe can be and should be

Ex Matrimony sites .

College placement office –wish for –

but economy constraint

Adequate service –threshold level of

acceptable service - the min level of

service customer will accept

College placement office - coz of

economic slowdown,higly skilled student

accepts entry level positions or

internships for no pay

There desires were still high – but they

considered market situation at that time

Some graduates accepted any

job to earn money, few on non

pay basis for to gain

experience

The Zone of Tolerance

Heterogeneity – extent to which

customer recognize and are willing to

accept this variation is called - ZOT

Implication of ZOT – below and above

the boundaries

Service performance gets noticed only

outside the zone –either negative way or

positive wayService at check point line in a grocery store

The Zone of tolerance can expand or contrast

Airline customer - late Vs early

Hence marketer should not only

understand size and boundaries but also

when & how zone fluctuates.

Different Customer Possess different zone

of tolerance Narrow ZOT – people pressed for time –

Home service (plumbing /appliance

repair ) – personal factors

Company controlled factors – price

The fluctuation in ZOT is more coz

of Adequate service than desired

serviced

SERVQUAL DIMENSIONSReliability – Loosing weight -

fitness

Responsiveness – Dealing customer request ,questions &

complaints

Assurance – trainers skils,staff responsiveness, maitainence of

facility

Empathy – Individualized attention

Tangibles – Are equipment avliable,modern and effective

Ability to perform service

dependably and accurately

Fed ex – when is absolutely,

positively has to get

there(Reliability)

Responsiveness -

Willingness to help to

provide prompt service (Length of time thy have to wait -

MTS MBLAZE. –

Geek Squad’s 24 hr computer

assistance – Because viruses

aren’t known for keeping business

hours.

Assurance –Inspiring trust and

confidence

It can be embodied in person (Personal

Banker)

It can be embodied in organization.

(Allstate –you are in good hands with all

state.

Empathy :Treating customer as individuals

In B2B customers want suppliers personalized service ( Computer consulting firms )

Tangibles: Representing the

service Physically

Companies combine tangibles

with another dimension to

create service quality – Jiffy

Lube

ZOT Vary For Service Dimensions

Adequate Service

Desired Service

Zone ofTolerance

DesiredService

AdequateService

Zone of

Tolerance

Desired Service

Adequate Service

Zone ofTolerance

Reliability Empathy

Sources of Desired Service Expectations

DesiredService

AdequateService

Zone of

Tolerance

Personal Needs

Personal Service Philosophy

Derived service expectation

Personal Needs Personal Needs- are states or

conditions essential for the physical

well being of the customer

PNs can fall into many categories

Physical

Social

Psychological

Functional

Customer with high social and

dependency need –high expectation

for hotel ancillary services

Person moving to music classes

directly from home – hungry –desires

that food stall are nearby

Research statement –effect of

personal need on desired service

“I expect (insurance) broker to

do a great deal

of my work because I don’t

have staff

I expect the broker to know

great deal of my

business .

Research statement –effect of

personal need on desired service

‘’My expectations are different …I do

have staff to do our certificates

etc..& use the broker minimally”

Derived Service ExpectationsDSE – Customer expectation

are driven by another person or

group of people

Grand daughter planning 90th

birthday of grand mother

Balance Multiple Influencers

Parents planning vacations

In the context of B2B service

Head of IT dept in insurance

company customer of large computer

vendor.

Personal Service Philosophy

PSP – the customer’s underlying

generic attitude about the meaning

of service & the proper conduct of

service providers

Sources of adequate service expectations

DesiredService

AdequateService

Zone of

TolerancePerceived

Alternatives

Situational Factors

Perceived Service alternative

PSA – are other providers

from whom the customer

can obtain service

Bike repair – lawn care-

personal grooming

Airline customer living in

small town

Hitting Options

It is imp that service marketers fully

understand the complete set of

options that cust view as altntve

Conti … airline example

Customer Self Perceived Service Role

Customer Zones of tolerance expand

and contrast

Situational Factors

SFs- Generally considered

temporary in nature

One type uncontrollable Sfs

Ex- Catastrophes that

effect - lower service

expectation in other geo

areas

Ex 2- during hurricanes -

telephone and internet

service will be poor –

Disasters

Ex-At Ritz Carlton ,Maritos hotel in

the affected areas cust quickly

realized that they should not accept

high level of service

Temporary Service Intensifiers

PSfs- Personal Emergency

situations in which service is

urgently needed

B2C – during accident –

claim of insurance (Self and

vehicle)

Accidents

B2B – Mail order company that

depends on toll free phone lines – more

demand from telephone service during

peak

Problems with initial service can also

lead to heightened expectations.

Mail order

Predicted Service

Level of service that customers

believe they are likely to get

Predictions made by customers

about what is likely to happen

during transaction

If customers predict good service, their

levels of adequate service likely to be

higher that if they predict poor service

Predicted service is typically an

estimate or calculation of the service

that customer will receive in an

individual transaction that over all

relationship

DesiredService

AdequateService

Zone of

Tolerance

Explicit ServicePromises

Implicit ServicePromises

Word-of-Mouth

Past Experience