| Questions associated with the quality of the service | | | | Assurance is shown by demonstrating that the |
| you provide must be answered to create a successful | | | | company and its employees are knowledgeable and |
| business plan. These questions include: How will | | | | competent at what they do. Assurance leads |
| service quality be measured? What controls will be in | | | | customers to find the company trustworthy, believable, |
| place to insure that quality is maintained? | | | | and honest. Marketing can go far to create assurance |
| Before answering those questions, you must decide | | | | by documenting the credentials of the company and |
| what aspects of service quality will provide | | | | training of its employees, but employees must |
| competitive advantage for your company. Five | | | | exemplify their comfortable knowledge with the firm's |
| aspects of service quality were identified by the | | | | services whenever called on by a customer. |
| researchers Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry as part | | | | Empathy |
| of of SERVQUAL, a service quality assessment tool. | | | | Empathy is demonstrated when service employees |
| These aspects are reliability, responsiveness, | | | | give individual attention and show an effort to |
| assurance, empathy, and tangibles. | | | | understand the particular needs of a customer. A |
| Reliability | | | | story of Zappo's shoe online store, famous for its |
| Reliability is the consistency and dependability of the | | | | customer service, described an employee who not |
| service performance. A reliable service is done | | | | only refunded an order for a recently deceased |
| accurately the first time and a reliable firm keeps its | | | | customer when requested by a family member, but |
| promises to customers. By confirming customer | | | | went on to send flowers for the funeral. Empathy |
| instructions by email or in writing rather than simply on | | | | means never forgetting that people like to work with |
| the phone, a service firm can help to be sure orders | | | | companies that treat them like human beings (and |
| can be carried out reliably. | | | | companies that have human beings for employees). |
| Responsiveness | | | | Tangibles |
| Responsiveness is the measure of how readily | | | | Tangibles includes everything physical that the |
| employees provide service. This includes answering | | | | company needs to perform its service. This includes |
| customer questions and filling their orders quickly (in a | | | | cleanliness and aesthetics of the locations, marketing, |
| short time) and promptly (soon after they are initiated). | | | | products, tools, and even other customers in the facility. |
| Insuring that staff is adequate for the highest volumes | | | | A restaurant that seriously enforces its jacket and tie |
| of customers may lead to extra cost for times when | | | | requirement for male diners, even by lending them out, |
| those staff are idle, but a reputation for quick service | | | | is one which takes the tangible aspect of the |
| and short waits may increase revenues. | | | | customer experience seriously. |
| Assurance | | | | |