How To Avoid Service Failures

HOW TO AVOID SERVICE FAILURESeffective control of any adverse situation, customers
 AUTHOR- Mrs Shaili Vadera Asst. Professor, Amityare impressed by the employee’s performance
Business School, Amity University, Lucknowunder those adverse conditions. 
Campus,  
 Service failure arises when customers experience Understanding the type of service failure that has
dissatisfaction because the service was not deliveredoccurred is important in designing an appropriate
as originally planned or expected. In effect, then,recovery strategy and, perhaps more importantly, in
service failure arises from the customer’sdeveloping future policies to limit the occurrences of
perception of a service experience and not fromservice failures. For example, when faced with
what the organisation believes it has provided. A poorservice delivery failures, an organisation may need to
service or a service failure will result in dissatisfaction.pay particular attention to service operations and
This in turn will prompt a variety of responses whichdesign. When failures arise from employee actions
may include complaining, negative word-of-mouth andand behaviors, the appropriate approach might be to
decisions not to repurchase. If it is impossible tofocus attention on the management of human
avoid service failures and dissatisfaction, then itresources.
becomes increasingly important for organisations to 
understand how to manage such occurrences andThe goal of service recovery is to identify customers
minimize their adverse effects. There is a growingwith issues and then to address those issues to the
body of evidence to suggest that effective servicecustomers' satisfaction to promote customer
recovery will generate a range of positive customerretention.  However, service recovery doesn't just
responses with complaint handling being seen as ahappen.  It is a systematic business process that
key element in service recovery.Respondingmust be designed properly and implemented in an
effectively to consumer complaints can have aorganization. Perhaps more importantly, the
significant impact on satisfaction, repurchaseorganizational culture must be supportive of idea that
intentions and the spread of word-of-mouth.customers are important and their voice has value.  
Dealing with service failure and how best to handle 
complaints, it is essential to understand the way inEffective service recovery strategies:   
which consumers react to service failure and how- Apology: A first person apology rather than a
they respond to different approaches to servicecorporate apology, and one which also acknowledges
recovery.that a failure has occurred.
     - Urgent reinstatement: Speed of action coupled with
      Types of Service Delivery Failuresa 'gallant attempt' to put things right even if it is not
 possible to correct the situation.
1. Unavailable service refers to services normally- Empathy: A sincere expression of feeling for the
available that are lacking or absent such as acustomer's plight.
cancelled flight or a hotel that is overbooked,- Symbolic atonement: A form of compensation that
problems related to Internet services etc.might include not charging for the service or offering
 future services free or discounted.
2. Unreasonably slow service relates to services or- Follow-up: An after-recovery call to ascertain that
employees that customers perceive as beingthe consumer is satisfied with the recovery process.
extraordinarily slow in fulfilling their function and might 
include delays in serving a meal in a restaurant orAcquisition is Good, Retention is Better
lengthy queues in banks, reservation, calls made toCompanies still focus on acquisition and fail to develop
customer service, etc.and implement effective retention programs to retain
 customers and unlock their maximum value. Research
Other core service failures encompass all otheralso shows that acquiring a customer costs at least 5
aspects of core service failure; this category istimes more than retaining one.
deliberately broad to reflect the various core services 
offered by different industries (e.g., servicescape,CUSTOMER RETENTION STRATEGIES:
invisible organization and systems, miscommunication, 
quality of service delivery, food service, cleanliness of1. Redefining customer loyalty and retention in
the aircraft, and baggage handling).today’s marketplace.
 2. Understanding the challenges and why satisfied
3. Unprompted and Unsolicited Employee Actions-customers are not enough.
The third type of service failure arises from3. Examining the “R” in CRM and looking at
employee behaviours that are totally unexpected bythe consumer view.
the customer. These actions are not initiated by the4. Understanding the nature of loyalty in order to
customer, nor are they part of the service deliverydrive behavioural change.
system.5. Key considerations when planning your retention
 strategy.
Subcategories of this group include-6. The importance of generating real understanding
(1) LEVEL OF ATTENTION - Negative levels ofand consumer insight.
attention to customers pertain to employees who7. Understanding the need for a holistic view.
have poor attitudes, employees who ignore a8. Directing your efforts to where they’ll have
customer, and employees who exhibit behaviourmost impact.
consistent with an indifferent attitude.9. Ensuring that the needs of all stake holders are
 met.
(2) UNUSUAL ACTIONS- The unusual behaviour10.  Integrating customer retention into long term
subcategory includes employee actions such asbusiness planning.
rudeness, abusiveness, and inappropriate touching.11.  Changing the business focus from share of
 market to share of wallet.
(3) CULTURAL NORMS- The cultural norms12.  What you can expect a loyalty programme to
subcategory refers to actions that violate culturalachieve and what it cannot.
norms such as equality, fairness, and honesty.13.  Establishing a Brand Idea that will project a
Violations would include discriminatory behaviour, actsconsistent message.
of dishonesty such as lying, stealing, and cheating,14.  Finding the right consistent tone of voice with
and other activities considered unfair by customerswhich to address your customers.
 15.  Communicating the Brand Idea to your most
 (4) GESTALT- The gestalt subcategory refers toimportant audience - your company employees.
customer evaluations that are made holistically as in16.  Selecting the right media for your
the case of a customer who evaluates a holiday ascommunications - and constantly testing.
dissatisfying overall without identifying any specific17.  Developing relevant propositions, offers and
incidents that cause this dissatisfaction.  incentives.
 18.  Applying your message to other channels.
(5) ADVERSE CONDITIONS- Finally, the adverse19.  Up selling and cross-selling to provide added
conditions subcategory covers employee actionsvalue throughout the customer lifecycle.
under stressful conditions. If an employee takes