The Gaps Model of Service Quality

THE GAPS MODEL OF SERVICE QUALITY

THE CUSTOMER GAP°:

The difference between customer perceptions and expectations

Customer perceptions are subjective assessments of actual service experiences. Customer expectations are the standards or reference points for performance against which service experiences are compared, and are often formulated in terms of what a customer believes should or will happen. For example, when you visit a fast-food restaurant you expect a certain level of services, one that is considerably different from the level you would expect in an expensive restaurant.

EXPECTED SERVICE |

 gap  |

PERCEIVED SERVICE |

The sources of customer expectations consist of marketer-controlled factors (such as pricing, advertising, sales promises) as well as factors that the marketer has limited ability to affect (innate personal needs, word-of-mouth communications, competitive offerings). Broadly, it is the goal of services marketing to bridge this distance.

Considerable evidence exists that consumer evaluation processes differ for goods an services and that these differences affect the way service providers market their organizations.

Knowing what customers want and how they assess what they receive is the best way to design effective services.

In a broad sense, the process of closing the customer gap can be subdivided into four “company gaps”, discrepancies within the organization that inhibit delivery of quality service.

These are°:

Provider gap 1°: Not knowing what customers expect

Provider gap 2°: Not selecting the right service designs and standards

Provider gap 3°: Not delivering to service standards

Provider gap 4°: Not matching performance to promises

Customer expectations and perceptions are central in the delivery of excellent service.

Provider gap 1

NOT KNOWING WHAT CUSTOMER EXPECT

Not knowing what customers expect is one of the root causes of not delivering to...