Page 194 - DMGT510_SERVICES_MARKETING

Unit 10: Role of Employees and Customers in Service Delivery

service provider like a bank manager asked them to help themselves to self-service. Technology, Notes
as an intermediary, has been the hidden persuader. Some examples of self-service enabled with
technology usages are:
E-commerce, especially Internet based shopping which includes merchandise browsing

and payments (Rediff shopping, amazon.com)
Automated filing of income tax and other legal claims

Railway and airline reservations also known as ‘e-Tickets’ (irctc.com)

Online trading and reconciliation (Indiabulls)
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E-auction participation and payments (e-Bay)

ATMs
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Distance education (Direcway)
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Tracking of packages (DHL/AFL)
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Tracking of bank accounts and transactions (icicidirect.com)
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Internet information search (Google and other search engines)
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Interactive voice response systems
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10.2.1 Higher Customer Participation

The ulterior motive of the service marketer to get customer participation is to increase
productivity, efficiency, and customer satisfaction. Simultaneously, the goal is to reduce costs
and uncertainty that comes from unpredictable customer behaviour. The service marketer can
adopt the following strategies to make the customer come forward and participate more in the
service delivery process.

Clear-cut Definition of Customer Jobs

The customer’s participation begins with the inseparability concept, that is, his presence - in
entertainment like a theatre play; a boat ride; in a hospital for treatment, etc. A higher degree of
participation comes in the form of volunteering information (tax consulting, health check-up,
counselling and psychiatric treatments, etc.). Maximum participation comes in the form of
customers co-producing the service, often carrying out the instructions and suggestions
(recommendations) of the service provider to achieve the desired goal.

Example: A consultant can only recommend, but the customer or the client would have
the onus of implementation. Similarly, a customer can only achieve good health or become slim
if he or she faithfully follows the instructions of the wellness consultant, or the recommended
regimen by clinics like VLCC.
The service provider has to decide the level of customer participation - keeping in mind the pros
and cons of it. Thus modern format stores like superstores and supermarkets have customers
pushing their shopping carts/trolleys, and doing self-service, but such stores also suffer
shoplifting and rearrangements of merchandise on display every day. Customers could also be
persuaded to be Good Samaritans by helping other customers.

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