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Chapter 11: Services: The Intangible Product

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Chapter 11: Services: The Intangible Product

15 problems · 0 figures

Knowledge Check 11.1.1 §11.1 source ↗

You purchased an airline ticket to go on vacation, but on the way to the airport, you get a flat tire and miss your flight. Which characteristic of service does this example illustrate?
  1. a.
    Service variability
  2. b.
    Service inseparability
  3. c.
    Service perishability
  4. d.
    Service intangibility

Answer

C. Service perishability
The concept of service perishability states that services (such as airline tickets) cannot be stored in inventory for future use or sale.

Knowledge Check 11.1.2 §11.1 source ↗

You go to a new hairstylist, and he suggests that you add highlights to your hair, cut off a few inches, and add some layers. You’re hesitant to do so because you can’t imagine what you’re going to look like with your new hairstyle. What characteristic of service does this example illustrate?
  1. a.
    Service intangibility
  2. b.
    Service variability
  3. c.
    Service perishability
  4. d.
    Service inseparability

Answer

A. Service intangibility
Service intangibility refers to the fact that you can’t see or touch a service before it is performed.

Knowledge Check 11.1.3 §11.1 source ↗

You go to the spa to get a massage, but your regular massage therapist is off for the day. The massage therapist to whom you’re assigned does an adequate job, but they don’t have the same technique as your regular massage therapist. What characteristic of service does this example illustrate?
  1. a.
    Service inseparability
  2. b.
    Service perishability
  3. c.
    Service variability
  4. d.
    Service intangibility

Answer

C. Service variability
Service variability may be defined as the changes in the quality of the same service provided by different service providers.

Knowledge Check 11.1.4 §11.1 source ↗

You go to your Certified Public Accountant (CPA) to have your tax return prepared and filed for the year. How would this service be characterized in terms of classifications of services?
  1. a.
    People-based services: unskilled labor
  2. b.
    Equipment-based services: unskilled operator
  3. c.
    People-based services: professionals
  4. d.
    Equipment-based services: skilled operator

Answer

C. People-based services: professionals
People-based services are those in which people, rather than equipment or machinery, play the major role in delivery, and within this classification, people-based services can be broken down further into services provided by unskilled labor (e.g., parking lot attendant), skilled labor (e.g., plumber), and professionals (e.g., attorneys and accountants).

Knowledge Check 11.1.5 §11.1 source ↗

You’re headed to lunch with friends at a downtown restaurant. Because there is no restaurant parking lot, you have to park on the street and feed the parking meter or risk getting a parking ticket. How would the service provided to you by the parking meter be classified?
  1. a.
    Equipment-based services: unskilled operator
  2. b.
    People-based services: professionals
  3. c.
    People-based services: skilled labor
  4. d.
    Equipment-based services: automated service

Answer

D. Equipment-based services: automated service
Equipment-based services are those in which machinery or other forms of technology are used to perform the service tasks required by customers. Since there is no person involved in the parking service, the parking meter is considered an automated equipment-based service.

Knowledge Check 11.2.1 §11.2 source ↗

According to the service-profit chain model, what drives organizational profitability and growth?
  1. a.
    Internal service quality
  2. b.
    Employee satisfaction
  3. c.
    Customer loyalty
  4. d.
    Value

Answer

C. Customer loyalty
According to the service-profit chain model, customer loyalty drives profitability and growth.

Knowledge Check 11.2.2 §11.2 source ↗

The extent to which employees are happy or content with their work environment is known as which of the following in the service-profit chain model?
  1. a.
    Employee satisfaction
  2. b.
    Internal service quality
  3. c.
    External value proposition
  4. d.
    Customer loyalty

Answer

A. Employee satisfaction
Employee satisfaction is the extent to which employees are happy and/or content with their jobs and work environment.

Knowledge Check 11.2.3 §11.2 source ↗

Which two steps in the service-profit chain model are related and directly linked?
  1. a.
    Internal service quality and value
  2. b.
    Value and customer satisfaction
  3. c.
    Customer satisfaction and customer loyalty
  4. d.
    Internal service quality and increased productivity and growth

Answer

C. Customer satisfaction and customer loyalty
According to the model, customer satisfaction (Step 5) and customer loyalty (Step 6) are related and directly linked.

Knowledge Check 11.2.4 §11.2 source ↗

In the Service Marketing Triangle, ________ occurs when employees and customers associate and communicate.
  1. a.
    internal marketing
  2. b.
    external marketing
  3. c.
    interactive marketing
  4. d.
    customer satisfaction

Answer

C. interactive marketing
Interactive marketing occurs when employees and customers interact. It is there where the promises made during external marketing are either kept, broken, or exceeded by employees.

Knowledge Check 11.2.5 §11.2 source ↗

In the service-profit chain model, there is a(n) ________ relationship between employee satisfaction and employee turnover.
  1. a.
    behavioral
  2. b.
    equivalent
  3. c.
    parallel
  4. d.
    inverse

Answer

D. inverse
According to the service-profit chain model, employee satisfaction is inversely related to employee turnover (i.e., an increase in employee satisfaction results in a decrease in turnover).

Knowledge Check 11.3.1 §11.3 source ↗

Which gap in the Gap Model of Service Quality represents the difference between what customers expect and what the company thinks they expect?
  1. a.
    Communication gap
  2. b.
    Customer gap
  3. c.
    Knowledge gap
  4. d.
    Policy gap

Answer

C. Knowledge gap
The knowledge gap represents the difference between what customers expect and what the company thinks they expect.

Knowledge Check 11.3.2 §11.3 source ↗

Management in a hotel perceives that the biggest problem in customer service is the length of time that it takes to check in guests, so they have established a policy that check-in will take no more than 5 minutes. Which gap in the Gap Model of Service Quality does this action illustrate?
  1. a.
    Policy gap
  2. b.
    Delivery gap
  3. c.
    Communication gap
  4. d.
    Customer gap

Answer

A. Policy gap
The policy gap is the difference between management’s perception of the customer’s needs and the translation of that understanding into service delivery policies and standards.

Knowledge Check 11.3.3 §11.3 source ↗

In the Gap Model of Service Quality, which dimension is the difference between the customer’s expectation of the service and their perception of the experience?
  1. a.
    Communication gap
  2. b.
    Delivery gap
  3. c.
    Customer gap
  4. d.
    Knowledge gap

Answer

C. Customer gap
The customer gap is the difference between the customer’s expectations of the service and their perception of the experience itself.

Knowledge Check 11.3.4 §11.3 source ↗

The acronym RATER in the RATER framework of service quality stands for which dimensions of service quality that result in service excellence and lead to higher customer loyalty?
  1. a.
    Responsibility, accuracy, tangibles, empathy, and responsiveness
  2. b.
    Risk, acceptance, transparency, earnings, and revenue
  3. c.
    Reliability, assurance, tangibles, empathy, and responsiveness
  4. d.
    Revenue, appreciation, trust, efficiency, and responsibility

Answer

C. Reliability, assurance, tangibles, empathy, and responsiveness
According to the model, the five dimensions that would result in service excellence and lead to higher customer loyalty are reliability, assurance, tangibles, empathy, and responsiveness.

Knowledge Check 11.3.5 §11.3 source ↗

Which dimension in the RATER model represents the physical facilities, employees’ appearance, equipment, machinery, and information systems?
  1. a.
    Assurance
  2. b.
    Responsiveness
  3. c.
    Transparency
  4. d.
    Tangibles

Answer

D. Tangibles
Tangibles represent the physical facilities, employees’ appearance, equipment, machinery, and information systems.

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Problems and answers are adapted from Principles of Marketing by Maria Gomez Albrecht, Mark Green and Linda Hoffman, OpenStax, and are used under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence. Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/principles-marketing/pages/1-unit-introduction. Illustrations: Copyright Rice University, OpenStax, under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license. This adaptation is released under the same licence, is non-commercial, and is neither affiliated with nor endorsed by OpenStax or Rice University.