2. As an economy progresses and matures, it becomes less product driven and more service driven. The current Fortune 500 list contains more service companies than product companies.
3. 45% The growth in GDP ascribed to the services industry in Southern Africa for the period 2000 – 2005.
4. So, what will we be doing in Services Marketing? Writing a multiple choice class test every week. Presenting two seminars each week (a seminar consists of a written document and a class presentation of 25 minutes). Critically evaluating the seminars of our class mates (and, in turn, have our own seminars evaluated). Providing feedback on one another’s presentations. Practice thinking creatively to get information across to our target audience.
5. So, what will we be doing in Services Marketing? Approaching and working closely with industry leaders to answer some of their services marketing questions. Working in groups of 4 to 5 members (This is NOT negotiable). Learning about service products and how their marketing differs from that of tangible goods by making use of the “GAPS”-model.
6. Gap 1: the gap between what customers expect and what the company thinks customers expect. Gap 2: the gap between the customer’s idea of service quality and the company’s idea of service quality. Gap 3: the gap between what the customer expects of a service experience and actual service delivered. Gap 4: the gap between what the company promises in terms of service and what it manages to deliver. MIND THE GAP
7. Seminar Topics Seminar 1: Trends in the marketing strategies of event-coordinators (for example, wedding planners). How do they ensure that they remain competitive in a booming industry? What value-adds do they offer based on customers’ buying behaviour? (5 students) Seminar 2: Customer expectations & perceptions with regard to current market trends in the fast food sector. What is the customer looking for and how do they evaluate the service offering? (5 students)
8. Seminar Topics Seminar 3: Innovation in the market research scene. Indicate howinnovative research initiatives are applied within the marketing strategy of an SA radio station of your choice (do they use blogs, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace etc.?) Especially find out how technology is being used to increase the efficiency of market research. (4 students) Seminar 4: Can competitors in the SA airline industrybuild relationships with their customers? Give a detailed explanation as to how and why? Is your argument valid for all customer segments? (4 students)
9. Seminar Topics Seminar 5: When paying attention to ACSA (Airports Company South Africa) and recent reports of corruption and theft at especially O.R. Tambo International Airport, discuss the concept of customer-defined standards and how it is applied. What types of new services can ACSA use to serve their customers better and bridge some of their current challenges? (4 students) Seminar 6: Making the intangible tangible: Physical evidence and the servicescape of the Melrose Arch development or the newSilverstar Casino. Praise, critique and recommendations. (4 students)
10. Seminar Topics Seminar 7: What strategies can Telkom use to close gap 3? How is Telkom going about establishing a service culture among its front-line employees, if at all? (4 students) Seminar 8: Creative strategies for matching demand and supply of players in the South African tourism industry (hotel chains, travel agents, tour operators, car rental etc.) Do take customer participationinto account as one of your options as well as the possible impact of the 2010 Soccer World Cup and recent Public Servants strike action. (5 students)
11. Seminar Topics Seminar 9: Compare the integrated services marketing communication mix for the different players in the banking industry in South Africa, in terms of what they promiseand what they deliver. (5 students) Seminar 10: How does value come into play in the pricing strategies of major SA FMCG retailers? Provide practical examples to support your arguments. (5 students)
12. Seminar Topics Seminar 11: Getting and keeping the right customer. Profiling customers of the different cellular providers in South Africa. (5 students) Seminar 12: Compile an integrated gaps model of service quality for the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and make recommendations as to how each one of these gaps can be bridged. (4 students)
13. Exam Assignment Submission date: 26 November. Details will be given in class. Project must be submitted in groups of two.
