SERVICE CONCEPT

The service concept outlines how a service provider

can realize the value and desired outcomes of its
services. The service concept can best be described
as the way in which an organization would like to
have its services perceived by its stakeholders. It
describes the non-tangible aspects of service
delivery and is an integral part of the value
proposition of service providers. Whereas with
tangible objects the final product is mostly the sum
of its parts, this is certainly not the case with
services.
The service concept consists of the holistic
combination of four dimensions:
1. Service operation: the way in which the service
is delivered;
2. User experience: the user’s direct experience
of the service;
3. Service outcome: the benefits and results of
the service for the user;
4. Value: the benefits the user perceives as
inherent in the service, weighed against the cost
of the service.
The four dimensions of the service concept form a
key to defining how the stakeholders in an
organization perceive the value of services,
minimizing the gap between user expectations and
the service delivery operation:

SERVICE CONCEPT OF OLA CABS

The service concept of ola cabs considers the core
service that is transportation facility as well as all the
other supplementary services (both enhancing and
facilitating) in its aspect.
The four dimensions of service concept in ola’s point
of view are as follows:-
 Service operations: Service operations consist
of all the activities taken to full-fill the service like
that of duties by the driver, functions of IT team
and operations department.
 User Experience: User experience is the overall
experience of the service by the customer which
in ola’s case starts from booking the cab to
rating the driver on the basis of ride.
 Service Outcome: the experience of the ride,
was it beneficial to the customer or not decides
the outcome of the service.
Value: value is the net value which is obtained
by the difference of perceived benefits and
perceived outlays/cost
 The Flower of Service Model

The Flower of Service concept is used to display the

two types of supplementary services that surround
the core product i.e. facilitating supplementary
services and enhancing supplementary services.

Facilitating supplementary services:

Supplementary services that aid in the use of the
core product or are required for service delivery
Enhancing supplementary services:
Supplementary services that may add extra value for
customers

Facilitating Services Enhancing Services

> Information > Consultation
> Order Taking > Hospitality
> Billing > Safekeeping
> Payment > Exceptions
DIAGRAM SHOWING THE ELEMENTS OF
FLOWER OF SERVICE
 Application of Flower of Service By OLA
CABS

Ola at first strived to develop its core service

that offers the basic functionality, the
functionality that the users are willing to pay for
and, later on, an array of complementary
services which in-term will helped retain
customer by adding value to the core were
introduced and developed.
Lets see these supplementary services one by
one by relating it to flower of service model:-

1. Information:-
Ola provides information about confirmation of
booking by a notification of ola application and also
shows real time journey so that the customer can
track the ride.
2.Consultation:-

Consultation consist of immediate advice and it

could be given ola drivers who can guide customers
regarding their route and can provide them with
suggestion so that they can reach their
some suggestions
destination as soon as possible.
3. Order Tacking:-
Tacking:

A person can order an ola cab via its application,

through website or through a sms.
4.Hospitality:-

Ola provides a range of various services that takes

care of the hospitality of the customer such as it
provides cabs with an option of a/c or without a/c, it
provides free wifi which the customer can use while
the ride is on and it also provides ola play. Ola Play
is the world's most advanced connected in-cab
in
 you the content
entertainment platform, brings to you
you love. It gives you a ride experience like never
before with advanced car controls, choice of
personalized content and a fully connected
interactive experience.
experience

5. Safekeeping:--
Ola provides customers with safety of their luggage
during the entire ride and some drivers are so
dedicated and polite that they help their customers
in loading their luggage in the vehicle. It also gives
an option of SOS, In case of emergency, you can
raise an emergency (SOS)
( ) alert from your Ola app.
You will see the red SOS alert button on your app as
soon as your driver starts the trip. Press SOS button
on the Ola app to inform about safety related
concerns to our safety response team in real time.
time

6. Exceptions:-
Ola Select is a subscription based membership
program which offers premium benefits. Key benefits
of the Ola Select membership include: - - Ride
Without Peak - No peak pricing on Prime & Mini,
24X7. - Skip Booking Queue - Your booking request
gets top priority. - Enjoy Free Wi-Fi - Stay connected
even as you commute and Ola Money is
a money wallet launched in 2015 Ola Money allows
users to make payments for all their daily needs.

7. Billing:-
Ola generates bill for the customer through their app
and through email. A noteworthy step taken by ola
here is generating the bill of the ride before-hand
before
that is before the start of the ride , through this tey
gain the trust of the customer.

8. Payment:-

Ola gives their customer to pay for their ride through

cash or through cashless transaction that is via ola
money sometimes the driver agrees to take the
money through third party money transferable
applications such as G-pay, Phonepay or Paytym,
which proves to ease the customer’s ride.
 Flow Charting

A customer service flowchart is a diagram that

illustrates the sequence of steps a company takes
to deal with a customer service request or inquiry.
The flowchart helps customer service employees
handle requests efficiently in line with company
policies and procedures and ensures good service.
Flowcharting can be usefully applied to any type of
service and the technique is relevant to both high-
ronments.
contact and low--contact service environments

EX:- Flowcharting a Customer's Visit to a Hotel

Appling Flowcharting tool to Ola’ Services

OPENING OLA APPLICATION

SELECTING CURRENT
LOCATION AS WELL AS DROP
LOCATION

SELECTING A TYPE OF CAB

OUT OF VARIOUS OPTIONS
LIKE MINI,MICRO,AUTO ETC.

BOOKING THE CAB

MEETING THE CAB AT THE

PROVIDED LOCATION

TAKE THE RIDE AND CAN USE

SUPPLEMENTARY SERVICES
LIKE WIFI OR OLA PLAY

ARRIVING AT THE
DESTINATION

PAYING THE DRIVER EITHER

BY CASH OR CASHLESS FORM

RATING THE RIDE

 From opening the ola application to rating the driver
consist of steps that a customer has to go through
while using ola’ services. As this is a high contact
environment so through flowcharting the managers
try to define the point(s) in the process at which the
customer uses the core service i.e. transportation
facility and identify the different supplementary
services that make up the overall service package
i.e. free wifi, ola play, A/C etc. so as to create a
seamless service experience for the customers.
Ola cabs works in people processing service
industry, in the above flow chart the 6th step is the
only core service of ola where as 1,2,3,4,5,7,8,9 are
the visible actions taken by customer.
 NET VALUE

Net value is defined as the sum of all the perceived

benefits (gross value) minus the sum of all the
perceived outlays for the customer. The greater the
positive difference between the two, the greater the
net value. If the perceived costs and other outlays
are greater than the perceived benefits, then the
service in question will possess negative net value.
Net Value = Benefits — Outlays
In here perceived benefits are all those benefits
that a user gains from using the service for ex. In
hotel service a customer can get benefits like tasty
food, beautiful ambience, fast service, polite waiters,
and complimentary food etc.
Whereas perceived outlays are the cost which can
be both financial and non-financial which the
customer pays while using the service. Perceived
outlays can be money, time, physical effort,
psychological burdens, sensory burdens.
Difference of both i.e. perceived benefits and
perceived outlays provides us with net value of the
service.

APPLICATION OF NET VALUE BY OLA

Perceived benefits for ola customers can be:-

1. Biggest advantage of Ola is that it's convenient. Just
open the app, set the destination, book your cab. So
simple. Therefore its time saving unlike traditional
taxies for which the customer has to travel to their
assigned stands first.

2. CHEAP*. If you take your normal cab or auto and

take Ola Micro the fare difference isn't much. At
times it's even cheaper than normal cabs and autos.

3. Travel comfortably. When you are paying almost the

same amount, why not travel in an air-conditioned
cab.

4. Choices. Want to travel in style, book SUV or Ola

Lux. For those not aware about Ola Lux, you can
book a BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar or any such luxury
car for your travel. Travelling alone, low on budget,
 book Ola Share. This one is sure shot cheaper than
your autos or taxies.

5. Other hospitality and supplementary services like

wifi and ola play makes your ride experience
delightful.

Perceived outlays for ola cab users can be:-

Financially :- the fare or cost charged by ola cabs

based on per km ride.
In some metro cities the prices of cabs may rise
during peak times much higher than the normal
cab or taxi.

Non-financially:-
 Sometimes customers face problems while
booking an ola cab because they might be in
an area where cab is not easily available.
This might waste a few minutes of the
customer’s time and delay him/her.
 Customers at times might suffer from physical
effort to take a cab as cab driver may be
confused about the pickup location so the
customer has to reach where the driver is.
This might also raise some psychological
burden on the customer.
  Some customers my face sensory burdens
while travelling in an ola cab such as foul
smell the car or loud music played by the
driver etc.

By analyzing these perceived benefits and outlays

the ola company estimates its net value to the
customers and fixes their pricing strategy according
to each city.
 THE THEATRE METAPHOR/ THEATER
MODEL
This THEATER MODEL compares service delivery
to a theatre performance, metaphorically as they
share several parallel characteristics. Both are
concerned with a good performance to impress the
audience or customers, both require careful planning
and execution at back end and proper setting of
stage for overall good impression. Service involves
the theatrical elements like a stage production:
audience, actors, setting, backstage, front stage and
performance or delivery.
 Various elements of Service Theatre
Framework:
Audience: Customers who consume services.

Actors: Service providers who work to create

service experience for audience (customers).

Setting: Service environment like a parlor or a

saloon where service delivery takes place.

Backstage: Backstage actions are not visible to

audience (customers), it may involve planning and
execution of activities like in a hotel the cooking area
is backstage.

Front stage: Front stage actions are visible to

audience (customers), taking the hotel example the
serving area or the restaurant area is the front stage
for delivery of food and beverages for a hotel.

Performance or Delivery: The interplay of service

actors, audience, setting, backstage and front-stage
action creates the entire performance experience or
the service delivery.
As per theater metaphor the service has a front
stage where the customer can see the service
himself and a backstage which is invisible to
customer which include operations work like IT
services and technical work.
APPLICATION OF THEATER MODEL BY OLA

Elements of theater model in ola’s operation can be

seen as follows:-

AUDIENCE:- Audience in here are the customers

that take the services of ola cab.

ACTORS:- Here the actors are the employees of ola

like drivers and its IT team.

SETTING:- Setting in ola service is the need of

transportation facility by customers to travel to a
specific location.

BACKSATGE:- Backstage consist of technical work

and IT department of ola company which is invisible
to the customer.

FRONTSTAGE:- Front stage consist of the driver

and the cab. The front sage performance last till the
payment of the ride is done by the customer.
PERFORMACE/ DELIVERY:- Performance or the
delivery of the service is the ride taken by the
customer which is the core service of ola.
 SHOCTACK MOLECULAR MODEL

Shostack (1977) suggested that there is no element

known as a pure service and that there is always a
continuum between the tangible dominant goods
and intangible dominant services. The airline
industry, the tangible elements include the interiors
of the flight, food, seat and also the overall graphic
continuity from buying tickets to the attendant's
uniforms (Shostack 1977). Even though the airline
industry is intangible dominant, different market
segments require different elements to make it an
experience for them.
The molecular model helps identify the tangible and
intangible elements involved in service delivery. By
highlighting tangible elements, marketers can
determine whether their services are tangible-
dominant or intangible-dominant.
Example of shostack molecular model:- passenger
airline service

APPLICATION OF SHOSTACK
MOLECULAR MODEL IN OLA’S SERVICES

The core service of ola cab is of transportation and

there are various tangible as well as intangible
services that encompasses the core service of ola.
The diagram below show the application of
molecular model:
The tangible elements in the service delivery of
ola cab are as follows:-

 CAR/CAB:- The car sent for the

transportation is an tangible element which
is highly essential for the delivery of the
core service.
 DRIVER:- The driver of the cab is another
tangible element of the process. A well
 trained and polite driver is the essence of
the whole process.
 Luggage storage facility:- Most of the type
of cabs are available with luggage storage
facility .

The intangible elements in the service delivery

of ola cab are as follows:-

 APPLICATION:- The application of ola

through which the user books the cab is an
intangible element.
 INFORMATION:- Information about the
available cabs, booking, tracking the ride
etc are provided by the ola app.
 CUSTOMER CARE:- Customer care
services provided also constitute under the
intangible elements of ola.
 WIFI,A/C,OLA PLAY:- Other hospitality
services that are part of supplementary
services provided to the customers are
some in-ride services .
 TEMPORAL MODEL

A service encounter is an experience that extends

over time. Therefore, its effective management must
include the control of the timing of the delivery of
each of the service's elements and the enhancement
of the customer's experience between and during
the delivery of the various elements.

Temporal model helps identifying the sequence

of activities and length of time in activities.

Time taken in supplementary service should be

as minimum as possible for seamless
experience of customer Service provider should
always try to reduce time in non-productive
activities. Unusual extension in time on any
supplementary service can ruin whole service
experience For example, any delay in handing
over vehicle to customer on pickup day or time
take in refund of security deposit. Whole service
experience of customer should be seamless for
brand recall.
 APPLICATION OF TEMPORAL MODEL
BY OLA

In the above diagram all the activities that the

customer goes through while using ola for
transportation facility is shown as per time
dimension. Ola tries to keep the supplementary
activities duration as minimum as possible i.e.
while booking the cab and while paying for the
ride so as to keep the whole experience
seamless.