Service Marketing

Within the report, we are going through the theories from chapter 2,3,4 of Servies

Management: Intergrating Customer Focus Across the Firrm by Alan Wilson and

analyzing the case of Yo! Sushi with the theoretical factors learnt from the book

mentioned.

Chapters 2, 3 and 4 provide clear ideas about consumer behavior, customer

expectations and customer perceptions of service, how these factors are

distinguished, differently characterized from those of tangible products. Consumers

have a more difficult time evaluating and choosing most services partly because

services are intangible and non-standardized and partly because consumption is so

closely intertwined with production. These characteristics lead to differences in

consumer evaluation process for goods and services in all stages of buying and

consumption process.

The consumer behavior for services is divided into 3 stages- consumer choice,

consumer experience and post-experience- in which we look at the way experience

and credence properties result in challenges and opportunities. Consumer choice

included 4 stepped sequence which consists of need recognition, information search,

evaluation of alternatives and finally, purchase. With the approach to all Maslow’s

hierarchy model’s categories, services fulfil all needs and become increasingly

important for higher-level social, ego and self-actualization needs. Searching for

information is important and customers use both personal sources and non-personal

sources to gain knowledge or information about goods and services. With the

development of media and internet, nowadays, customers are stricter, careful and

beware of reading and considering information. However perceived risk can occur in

all purchase transactions (financial, time, psychological, performance…) and it is

suggested to use the strategies to reduce risk. With the help of internet, evaluation of

service alternatives are now easier for customers when they can compare

information, collect others’ experience and evaluate the quality by them own. At the

service purchase step, even though consumers, prior to making their final purchase

is still unknown at the point of purchase decision can see and ry object that they will

buy, for services, much is still unknown at the point of purchase. In many cases, the

service is purchased and produced almost simultaneously.

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