GRA 6419 Service Marketing
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APPLIES TO ACADEMIC YEAR 2012/2013
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GRA 6419 Service Marketing Responsible for the course Line L Olsen Department Department of Marketing Term According to study plan ECTS Credits 6 Language of instruction English Introduction Knowing the field of service marketing is a prerequisite today for those who want to successfully pursue careers and manage businesses both in the private and public sector. However, knowing how services are different from products and what unique challenges they pose on marketing and managing is necessary, but not sufficient information. The rapid infusion of technology into various industries has created new kinds of services that offer opportunities for service and manufacturing organizations to enhance their relationships with customers. So has social media. Consequently, customers’ demands have changed. Customers now expect to interact with service providers in a multitude of ways in different channels posing new challenges on service marketing and managing. Learning outcome In this course students will learn how to deal with these challenges. In order to do so, the course provides in-depth knowledge about the key issues in service marketing, frameworks, strategies and tools to address the challenges of marketing and managing services, whether in a manufacturing or service context. How these concepts apply to social media and how social media will affect service marketing will be a red thread throughout the course. Central to this course is critical thinking and reflection. The course is different from courses in service management in that it has a marketing/psychological approach. Prerequisites Bachelor degree qualifying for admission to the MSc Programme. Course in marketing management or equivalent from Bachelor level is recommended. Compulsory reading Books: Wilson, Alan ... [et al.]. 2008. Services marketing : integrating customer focus across the firm. European ed. McGraw-Hill. 576 Articles: Course pack with selected articles and cases Other: During the course there may be hand-outs and other material on additional topics relevant for the course and the examination. Recommended reading Books: Oliver, Richard L. 2010. Satisfaction : a behavioral perspective on the consumer. 2nd ed. M.E. Sharpe Course outline Introduction to services What’s so special with service marketing and service organizations? The service economy it’s history and raison d'être Customer service Customer focus Consumer behavior in services Technology readiness Social media readiness Customers evaluation processes Customer expectations and perceptions Service quality Customer satifaction Perceived value Analyzing and understanding service organizations: How to apply central models and analytical frameworks to improve performance: 1) The gaps model of service quality 2) The service triangle 3) The service-profit-chain Listening to customers through research Research in services marketing: methods, procedures and areas of application Managing service delivery The service encounter The role of the employee, the customer and the technology in service delivery Customers as co-producers/co-creators of services Service recovery The service recovery paradox What makes unhappy customer happy and loyal? Service recovery and social media Customer loyalty Defining the concept The antecedents and consequences Loyalty phases, types Financial accountability of service marketing Customer equity Return on marketing Advanced topics in service marketing The service-dominant logic/service science Computer-based tools It's learning will be used for distribution of course material. Cases for discussion in class are available from Harvard Business Review's web page: http://hbr.org/ at the cost of approximately 7 USD each. Learning process and workload A course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of 160-180 hours. The course will require the students to particpate actively as it is based on lectures, discussions, case analyses and presentations. Students need to be well-prepared for each session. Please note that it is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class that is not included on the course homepage/It's learning or text book.
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