Give a brief classification of services

Give a brief classification of services.

The classification scheme developed by Christopher Lovelock represents an attempt to address one of the following aspects.

1. Nature of the Service Act:

The service act can be considered in two-ways:

–     Who or what is the direct recipient of the service and

–     The tangible nature of service.

This creates four classification possibilities shown below:

Direct Recipient of the Service

     People                                                  Things

Understanding the Nature of the Service Act

1. Type of Relationship that the service organization has with its customers:

In this the prime factors which need consideration

–     Whether or not the customer has some type, of formal relationship with the provider of service and

–     Whether the service itself is provided continuously or in discrete transactions.

These considerations lend themselves to the matrix shown in the figure shown below:

Type of Relationship between Service Organization and its customers

There are advantages for the service provider to have customers as ‘members’ whether done in a contractual sense or just by mutual agreement. By knowing personal details about the customer, it becomes easy to contact them through direct marketing and tailor special offers around those particular needs.

1. Scope for customization and judgment in service delivery:

Services are created as they are consumed. There is far more scope for tailoring the service to meet the needs of the individual customer because the customer is often actually involved in the production process. As shown in the figure below customization can proceed along at least two dimensions:

–     The extent to which the characteristics of the service and delivery system tend themselves to customization.

–     How much judgment customer contact personnel are able to exercise in defining the nature of services received by individual customers.

Extent to which Service Characteristics are Customized

Extent to Which Customer                        High           Low Contact Personnel Exercise

judgment in Meeting

Individual Customer Needs

1. Nature of Demand and supply for the Service:

Some service industries face steady demand for their services whereas others encounter significant fluctuations: The time perish ability of service capacity creates a challenge for the service manager. This is because services cannot be produced and stored as inventory for future sale. But the extent of demand and supply imbalances varies across service industries as shown in the figure below:

Extent to which Supply is                             Wide                              Narrow

Constrained

What is the Nature of Demand for the Service Relative to Supply?

The service managers may face serious problems while coping up with the demand fluctuations. However, with technological development several service companies are using computers to help in delivery scheduling to bring about a balance between demand and supply of services.

1. Method of Service Delivery:

The method by which the service is delivered to customers could be yet another area where a change of marketing strategy could pay dividends. The factors to consider are shown in the figure below:

Availability of Service Outlets

Nature of Interaction between Customer               Single site                 Multiple site

Organization and Service

Method of Service Delivery

Services with multiple sites have significant management implications for ensuring consistency and quality in offering of services. Service§, delivery is of great important to the customers overall perception of quality services.