Saturday, December 27, 2008

Principles of Service Marketing and Management or The Advice Business

Principles of Service Marketing and Management

Author: Christopher H Lovelock

Principles of Service Marketing and Management, Second Edition, is designed to complement the materials found in traditional marketing principles texts. It avoids sweeping and often misleading generalizations about services, recognizing explicitly that the differences between specific categories of services (based on the nature of the underlying service process) may be as important to student understanding as the broader differences between goods marketing and services marketing.



Table of Contents:
Prefacexvi
Acknowledgmentsxviii
Part 1Understanding Services2
Chapter 1Why Study Services?4
Services in the Modern Economy6
Marketing Services Versus Physical Goods9
An Integrated Approach to Service Management13
The Evolving Environment of Services15
A Structure for Making Service Management Decisions22
Chapter 2Understanding Service Processes26
How do Services Differ from One Another?28
Service as a Process32
Different Processes Pose Distinctive Management Challenges38
Part 2The Service Customer48
Chapter 3Managing Service Encounters50
Where Does the Customer Fit in the Service Operation?52
Managing Service Encounters55
Service as a System60
The Customer as Corproducer69
Chapter 4Customer Behavior in Service Environments74
Focusing on the Right Customers76
Understanding Customer Needs and Expectations78
How Customers Evaluate Service Performances83
The Purchase Process for Services88
Mapping the Customer's Service Experience91
Chapter 5Relationship Marketing and Customer Loyalty96
Targeting the Right Customers98
From Transactions to Relationships99
Creating and Maintaining Valued Relationships103
The Problem of Customer Misbehavior110
Chapter 6Complaint Handling and Service Recovery118
Consumer Complaining Behavior120
Impact of Service Recovery Efforts on Customer Loyalty127
Service Guarantees130
Part 3Service Marketing Strategy138
Chapter 7The Service Product140
The Service Offering142
Identifying and Classifying Supplementary Services143
Service Design153
Reengineering Service Processes162
Chapter 8Pricing Strategies for Services166
Paying for Service: the Customer's Perspective168
Foundations of Pricing Strategy175
Pricing and Demand179
Putting Pricing Strategies into Practice182
Chapter 9Promotion and Education190
The Role of Marketing Communication192
Communication Strategies for Services193
The Marketing Communications Mix199
Marketing Communications and the Internet207
Chapter 10Service Positioning and Design214
The Need for Focus216
Creating A Distinctive Service Strategy217
Service Positioning219
Perceptual Maps as Positioning Tools221
Creating and Promoting Competitive Advantage227
New Service Development230
Part 4Service Delivery Issues238
Chapter 11Creating Delivery Systems in Place, Cyberspace, and Time240
Evaluating Alternative Delivery Channels242
Options for Service Delivery244
Physical Evidence and the Servicescape247
Place, Cyberspace, and Time Decisions251
The Role of Intermediaries258
Chapter 12Creating Value Through Productivity and Quality262
Minding the Service Ps and Qs264
Understanding Service Quality265
Customer Satisfaction272
Productivity Issues for Service Firms279
Chapter 13Balancing Demand and Capacity286
The Ups and Downs of Demand288
Measuring and Managing Capacity289
Understanding the Patterns and Determinants of Demand292
Strategies for Managing Demand296
Chapter 14Managing Customer Waiting Lines and Reservations302
Waiting to Get Processed304
Minimizing the Perceived Length of the Wait308
Calculating Wait Times311
Reservations314
AppendixPoisson Distribution Table319
Part 5Integrating Marketing, Operations, and Human Resources320
Chapter 15Employee Roles in Service Organizations322
Human Resources: An Asset Worth Managing324
Human Resource Issues in High-Contact Environments324
Job Design and Recruitment327
Empowerment of Employees331
Service Jobs as Relationships333
Human Resources Management in a Multicultural Context340
Chapter 16The Impact of Technology on Services344
Technology in Service Environments346
It and the Augmented Service Product350
The Digital Revolution354
Service Strategy and the Internet358
Guidelines for Effective use of Technology363
Chapter 17Organizing for Service Leadership368
The Search for Synergy in Service Management370
Creating a Leading Service Organization376
In Search of Leadership380
Cases392
Glossary423
Credits429
Index431

Go to: Textured Tresses or The Complete Book of Isometrics

The Advice Business: Essential Tools and Models for Management Consulting

Author: Charles J Fombrun

The dramatic growth of the consulting industry in the last 20 years can, in part, be traced to rapid changes in technology that have provoked dramatic changes in the ways companies compete. Consultants provide companies facing such rapidly changing environments with an important means of developing, acquiring, and processing much-needed know-how. Increasingly, consultants have proved to be a vital strategic weapon that companies rely on to improve their competitiveness in a world characterized by technological convergences, strategic consolidations, and growing interdependence. The Advice Business introduces readers to the art, the practice, and the problems that consultants face. The book sheds light on the complex roles that consultants and consulting firms play in enhancing the effectiveness of their clients. Contributions of both academics and practitioners to this emerging field include original case descriptions based on real consulting assignments, and career advice. For consultants in varying areas of expertise, and for the clients and potential clients in need of their services.



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