Quality in Service marketing

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Service Quality and Measurement

Service Quality: The degree to which a service meets or exceeds customer expectations. High service quality occurs when actual service delivery aligns closely with customer expectations.

9 Practical Methods for Measuring Service Quality

  • SERVQUAL
    • Overview: A widely used tool for assessing service quality by comparing customers’ expectations with their perceptions of the actual service.
    • Dimensions:
      • Reliability: The ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately. Consistency is key here; the service should meet expectations every time.
      • Assurance: The competence and courtesy of employees, as well as their ability to instill trust and confidence. This includes their knowledge and their behavior toward customers.
      • Tangibles: The physical appearance of facilities, equipment, personnel, and communication materials. This dimension assesses the visual and physical elements of the service environment.
      • Empathy: The provision of caring, individualized attention to customers. It measures how well employees understand and address individual customer needs.
      • Responsiveness: The willingness and ability to provide prompt service. This includes how quickly employees respond to requests and resolve issues.
  • Mystery Shopping
    • Overview: An evaluation method where a 'mystery shopper' or undercover agent assesses service quality without revealing their identity. The shopper uses predefined criteria to evaluate the service experience.
    • Advantages: Provides a realistic assessment of service delivery since it reflects typical customer experiences. It can uncover issues that might not be visible through other evaluation methods.
  • Post Service Rating
    • Overview: Collects feedback from customers immediately after the service interaction. This can be done via digital platforms, such as chat windows, or through other immediate feedback mechanisms.
    • Advantages: Captures fresh and immediate customer reactions, making it easier to address any issues quickly. It can be integrated into service channels, like live chat or phone support.
  • Follow-Up Survey
    • Overview: Sends a survey to customers after some time has passed since the service interaction, usually via email.
    • Advantages: Allows for a detailed and comprehensive evaluation of service quality. It provides a broader view of customer satisfaction and can cover multiple aspects of the service experience. However, it may suffer from lower response rates and the delay might affect the accuracy of feedback.
  • In-App Survey
    • Overview: Surveys are conducted within a mobile app or on a website while the user is engaged with the service.
    • Advantages: Provides immediate feedback from users while their experience is still fresh. It can be less intrusive and more convenient than post-service surveys. It also allows for quick adjustments based on real-time feedback.
  • Customer Effort Score (CES)
    • Overview: Measures how much effort a customer has to put into resolving an issue or obtaining a service.
    • Insight: Focuses on minimizing customer effort rather than exceeding expectations. Research shows that reducing effort has a greater impact on customer satisfaction than delighting them. CES measures how easy it is for customers to get their issues resolved or obtain the service they need.
  • Social Media Monitoring
    • Overview: Analyzes customer feedback and discussions on social media platforms to gauge service quality.
    • Advantages: Provides real-time, unfiltered opinions from customers. Social media serves as a venue where customers freely express their thoughts and complaints, which can provide valuable insights into service quality and emerging issues.
  • Documentation Analysis
    • Overview: Involves reviewing records of service interactions, such as emails, chat logs, or call recordings.
    • Advantages: Helps identify trends and patterns in service delivery. It allows for a deep dive into specific cases, particularly those with low ratings, to understand what went wrong and how to improve.
  • Types:
    • Volume per Channel: Measures the number of inquiries or interactions through different service channels. It helps determine which channels are most popular or effective.
    • First Response Time: Tracks the time it takes to provide an initial response to a customer inquiry. It indicates how quickly customers are acknowledged.
    • Response Time: The average time between responses in a conversation. Affects customer satisfaction by showing how responsive the service team is.
    • First Contact Resolution Ratio: The percentage of issues resolved in the first contact. High ratios are associated with better customer satisfaction and efficiency.
    • Replies per Ticket: Average number of responses required to resolve a ticket. Measures the efficiency of the service process.
    • Backlog Inflow/Outflow: Compares the number of new cases to the number of cases resolved. Helps manage service team workload and identify when more resources are needed.
    • Customer Success Ratio: Tracks the number of customers who successfully find what they need. It indicates whether the service is meeting customer needs.
    • Handovers per Issue: Measures the number of different service representatives involved in resolving an issue. High numbers can indicate inefficiencies and contribute to customer frustration.
    • Things Gone Wrong: Counts the number of complaints or failures per inquiry. Helps pinpoint areas that need improvement.
    • Instant Service/Queueing Ratio: Tracks the proportion of customers served immediately versus those who experience wait times. A higher ratio indicates better service performance.
    • Average Queueing Waiting Time: The average time customers wait in queues before being served. Shorter wait times generally lead to higher satisfaction.
    • Queueing Hang-ups: The number of customers who abandon the queue. Indicates potential issues with wait times or service accessibility.
    • Problem Resolution Time: The average time taken to resolve an issue. Shorter resolution times are preferred and indicate effective service.
    • Minutes Spent Per Call: Measures the average time spent on each call. Helps assess the efficiency of service representatives and the complexity of issues being addressed.

These methods and metrics offer a comprehensive approach to evaluating and improving service quality by capturing both subjective and objective data, as well as real-time and historical feedback.

The Gaps Model of Service Quality

The Gaps Model of Service Quality, developed by Zeithaml, Parasuraman, and Berry, helps organizations understand and improve their service quality by identifying discrepancies between customer expectations and actual service delivery. The model outlines five core components of service quality and identifies four key gaps that can lead to a discrepancy between customer expectations and perceptions of the service received.

Core Components of Service Quality

  • Tangibles
    • Definition: Physical evidence of the service, including the appearance of facilities, equipment, personnel, and communication materials.
    • Details: Tangibles represent the physical manifestation of the service and can significantly impact customer perceptions. For example, a clean, well-organized restaurant with modern equipment is likely to create a positive impression.
  • Reliability
    • Definition: The ability to deliver promised services consistently and accurately.
    • Details: Reliability is crucial as it reflects the service provider’s dependability and consistency in performing the service as promised. For example, a bank that consistently processes transactions accurately and on time demonstrates reliability.
  • Responsiveness
    • Definition: The willingness to help customers and provide prompt service.
    • Details: Responsiveness involves the service provider's readiness to assist and address customer needs swiftly. For instance, a customer service representative who quickly addresses a customer's complaint shows high responsiveness.
  • Assurance
    • Definition: The knowledge, courtesy, and ability of employees to instill confidence and trust.
    • Details: Assurance encompasses the competence, politeness, and confidence-building actions of employees. For example, a knowledgeable technician who reassures a customer about their repair work provides assurance.
  • Empathy
    • Definition: The extent to which employees provide caring, individualized attention to customers.
    • Details: Empathy involves understanding and addressing individual customer needs and concerns. For example, a healthcare provider who takes the time to listen and address each patient's unique concerns demonstrates empathy.

The Four Gaps in Service Quality

  • Gap 1: Consumer Expectation – Management Perception Gap
    • Description: This gap occurs when management's perceptions of customer expectations do not align with the actual expectations of the customers.
    • Details: This gap arises due to inadequate market research, poor communication channels, or a lack of understanding of customer needs. For example, if a hotel manager believes guests are satisfied with basic amenities but customers expect more luxury, this gap exists.
    • Impact: This misalignment can lead to service offerings that do not meet customer needs or expectations.
  • Gap 2: Service Quality Specification Gap
    • Description: This gap arises when there is a disconnect between what management perceives as customer expectations and the service quality specifications or standards set by the organization.
    • Details: This can be due to ineffective service design, unclear standards, or poorly defined procedures. For instance, if a company defines customer service standards that are too low or vague, employees may not meet customer expectations.
    • Impact: This gap results in service quality specifications that do not align with actual customer expectations.
  • Gap 3: Service Delivery Gap
    • Description: This gap occurs when there is a difference between service quality specifications and the actual service delivered.
    • Details: Causes of this gap include inadequate training, insufficient resources, or poor process management. For example, if a restaurant staff is not properly trained to handle special dietary requests, the service delivered may fall short of customer expectations.
    • Impact: This gap leads to variability in service delivery and can result in customer dissatisfaction.
  • Gap 4: External Communication Gap
    • Description: This gap arises when there is a discrepancy between what customers are led to believe through marketing and promotional materials and the actual service provided.
    • Details: This can occur due to misleading advertising, exaggerated claims, or inconsistent messaging. For example, if a spa promotes exclusive treatments that are not available, customers will experience disappointment.
    • Impact: This gap can create unrealistic expectations and lead to a negative perception of the service.
  • Gap 5: Perceived Service Quality Gap
    • Description: This is the overall gap between customer expectations and their perceptions of the service received. It reflects the sum of the four preceding gaps.
    • Details: Gap 5 is influenced by the gaps in understanding customer expectations, setting service standards, delivering the service, and communicating with customers. For example, if all four previous gaps are closed effectively, Gap 5 will be minimized, leading to a higher perception of service quality.
    • Impact: Closing Gap 5 means improving overall service quality by addressing the underlying issues in the other four gaps.

Conclusion:

 The Gaps Model helps organizations identify and address discrepancies in service quality by understanding and closing gaps between customer expectations and actual service delivery. By focusing on improving the areas identified in the gaps, organizations can enhance customer satisfaction and service quality.