Characteristic of Services Business
Service has four main characteristics that distinguish of goods, namely:
1. Intangibility
Different services with the goods. If the item is a objects, tools, or objects, then the service is a deed, performance (performance), or business. If the goods can be owned, then the service can only be consumed but not possessed. Although some of services can be linked and supported by a physical product such as phone in telecommunication services, transport aircraft in service air, food in restaurant service, the essence of what you buy customer is the performance given by the manufacturer him.
Services are intangible, that can not be seen, perceived, smell, hear, or palpated before purchase and consumed. Intangible concept of service has two meanings, namely:
a. Something that can not be touched and can not be considered.
b. Something that can not be easily defined, formulated, or understood spiritually.
Thus, one can not assess the quality of service before he felt it / consume itself. If customer buying a service, he only uses, use, or hire services. Customers who concerned does not necessarily have the services purchased. By Therefore, to reduce the uncertainty, the customers will attention to the signs or evidence of the quality of these services.
They will conclude the service quality of the place, people, equipment, communications materials, symbols, and the prices they observe.
Therefore, service marketers job is to “manage the evidence” and “tangibilize the intangible”. In this case, service marketers the challenge to provide physical evidence and comparison to the bid abstract.
2. Inseparability
Goods are produced, then sold, and consumed. As for services on the other hand, are generally sold in advance, new then produced and consumed simultaneously. Interaction between service providers and customers is a special feature in marketing services. Both parties affect the results (come out) of
services. In connection with the service providers and customers, the effectiveness of individuals who deliver services (contact-personnel) is an important element. Thus, the key to success service business is in the process of recruitment, compensation, training, and pengembangani employees.
3. Variability
Services are highly variable because it is a non-standardized output, which means that there are many varieties, quality and type, depending to whom, when, and where services are produced. The buyer services are very concerned with this high variability and often they ask for opinions of others before decided to choose. In this case the service provider can perform three stages of quality control, namely:
a. Invest in the selection and training of good personnel.
b. Do standardization process of implementing the service (serviceperformance process).
This can be done by way prepare a blue print (blue-print) services describes the events and processes within a service flow chart, in order to determine the factors potential that can cause failure in service it.
c. Monitor customer satisfaction through feedback systems and complaints, customer surveys, and comparison shopping, so that poor service can be detected and corrected.
4. Perishability
Service is a perishable commodity and can not be stored. Seat empty train, hotel rooms are not occupied, or during certain hours without the patient in the practice of a doctor, will pass / go away because it could not be saved for use at other times. This is not to be problem if the demand is still being easy to preparing the request for service before.
When demand fluctuates, various problems arise associated with idle capacity (when demand quiet) and customers not served by their risk of disappointment / switch to other service providers (when demand peaks).