1

SM
Chapter 3

CUSTOMER
EXPECTATIONS OF
SERVICES

McGraw-Hill
McGraw-Hill © 2000 The
© 2000 TheMcGraw-Hill Companies
McGraw-Hill Companies
 Objectives for Chapter 3: 2

SM Customer Expectations of
Service
• Recognize that customers hold different types of
expectations for service performance
• Discuss controllable and uncontrollable sources of
customer expectations
• Distinguish between customers’ global expectations of their
relationships and their expectations of the service encounter
• Acknowledge that expectations are similar for many
different types of customers
• Delineate the most important current issues surrounding
customer expectations

McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies

 3
Figure 3-1
SM Dual Customer
Expectation Levels

Desired Service

Zone of
Tolerance

Adequate Service

McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies

 4

SM Figure 3-2
The Zone of Tolerance

Desired Service

Zone of
Tolerance

Adequate Service

McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies

 Figure 3-3 5

SM Zones of Tolerance for

Different Service Dimensions
Desired Service

Level
of Zone of
Expectation Desired
Tolerance Desired Service
Service
Adequate Service
Zone
of
Tolerance

Adequate
Adequate Service
Service

Most Important Factors Least Important Factors

Source: Berry, Parasuraman, and Zeithaml (1993)
McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies
 Figure 3-4 6

Zones of Tolerance for

SM
First-Time and Recovery Service

First-Time Service

Outcome

Process

Recovery Service

Outcome

Process

LOW HIGH
Expectations
Source: Parasuraman, Berry and Zeithaml (1991)
McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies
 Figure 3-5 7

SM Factors that Influence

Desired Service

Enduring Service
Intensifiers

Desired
Service
Personal Needs
Zone
of
Tolerance

Adequate
Service

McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies

 8
Figure 3-6

SM Factors that Influence

Adequate Service
Transitory Service
Intensifiers

Desired
Perceived Service Service
Alternatives
Zone
of
Tolerance
Self-Perceived
Service Role Adequate
Service

Situational
Factors
McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies
 Figure 3-7 9

Factors that Influence

SM
Desired and Predicted Service
Explicit Service
Promises

Implicit Service
Promises

Desired Word-of-Mouth
Service

Zone
Past Experience
of
Tolerance

Adequate Predicted
Service Service
McGraw-Hill © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies