Part 2 Ch 4: Customer Expectations of Service

Question 1

Importance of Customer Expectations

Answer 1

Knowing what customers expect is the first and most crucial step in delivering good-quality service.

Question 2

Consequences of Being Wrong
in Customer Expectations

Answer 2

Losing Customers
Expending Money, Time, Resources
Not Surviving in a Fiercely Competitive Market

Question 3

What is an Expectation?

Answer 3

beliefs about service delivery that serve as standards against which performance is judged.

Question 4

Desired Service Expectation

Answer 4

what customers hope to receive from a service.

Question 5

Adequate service expectation

Answer 5

what customer will accept (minimum).
It may vary for different firms within industry category

Question 6

Zone of Tolerance

Answer 6

the range within which customers do not notice service performance.

Attention Threshold:
When service performance falls outside the range (either low or high), it captures the customer’s attention.

Impacts:
Negative attention if below the range.
Positive attention if above the range.

Question 7

Zone of Tolerance and Types of Customers

Answer 7

Customer possess different tolerance zones.

Example:
Busy customers may be demanding in terms of “time” (e.g., queueing, courtesy).

Influence of Price:
Price seems to be a variable influencing the customer’s zone of tolerance

Question 8

Zone of Tolerance and Service Quality

Answer 8

Definition:
Zone of tolerance defines the range within which customers perceive service

• vary depending on service attributes or dimensions.
• Reliability:
  consistency and dependability of service delivery.
  Relates to service failure, broken promises.
• Tangibles:
  physical and material aspects that customers can see or touch
  If it aligns with what customers expect, then fall in zone of tolerance

Question 9

Factors that influence desired service

Answer 9

1. Lasting service intensifiers
2. Personal needs

Question 10

Lasting Service Intensifiers

Answer 10

Individual, stable factors that consistently increase customer expectations.

• Derived Service Expectations:
• Personal Service Philosophy:

Question 11

Personal needs

Answer 11

Personal needs: things that are critical to the customer´s well-being
- Physical
- Social
- Psychological
- Functional

Question 12

Factors that influence adequate service

Answer 12

1. Temporary Service Intensifiers
2. Perceived service Alternatives
3. Self-perceived role
4. Situational factors
5. Predicted service:

Question 13

Temporary Service Intensifiers:

Answer 13

short-term individual factors that
make customer aware of the need of service
(e.g. personal emergency situations
such as car accident and first aid)

Question 14

Perceived service Alternatives:

Answer 14

other competitors (both direct and indirect) from whom the customer can obtain service
(e.g. airplane or train?)

Question 15

Self-perceived role:

Answer 15

what role does the customer play in the service they get？
(e.g. getting money from a ATM
machine or a Bank Cashier?)

Question 16

Situational factors:

Answer 16

something beyond the control of the service provider.
(e.g. weather conditions delaying
Flights?)

Question 17

Predicted service:

Answer 17

what consumers believe they are
likely to get

Question 18

Factors that influence desired and predicted service

Answer 18

1. Explicit service promises
2. Implicit service promises
3. WOM

Question 19

Explicit service promises:

Answer 19

personal (service personnel) and non-personal (advertisement)
statements about the service.

IMPOTANT! These can be controlled by the service company.

Question 20

Implicit service promises:

Answer 20

servicerelated cues (how services should be like?)
promises are things a service provider assures you without directly saying them
IMPORTANT! Price and tangibles
are key promises embedding a
promise.