key element of service marketing

8/11/2019 key element of service marketing

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CHAPTER TWO

KEY ELEMENTS OF SERVICE MARKETING

CONTENTS

[A] INTRODUCTION

[B] PRODUCT

[C] PRICE

[D]

PROMOTION[E]

PLACE[F]

PEOPLE[G]

PHYSICAL EVIDENCE[H]

PROCESS[I]

POSITIONING

[J]

MARKET SEGMENTATION[K]

BALANCING OF DEMAND/SUPPLY[L]

YEILD MANAGEMENT[M]

BRANDING OF SERVICES[N]

QUESTIONS


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A.

Introduction

Service marketing is different from product because of the

inherent characteristics such as inseparable, perishable andintangible. Hence the traditional marketing mix is notsufficient for service marketing. There is a need for additionalmarketing mix (7Ps or 8Ps). These are:

8 Ps of Service Marketing1.

Product

2.

Price3.

Place4.

Promotion5.

People6.

Physical Evidence7.Process8.Productivity

I.

Product: It includes product features, quality level,accessories, packaging, branding, warranty, usefulness,convenience.

II.

Price: It includes cost plus pricing, penetration pricing,skimming price, discount, allowance. It covers expenses

incurred by consumers in obtaining benefits from thecore service.III.

Promotion: It includes various marketingcommunication mix such as advertising, sales promotion,publicity, public relations, personal selling, instructionalmaterials, corporate designs such as signage, interiordcor, vehicles, stationery, uniform, etc.

IV.

People: It includes employees, culture, customer service,education, training, etc.


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V. Physical Evidence: It includes infrastructure ambience,signage, employee dress, guarantee, design, etc.

VI. Process: It includes the flow of activities, service

delivery, components, customer involvement, servicestandardized/ customized.

VII. Productivity: It includes efficiency, effectiveness,economy, capacity utilization, level of technology, etc.


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B.

Product [Service Product]

Product mix in case of service can be called as services

product. A service product means the benefits andperformance that the customer buys from serviceprovider to satisfy his needs or desire. A firm has todifferentiate its services from competitors to create itsown position in the minds of the customer.A product is anything that can be offered to market

for attention, acquisition, use or consumption thatsatisfy a want or need[Kotler]Service is activities or benefits or satisfactions which isoffered for sale or are provided in connection with thesale of goods.Donald Cowell has described the components of

service product as: Customer benefit concept

Service concept

Service offer

Service Delivery

Customer Benefit Concept: Customer buys aservice for certain specific benefits and values. It istherefore necessary for the service provider tohighlight these benefits to customer. Customerlooks for benefits rather than features. This can beseen as below:


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Services BenefitAirline ticket Travelling

Insurance Policy Risk coverBanking Loan/ DepositGymnasium Health and Fitness

Service Concept:It implies different levels of servicesto satisfy customer needs. This can be classified as

below:Level Contents ExampleCore service Basic FoodExpected Service Basic plus

Minimumrequirement

Fresh food,cleanliness, menucard, sitting space

Augmented Service Add on to expectedservices

Comfort chair, livemusic

Potential Services Beyond customerexpectation

Welcome drink,anniversarydiscount

i. Core Benefit: Without core benefit there are no serviceoffering. Core benefit is what buyer is really buying. It is

the use, benefit or solution which he is looking for.ii. Basic Service: The intangible service through which thecore benefit is received is called basic service. Thecompany adds certain features to core benefits andtranslates it into basic service. Basic service consists ofall those factors which consumer assumes to be presentin any offering. For example, airline has aircraft toimplement the service.


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iii. Expected Service: Customers always expect more thanbasic services when they purchase service. For example,restaurants are expected to provide wash rooms.

iv.

Augmented Service: When the service quality is beyondthe expectations of the customer, it is called augmentedservice. It is a situation of customer delight. Itdifferentiates service from other competitors. Forexamples, providing business center in the airline lounge/free night suit to overnight passengers.

v.

Potential Services: In this case the service firm tries tofind out the better methods of delighting customers. Itprovides more enjoyable services. It is the result ofresearch and innovation. It helps firm to become marketleaders.

vi. Service offer: It includes tangibility and intangibility of

services offered. It aims at satisfying different needs ofcustomer and providing different levels of customersatisfaction.

vii. Service Delivery System: It shows how services will bedelivered to customer. It is an interaction between serviceprovider and customer and between customer and servicefacilities.

Managing Service Offering

The scope of managing service offering includes:

a.New service developmentb.Service Life Stylec.Service positioning

New Service Development: It is similar to new productdevelopment but it is highly complex and challenging


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because it involves customer interaction. New servicedevelopment becomes necessary when:

1.Existing service a level of saturation

2.

Spare capacity is available3.Customer additional needs can be satisfied4.Retaining existing customer

There are five types of new services. These are:

1.Style change: When there is slight change in the existing

service. Example, Bank offering welcome kit to newaccount holder.2.Service improvement: When there is some modification

or improvement in the existing services. Example, banksoffering ATM. The purpose is to improve efficiency.

3.Process line extension: When there is an addition in theareas of services. Example, airline offering new route,banks offering online banking.

4.Supplementary Services: When more services are addedto the core service.

5.Major innovation: When new processes are introducedwith additional benefits and values. Example, railwayticket computerization.


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The stages involved in the new service development are:1.Idea Generation: New idea can be generated based

on market needs. The two sources of idea

generation are internal and external. Internal consistof marketing department, sales department, frontline managers. External sources include customers,competitors, experts, publications like tradejournals, magazines, etc. The various methods ofidea generation are brainstorming, suggestion box,

market research, gap analysis.2.Idea Screening: It means short listing the ideas

generated. It is done on the basis of companymission, philosophy, customer needs, and technicalfeasibility.

3.Testing the concept: The next step is to test the

concept both tangible and intangible elements of theservice. The concept can be tested by a group ofconsumers and their feedback can be used forredesigning the service.

4.Business Analysis: The next step is to undertakebusiness analysis. The objective is to find outwhether the concept or idea is feasible or not. Thefocus is on estimation of demand, future growth,cost volume, profit, etc.

5.Service Development: Once the concept iseconomically viable then the idea is to be convertedinto actual service design that will be delivered tocustomer. The financial feasibility of the service

depends on its design and components of service.


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6.Market Testing: The services can be tested on asmall number of users or consumers. Test marketingwill help in redesigning and remix of services based

on feedback from customers.7.Commercialization: Once the test marketing is

done, the service can be actually commercialized orlaunched in the market. This makes the beginning ofthe life cycle of service.

However there may be some

problems/difficulties/issues in the new servicedevelopment. These are

1.Service Intangibility may lead toRisk of confusing consumer with too many

servicesDifficulties in conducting market research

Difficulties in measuring servicesImpact of new service on corporate image.

2.Service Inseparability may lead toIncreased importance of service deliveryHigher level of customer inputNeed for internal organizational involvement

3.Service Heterogeneity may lead to

Difficulties in concept testingProblem of quality control

4.Service Perishability may lead toDifficulties in managing demand and supplyNeed for higher integration among

departments


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Further there are factors which affect successful developmentof new services such as

i.

Over estimation of market demandii.

Improper positioningiii.

Ineffective advertisingiv.

Overpricingv.

Rapid change in technologyvi.

Improper designing of service processvii.

Higher initial development costviii.

Stiff competition from other service provider

Service Life Cycle: It refers to stages in the life cycle ofservices. These stages have to be considered while decidingthe marketing strategies and marketing mix. Service life cyclecan be seen from the following diagram.

In other words servicelife cycle passesthrough four stagesviz, Introduction,Growth, Maturity,and Decline.

These are explainedas:

i. Introduction: During this period the firm aims to createawareness about the service sales growth is low in thisstage. There may not be any profit due to highproduction and marketing cost. Firm spend more on

advertising and publicity. Pricing may be low to


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establish market share or high to cover the developmentcost.

ii. Growth: During this period sales are high. Profit starts

increasing. Firm tries to establish brand image in themarket. Quality level is maintained and additionalfeatures are added to core service. Price is maintained asthe firm enjoys higher demand and less competition.

iii. Maturity: During this stage sales growth rate startsdeclining. Sales may rise but at slow rate. Competition is

tough. The main objective of the firm is to retain themarket share. At this stage the service provider mustdifferentiate service from competitors by addingsupplementary services. Distribution becomes moreaggressive and incentives are offered to channel partners

iv. Decline Stage: During these stage sales starts declining.

Therefore there is a need to bring some innovation toextend the declining stage. Thus service innovation,service development or service modification is essential.


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C.

PRICE MIX

Price is the most important element of marketing mixbecause it is the only element that gives revenue,

while all other elements are costs. Service providerprovides a range of services at different price levels tocater to the needs of different customer segment. Forexample, railway offers 1stclass Ac, 1stclass (non Ac),2ndAc, and 3rd Ac etc.The term price in different services is known as:Insurance PremiumBanks InterestProperty RentPublic utilities Service chargeMedical Fees

Road use TollCommunication TariffEducation FeesStock Brokerage

OBJECTIVES OF PRICING:The various objectivesof pricing are:

i.

Survival: One of the objectives is to remain in themarket, face market competition. This objective isfocused during initial market entry or duringproduct declining stage. Survival means to at leastcover the cost of services if not total cost at least thevariable cost.


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ii. Growth: It means increasing market share,expanding capacities and utilizing fully existingcapacity. Survival and growth are interdependent.

iii.

Profit Maximization: The basic objective of anyfirm is to maximize profit. It means raising unitselling price. However it is possible that thequantities sold will be less. This is short termobjective.

iv. Sales Maximization: It implies selling large quantity

at low price. Sales maximization is better than profitmaximization as it creates greater customer base. Ithelps in capturing higher market share.

v. Service quality leadership: It implies fixing higherprice to indicate quality of the service. It aims atpositioning of the firm as quality leader in the

market.vi. Stimulating Patronage: Firms try to create patronageand appeal to specific types of customers. Forexample, railway offers discount to senior citizens.

FACTORS AFFECTING PRICE:The various

factors affecting pricing can be classified as:

Internal ExternalOrganizational factors Market CompetitionMarketing Mix Market DemandPositioning Government RegulationsService Cost


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Internal Factors

1.Organizational Factors: Pricing decisions are theoutcome of two departments i.e. pre production

and marketing. Production department providescost data while marketing department considerthe pulse of the market. These organizationalstructures have impact on pricing decisions.

2.Marketing Mix: Pricing also depends on thevarious elements of marketing mix i.e. product,

place, promotion, people, physical evidence,influence, value for money. For example, servicesin prime location are highly priced. Trained staff,dcor, efficiency in service delivery also reflectprice of products or services.

3.Positioning: Pricing also depends on the market

segmentation and positioning of the service. It iscritical for marketing managers to understanddifferent customer attitude and perception aboutprice and quality.

4.Service Cost: Price depends on the cost of serviceplus profit margin. The various elements of costsare fixed cost and variable cost. Higher theservice cost higher will be the price.


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External Factorsi. Market Competition: Pricing also depends on

market competition. Consumers always

compare prices charged by different sellers. Incase of homogeneous services price must be onpar with other competitors. In case ofdifferentiated service price may be flexible.

ii. Market Demand: Price charged also dependson what consumers are ready to pay for the

service. Demand for a particular servicedepends on factors like service life cycle,seasonal variation, peak season, availability ofsubstitutes etc. In some season demand may behigh and therefore price charged may also behigh.

iii.

Government Regulations: In some services liketelecommunications, post and telegraph,banking, education, railways prices areregulated by the government. Therefore serviceproviders have to simply follow governmentguidelines in pricing.

Methods of Pricing

The different methods of pricing are

i. Cost based pricing: Pricing depends on cost incurred onthe product both direct as well as indirect. Somepercentage is added to the cost. It is traditional and

simple method.


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ii. Demand based pricing: It is customer oriented pricing. Itis based on customers perception of the value of aservice. Demand is the price determinant. The pricing

changes with variation in demand.iii. Competition based pricing: In the case of standardized

services pricing tend to be competitive, example, laundryservices. Service provider may fix price above thecompetitor or on par with the competitor or below thecompetitor depending on the extent of servicedifferentiation.

PRICING STRATEGIES

The different pricing strategies are

1.

New service pricing strategies: New service pricingstrategies include skimming pricing strategy andpenetration pricing strategy. In the case of skimmingpricing, seller fixes high price with the objective ofmaximizing profit. Firms target those customers whoare quality conscious and who are not price sensitive.However gradually firm may reduce price to increasethe market share. In the case of penetration pricing, itis likely that initial sales may be high in the beginning.Firm fixes low price in order to gain market share. Theobjective is to maximize sales, gradually prices maybe raised.

2.Differential Pricing: It is a pricing strategy in which aseller charges different price in different marketsegments. It may be due to difference in elasticity ofdemand, time period, location, and customers


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3.Service Mix Pricing: When a firm has multipleoffering, the service provider may use optional productpricing, captive pricing, competitive pricing. In the

case of optional product pricing, seller charges extrafor additional service provided. For example, haircutting charge will include styling charges. In the caseof captive product pricing the service provider capturethe customer to get additional service along with basicservice. For example, cinema ticket one for one free.Customers have to buy an additional food coupon at a

price. In the case of competitive pricing the serviceprovider competes with its own offering.

4.

Price Bundling: In the case of price bundling a sellercombines different services in the same package. Forexample, air ticket may also include travel insurance.Price bundling helps in pushing up sales of slowmoving services.

5.

Relationship Pricing: In this case the basic philosophyof service provider is relationship building and toconvert existing customers to loyal customers andgradually extending customer base.

6.Value Based Pricing: In this case the focus is to

provide value products and services to retain sales andmarket share. For example, value meals at McDonalds.


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D.

PROMOTION

Service communication is a medium which service

provider uses to communicate what it offers to thecustomers. It includes different tools of promotion suchas advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, word ofmouth, public relations, and direct marketing.

The steps in developing suitable communicationprogrammed are

i. Identify target audience: Deciding the market

segment to which all communication can betargetedii. Deciding promotion objective: To decide the

communication objective that the firm seeks toachieve. The objective can be enhancing brandimage, informing customer about the service,persuading customer to buy, reinforcing,positioning, etc.

iii.

Development of the message: It involves decidingmessage content (what to say), message structure(how to say), message style (creating strongpresence), message source (who should develop it).

iv.

Selection of communication mix: It involvesselection of most suitable tools which includepersonal communication (eg. Sales activity, word of

mouth, personal interaction). Non personalcommunication (eg. Advertising, point of sale,brochure).


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GUIDELINES FOR EFFECTIVE SERVICE

COMMUNICATION/ PROMOTION

i.

Provide tangible clues: Service package should includetangible clues which can help the customer see and feeland can also help in differentiating the service. Example,the interior dcor of a hotel.

ii.

Make service easy to understand: Use of tangible clueslike material, people, sign, and help customer tounderstand the service.

iii.

Communicate continuously: A consistent and continuouscommunication is an important element of promotion.Any change in theme can create confusion in the mind ofcustomer.

iv. Promise what is possible: The service provider should

promise only what he is capable of delivering, otherwiseit leads to customer dissatisfaction or service failure.

v. Capitalizing word of mouth: A positive word of mouth

has great impact. This is the fastest and cheapest methodof communication. Service provider should capitalize onpositive word of mouth.

vi. Direct communication to employees: In service delivery

internal staff or internal customer first interact with theexternal customer. Therefore the internal staff must bemotivated, trained, and competent for service offering.

TOOLS OF SERVICE PROMOTION

i. Advertising: It refers to communication establishedwith the target customers through the use of paid formof mass media. For example, print media, outdoormedia, and electronic media. The service provider

makes use of these media to influence the consumerand generate higher volume of sales and profit.


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ii. Sales Promotion: Sales promotion is done to increasethe usage rate of services by existing customer and toattract new customers. Different sales promotion

offers are given, for example, sampling, buy one getone free, discount, coupons, gifts, prize promotion.Sales promotion can be carried out by reachingcustomer at home or at office or retail outlet orexhibition, etc.

iii. Word of Mouth: In service industry word of mouthplays an important role. Personal references and

recommendations work wonders in this section. Forexample, doctors, tutors, tailors, jewelers are hired bycustomers based on recommendation of othercustomers. Customers are thus the hidden sales forceof any industry. When customers share theirexperiences with others they are indirectly selling ordeselling the service they have experienced.

iv. Personal Selling: It means personally persuading aprospective customer in purchasing a product orservice. It is an effective way to manage personalcustomer relationship. The sales personnel act onbehalf of the organization. It depends on techniquesand soft skills of the sales staff. Therefore the staffshould be well trained. It can be aimed at specifictarget market. It provides direct feedback than other

promotional techniques.v. Direct Marketing: In the case of direct marketing the

sales staff contacts customer directly throughtelemarketing, direct mail, trade shows, presentation,press release, news letter etc. Today direct marketinghas become more economical because of thedevelopment of technology, internet access, and

availability of large data base.


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vi. Public Relations (PR) and Publicity: PR is thedeliberate and planned efforts to establish andmaintain mutual understanding between an

organization and public. It aims at creating positiveimage of the company. The various tools in PR arepublicity through media, sponsorship of events,lobbying, corporate brochure, journal, social andcommunity initiatives etc.


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E.

PLACE

Place is the only marketing variable which satisfies

demand while all other variables are demanddetermining. Place is also known as channel,distribution or intermediaries. It is a mechanism throughwhich services are offered to the user at the place ofconsumption. In service sector there are three types ofinteraction between customer and service provider. Theseare:

i.

Customer goes to the service providerii. Service provider goes to the customeriii. Both interact mutually

This can be seen from the following table

Description PlacesSingle site Multiple site

Customer goes to

the serviceprovider

Barber shop

Cinema hall

Bus service

Fast food

Service providergoes to thecustomer

House paintingCar wash

Mail deliveryAuto clubRoad service

Both mutuallyinteract

Credit cardcompanyLocal tv operators

Tele companyBroadcastcompany


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Services also depend on the level of customerparticipation. This can be seen as below:

LEVEL OF CUSTOMER PARTICIPATION

Low Moderate High

(Bus Travel) (Hair cut) (Marriage)Service location depends on the degree of participation ofcustomer and service provider. When customer goes to serviceprovider, location becomes most important. For example,retail outlet, entertainment, hotels, spend more time inchoosing location. When service provider goes to thecustomer, location is less important and when mutuallyinteracts, location is least important.Place is important because it is a marketing tool for givingcustomer services. Place is important because the offer cannotbe stored (intangibility and perishability of the services). Theoffer has to be produced and consumed at the same time. Twofactors are important viz,.i. Availability of the service

ii.

Accessibility of the service.The normal decisions regarding location and selection ofchannel are:I. How to deliver service to the customer?

II. Where and when the delivery should take place?III.

What is the role of the middlemen?IV. How location can help business?

V.


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The following factors should be considered while decidinglocation for services:

i.

Nature of services: It implies the degree of flexibilityinvolved in services. For example, insurance andtelecommunication services are delivered without directcontact with the customers. Thus there is flexibility inlocation. It can be set according to the needs of theservice provider. On the other hand, when there is lessflexibility involved then location is costly as there is

greater need of service provider.ii. Nature of interaction: It depends on where the service isto be delivered. For example, in banks customers go tothe service provider and therefore location must beconvenient to customer.

iii. Customer needs/demands: It depends on customersegment. Some customers want convenience in service,some prefer other features and go to any location.

iv.

Natural/ Geographical location: Some tourist places aredecided on the basis of natural/geographical location.Service provider must add other features to attractcustomers.

v.

Competitive position: A service provider can createartificial barriers to the entry by holding prime locationand improve its competitive position.

vi.

Extent of technology used: With the advancement intechnology, location decisions will be flexible dependingon customer needs and requirements. For example, ATMbanking.

vii. Dependence on other services: Certain services areinterdependent. For example, medical services like x ray,pharmacy, laboratories etc. These are located in a cluster.


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viii. Infrastructure Needed: Some services need highinfrastructure and communication facilities, example,financial services. Hence it is located in the urban areas.

ix.

Target market: Location must be closer to target markets.

DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS: After the selection oflocation of service delivery, the next question is to selectthe channels of distribution. The different channels ofservice distribution are:

ZERO LEVEL ONE LEVEL TWO LEVEL ONE LEVEL

It can be seen from the chart that there are less number ofmiddlemen or intermediaries in services. This is due tointangible nature of services. In case of tangible goods, thereare large numbers of middlemen like manufacturer,wholesaler, semi wholesaler, retailer, etc.

Thus the various service intermediaries can beclassified as

SERVICE PROVIDER

AGENTBROKER

SELLERSAGENT

BUYERSAGENT

FRANCHISE

CUSTOMER


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Agents and Brokers: Agent is a person who acts onbehalf of the company. For example, travel agent,

insurance agent. He gets commission or fixed fee forproviding his services. Broker is a person who bringsservice provider and customer together for which he getscommission. The advantages are:

i.

Closer to customer,ii. Possess special skills,

iii. Wide market coverage.

The disadvantages are:i. Service firm has no controlii. Too much dependency on intermediaries.

Franchising: It is a right granted to an individual oragency to market companys services within certainterritory. An individual who purchase a franchise is

called Franchisee and the company that gives franchiseis called Franchisor. It is most common in retailservices. Examples of franchising are Dominos Pizza,Subway, and McDonalds. The essence of franchising are:

i. A contractual relationship,ii.

Franchisor owns trade name,iii. Franchisor is responsible for introducing the

franchisee to all business operations,iv.

Franchisee must own his business,v. Fees or royalty is paid.

Franchising is fast growth strategy when:i. Resources are limited

ii.

Long term commitment is crucialiii. Local market is important

iv.

Fast growth is essential to overcome market competition


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BENEFITS OF FRANCHISING

TO FRANCHISER TO FRANCHISEE

Faster Growth Established brandReduced Risk Risk coverageConsistent service offeringGlobal standards

DRAWBACKS OF FRANCHISING

Motivational level Limited margin

Corporate Image Fear of business poachingQuality Inconsistency Strict rules and regulationsChallenge of CRM

i. Faster business growth: It provides fasterbusiness growth route to franchiser. For example,

Barista, Caf Coffee Day, McDonalds haveexpanded their business in India by franchising.ii. More capital and less risk: Franchise makes their

investments into the business of franchiser, thusbringing more capital and resources. The risk ofbusiness gets divided.

iii.

Consistent service offering: The franchiser can

provide similar kind of ambience, dcor, andother physical evidence or consistent serviceoffering.

iv. Global standards adapted to local needs: Globalstandards and the local knowledge of thefranchisee adapt to each other in this businesspartnership. Local franchisee learns about globalsystem and the franchiser learns local habits andculture.


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There are some challenges with this type of

distribution. These are:i. Motivational level of franchisee: It is very

difficult to deal with business partner of differentnationalities, religion, and culture. Each one hasown way of operating and motivating himself.

ii. Corporate Image: The franchisee may not be ableto keep the same standards and inconsistencybecomes noticeable. This will affect corporateimage.

iii.

Quality inconsistency: The quality of the servicehas always been a major challenge for allfranchisee outlets. It is physically the operationsby way of remote control.

iv. Challenge of CRM: The franchiser is never in aposition to maintain a direct relationship withcustomer and in the long run it may not beadvantageous.

Some of the advantages to franchiseeare:i.

Established brand and business system: Thefranchisee does not have to start the business fromthe beginning. He gets the benefit of establishedbusiness

ii. Risk coverage: A franchisees risk of investmentgets fully covered due to expertise of the franchiser.

The franchiser makes sure that his franchiseebecomes successful.

Some drawbacks are:i. Limited profit margins: Franchisee gets limited

profit margin as profit margin. Customerschemes are decided by the franchiser.

ii.

Fear of business poaching: The franchisee isnot free from the fear of losing out his market


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share to other franchisee. For example, Marutistarted with one franchisee in major cities andsubsequently many franchisees started,

resulting in loss of revenue.iii.

Following strict rules: Franchisee has to followthe rules set by franchiser. Sometimes itbecomes difficult to change the mind sets ofthe people employed by the franchisee.

Internet and Electronic Channels: Today services canalso be provided through the internet and electronicchannels. Educational counseling, travel agencies,entertainment, information, BPO, KPO, banking,insurance, etc, services are available on the internet.Internet has reduced the distance between the serviceprovider and the customer through mobile telephones.The advantages of electronic channels are too many andeach day there is some innovation in the field of internet.The world has been brought on one platform by onlinechannels and World Wide Web. The various benefits ofelectronic channels are:i.

Creation of new business opportunitiesii. Creation of electronic shopping malls

iii. Consistency in service quality and service delivery.


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F.

PEOPLE

It refers to all the employees of an organization who are

engaged in service delivery in front office or in thesupportive back office. In services people are the key. It isthe only key. It is the only factor which can differentiate afirm from other competitors. It includes managing the internalcustomer and managing external customer. The different typesof service personnel are:i. Professional Service Personnel: Those who have

knowledge, skill, and expertise in particular field ofspecialization. Example: doctors, lawyers, CA, engineersetc. They need training in interpersonal skills,communication skills and other cultural qualities, so thatthey provide proper professional service to the customer.

ii. Consumer Service Personnel: People who provideservices in shopping malls, retail outlets, fast foodcenters who do not need high technical skills. They needtraining in inter personal skills, communication skills,and people handling skills. They need growing inpersonal presentation, manners and social skills.

iii. Contact Service Personnel: These employees generallyhandle direct sales calls, after sales service. They come indirect contact with the customers. They need to betrained in technology of service equipment maintenance

and after sales service. They should be trained inattending service complaints and service recoverytechniques, art of inter communication and peoplehandling skills.

iv. Moderate Contact Personnel: They are not in touch withthe customer buy they must understand customer needscompletely in order to satisfactorily cater to them. They

are back office people but readily available to contact thecustomer.


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v. Back Office Staff Personnel: They provide completefunctional and equipment support to the front office staff.Example, cleaning and maintenance staff, housekeeping

staff, order handling staff and event management staff.vi.

Management Staff: It includes the management staff thatdecides the service policy, strategy, mission, objectivesfor the organization. They need to be sensitive to theservice excellence. They get first hand information frominternal staff.

People Mix covers the following areas:1.Employees2.Recruitment3.

Training4.Motivation5.Reward6.

Team Work7.Education

Issues concerning services people

All businesses are run by people, the human elementof the service business is the most important of allcomponents because the systems, the machines and theequipment are meant for and run by the human element.The success of any organization depends on its people. It is

therefore important that human element is especially takencare of and their issues are attended to promptly by themanagement of the service firms. In order t deliver servicequality the organization must take the following measures:

i.

Hire right persons: Matching the profile to the job is veryimportant in services. Employee must perform their job

with positive frame of mind. Employees are part of the


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service product and therefore customer will evaluate thetotal service on the basis of employees attitude.

ii. Develop people to deliver service quality: The

organization must develop people to deliver servicequality. This can be done by proper training, motivation,and empowerment etc.

iii. Provide support system: Employees need proper supportin delivering customer service. It includes emotionalsupport (decisions taken by employees are backed bymanagers), communication support (information that

explains complex transactions) and technological support(the tools and equipments to do the job).iv. Retain the best people: Retention of the best people is

essential in service organization because services are runon the basis of relationship marketing. A company has tosell itself internally first before it asks its people to goout and sell services. The organization must create asense of job satisfaction to retain its staff.

v.

Make employees aware of their role: The serviceorganization must explain each employee his role andresponsibilities, contribution to the organization. Oncethe employee understands that his contribution to theorganization is important, his attitude towards thecustomer also becomes responsible.

vi. Train in technical and interactive skills: Organization

must provide training to employees in technical andinteractive skills so that employees perform better andprovide proper service to the customer.

vii. Provide periodic review: The service expectations ofcustomers may change due to change in technology,innovation, life style, status etc. The organization musttake periodic review of the changes and bring changes in

service delivery.


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viii. Establish employee empowerment: The employees atdifferent levels should have proper authority to takedecisions. It does not mean absolute power.

Empowerment means employees are fully involved inkey decisions and properly rewarded.ix. Established appraisal system: Organizations should

identify special needs of the employees by way of selfappraisals, peer appraisal and supervisory appraisal.


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G.

Physical Evidence

Physical evidence is often referred to as the

environment that facilitates the performance and thecommunication of the service. In service organizationas the service is intangible, physical evidence provides amessage to the customer.

Physical evidence includes

Physical Facilities: Customer gets impression about serviceorganization on the basis of physical facilities like building,furniture, and equipment. It includes essential and peripheralfacilities. Essential refers to technical facilities without which

service delivery is not possible. For example, aircraft inairline, furniture in firm.

Peripheral facilities are the supportive facilities not veryvisible but they have impact on the customer. For example,brochure, visiting card, stationery, etc. These are importantsource of competitive differentiation. Services can beperformed without these facilities but they ca be used to

increase corporate image.

PHYSICALFACILITIES

PHYSICALSETTINGS

SOCIALSETTING

ESSENTIAL PERIPHERAL AMBIENCE SPACE DCOR


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Example of physical evidencein fast food restaurantPhysical evidence Inferences

Food Taste, smell, presentationSeating Comfort, layout, availabilityOverall appearance Dcor, cleanlinessAccessibility Location, parkingAtmosphere Friendly, cold, indifferent.

Physical setting: It is the service environment in which

services are delivered. It includes:

Ambience Space DcorTemperature Ease of access Sign boardQuality of air Good visibility SymbolsNoise Proximity to linked

servicesArtifacts

MusicSmellSpaceLayout/ DesignEquipmentFurnishingColourLighting

Social setting: The appearance and attitude of the servicepersonnel play an important role in service sector. It indicateswhether employees are friendly, approachable, empathetic,professional, confidential etc. Customer evaluates the servicestaff in terms of technical skills, interactive, personalities,attitude, and consistency of quality performance.

ROLE OF PHYSICAL EVIDENCE IN SERVICE

MARKETING


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H.

PROCESS

If you cannot describe what you are doing as a process,

you dont know what you are doing- DemmingProcess refers to the steps, procedures, mechanism and allthose activities by which service is delivered. The objective isto optimize service delivery process and maintain servicequality. At each stage of the process the service providermust:i. Deliver value through all elements of marketing mix to

enhance customer experience.ii. Take feedback so that marketing mix can be altered.iii. The process itself can be changed to fulfill the needs of

customer.

Service Designing Process: The factors to be considered inservice designing process are:

1)

Nature of services: The service can be technology drivenor people driven. For example, ATM is technologydriven process while withdrawing cash from bank ispeople driven.

2)

Customer participation: Process designing also dependson customer participation in the service delivery. Servicecan be self service (Example: Retail mall) or complete

dependence on service provider.3)Degree of customer contact: Some services involve high

customer contact and customer determines the timing ofdemand and nature of services. For example, hair cuttingservice/ doctor services/ counselor services. On the otherhand some services involve low contact.

4)Degree of Divergent: It means to what extent service can

deviate from the standard procedures and systems set upor service delivery. Divergence helps in customizing


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services and meets customer expectations. Routineservice involve low divergence and hence low technicalskills while customized services involve higher

divergence and high technical skills.5)

Location of service delivery: Service can be provided atcustomer place or at place of service provider. Forexample, medical service, legal advice is provided at theplace of service provider while painting and carpetcleaning can be provided at customer place.

6)Complexity of services: Service provider has to take into

account the complexity of service production process.For example, hotel service involves high complexitieswhile teaching service involves low complexities. Theservice provider can bring down the complexities byspecializing in certain basic steps. For example, takeaway service.

SERVICE PROCESS PLANING

The planning of service begins with service provider takingdecisions on the following aspects:

1)Use of technology: A service provider has to carefullyselect technology that is user friendly to his staff andcustomers. He has to upgrade technology from time totime.

2)Conversion process: It implies adaptation and

conversion process. The service provider has toeducate customer about the use of technology. Forexample, many airlines have taken the best use oftechnology to make the air travel convenient and userfriendly by introducing self purchase, online getaways,and self check in kiosks at the airport.

3)Service equipment: In addition to the technology

adopted the service provider must provide sufficientservice equipments so that technology can be accessed


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through technology use. For example, if a bank adoptsmobile technology it must provide sufficient numberof telephone lines so that customer can access the

system a do not have to wait in queue for long time.4)

Service flow process: The service provider will haveto take into account the nature of services to determinethe service flow chart to make it convenient to thecustomer. It is also based on service blue print, layoutand benchmarking.

5)Service personnel: People are very important factor in

the satisfactory delivery of the services. Though someservices are technology driven but we need people tomake customer friendly.

SERVICE BLUEPRINT

It is a tool for showing service process, the point ofcustomer contact and the evidence of the service from thecustomer point of view. In other words it is a graphical orvisual representation of the process involved in providing aservice. It is made up of five components namely:i. All steps taken by customer as part of service delivery

process.ii.

Actions of frontline contact employees or face to faceencounter with customer.

iii. Back stage staff whose actions are not visible but they

are part of the service delivery process.iv. Support processes that are actions of individuals in a

company who are not contact employees but whosefunctions are crucial to the carrying out of serviceprocesses.

v.

Physical evidence i.e. all the tangibles that customers areexposed during their contact with company.


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SERVICE MAPPING

It means finding out how the service is created anddelivered. The purpose is to understand the service process. It

helps in showing the activities experienced by consumer inordering, using and paying for specific services.

FRONT AND BACK OFFICE

Front office is that part of the system which is directlyexperienced and visible to customer. Here actual service isdelivered. On the other hand back office is that part of the

system which is not directly experienced and visible tocustomer. Example, storeroom and kitchen.

LAYOUTS

It can be process layout, product layout or a combinationof both. In process layout there is specialization accordingto process or function. In product layout the process movesfrom one system to another. Example, car servicing.

BENCHMARKING

It is a process of comparing one business processes orperformance to the best practices of that industry. In otherwords the best firm in the industry is identified and the resultsof other firms are compared with the best firm. It can be interms of quality, time, cost or any other parameters. It can

relate to consumer services, distribution channel, productdevelopment, cost reduction, maintenance operations, humanresource, inventory level and quality level

The steps involved in benchmarking are:i. What to benchmark: The first step is to decide what to

benchmark i.e particular operations, function or services.It is also needed to find out what statistics are available

both internally and externally. External sources may be


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from industry, trade associations, publications,government sources etc.

ii. Identify best competition: The next step is to identify the

best practices prevalent in the industry. Benchmark canfocus on role, processes and existing practices.iii. Determine data collections: Benchmarking uses different

sources of information including published material,trade meetings and conversion with industry experts,consultants, and customers. The emergence of internettechnology has facilitated benchmarking process. The

internet also enables companies to conduct electronicsurveys to collect benchmarking data.iv. Determine performance gap: The next step is to find out

the gap between the actual performance and thebenchmark companys performance with the benchmarkindustry performance.

v.

Identify the factors: The next step is to find out thecauses or factors responsible for the variations so thatefforts can be taken to overcome these factors.

vi.

Action plan: The next step is to establish suitable actionplan and implement the same and monitor theperformance from time to time.

The various benefits of benchmarking are:1)Provides realistic and achievable targets.2)Creates an atmosphere for continuous improvement.

3)

Creates a sense of urgency for improvement.4)Creates a need for change.5)Helps to identify weak areas and what needs to be done.6)Overcomes any resistance from internal employees for

change.


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I.

POSITIONING

It is the process of creating the image of the service in the

minds of target customers. The STP process (segmentation,targeting, positioning) can be seen as below:

MARKET SEGMENTATION POSITIONING

MARKET TARGETING MARKET PLANNING

Thus the first step is market segmentation, then markettargeting, and then market positioning and finally marketplanning.

DIFFERENTIATION OF PLANNING: It is very essentialfor a service provider to differentiate his services from other

competitors for the following reasons.i.

To create separate identity.ii. To establish leadership position.

iii.

To create differential advantage for the segment.iv. To create a perception.v. To build profitability for the services offered.

Differentiation of service must fulfill the following criteria:i. Importance to service seeker.

IDENTIFICATION OF CUSTOMER NEEDSAND MARKET SEGMENTS.

DEVELOP PROFILE OF RESULTINGMARKET SEGMENTS.

EVALUATE THE ATTRACTIVENESS OFEACH SEGMENT

SELECTION OF TARGET SEGMENT

DIFFERENTIATING THEMARKET OFFERING TOSUPERIOR VALUE

POSITION THE OFFERING IN THE

MINDS OF THE CUSTOMER.

DEVELOPMENT OF MARKETINGMIX FOR TARGETED SEGMENT


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ii. Unique in features.iii.

Communicated to the target customer.iv. Superior to other competitors.

v.

Affordable to pay.vi.

Profitable to service provider.

Steps in developing position strategy: The steps indeveloping position strategy are.

i. Determining the level of positioning: A hotel can be

position at top corporate level, middle social leveldepending upon the level of positioning.ii. Identification of attributes: The next step is to identify

the attributes that are significant for the target marketsegment. Identify unique features, specific uses, valueaddition, and benefits etc.

iii.

Location of attributes on position map: The next step isthe location of attributes on position map. This will helpthe service firm to compare its positioning with the othercompetitors in the market. The attributes can be (in caseof bank service) high interest rate, low interest rate, highservice, low service, etc. This can be seen as below

Position Mapping

LOW SERVICE HIGH SERVICE

HIGH INTEREST

LOW INTEREST


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Evaluating position options: After locating attributes onposition map the next step is to evaluate the positionoptions i.e., what is the present position, what is the

unoccupied position and how the positioning can bechanged (repositioning). Implementation: The last step is to implement the

strategies for repositioning. The strategy of repositioningaims at making differentiation. A service provider needsto continuously evolve new positioning and competitivestrategies for his service offer to stay ahead of the

competitors. Implementation means adopting the newmarketing plan.

POSITIONING STRATEGIES: The different positioningstrategies are:

i. Service positioning: A service organization can positionthe service attributes such as facilitating services andsupporting services. For example, SBI has positioned itsservices stating product attributes as Pure banking,

nothing else.ii. Price positioning: This positioning is to communicate the

best value for the price consumer pays. For example,Wal Mart has positioned as the lowest price retailer 9inthe world. It has concept of EDLP (Every Day LowPrice) strategy.

iii.

Quality positioning: Here the focus is on the best qualityleadership in services. For example, in education sectorIIMs have positioned as the best management educationinstitute in the country.

iv. Competitive positioning: This may be againstcompetition. For example, the positioning of IIPM, Dare

to think beyond IIM.

v.

Service Application positioning: It provides services tosatisfy needs of some people in service application. For


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example, Timesjob.com provides services in the form ofjob portal.

vi. Service benefit positioning: It focuses on the benefits of

using the service to the consumer. For example, ICICIuses the concept of sindoor for concept selling in lifeinsurance.

vii. Leadership positioning: It indicates that the serviceprovider enjoys major market share or leadership in theparticular market.

viii. Excellence positioning: The positioning is based on the

performance and efficiency of firm.


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J.

MARKET SEGMENTATION

Act of dividing the market in two distinct groups of

buyers who might require separate products ormarketing mixes. (Kotler)Market segmentation is the process of dividing the

total heterogeneous market for goods and services

into several segments each of which tends to be,

homogeneous in all significant aspect. (William

Stanton)

The purpose of segmenting a market is to allowmarketing/ sales programme to focus on specific segmentto ensure higher returns.

ESSENTIALS OF EFFECTIVE MARKET

SEGMENTATION

The essentials of effective marketsegmentations are:

i. Heterogeneity of consumers: There should beheterogeneity of consumers in a particular market sothat it can be sub divided into different buthomogeneous segments.

ii. Sustainability: Market segmentation should be

sustainable i.e should be large enough to practiceand implement.

iii. Accessibility: It should be possible to reachdifferent segments in regard to promotion anddistribution. Organization must be able to focus onthe chosen segment.

iv. Measurability: The variables of market segments

should be measurable. For example, market segment


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for car can be determined on the basis of variableslike economy, status, quality, safety and comfort.

v. Responsiveness: A well defined segment must react

to changes in any elements of marketing mix.

PROCESS OF MARKET SEGMENTATION

There are three approaches to target market. These are:

1.Undifferentiated marketing approach i.e., mass

distribution, mass promotion of one service.2.Differentiated marketing approach i.e., differentdistribution and promotion for different segments.

3.

Concentrated market approach i.e., focuses on onemarket segment.

BASES OF MARKET SEGMENTATION: The variousbases of market segmentation are

1.

Geographical segmentation: Under this type ofsegmentation the market is divided into differentgeographic units. For example, a bank can segment onthe basis of north zone, south zone, west zone, etc.

2.Demographic segmentation: Under this the market isdivided on the basis of age, income, occupation and sex.

For example, a bank has account for senior citizen andbank pays higher interest on this account.

3.Psychographic segmentation: It is division of market onthe basis of social class, life style, personality, etc. Forexample, BMW car and Maruti Zen car are meant fordifferent class of people.

4.Behavioral segmentation: Under this type of market

segment the division of market is based on user status,loyalty, attitude, response, etc. The grouping is done on


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the basis of benefits that buyers want from a product orthe frequency of purchase or the response to promotion.

5.Technological segmentation: This segmentation is based

on the degree of tech savvy customers and theirwillingness to try new services. For example, 3G phoneis targeted towards 3rdgeneration telephone.

6.Service segmentation: It is based on varying serviceofferings. Customers are divided on the basis of serviceoffers and differentiation of service package.


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K.

BALANCING DEMAND AND SUPPLY

Introduction: The demand for services is unpredictable. Itfluctuates from time to time depending on factors like season,preference, timings, customer constraints, recession, inflation,technological advancement, competition, etc. This creates gapbetween demand and service providers capacity to supply.The sudden rise in demand cannot be met due to supply

constraints. The service provider needs to understand thedemand pattern so that demand can be met without muchdifficulty.

Service Productivity Constraint: Productivity of servicesrefers to the capacity of the service organization to produceservices. Services are not like goods and products. Servicescannot be stored. Services have to be produced instantly in thepresence of the service customer at the service delivery point.The productivity constraints are;

1)

Constraint of time: A professional like doctor, lawyer,software engineer have constraint of time. They cannotexpand their services if demand suddenly expands. On

the other hand when their services are not much indemand they have plenty of time with them.

2)Constraint of labor: Services are offered by employees,when demand rises it is not possible to recruit morepersonnel and when demand falls it is not possible toremove them. For example, in a specialty hospital it isnot possible to ask doctor to conduct operation beyond

his physical capacity and risk the life of patient. In thesame way a company offering car repair service may not


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be in a position to accept more cars for repair because oflabor constraint.

3)Constraint of equipments: Services are performed with

the help of special tools and equipments. The equipmentsagain are specific to services. Every service providercannot expand or contract equipments as per demand. Itis like one airline asking another airline to lease out theiraircraft just because there is sudden rise in demand for itsflight services. There is every possibility that otherairline will have similar rushes of customers and hence

may not be able to lease out.4)Constraint of facilities: Many services are run byproviding facilities to the customer. The capacity of ahotel is limited by the number of rooms. The hotel willlose business if more customers come or when there arefewer customers. The hotel will have to balance betweenoptimum and maximum level.

MANAGING SERVICE DEMAND SUPPLY GAPS

I.

MANAGING DEMAND TO MATCH SUPPLY: Thestrategies for managing demand to match capacity are:

i. Shifting the demand: Service provider shifts the bulk ofbusiness during peak season to convenient timings anddivert the flow of customers. This is done to retain

customer loyalty. For example, happy hours in bars,subsidized flight fares during late night,

MANAGINGDEMAND TOMATCH CAPACITY

MANAGINGCAPACITY TOMATCH DEMAND

STRATEGIES WHENDEMAND ANDCAPACITY CANNOTBE MATCHED


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ii. Variation in service offering: Service provider providesspecial services like birthday parties, kitty parties duringlean hours. Luxury hotels offer marriage venues,

conference arrangements during off season.iii.

Developing complementary services: For example, hotelmay offer bar to divert customers. Complementaryservices are offered to occupy waiting customers.

iv.

Promoting off speak demand: Telephone companies offerlowest fare to encourage long distance calls.

v. Pricing incentives: Higher prices during peak period and

lower prices during lean time. Movies have matineespecials.vi. Communicate with customers: A good customer

communication always helps. Customer will appreciateof telling in advance about rush hours, convenienttimings. For example, Globus and Westside offer specialshopping hours to its regular customer whenever thesestores announce special offers.

vii.

Extending working hours: Timings can be changed as perthe demand pattern. Many service organization functiontill late night during season and close shop earlier duringoff season.

viii.

Advertising and Sales promotion: Sales promotion canbe taken up during off season to increase demand forservices.

II.

MANAGING CAPACITY TO MATCH DEMAND

The various strategies to manage capacity to matchdemand are:

i. Customer involvement: Some services can be convertedinto self service so that personnel can be diverted tosome other services. For example, buffets in hotel.

ii.

Using part time employees: Service provider use parttime employees to provide additional services when


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ii. Waiting lines: For example, many hotels have waitingarea, companies put music when telephone line is busyetc. During waiting it is essential to keep customer

informed, reduce waiting anxiety, provide reasons forwaiting, waiting should be equitable and transparent, etc.Also ensure that customer remain occupied duringwaiting times.

iii.

Queuing situations: Queues have an important role toplay in service delivery system and management ofcapacity. There are number of parameters in queuing

system like arrival pattern of customer, service times, thenumber of customers, etc.iv. Triage: It means sorting different types of services and

different route to service process. For example, hospitalhas emergency services for critical patients.


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L.

YEILD MANAGEMENT

INTRODUCTION: It is the process of allocating the right

type of capacity to the right kind of customer at the right priceso as to maximize revenue or yield. It is a balance betweeni. Prices charged

ii. Capacity used.iii.

Market segment.In services because of the fluctuation in demand and becauseof limitation on supply it becomes difficult to manage

services.When demand raises service provider cannot supplymore services and hence cannot enjoy more revenue. On theother hand when demand falls service provider cannot controlcost and hence cannot get higher revenue. For example, anairline having 300 capacities cannot book more than 300seats. On some occasion when the number of seats booked areonly 200 then there is loss of revenue of 100 seats. Therefore,yield management aims at maximizing the revenue bybalancing the price, the customer and the capacity

Process of Yield Management: The process of yieldmanagement is;

i. Segment the customer base: As per the needs, capacity to

pay so that service provider can focus on each segmentand devise yield management separately for eachsegment keeping an eye on total yield.

ii. Establish data base: Service provider can maintain properdata base of the entire customer to know theconsumption pattern and behavior pattern during seasonand off season.

iii.

Fixing price differentials: The service provider can fixdifferent price for each segment keeping in mind


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breakeven point and yield expectations. However thisalso need providing service differences otherwisecustomer will not pay different price for the same

service.iv.

Strong customer relationship management: The strategywill succeed in yielding better returns only if theorganization is able to establish strong CRM and stronginformation system and communicate regularly withcustomer.

v. Advance booking: Service provider can also book

service/ capacity in advance. For example, airlineprovides reservation of seats in advance at a discountrate.

Service firm who show the following characteristics can useyield management.i. Fluctuating demand.

ii.

Products sold in advance.iii. Low marginal cost and higher marginal capacity cost.iv.

Relatively fixed capacity.v.

Ability to segment the market.vi. Perishable inventory.Advantages: Yield management provides the followingbenefits to the organization.

i. Higher yield from each segment. The price realizationfrom each segment can be based on their paying capacity

and propensity.ii. The price differentials can be established for services that

can be sold on a premium on a full value price and ondiscounted price.

iii. The revenue earnings can be planned in advance bypredicting the price and the level of each categoryseparately.

iv.

It helps the service provider to plan inventory facilities,equipment and reduce service uncertainties.


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M.

BRANDING OF SERVICES

Brand is a name, term, symbol or design or combination

of them which is intended to identify the goods andservices of one seller or a group of sellers and to

differentiate them from those of competitors. (Kotler)

Branding is important in service marketing as it providestangible element to services. Most service companies promotebrand name along with corporate name. For example, Airtel,Vodafone, Reliance, BSNL, TATA cellular. Top 10 brands in

services are SBI, PNB, CBI, Indian Airlines, ICICI, BSNL,BOI, LIC, and Kendriya Vidyalaya.

Advantages: Branding provides the following benefits;i. Corporate identity.

ii. Relationship building.iii.

Image of quality.iv. Reduce price comparison.v.

Customer satisfaction.vi.

Service advantage.vii. Repeat purchases.

viii. Support positioning.ix.

Easy penetration.x. Customer develop value proposition.

Characteristics of good brand: The characteristics of a goodbrand are

i. Distinctiveness: Consumer should be able to identify aservice provider and distinguish it from othercompetitors.

ii.

Memorability: The brand should be simple and easy toremember.


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iii. Likeability: The brand should be likeable visually andemotionally. Brands like LIC, SBI or TATA are highlyliked by consumers.

iv.

Suggestive: The name should convey the essence ofservice.v. Meaningful: The name should communicate creditability

and the nature of services.vi.

Flexibility: Some brands like Times of India, Tata haveless flexibility to become international brands. Howevercompanies should have some flexibility in branding their

services as they grow in size.vii. Adaptable: The brand should have the potential to adaptto changes in the environment. It should be capable ofshowing the core value of business.

viii. Protect ability: Brand should be legally protectable. TheTrademarks Act 1999 provides legal protection forbrands.

Types of brand: The different types of brands are

Brand Image/ Brand Equity: Brand image refers to the feelingone gets about a particular brand. It is an important attributesof measuring the success of a brand.

Individual brands

Naming eachproduct differently

Family brands

Branding all productswith same name

Line Family brand

Family brand for allproduct of a line

Brand Extension

Each product differentname along with mainbrand name. Example,

TATA Tea, TATAIndica

BRAND= PRODUCT + IMAGE

SERVICE BRAND= SERVICES RECEIVED + IMAGE


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i. Franchisingj.

Core Servicek.Yield management

l.

Augmented servicesm.

Public relationsn.Service blueprinto.Benchmarkingp.

Ambience and dcor in physical settingq.Service mappingr. Brand image and Brand equity.

2)Answer the following questionsi. Explain the product service concept.

ii.

Explain stages involved in new servicedevelopment.

iii. Describe service life cycle.iv.

Explain the importance of pricing.v. Explain extended Ps of service marketing.

vi.

Explain the role of physical evidence.vii.

Explain service positioning.viii. What are the characteristics of a good brand?

ix. Explain the bases of market segmentation.x.

Discuss the extended Ps in service marketing with

reference to tourism sector.xi. Explain the different situations a service marketers

experience due to demand capacity interactionsusing examples from any two service sectors.

key element of service marketing

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