Chapter Three: Delivering Quality Tourism Services

Learning Objectives • Use the Service Encounter Diagram to explain the different factors that affect a guest’s service experience • Explain how a person develops expectations of a service and how tourism can meet or exceed these expectations • Name and describe the five service-quality dimensions • Explain how a comparison of service expectations with the actual service encounter can give rise to three possible satisfaction levels • Explain what tourism managers can do to ensure high-quality service • Explain how negative “breaks from the script” should be handled in order to “turn a frown upside down” and create guest loyalty • List the important aspects of a service guarantee Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Introduction • Quality and hospitality are inseparable in the case of tourism • Quality is more important as the industry becomes more competitive Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Quality • Definitions of quality • Synonymous with excellence • A form of measurement, an amount of quality • “Eye of the Beholder” • Value-Based definition: Trade-off between quality and price Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Quality, continued • Higher quality has been found to yield three benefits • Commands higher prices • Increases market share • Yields truly brand-loyal customers • Quality Differences • Service quality more difficult to define than quality of goods • Consumer’s skill, decisions and companions can affect service quality Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Service Encounters • Every interaction between a service employee and customer is a service encounter • Service Scripts: encounters follow similar steps • “Moments of Truth” during which quality is judged • Service encounter diagram • Quality assurance in tourism services is a management challenge Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Service Quality Model • Customer has certain expectations regarding service’s quality • Word-of-mouth from friends • Personal needs • Past experiences • Marketing communications • Five quality dimensions • Tangibles • Reliability • Responsiveness • Assurance • Empathy Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Quality and Customer Satisfaction • Customer compares expectations to service received and determines satisfaction level • If perceived “actual” quality is better than expected: Highly satisfied • If perceived “actual” quality is less than what expected: Dissatisfied • If perceived “actual” quality is about what was expected: “Just” satisfied Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Quality and Customer Satisfaction, continued • Value of highly satisfied customers (HSC) • HSC pass more word of mouth than “just satisfied” customers tend to • HSC are more likely to purchase again and spend more in the future • HSC are less likely to respond to competitors’ promotions than “just satisfied” Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Quality and Customer Satisfaction, continued • We Experience What we Believe we Will Experience • Expectations may be more important than reality • Sequencing effects • Duration effects • Rationalization • Last impression not the first impressions endures in consumers’ memories Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Human Resources: The Key to High Quality of Service • Service organizations depend on everyone at all levels to deliver customer satisfaction • Need to develop learning organization, dedicated to continuous improvement • Utilize industry best practices • Understanding and meeting guest needs • Learn and understand customer needs and expectations • Employee selection • Employee training • Building service teams Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Service Mistakes • Can have a break from the customer’s service script • Mistakes happen • Most customers give the provider a chance to make things right • Satisfied guests represent potential future income flows - dissatisfied guests represent opportunities lost • Be a Can-Do Problem Solver • Making things right involves a few simple actions Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Service Guarantees • Difficult to replace or repair a tourism service • Guest often must complain face-to-face to provider • Good idea to provide variety of problem solutions to ensure that guest is happy Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Service Guarantees, continued • Offer guarantee that has five features • Unconditional with regard to elements under the service provider’s control • Easy to understand and communicate • Should be meaningful • Easy to collect • Appropriate restitution/compensation for customer’s trouble Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 07458. All Rights Reserved

Chapter Three: Delivering Quality Tourism Services