SERVICE QUALITY

CHAPTER 2
 INTRODUCTION
• Service reflects both objective and subjective aspects

• The accurate measurement of an objective aspect of customer

sevice requires the use of carefully redefined criteria

• The measurement of subjective aspects of customer service

depends on the conformity of the expected benefit with the
perceived result
This in turn depends upon on the customer’s imagination of the service
provider’s talent to present the imagined service
DIMENSIONS OF SERVICE QUALITY
• A customer will have an expectation of service determined by factors
such as recommendations, personal needs and past expectations
• The expectations of service and the perceived service result may not
be equal, thus leaving a gap
• Ten determinants which may influence the appearance of a gap were
described by Parasuram, Zeithaml, & Berry:
i. ‘Competence’ is the possession of the required skills and knowledge to
perform the service
ii. ‘Courtesy’ refers to the factors such as politeness, respect, consideration &
friendliness of the contact personnel; consideration for the customer’s
property & a clean and neat appearance of contact personnel
iii. ‘Credibility’ refers to factors such as trustworthiness, believability &
honesty
It involves having the customer’s best interest at heart
It may be influenced by company name, company reputation & the
personal characteristics of the contact personnel
Further..
iv. ‘Security’ represents the customers freedom from danger, risk or
doubt including physical safety, financial security, & confidentiality
v. ‘Access’ refers to approachability & ease of contact
vi. ‘Communication’ mean both informing the customers in a language
they are able to understand & also listing to customers
A company may need to adjust its language for the varying needs of its
customers
Information may include, for example, explanation of the service & its cost,
the relationship between services & costs & assurances as to the way
problems are effectively managed
vii. ‘Knowing the customer’ means making an effort to understand the
customer’s individual needs, providing individual attention,
recognising the customer when they arrive and soon
And…
viii. ‘Tangibles’ are the physical evidence of the service, for instance,
Appearance of the physical facilities, tools, & equipment used to provide the
service
Appearance of personnel & communication materials
Presence of other customers in the service facility
ix. ‘Reliability’ is the ability to perform the promised service in a
dependable & accurate manner
x. ‘Responsiveness’ refers to the willingness of employees to help
customers & to provide prompt timely service
SERVICE QUALITY: CONCEPTUALISATION & OPERATIONALIZATION

• ‘Quality’ is a concept which requires a concern for both in product as

well as service
• Experts have defined it as:
“Fitness for use”
“Conformance to requirements”
“Freedom from variation”
• Quality is considered as the most important factor that influences
buying behaviour of the customer:
It can be measured by its durability, number of defects, use of product,
packaging, handling, etc. for products
For measuring quality in intangibles is a different one – very difficult to
measure
Further…
• Service quality is an abstract & elusive construct because of
4 unique features, namely:
Intangibility
Heterogeneity
Inseperability
Persishability
• Services are those economic activities that typically produce
an intangible product such as:
Education, entertainment, food & lodging, transportation,
insurance, trade, government, finances, real estate, medical, repair
& maintenance, etc.
DIFFERENTIATION
• Intensified competition & deregulation has led many to services &
retail businesses to seek profitable way to differentiate them
• One strategy that has been related to success in these businesses is
the delivery of high service quality
• So service quality has become a significant research topic in past
decade due to:
High revenues,
Incremental cross selling ratios,
Higher customer relation,
Purchasing behaviour, &
Expanded market share
LEAD TO FOLLOWING RESEARCH THEMES

a. It is more difficult to evaluate than quality of tangible goods

b. Evaluation of quality is not made solely on customer service:
They also involve evaluation of delivery process
c. Service cannot be separated from the creator of service:
Created, consumed & dispensed at the same time
d. Although the services are intangible but through virtualisation,
association, physical representation & documentation,
intangibility of services can be improved
LITERATURE REVIEW
• In all 8 papers have been reviewed, covering:
1. Impact of service quality on banks
2. Customer perception of service quality
3. Service quality delivery
4. Effect on customer satisfaction
5. Measuring service quality on retail banks
6. Quality perceptions’ contribution to customer satisfaction
7. Customer perception of SBI
8. Key determinants of internet banking service quality