SERVICES

THE GENERIC CHARACTERISTICS OF SERVICES 

The characteristics of services are itemized based on their generic functions. Based on this generic key character service is said to have the following characteristics:

Inseparability: Inseparability is a fundamental characteristic of service. The service consumer is inseparable from service delivery because he is involved in it from the time of placing a request up to consuming the rendered benefits.  A typical example is evidenced in this scenario between the hair dresser’s shop and chair or the plane and seat.  The service consumer must sit in the hair dresser's shop & chair or in the plane & seat; correspondingly, the hair dresser or the pilot must be in the same shop or plane, respectively, for delivering the service.

The service provider is indispensable for service delivery because he must promptly generate and render the service to the requesting service consumer. In many cases the service delivery is executed automatically but the service provider must first assign resources and systems and actively keep up appropriate service delivery readiness and capabilities. In addition, the service consumer is inseparable from service delivery because he is involved in it from requesting it up to consuming the rendered benefits. Examples: The service consumer must sit in the hair dresser's shop & chair or in the plane & seat; correspondingly, the hair dresser or the pilot must be in the same shop or plane, respectively, for delivering the service.

Intangibility: Intangibility is another characteristic of service. Services are intangible and insubstantial. This means that service cannot be touched, smelt, handled, tasted, heard, gripped, or looked at. As a result there is neither potential nor need for transport, storage or stocking of services. In addition, it is important to note that  a service cannot be (re)sold or owned by somebody, neither can it be turned over from the service provider to the service consumer nor returned from the service consumer to the service provider. Solely, the service delivery can be commissioned to a service provider who must generate and render the service at the distinct request of an authorized service consumer.

Simultaneity: Services are rendered and consumed during the same period of time. As soon as the service consumer has requested the service, the particular service must be generated from scratch without any delay and friction and the service consumer instantaneously consumes the rendered benefits for executing his upcoming task or activity.

Perish ability: Services are perishable in two regards:

• The relevant resources, processes and systems of services are assigned for service delivery during a definite period in time. If the designated service consumer does not request and consume the service during this period, the service cannot be performed for him. This is known as lost business opportunity looking at it from the perspective of the service provider. Once a service is delivered, the service provider cannot charge any service delivery. Potentially, he can assign the resources, processes and systems to another service consumer who requests a service.  For example, the hair dresser serves another client when the scheduled starting time or time slot is over. An empty seat on a plane never can be utilized and charged after departure.
• When the service has been completely rendered to the requesting service consumer, this particular service irreversible. For example, the passenger has been transported to the destination and cannot be transported again to this location at this point in time.

Variability: Each service is unique. It is one-time generated, rendered and consumed and can never be exactly repeated as the point in time, location, circumstances, conditions, current configurations and/or assigned resources are different for the next delivery, even if the same service consumer requests the same service. Many services are regarded as heterogeneous or lacking homogeneity and are typically modified for each service consumer each new situation. For instance, the taxi service which transports the service consumer from his home to the opera is different from the taxi service which transports the same service consumer from the opera to his home - another point in time, the other direction, may be another route, probably another taxi driver and cab.

Each of these characteristics of services is retractable in particular and their inevitable coincidence complicates the consistent service conception and makes service delivery a challenge in each and every case. Therefore proper service marketing requires creative visualization to effectively evoke a concrete image in the mind of the service consumer. From the point of view of the service consumer, these characteristics make it difficult, or even impossible, to evaluate or compare services prior to experiencing the service delivery.

The problem of inconsistent service quality is a major cause of difficulty in mass generation and delivery of services. Both inputs and outputs to the processes involved in providing services are highly variable, as are the relationships between these processes, making it difficult to maintain consistent service quality. For many services there is labor intensity as services usually involve considerable human activity, rather than a precisely determined process. However, there are exceptions, these include utilities. 

In ensuring effectiveness in service delivery, human resource management is highly imperative. The human factor is often the key success factor in service economies. It is difficult to achieve sustain economies of scale or gain dominant market share without effectively addressing the human factor. Different people with different needs. These differences in need affect the rate of demand of certain services at a given time. There are demand fluctuations and it can be difficult to forecast demand. 

Demand can be by season, time of day, business circle, taste and peculiarity. There is consumer involvement as most service provision requires a high degree of interaction between service consumer and service provider. There is a customer-based relationship based on creating long-term business relationships. Accountants, attorneys, and financial advisers maintain long-term relationships with their clients for decades. These repeat consumers refer friends and family, helping to create a client-based relationship which in turn makes the service business to establish its relevance in a particular geographical location.

I hope this information have been helpful. If you know any other characteristic of service, please kindly post a comment to share it with us. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

Wishing you the best in business!