APPROACH TO SERVICES

Approach To Services And Using Good Marketing Techniques.

There are four characteristics that separate services marketing from product
marketing. They include:

Intangibility

Inconsistency

Inseparability

Inventory

If we examine them in turn, each will enable you to add the five senses to your
marketing.

1. Intangibility

What this characteristic tells us is that once a service has been performed; there is
nothing to take home. In essence, services aren’t physical so they can’t be owned.
As services can’t be seen or touched, then assessing their value can be quite
difficult.

But there is a way around this. Here are a few thoughts to add the tangibility factor
to your service business.
How to add the tangibility to your service:

Ask for Reviews – Reviews or testimonials give great social proof to the ability of
your services. It shows that a. other people have used your service and b. their
problem was solved by using your services. There is nothing quite like a
testimonial to add substance to your offering. Encourage reviews and ask for
testimonials from your clients.

Give Actions – If you provide education or training, make sure that all students
have a format whereby they can take action on your learnings. Through
implementing what you taught or explained to them, they get a sense of
achievement. This leads to a feeling of accomplishment and when someone
accomplishes something, they feel good about themselves. They start to see that
anything is possible. So you’re adding feelings and sight to your intangible service.

Related: How To Avoid Bad Practices In Your Quest For Marketing Results

2. Inconsistency

What this characteristic informs is that everyone is different. While you may get
the same product every time you buy it, chances are that it tastes the same, looks
the same or feels the same. It’s not quite the same with services. Every employee is
not the same as the next person. And even though you may get the same great
person all the time, there is a 1% chance that they may not be great.

It’s human nature; most services’ businesses are people-based and personal
performance can vary by workload, the time of day and just life in general.

How to be more consistent when delivering your service:

Look out for signs of tiredness – Don’t wait for complaints. If you see an employee
is tired, then step in. This is particularly relevant in a restaurant, hotel or service
based business.

Customer care training – It is essential to do regularly and not just at the induction
of an employee. Make sure that all staff are trained on the lifetime value of a
customer and to meet and exceed expectations. Do refresher courses every month
or quarter.Undertake mystery shopper assessments so that weaknesses can be
identified and improved upon.

Related: If Your Company Or Brand Went Out Of Business, Would Anyone

Really Notice Or Care?

3. Inseparability

This characteristic explains that it is impossible to distinguish between the service

and the server. The production of the service can’t be separated from its
consumption. A good example is a hair dresser. You can’t really separate the hair
dresser from the cut/colour/blowdry. Similarly with a lecture, you can’t separate
the lecture from the lecturer.

How to help separate your service from the server:

Use copywriting – Describe in as much emotional detail what your customer will
get or how they will benefit from using your service. That way, the benefit of using
your service becomes the primary motivator. Highlight the individuality of each
employee, and what they bring to the service. This again emphasizes the benefit of
or the result of using your service.

Related: 10 Reasons Your Business Should Use Email Marketing

4. Inventory

This characteristic explains the last difference between products and services; that
services can not be stored. Unlike warehouses full of products, service providers
can’t store services for future uses.

How to have stock to meet the demand of your service:

Be strict with your time – Learn to say no. If you trade hours or seats or haircuts or
medical appointments, then you need to learn the fine art of saying no. If you’re
under-pressure, then by not saying no, you lend yourself to being inconsistent
(over worked and over stretched), thus leading to giving a bad experience.

Monitor demand – When demand fluctuates, it can be a real challenge to keep your
standards up. As a service provider, you can’t order more of what you provide.
Monitor demand fluctuations in your business, perhaps, they are seasonal, so take
on staff or outsource as necessary.

Related: Marketing: Time To Be Legal, Decent, Honest And Truthful?

By applying the four ‘I’s to your service business and deciding to substantiate your
business, you are doing more than selling the invisible. You are offering your
intangible services to clients who can now fully understand the benefit of using
your service and will be queuing at the door to use you.