Level of Customer Service and Flower Of Service Model to Enhance Measurement of Service Encounters - Essay Example

? Service Encounter Journal Introduction Organisations are facing huge challenges over the years due to globalisation and internationalisation of many companies. The fast changing and growing economies have led to emergence of innovative ideas to sustain in the highly competitive market throughout the world. Apart from competitive prices, adding value to products and services has marked the successfulness of an organisation. Marketing and promotional strategies have changed over the years. Moreover, the distribution processes have been developed in such a way that products or services are made available to the customers conveniently and efficiently (Oxford University Press, n.d.). Therefore, the objective of the report is to analyse the service encountered while availing the services of four different organisations namely, Emirates Airlines, Commonwealth Bank, Wrest Point Tasmania and Eagle Boys Pizza. Thus, to enhance the measurement of the service encounters, two service marketing theories namely, level of customer service and the flower of service model will be used (Lovelock, Wirtz, & Chatterjee, 2010). Lastly, the dissatisfactory services encountered from the two organisations will be discussed and recommendations for improving them will be made. Most Satisfactory Encounter The Flower of Service According to Lovelock, Wirtz, & Chatterjee (2010), services can be of two types; facilitating supplementary services and enhancing supplementary services. Facilitating services are essential in the distribution of the service or to provide an aid to the core product. Whereas, augmenting additional services add value for the consumers. He further classified the services; facilitating services included order taking, information, billing and payment and enhancing services included hospitality, exceptions, consultation and safekeeping. These classified services are illustrated through a flower diagram where the centre of the flower is the core product or service surrounded by the petals that included the different services. Thus, the name flower of service emerged through the diagram (Scribd Inc, 2012). The Flower of Service Source: (Scribd Inc, 2012). Theoretical Application in Satisfactory Level: Emirates Airlines Facilitating supplementary services are related to the services provided by the Emirates Airlines with regard to information concerning the timetable of the aircraft, availability and rate of the tickets, and company’s promotional activities among others. The company ensures that customers conveniently can access informations that matters them most. Furthermore, the company uses modern techniques to provide information to the customers, such as information through SMSs and emails. Billing and payment information are generated smoothly and quickly through electronic receipts. Emirates Airlines has facilitated customers by providing the option of debiting the account through online technologies. Enhancing services provided by the company ensures that the hospitality is provided to the optimum level by their onboard staff. With the new Boeing A380, customers are provided with private suites, shower spas and in-flight Wi-Fi among others. They make the customers feel that they are present in their own home. It has further made representatives available either physically or over the phone through 24 hours’ help-line centres where the best available opportunities or benefits to the customers are consulted. Safekeeping has also been given priority by Emirates, which ensures that children are provided with goodie bags and cartoon games for hyper active children, which will engage them for long hours, thus, reducing the tensions felt by parents while travelling with younger children (Emirates, 2012). Theoretical Application in Satisfactory Level: Commonwealth Bank The Commonwealth Bank is regarded as the foremost financial institution in Australia. Its developed services have enabled them to understand customers’ core values and respond to any requests quickly and politely (Commonwealth Bank of Australia, 2010). Furthermore, they have developed a relationship with their potential clients and have extended added services towards them. The company has developed its information system which ensured that customers are provided timely and accurate updates in relation to their accounts or any services rendered from them. It is appreciate-able as fines or dues are not imposed intentionally. The order taking service in the banking sectors requires a lot of application procedures that are gone through by the customers. The new management in the Commonwealth Bank has ensured that customers are not tortured physically by making them sign in 100-150 documents. Instead, they maintained that the proof of liability included all the points related to the customers which are read thoroughly and signed duly with an acceptance note (Commonwealth Bank of Australia, 2012). The bank’s enhancing services were also enjoyed by me. They welcomed customers in a very polite manner and ensured that relaxing sitting arrangements are available for the customers. Moreover, customers are provided with soft drinks and water whichever is preferable. While a polite Financial Advisor greeted me and consulted with me regarding the service I would like to receive from them. He further advised me the new financial schemes launched by the bank that will benefit me in the long run. Moreover, the expectations from me that the bank lacks in quick problem solving abilities had proved me wrong. The service personnel assisted me as soon as the financial advisor knew from me that an error in an online transaction had resulted in deduction of my balance, which after repeated applications did not reflect in my account. The service personnel made all the necessary queries and after satisfying himself, credited the subtracted amount in my account. Furthermore, he advised me a few online shopping sites where errors in transaction are commonly faced by users. An important aspect of financial institutions is to safeguard the customer’s assets and records of transactions. Thus, the Commonwealth Bank has implemented a virtual keyboard on their websites while using net-banking facilities. The keyboard is operated with mouse while entering the password. Thus, hackers will not be able to know the computer code language which is not generated through mouse clicks (The Chartered Institute of Marketing, 2009). Level of Customer Service It has been observed by Lovelock, Wirtz, & Chatterjee (2010) that customer service is measured through the range of contact, high, medium and low, which is initiated by the organisation. They further state that a high level of contacts ensures that interactions between the organisation and the customer are done throughout the service delivery. It is viewed from the perspective that customers experience a factory environment related to service which is very opposite in the manufacturing factory. The challenge to the organisations is to make the service appealing, both in terms of the environment and service delivery by the personnel, that customers are attracted to avail (Nunn, Bickerstaffe, & Wymer, 2009). Theoretical Application in Level of Customer Service: Emirates Airlines Emirates Airlines’ introduction of complimentary visa free of cost within 36 hours adds another element to their level of customer contact. At times, it has been noted that visa applications are overlooked by the governing authorities, thus delaying the receipt of visa to the applicant. However, Emirates has come up with an extraordinary idea that provided me a visa within one and a half days free of cost. Moreover, they ensured that the visa is given to the customer at their counters while boarding passes are issued. This helped me in reducing my effort for getting a visa from the competent authority (CNW Group Ltd, 2012). Theoretical Application in Level of Customer Service: Commonwealth Bank As the official sponsor of Commonwealth Bank cricket tournament, the management of the bank decided to give complimentary passes to student account holders. I was surprised to receive a courier from the bank that contained two complimentary tickets for the cricket tournament. Thus, the overwhelming courtesy by the bank and the initiative to make it available to the houses may promote an elevated level of customer contact and service which may lead to gaining more customers. Least Satisfactory Encounter Situation A night spent at Wrest Point Tasmania will be the worst service encountered by me till now. I and my friend decided to spend some time at Sandy Bay. Accordingly, I enquired about the accommodation through their call centre representative and found out that there are ample rooms available for that week. Therefore, we did not bother to book the rooms through online rather, physically make the reservations. Thus, we reached the hotel and found out that the entire hotel was booked due to a marriage party organised in the premises. We were so frustrated that we argued with them that their representatives told us that rooms will be available for the whole week. They first did not agree, later told us that the representatives were not informed about their change in plans. At last, they provided us a staff quarter to spend the night and leave by the next day. The staff quarter did give us the relief initially but later proved us wrong. A power failure due to a short circuit left us without power for the entire night. Furthermore, due to the wedding, shortage of staff was experienced. Overall, we had to stay awake the whole night before leaving early in the morning (Wrest Point, n.d.). Theoretical Application According to Lovelock, Wirtz, & Chatterjee (2010), new customers are generally hungry for informations and prospects from the organisation. He further said that customers may require documentation for their confirmation, such as reservation or accommodation confirmation that may develop loyalty between the customers and the organisation. He insists that companies should provide timely and accurate information to the customers; else it may lead to inconveniencies and annoy the customers. The informations are provided by the front-line employees, such as call centre representatives who are at times not informed about the sudden changes. The hotel industry is famous for their hospitality which is reflected through their services and well mannered behaviour. Customers should be treated as guests where courtesy and considerations should be shown either through face-to-face or over phone conversations. Moreover, exception falls outside the routine delivery, i.e. it is generally not expected but is provided by the organisation through its service delivery. Exceptions can be either positive or lead to negative thinking. Problem solving, special arrangements are few of the parts of exceptions. Thus, not being able to solve the problem can lead to a negative impression in the customers’ mind, which may not make the customer interested in their services the next time. Situation A new service introduced by the Eagle Boys Pizza, for the convenience of the customers is ‘order on the go’. However, the experience encountered by the service will not be forgotten easily. Recently, in a weekend, I and my friends gathered at my house for a small social party. All of us decided to order pizza through home delivery. After waiting for almost 1 hour the delivery boy finally arrived. Due to our question for being late, the delivery boy behaved so rudely, as if we questioned his competency. Therefore, he gave us our order, took the bill and hurried away. As we arranged ourselves to serve the food, we found out that the pizza was not a fresh one and was also not the one that we had ordered. Therefore, the whole party was disrupted by what the company states as convenience to customer service (Eagle Boys Pizza, 2011). Theoretical Application As stated by Lovelock, Wirtz, & Chatterjee (2010), low contact customers do not visit the factory where the product is being performed; rather talk with the representatives for their services related to the product. They further suggest that research needs to be done about the quality of service delivery experienced by the consumers. It is the task of the operations manager to check the products before they are dispatched to the end users. The research will ensure the marketing service to improve and focus specifically on the consumers’ needs and preferences. Recommendations The services encountered by me from Emirates Airlines and Commonwealth Bank were comparatively much better than Wrest Point and Eagle Boys. Emirates Airlines and Commonwealth Bank prioritise services to customers as their core value and goal. They are always trying to enhance their services through implementing innovative ideas to their product portfolio. Their front-line staffs are well mannered and consider consumers behaviour. The information supports through online or telephone conversations are polite and accurate. They further ensure that the informations are provided timely so that inconveniencies are not faced by the customers. Thus, Lovelock, Wirtz, & Chatterjee (2010) suggest that from the service perspective few factors need to be considered to reduce the reluctance to change by the customers. These factors are stated as follows: Develop Customer Trust: Product changes will not be beneficial to the company if the customers feel that the initiators are not trustworthy. In service industry, trust and behaviour showed by the personnel develop trust from the customers. Therefore, the reluctance to change can be restricted through the goodwill of the organisation upon the customers’ mind (Garbarino & Johnson, 1999). Understand Customers’ Habit and Expectations: A routine of steps generally makes a customer used to the services and therefore, their expectations’ change is not considered by the organisation. Thus, surveys related to the satisfaction of the employees must be conducted to understand the customers’ requirements (Georgia State University, 2012). Pre-Test New Procedures and Equipment: If service personnel are replaced with automated machines, it is important for the organisation to design the equipment as a way that customers from all backgrounds feel compatible to use. Teach Customers To Use Innovations And Promote Trial: Innovations have become a part of essential element for the service industry. Thus, service personnel should be assisted to teach the customers the innovations to gain the acceptance of changed technology. Promotional activities such as, gifts on trial will be beneficial for the company to promote the new technology. Conclusion The experiences encountered by me from the above instances clearly gave me the understanding through the two marketing service model discussed above. Furthermore, it helped me from understanding which companies focus on customer service area the most. I felt that the services provided by Emirates Airlines were extremely satisfactory as each factor of the flower of service is satisfied by their services. Moreover, Commonwealth Bank’s services have also impressed me a lot in comparison to Wrest Point and Eagle Boys Pizza. The customer contact initiatives by Wrest Point and Eagle Boys are not at all focussed and are given least importance in improving them. Therefore, recommendations have been made that could help them develop their customer services, and avoid any bad conduct towards the customers. References CNW Group Ltd. (2012). Emirates airline to offer complimentary visas for Canadians. Retrieved from http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/882187/emirates-airline-to-offer-complimentary-visas-for-canadians Commonwealth Bank of Australia. (2010). Economic vitality report viewpoint. Retrieved from http://www.commbank.com.au/about-us/our-company/viewpoint/pdfs/viewpoint-report-issue-1.pdf Commonwealth Bank of Australia. (2012). About corporate & institutional. Retrieved from http://www.commbank.com.au/corporate/about-corporate-and-institutional.aspx Eagle Boys Pizza. (2011). Buy any pizza and drink. Retrieved from http://www.eagleboys.com.au/ Emirates. (2012). Flying with Emirates. Retrieved from http://www.emirates.com/english/flying/flying_with_emirates.aspx Garbarino, E. & Johnson, M. S. (1999). The different roles of satisfaction, trust and commitment in customer relationships. Journal of Marketing 63 (2), pp. 70-87. Georgia State University. (2012). How to build a high-performance organization. Retrieved from http://www.gsu.edu/images/HR/HRI-high-performance07.pdf Lovelock, C., Wirtz, J., & Chatterjee, J. (2010). Services marketing, 6/E. India: Pearson Education India Nunn, A., Bickerstaffe, T., & Wymer, P. (2009). Explaining levels of customer satisfaction with first contact with Jobcentre Plus: results of qualitative research with Jobcentre Plus staff. Retrieved from http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2009-2010/rrep567.pdf Oxford University Press. (n.d.). Marketing: the fundamentals. Retrieved from http://www.oup.com/uk/orc/bin/9780199557448/palmer2e_ch01.pdf Scribd Inc. (2012). The flower of service. Retrieved from http://www.scribd.com/doc/50683545/FLOWER-OF-SERVICE The Chartered Institute of Marketing. (2009). Customer service program. Retrieved from http://www.cim.co.uk/filestore/resources/10minguides/customerservice.pdf Wrest Point. (n.d.). Welcome to wrest point Tasmania. Retrieved from http://www.wrestpoint.com.au/ Appendix Service Encounter Journal Entry 1 Name of Firm Emirates Airlines Date of Encounter 10 April 2012 Service Industry Aviation Industry Time of Encounter 10:50 What specific circumstances led to this encounter? I wanted get Visa for travel. Describe the service encounter (e.g. what did the firm/employee say or do?) I contacted with Emirates through internet and requested for ticket and other necessary documents for making a holiday trip. The personnel of Emirates provided my requisite information and the Visa with less time and effort. How would you rate your level of satisfaction with this encounter? Extremely dissatisfied Extremely satisfied 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 What exactly made you feel this way? The services and facilities of the company is good as all are related with the airline services such as schedule, availability of seats and other promotional activities. What would you recommend the employee/firm could have done to make you more satisfied with the encounter? Emirates Airlines needs to recognise the habit and the expectations of customers from the organization in order to maintain good customer service. How likely is it that you will go back to this service firm? Extremely unlikely Extremely likely 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Service Encounter Journal Entry 2 Name of Firm Commonwealth Bank Date of Encounter 20 April 2012 Service Industry Banking and Finance Time of Encounter 12:10 What specific circumstances led to this encounter? To make correction regarding a fault in money transaction. Describe the service encounter (e.g. what did the firm/employee say or do?) The financial advisor had welcomed me and consulted with me regarding the transaction problem. He also gave me advice on financial schemes of the company which can help me in the long run. Ultimately, when they recognized their mistake, they solved my account balance issue. How would you rate your level of satisfaction with this encounter? Extremely dissatisfied Extremely satisfied 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 What exactly made you feel this way? The Commonwealth Bank prioritises the customers on the basis of core values and objectives. It always attempts to improve the services by applying innovative thoughts to the product portfolio. What would you recommend the employee/firm could have done to make you more satisfied with the encounter? Commonwealth Bank needs to develop customer loyalty through generating trust about the services of the company. The employees should treat the customers in a helpful way in order to develop good relationship. How likely is it that you will go back to this service firm? Extremely unlikely Extremely likely 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Service Encounter Journal Entry 3 Name of Firm Wrest Point Tasmania Date of Encounter 25 March 2012 Service Industry Hospitality Industry Time of Encounter 19:30 What specific circumstances led to this encounter? I wanted to spend night with my friend. Describe the service encounter (e.g. what did the firm/employee say or do?) I enquired about the booking in Wrest Point Hotel and found out that there was sufficient room. However, when we reached the hotel premises the entire hotel was booked because of some wedding party. How would you rate your level of satisfaction with this encounter? Extremely dissatisfied Extremely satisfied 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 What exactly made you feel this way? The services was poor as there was power failure in the hotel, besides due to wedding ceremony the number of staffs providing hospitality services was also less. What would you recommend the employee/firm could have done to make you more satisfied with the encounter? Wrest Point Tasmania should implement new procedure for automated booking so that it becomes compatible for customers to stay in the hotel. It should also aim to keep its frontline staffs informed about any changes in hotel reservation status. How likely is it that you will go back to this service firm? Extremely unlikely Extremely likely 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Service Encounter Journal Entry 4 Name of Firm Eagle Boys Pizza Date of Encounter 05 May 2012 Service Industry Fast Food Industry Time of Encounter 17:15 What specific circumstances led to this encounter? I wanted to enjoy pizza with my friends for a small social gathering. Describe the service encounter (e.g. what did the firm/employee say or do?) There was major delay in arrival of ordered pizza. The pizza boy of Eagle Boys Pizza was in a hurry mode. He gave our orders, took the bill and rushed away. How would you rate your level of satisfaction with this encounter? Extremely dissatisfied Extremely satisfied 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 What exactly made you feel this way? The service delivery of the pizza was quite slow; it almost reached after 1 hour of the ordering time. Furthermore, the pizza despatched to us was also not fresh. The behaviour of pizza boy was quite rude which was not expected by me. What would you recommend the employee/firm could have done to make you more satisfied with the encounter? In order to make the customers’ satisfied, Eagle Boys Pizza needs to improve the service and avoid delay in order supply. Besides, Eagle Boys Pizza also should take care of the quality of the products to make repeat purchase. How likely is it that you will go back to this service firm? Extremely unlikely Extremely likely 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Read More