People, physical evidence and process are the three special elements of service marketing. Harnessing these special elements is a vital part of the marketing strategy in service business.
i. People
Let us start with people. The fact that people matter the utmost in service marketing does not need much elaboration. In the first place in services, quality depends on people. Actually, the service customer rarely distinguishes or separates the service from the person who performs it. Second, services are also highly people intensive unlike physical products, which are material intensive. Third, while in the case of physical products, a bad product can be taken back or replaced, a bad service cannot be taken back or replaced. So it has to be performed right the first time and every time. This obviously means that people matter a great deal in service business.
ii. Physical Evidence
Often, in a situation the customer is present while the service is actually produced / delivered. Because of this, the surroundings in which the customer is actually served becomes important in a service situation. The surrounding constitutes the physical evidence of the service. For example, the appearance/décor and cleanliness of a restaurant influence a customer’s perception of the service. They constitute the physical evidence of the service. They are tangible and controllable aspects of the service provider must effectively manager such physical evidence.
iii. Process
The arrangement by which the customer actually receives delivery of the service constitutes the process. For example, in a fast-food outlet, the service process comprises buying of coupon/ token at the counter and picking up the items against them at the delivery desk. Service marketers must handle the process properly.
These three special elements of service marketing will come handy in differentiating a service, which a discussed in the section below.
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It seems that the notion that the majority of the people need only roti, kapda and makan has to be given up. Even the poor seem to need and be availing of several services, especially the ones like education, entertainment, information and healthcare. The middle class and the affluent are, of course, availing of a much larger variety of services, including dining out, and travel.
Certain types of services have been growing particularly rapidly. Higher education services is one example. Health care is another. Financial services is yet another. Health care has, in fact, become the fastest growing sector of the economy, growing at a compound rate of 26 per cent annually between 1993-2000. Entertainment too is now among the fastest growing sectors. Spending on hotels and restaurants has grown at a compound rate of 18 per cent. Services backed by technology and equipment, like vending machines, coffee and sandwich dispensing machines, computerized patient history records, etc., have also registered good growth.
COMPONENT TASKS IN SERVICE MARKETING
UNDERSTANDING THE NATURE OF THE SERVICE
As a starting point in understanding the nature of the service, the marketer should figure out what exact need is met by the services. It gives the basic clue to its nature. It gives the basic clue to its nature. Some services are directed at people while others are directed at goods, through in the final analysis both aim at satisfying people. For example, entertainment is directed at people while dry-cleaning is directed at goods (clothes). Again, out of the services directed at people bodies, those directed at people’s minds, and those directed at their bodies as well as minds. An analysis from this angle will give some additional clues on the nature of the services.
UNDERSTANDING THE CUSTOMER AND HIS EXPECTATION OF THE SERVICE
Services marketers must understand the customers well and correctly size up their expectations of the service. For this, they must obviously carry out a thorough customer analysis. The important point is that customer analysis in a service context involves first-hand and not second-hand knowledge about the customers. The sales and service staff must be encouraged to make plenty of personal contacts with the customers and gather relevant first-hand data on their requirements/expectations of the service.
