Page 127 - DMGT522_SERVICES MANAGEMENT

Services Management

Notes The rift between Roddick’s and others’ view of the world was revealed in the results of an
innovative independent social audit that The Body Shop commissioned in 1966. The
company was prompted to commission the study after the report following media criticism
that its social and environmental credentials might not actually be as good as the company
claimed. The results highlighted eye-opening shortcomings in virtually every one of the
company’s stakeholder relationships. The company scored well in certain areas such as
promoting human and civil rights, pollution control, product information, wages, and
benefits, women’s opportunities, and energy conservation; but it scored really badly on
issues of corporate governance, relationships with shareholders, responsiveness to
complaints of customer and franchises, accuracy of promotional claims, communication,
and reaction to criticism.

Critics claim that had Roddick not dismissed and ridiculed the need for marketing for so
long, The Body Shop could have certainly avoided future problems that it faced. But by
2000, it was paying the price for not having devoted sufficient resources to new product
development, to innovation, to refreshing its product ranges, and to moving the business
forward. It seems that heroes can change the rulebook when the tide is flowing with them,
but adopting the disciplines of marketing allows companies to anticipate and react when
the tide begins to turn against them.

N.B: The Body Shop was sold to L’Oreal, the world’s largest cosmetics manufacturer, in
March 2006, for £ 656 million. Dame Anita Roddick gained personally to the tune of £130
million. Since British and French companies have very divergent views on strategy and
day-to-day management, it remains to be seen how successful the union will ultimately
turn out to be. For The Body Shop, it’s yet another chapter in its struggle to remain
relevant in a changing world.
Questions:

1. Analyse the significant issues in the case. Was Anita right in ridiculing the marketing?
2. How has Anita Roddick positioned The Body Shop and maintained its identity with
social and environmental causes as a unique positioning approach?

Source: Marketing Management–Text and Cases, SHH Kazmi, Excel Books.

Self Assessment
State True or False:
14. The inconsistency in service encounters prevents quality measurement.
15. A service blueprint maps the entire brand’s marketing process.
16. Actions taken by an airhostess in a flight are a part of line of visibility.
17. The support staffs usually are a part of the line of interaction.
18. The blueprint should be designed from the service provider’s point of view.

5.3 Summary

Service positioning is done in five steps: identify key offer characteristics, draw a positioning
map, decide on competitive strategy, design offer attributes, associated imageries and
sustain a competitive advantage.
Positioning map is an extremely useful tool to visually depict what the consumers think
of available brands with their features. It consists of a grid on two axes, with product
attributes on each of them.

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