Customer Perceptions of Service

Dr. Arijit Bhattacharya

Focus on the Customer:
The Customer Gap

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 Service Quality vs. Satisfaction
• Perceived Service
quality
– Customer’s perception of
reliability, assurance,
responsiveness, empathy
and tangibles
– A component of
satisfaction

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 Meaning??
1. Reliability
2. Responsiveness
3. Assurance
4. Empathy
5. Tangibles

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 Service Quality Dimensions
SERVQUAL/RATER model 1. Delivering on
1. Reliability promises
2. Responsiveness 2. Being willing to
help
3. Assurance
3. Inspiring trust and
4. Empathy
confidence
5. Tangibles
4. Treating customers
as individuals
5. Representing the
service physically
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 Example – Airline
1. Reliability • 24 hour before flight, airline
sends SMS informing about
2. Responsiveness web check-in facility.
3. Assurance • Airline provides wheel chair
4. Empathy for senior citizens
• You are very late. The airline
5. Tangibles attendant allows you to skip
the long queue.
• During flight, the airhostess
gives a toy to your child.
• Airline takes you to your
destination on time.

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Moment of Truth
Service Encounter
– Building Blocks for
Customer Perceptions

MoT
When the customer interacts
with the service firm
• First interaction?
• Multiple interactions?
• Combination of
positive and negative
interactions?
• “One bad apple”…
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A Service Encounter Cascade for a Hotel
Visit

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Service Encounters - types
• Types
1. Remote encounters
• Occur without any direct
human contact
• Self-service technologies
(SST)
2. Phone-mediated encounters
3. Face-to-face encounters
• Direct contact between
employee and customer

• Customer may experience

any or a combination of
three types
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WhiteBoard1

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Whiteboard2

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