Chapter 10: Crafting the service environment PDF

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Chapter 10: Crafting the service environment...

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Cr af t i ngt hes er vi c eenvi r onment What ’ st hepurposeofservi ceenvi ronment s ? Service environments shape customers experiences and is an important element to the services marketing mix & value proposition. Service environments = Servicescapes  Expensive to implement, Not easy to change  Relate to the style and appearance of the physical surroundings and other elements experienced by customers at service delivery sites. There are 4 core purposes of servicescapes 1. Shape customer’s experiences and behaviors Design of the environment + actions/tasks of customer contact personnel = shape the nature of the customer’s experience (especially in high contact services)  Shape appropriate feelings and reactions The environment & atmosphere influence the buyers behavior in 3 ways… I. As a message creating medium Using environmental elements to communicate to the audience about the nature and quality II. As an attention creating medium Make the service scape stand out and attract customers III. As an effect creating medium Using colors, scents, sounds, etc. to enhance the service experience and increase desire for goods/services. 2. For image, positioning, and differentiation Due to services being intangible customers use the environment as a cue for quality 3. Part of the value proposition i.e. Disneyland using a clean environment and colorful costumes to contribute to the sense of fun and excitement. 4. Facilitate the service encounter and enhance productivity i.e. In fast food restaurants tray return stations are strategically placed along with signs to remind customers to return their trays.

Thet heorybehi ndconsumerresponsest oservi ceenvi ronment s Environmental psychology - studies how people respond to their environment; apply these theories to understand/manage how customers behave in difference settings.

TheMehrabi an–Rus sel lSt i mul us–Responsemodel

Peoples feelings are the the most important element in the model – they drive responses to the environment. The typical outcome is either approach or avoidance of the environment. Russel lModelofAffect

Affect/feelings are central to how people respond to an environment – this model helps better understand them.  Proposes that emotional responses to environments can be described along two main dimensions’ pleasure and arousal. Pleasure: Direct response to the environment depending on how much someone likes or dislikes it. Arousal: How stimulated the individual feels ranging from deep sleep to highest level of stimulation; depends on information rate/load.  High information rates, complexity, change, surprising elements more stimulating

 Simplicity  Allows direct judgment of how customers feel while in the environment – can determine targets for affective states. AffectandCogni t i veProcess Cognitive processing – How affect is influenced by how people sense and interpret their environment.  The more complex the more powerful is its effect of affect.  Simple processes such as unconscious perceptions (scents, sounds) are still important. Behavi oralConsequenceofAffect Pleasant environments  approach behaviors Unpleasant environment’s  avoidance behaviors Arousal increases the basic effect of pleasure on behavior  Pleasant environment + increased arousal = excitement & stronger positive response  Unpleasant environment + increased arousal = distress (should try to reduce information load) Services should be matched to the strong affective expectations attached to some services (i.e. romantic candle lit dinner) TheServi cescapemodel

Mary Jo Bitner developed the Servicescape and identified the main dimensions. Shows that there are customer and employee response moderators  The same service environment can have different effects on different customers depending on who that customer is and what they like.

Includes employee responses to the service environment

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Important that designers become aware of how an environment enhances the productivity and quality of the service

The internal responses (cognitive, emotional, and physiological) lead to observable behavior responses.  Behavioral responses of customers and employees must be shaped in ways that aid production and purchase of high quality services.

Di mens i onsoft heServi ceenvi ronment Ambi entcondi t i ons Characteristics of the environment that relate to the 5 senses; includes both conscious and unconscious perceptions. Construct an atmosphere that creates a mood that is perceived and interpreted by the customer.  They are perceived separately and holistically. Includes color, size and shape perceptions, smell, sound, etc.  Designing these elements can create desired behavioral responses. Music The various elements such as volume, tempo, and harmony are perceived holistically – effect on internal and behavioral responses depends on the person.  Fast temp and high volume music increases arousal levels.  People voluntarily or involuntarily adjust their pace of behavior to the tempo of the music. Can be used to…  Increase time spent in stores – play unfamiliar music to customer base.  Shorten perceived waiting time – effective music use  Reduced stress – relaxing music played in stressful environments  Deter the wrong type of customer – play classical music to get rid of loitering teens Scent Can influence mood, feelings, purchase intentions, in store behavior, and evaluations.

Scenting the servicescape has become a trend that professional service firms have entered.  Firms can outsource their scent to a firm called Ambius who consults and creates a scent for the service firm.

Colour Munsell system: Defines colors into three dimensions of hue, value, and chroma. Hue – Pigment of color  Can be classified into warm colors (ROY) and cold colors (GB). Value – Degree of lightness or darkness in the color. Chroma – hue intensity, saturation, and brilliance; high chroma colors are rich and vivid, low chroma colors are seen as dull People tend to prefer warm colors in a service environment  Encourage fast decision making  Best suited for low involvement decisions or impulse purchases. Cool colors are preferred when customers need to make high involvement purchase decisions.

Spat i alLayoutandFunct i onal i t y Spatial Layout – Floor plan, size and shape of furnishings, counters, machinery/equipment, etc. Functionality – Ability of these items to help in the performance of service transactions.  Both affect user friendliness & ability of the facility to service customers well. Si gns,Symbol s,andArt i f act s Communicate the firms image, help customers find their way, and let them know their service script. Signs – used as labels, for giving directions, for communicating the service script, and for reminders on behavioral rules. Peopl e ‘Aesthetic labor’ – Capturing the importance of the physical image of service personnel who serve customers directly. (Dennis Nickson)  People are the software to shape the experience.

Put t i ngi tal lt oget her

Customers perceive service environments holistically – the configuration of the design features determine customer’s responses. Hol i s t i cvi ew Servicescapes have to be designed as a whole – no dimension in the design can be planned without considering other aspects. i.e. Whether or not the particular type of flooring is perfect for the environment depends on other elements such as the lighting, colors, materials, etc. Desi gnf rom acust omerspers pect i ve Servicescapes should be designed with the customer in mind rather than on physical appearance alone. Alain d’Astous studied environmental aspects that irritate shoppers…  Ambient conditions – Untidy store, too hot, music is too loud  Environmental design – directions are inadequate, no mirrors, arrangement is poor Tool st ogui deServi cescapedesi gn     

Keen observation of customer’s behavior & response to the service environment Feedback and ideas from frontline staff and customers Photo audit – asking customers to take photographs of their service experience Field experiments – used to control specific dimensions in the environment and observe its effects.; scent, sound. Blueprinting/Flowcharts...