Page 52 - DMGT510_SERVICES_MARKETING

Unit 3: The Service Marketing Mix and Purchase Process

someone, replenishing the larder, an insurance plan for saving on taxes, a dinner or a concert. Notes
Service marketers get an opportunity in influencing need recognition by displays in their retail
outlets, advertising and promotions. Even visual merchandising can be used to great effect by
retailers in stimulating demand.
Secondary Needs: There are follow-up needs to primary demands which could include both
goods as well as services. A need for an engineering education would be followed by
requirements for calculators, a PC, savings accounts if the student is staying in a hostel, clothes
etc. A desire for a vacation might trigger the need for new luggage, casual clothes or a camera.

The service marketer should be savvy enough to recognize primary needs and be ready to
service secondary needs.

Example: Citibank was quick off the mark in offering a personal loan when SBI Life
Insurance and Om Kotak Insurance offered single premium insurance and pension policies. By
themselves, the insurance and pension products were very attractive; what was a damper for the
consumer was the large amount (over one lac rupees) for the single policies. But with the
possibility of this personal loan, (secondary need), many decided in favour of the policies
(primary need).

Retailers tend to bundle merchandise into complementary consumptions and provide cues for
further purchases. A total merchandise package is offered and the retail staffs are trained to
make suggestions to the customers for additional accessories. Thus a lady in her visit to the
beauty parlour for facial treatment will be plied with cues and prompts for further services in
hair treatments, skin care, etc. A gentleman who goes to a saloon for a haircut will be prompted
to take advantage of a package deal which also includes a shave and head massage/facial.

3.3.3 The Level of Involvement

This is an indication of the amount of time and effort invested by the consumer in the decision-
making process. If the consumer is not confident on the purchase decision or is not aware of the
product, brand or even the service category, he will spend more time in the decision-making
process. If he perceives the offer to have complex features, fears more risk in the consumption,
or if there are more number of users, then he is bound to take more time in deciding.

Most financial decisions like savings, investments and insurance have complex features and
riders. The insurance advisor has to be patient in answering all queries, persistent in his marketing
and follow-ups, and extremely effective in his communication, so that the consumer is clear
about the offer and its benefits. Similarly, decisions for vacations take more time for a family, as
the number of users is large. Decisions for time-share resorts take a longer time to make than a
one-off holiday, because the consumer perceives financial risks, longer lock-up of capital and
irreversibility of the deal.

The service marketer should resort to branding, and standardization and increase awareness
and usage to make people less involved. This will lower the time taken in decision making and
reduce marketing time and costs for the marketer.

3.3.4 Search for Information and Identification of Alternatives

In this part of the decision-making process, the customer spends time and effort in searching for
information and alternatives. For routine purchases, the customer will know the brand, and
service product and be aware of its benefits. He would then spend less time in his search for
information and alternatives for satisfying his needs. Brands that come to his mind and those he
recognizes during the purchase are called the evoked set. But there is the consideration set which

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