MKTG/HTM 386 -- Hospitality Services Spring 2001

Marketing

The Integrated Gaps Model of

Service Quality
MKTG/HTM 386

Why is the Gaps Model of

Service Quality Important?
Customer Gap
n Chp 2 – Consumer Behavior in Services
n Chp 3 – Customer Expectations of Service
n Chp 4 – Consumer Perceptions of Service
Gap 1 – Not Knowing What the Customer
Expects
n Chp 5 – Understanding Customer Expectations
Through Marketing Research
n Chp 6 – Building Customer Relationships
n Chp 7 – Service Recovery

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MKTG/HTM 386 -- Hospitality Services Spring 2001
Marketing

Why is the Gaps Model of

Service Quality Important?
Gap 2 – Not Having the Right Service
Quality Designs and Standards
n Chp 8 – Service Development and Design
n Chp 9 – Customer-Defined Service
Standards
n Chp 10 – Physical Evidence and the
Servicescape

Why is the Gaps Model of

Service Quality Important?
Gap 3 – Not Delivering to Service Standards
n Chp 11 – Employee’s Roles in Service Delivery
n Chp 12 – Customer’s Roles in Service Delivery
n Chp 13 – Delivering Services Through
Intermediaries and Electronic Channels
n Chp 14 – Managing Demand and Capacity
Gap 4 – Not Matching Performance to
Promises
n Chp 15 – Integrating Services Marketing
Communications
n Chp 16 – Pricing of Services

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Figure 18-1

Gaps Model of Service Quality

Expected
Service
CUSTOMER
Customer
Gap
Perceived
Service
External
COMPANY Service Delivery Communications
GAP 4 to Customers
GAP 1 GAP 3
Customer -Driven Service
Designs and Standards

GAP 2
Company Perceptions of
Consumer Expectations

Figure 18-2
Key Factors Leading to
the Customer Gap
Customer
Expectations

Customer
Gap
l Provider Gap 1: Not knowing what customers expect

l Provider Gap 2: Not selecting the right service designs and standards

l Provider Gap 3: Not delivering to service standards

l Provider Gap 4: Not matching performance to promises

Customer
Perceptions

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MKTG/HTM 386 -- Hospitality Services Spring 2001
Marketing

Figure 18-3
Key Factors Leading to Provider Gap 1
Customer
Expectations

GAP q Inadequate Marketing Research Orientation

Insufficient marketing research

1 Research not focused on service quality

Inadequate use of market research
q Lack of Upward Communication
Lack of interaction between management and customers
Insufficient communication between contact employees
and managers
Too many layers between contact personnel and top
management
q Insufficient Relationship Focus
Lack of market segmentation
Focus on transactions rather than relationships
Focus on new customers rather than relationship
customers
q Inadequate Service Recovery

Company Perceptions of
Customer Expectations

Figure 18-4
Key Factors Leading to Provider Gap 2
Customer-Driven Service
Designs and Standards

q Poor Service Design

Unsystematic new service development process
GAP Vague, undefined service designs
Failure ot connect service design to service
2 positioning
q Absence of Customer-Driven Standards
Lack of customer-driven service standards
Absence of process management to focus on
customer requirements
Absence of formal process for setting service
quality goals
q Inappropriate Physical Evidence and Servicescape

Management Perceptions
of Customer
Expectations

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MKTG/HTM 386 -- Hospitality Services Spring 2001
Marketing

Figure 18-5

Key Factors Leading to Provider GAP 3

Customer-Driven Service
Designs and Standards

q Deficiencies in Human Resource Policies

GAP Ineffective recruitment
Role ambiguity and role conflict
3 Poor employee-technology job fit
Inappropriate evaluation and compensation systems
Lack of empowerment, perceived control and teamwork
q Failure to Match Supply and Demand
Failure to smooth peaks and valleys of demand
Inappropriate customer mix
Over-reliance on price to smooth demand
q Customers Not Fulfilling Roles
Customers lack knowledge of their roles and responsibilities
Customers negatively impact each other
q Problems with Service Intermediaries
Channel conflict over objectives and performance
Channel conflict over costs and rewards
Difficulty controlling quality and consistency
Tension between empowerment and control

Service Delivery

Figure 18-6

Key Factors Leading to Provider GAP 4

Service Delivery
q Lack of Integrated Services Marketing Communications
Tendency to view each external communication as
independent
GAP Not including interactive marketing in communications plan
Absence of strong internal marketing program

4 q Ineffective Management of Customer Expectations

Not managing customer expectations through all forms of
communication
Not adequately educating customers
q Overpromising
Overpromising in advertising
Overpromising in personal selling
Overpromising through physical evidence cues
q Inadequate Horizontal Communications
Insufficient communication between sales and operations
Insufficient communication between advertising and operations
Differences in policies and procedures across branches or units

External Communications to
Customers

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MKTG/HTM 386 -- Hospitality Services Spring 2001
Marketing

Team Discussion Questions

If you were a manager of a service
organization and wanted to apply the gaps
model to improve service, which gap would
you start with? Why? In what order would
you proceed to close the gaps?
Can provider gap 4 be closed prior to closing
any of the other three provider gaps? How?
Which of the four provider gaps do you
believe is the hardest to close? Why?

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