Study Unit 8 - Chapter 11

Question 1

Role of physical evidence in service delivery

Answer 1

• what the service organisation communicates via tangible cues is particularly important
• wide variety of cues & aspects directly & indirectly linked to service delivery make up the physical evidence:
• appearance of building, staff uniforms

Question 2

Physical evidence as a form of communication

Answer 2

• what a customers sees,hears,feels or smells when entering a service environment invariably “talks” to the customer
• almost every element of the servicescape communicates to the recipient

Question 3

3 main types of evidence
(Determine intended message is conveyed successfully)

Answer 3

1. Physical environment
2. Communications
3. Price

Question 4

1. Physical environment

Answer 4

-physical environment
* air quality, noise, smell & cleanliness
* design factors
* social factors

Question 5

2. Communications

Answer 5

• advertising, writing to customers, providing information on a website & having insignia on delivery vehicles, service organisations are communicating with their stakeholders

Question 6

3. Price

Answer 6

• customers use price as an indication of the quality of these more intangible services

Question 7

Framework for understanding servicescape effects in behavior

Answer 7

• to grasp impact thay the physical environment has on customer behaviour & service employee behaviour— need to understand the environment-behaviour interaction
• Zeithami-Bitner framework -understanding influence of the servicescape on customer & employee behaviour is based on stimulus-organism-response theory

Question 8

The Zeithaml-Bitner framework

Answer 8

• stimulus= multidimensional environment
• organisms = consumers & employees that respond to stimuli
• Responses = behaviours directed at the environment
• assumptions that dimensions of the servicescape will impact on both customers & employees; & that they will behave in certain way depending on their internal rections to the cues in the ervicescape

Question 9

The Zeithaml-Bitner framework
A- behaviours in the servicescape

Answer 9

• individual behaviours
  — Approach
• stay - “ i want to stay here”
• explore- “ i want to stay longer” & “ i want to do more things here”
• affiliation - “ i want to be part of this place”
• feelings of satisfaction
• a desire to communicate with others
  — Avoidance behaviours
• leave/avoid
  *to ignore
• ignore the attempts by the service marketer to communicate with customers
• dissatisfaction
  —social ineteractions
• the servicescape will exert a direct influence on the nature & quality of customer & employee interactions in service

Question 10

The Zeithaml-Bitner framework
B- Internal responses in the servicescape

Answer 10

1. Cognitive
   -beliefs / categorisation / symbolic meaning
2. Emotional
   - mood/ attitude
3. Physiological
   - pain / comfort / movement / physical

Question 11

The Zeithaml-Bitner framework
C- Environmental dimensions of the servicescape

Answer 11

• ambient conditions
• affect how people feel, think& react to a particular service state
  —including:
• temperature
• noise , music &
• odour
• spatial layout & functionality
• signs, symbols & artefacts