Chapter 17 Marketing Channels for Services Objective 1

Chapter 17 Marketing Channels for Services

Objective 1: 17 The Importance of Services The services sector of the economy is more than twice the size of the manufacturing sector. Services account for more than half of all consumer expenditures. Almost 80% of all new jobs created over the past 10 years have been in the service sector.

Objective 2: Services Marketing Objectives = Product Marketing Objectives 1. Offer services (or products) that are 2. targeted to meet customer demand 2. Present services (or products) to customers 3. so as to maximize their appeal. 17

Objective 3: Characteristics of Services that Distinguish them from Products • • • The intangibility of services The inseparability of services from service providers The difficulty of standardizing services The high degree of customer involvement in services The perishability of services 17

Intangibility of Services Service Product • Much less tangible than physical products • Consumers have more definite impressions & preferences about physical products because of their tangibility • Difficult to differentiate brands ≠ 17

Inseparability of Services Service • Inextricably tied to provider of service • Services produced do not exist as entities in and of themselves Product ≠ • An entity that exists apart from the manufacturer itself 17

Difficulty of Standardization Service Product • More difficult to standardize than products • High degree of standardization found in advanced industrial societies • Variability associated with human element is much more likely to creep into the production of services than into the production of products ≠ 17

Customer Involvement in Services Service Product • Consumers are more involved in the production of services than they are in the production of products. • Individual consumers do not play much of a role in determining the nature of products manufactured for them. ≠ = Consumer is involved only in consumption of product 17

Perishability of Services Service Product • Services cannot be produced in anticipation of customer needs & then stored in inventory until purchased. • Products can be inventoried and stored— even the most perishable products. ≠ 17

Implications of Service Characteristics for Channel Management The relationship between the characteristics of services & the management of marketing channels includes: • Intangibility & Channel Management • Inseparability & Channel Management • Difficulty of Standardization & Channel Management • Customer Involvement & Channel Management • Perishability of Services & Channel Management 17

Objective 4: Intangibility & Channel Management Marketing channels provide the most direct & potent basis for making a service more tangible. Why? The customer is directly exposed to and experiences the service provided by the channel. 17

Objective 5: Inseparability & Channel Management The inseparability of services from the provider means that the service provider does not have the “safety net” available to the product manufacturer, whereby the product itself can make up for poor distribution. Why? All aspects of the marketing channel with which the consumer comes into contact are thus a reflection of the quality of the service. 17

Difficulty of Standardization & Channel Management In the case of franchises, it is difficult for the channel manager to get the franchisees to deliver a consistent level of service. Why? The amount of human involvement—behavior— is often involved in providing services. 16

Objective 6: Customer Involvement & Channel Management In a channel containing services such as barbers, fitness clubs, and tax preparation, the channel design should facilitate customer involvement. Why? Such services generally require input from the customer in order to be performed successfully. 17

Objective 7: Perishability of Services & Channel Management The channel must be designed so as to connect as efficiently as possible those providing the service with those desiring to obtain it. Why? Because of the high degree of perishability of unsold services, design should maximize the sale of service during its limited exposure to the target market. 17

Objective 8: Additional Perspectives Important considerations for developing & operating marketing channels for services 1. Shorter Channels 2. Franchised Channels 3. Customization of Services 4. Channel Flows 17

Shorter Channels The direct structure in a short channel eliminates the challenge of designing a channel structure in terms of: • length, intensity, & type of intermediaries at each level • the selection of intermediaries • the need to motivate intermediaries to do an effective job of selling the product. 17

Franchised Channels Using business format franchising can give the service provider the potential to reap benefits: • • the scale of economies of a large organization the entrepreneurial drive & motivation associated with independently owned businesses 1. the degree of control necessary to foster 2. standardization in services offered by the 3. individual franchised units 17

Customization of Services • Many services provide for a high degree of customization. • For services requiring a high degree of customization, small-scale channel consisting of local independent service providers are likely to continue to play a major role. 17

Channel Flows • Flows that “carry” the service through the channel are those of information, negotiation, & promotion. • Many can be handled electronically, with the role of technology becoming even greater in the future than it already is. 17