Guidelines for services Communication
W. R. George and L. Berry have identified six guidelines that can be used for promoting services. They are mostly applicable to all service sectors, with the exception to some few due to the variable nature of services.
1) Provide Clues to Tangibles the Service Offer: We can easily pick up tangible clues in case, of goods. Services have a major intangible component in them and so it is difficult for the customers to pick up tangible clues. Though services are intangible, they still have tangible components. The customers generally use these as a substitute to evaluate various service alternatives. The tangible clues reduce the risk and eliminate the uncertainties associated with a service not known to the customer
2) Maintain Communications Continuity: It is imperative to maintain continuity in communication for achieving differentiation and to portray a unifying and consistent theme over a period of time. Continuous advertising and publicity will enable the customer to get strongly attached to the theme.
3) Direct Advertising to Employees: The rapport that an air hostess can maintain with the passenger can greatly influence the quality perception of the passengers. There are certain services which are labor intensive and involve greater server -customer interaction,’ In such a type of service the service quality provided is largely dependent on the quality of the person who serves. The service firm has to market the firm to its own employees first who in turn gain confidence in the product they have to sell to the customers.
4) Use of Word of Mouth Publicity: In professional services like doctors, lawyers, teachers, hair dressers, schools, colleges, etc. word of mouth publicity that have already experienced the service holds weight age in attracting prospective customers.
5) Promising a Service which can be delivered: A realistic service promise should be made which enables the service firm to regularly meet the customers’ expectations. This wills mimicries the service quality gap and keeps the customer’s happy and satisfied.
6) Make the Service Easy to Understand: Due to the intangible nature of the services it is generally difficult to comprehend what exactly constitutes the offer of a service firm. The various tools used for promotion are ‑
i) Advertising ii) Sales Promotion iii)Personal Selling
iv) Word of mouth v) Public relation vi) Publicity
vii) Sponsorship viii) Direct Marketing
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