Every day, we experience one or more service(s), which can be as simple as eating breakfast at a restaurant or watching a movie in a multiplex to as complex as flying to other counties in a reputed airline.
So, what exactly is a SERVICE?
“Service refers to an act, something done to or for customer (client, patient, etc.).” (Stevenson, 11e)
After every service, it is important for a company to know how satisfied the customer is, so as to keep the company survive and stay in the market for a long time. For the customer to keep coming back to experience the same service again, the company must provide Quality service.
What is QUALITY?
“The ability of a product or a service to consistently meet or exceed customer expectations is called Quality.”
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“Service quality differs from quality of goods in that services are intangible. This presents a challenge to marketers; services cannot easily be communicated to customers, and hence quality may be difficult for customers to assess. Services are characterized as being intangible, perishable, produced had consumed simultaneously, and heterogeneous. A major challenge for companies is to deliver service quality consistently”. (Zeithaml & Bitner, 2000)
Services are very easy to duplicate. Therefore service quality can be divided into two parts which are Technical quality & Functional quality.
Technical quality is purely based on technical applicability, precision and procedures, whereas Functional quality is based on how, what, when, where, why & who the services are delivered to.
Typically in the service sector the end user will give more importance to the functional quality rather than technical quality when gauging a service quality, as the customer will not ordinarily have enough knowledge and experience on the technical aspects of quality. Measuring service quality is difficult, as the customer always wants more and it is difficult to satisfy every customer and every time and always. The question is how do we know, that the customer is happy with the service or not? How can we measure service quality? Is it
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The questionnaire is usually includes closed end questions and the answers must be answered on a 9 point Likert scale depending upon the questions included. Based on the results that is achieved from the questionnaire we can know where and which gap the company should be focusing on first and figure out a suitable solution. By this the company can increase customer satisfaction level or even sometimes help in converting a potential customer of the company to a loyal customer. So this model helps in increase in the overall quality of the company from the front line manager to the top level of the management. So the company achieves TQM (total quality management) and ISO
High levels of customer satisfaction will not guarantee future sales, but are more likely to result in repeat future sales than indifferent or poor customer service. Moreover, satisfied customers are more likely to try out other products/services in the firm’s range, or recommend it to friends and family. Build on customer loyalty Customer loyalty is valued highly by most businesses and can be
According to Business Studies ‘’Customer service is one of the most important ingredients of the marketing mix for products and services. High quality customer service helps to create customer loyalty. Customers today are not only interested in the product they are being offered but all the additional elements of service that they receive from the greeting they receive when they enter a retail outlet, to the refund and help that they receive when they have a complaint about a faulty product that they have paid for’’ (Business Studies, n.d).
When it comes to service, facilities need to go above and beyond the ordinary to add value. For example, the facility needs to provide meals. Having various options and settings adds value.
Measuring this satisfaction is an important element of providing better, more effective and efficient services. When customers are not satisfied with a service as provided, the service is neither effective nor efficient and can result in a loss of business. Why do we measure customer satisfaction? The level of customer satisfaction with services is an important factor in developing a system of service provisions such as the 7P's: § Product § People § Price § Physical Evidence § Place § Processes § Promotion Theses areas of any business are responsive to the customers needs while minimising costs and time requirements and maximising the impact of the services on target populations.
Without good customer service and keeping your promises, your company would have loyal customers. According to 5 Focusing Steps, “If you’re not yet sold on the idea, consider that a 2 percent increase in customer retention has the same effect as decreasing costs by 10 percent. Not only that, but it costs over six times more to get a new customer than it does to keep one.” Customer satisfaction should be a golden rule of all companies.
Quality is an important part of any business rather from a customer’s perspective or a producer’s perspective. Quality from a customer’s perspective is they “want value and quality has become a major factor in the value of products and service” (Russell & Taylor, 2013, pg. 53). “The customer is the most important part of the production line” (Russell & Taylor, 2013, pg. 53). This can be referred to as quality of design meaning “involves designing quality characteristics into a product or service” (Russell & Taylor, 2013, pg. 54). Now let’s look at the quality from a producer’s perspective. This can be referred to a quality of conformance meaning “making sure the product or service is produced according to design” (Russell & Taylor, 2013,
Zeithaml, V., Parasuraman, A., & Berry, L. (1990). Delivering quality service: balancing customer perceptions and expectations. New York, New York: Simon and Schuster.
The dimensions of service quality was later reduced to 5 dimensions, encompassing: Tangibles (physical facilities, equipment and appearance of personnel), Reliability (ability to perform the services accurately and dependably), Responsiveness (willingness to help customers and provide prompt services), Empathy (caring and individualized attention given to customers, which includes both access to and understanding of the customers and Assurance (providers’ knowledge, courtesy and ability to convey trust and confidence) (Parasuraman et al., 1991).
We commonly view quality as a physical property of our product and therefore see our task as producing a product that meets these physical characteristics.
The Service Management Excellence is not a short term phenomenon. It provides principles and techniques that will endure in the long run. Excellent service is not a yoke; it is imbedded in the way exceptional organizations ...
Customer service is constantly evolving. A few decades ago, businesses considered customer service an unnecessary expense. Now, companies view it as a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Research reveals that “80% of CEOs believe they deliver a superior customer experience, but only 8% of their customers agree”.
“Excellent customer service is defined as service that treats customers with a friendly attitude and tries to resolve their problem or question as efficiently as possible.” (Reference). Employees also need to realize that providing excellent customer service will provide positive word of mouth recommendations for the business that they work for in the community. A business wants their customers to say that I am coming back to this location because of the customer service that I received from this employee. “You’ll never have a product or price advantage again. They can be easily duplicated, but a strong customer service culture can’t be copied. -Jerry Fritz”.
...stomer service is essential in any organization. Its importance has positive implications on the business. Having an excellent customer service will motivate the organization’s employees. This will result in a win-win situation because a happy employee is a productive employee. When a motivated employee helps customers he/she will ensure that the customers are satisfied in a way that exceeds their expectations. These customers will then go out in to the public and share their experience with friends who will eventually patronize the business. In the long run the business gains more customers and increases its profits. Therefore, every organization should attempt to implement and preserve an excellent customer service strategy. This will give the organization a competitive edge above other organizations and establish a reputable image every business entity long for.
According to C.D.Edward (1968) stated quality consists of capacity to satisfy wants. Quality is the degree to which the product satisfies the want or needs of a targeted consumers, H.L.Gilmore (1974).
(1) efforts to improve the quality of their services, and (2) efforts to market themselves more effectively. Both service quality and services marketing have received considerable attention from researchers over the years and the application of these concepts in the service settings is therefore not surprising (Parasuraman et al., 1985; Rust and Oliver 1994; Zeithaml et al., 1990). One evidence of the importance of service quality and service