Australasian Marketing Journal

Services marketing has grown and matured as an area of study, but it's research remains mired in a consumer market context. The growth in services marketing practice today, however, is in business markets. This article strives to increase the awareness of this contemporary phenomenon and encourage scholarly work in business-to-business services.

During the last decade the literature on new service development (NSD) has increased in significance, reflecting the rapidly increasing contribution of services to the economy. A growing number of researchers suggest that NSD leads to service firm competitive advantage. However, the literature on NSD-based competitive strategy is fragmented. This paper attempts to model the antecedents of NSD-based competitive strategy. Specifically, the framework presented in this paper argues that entrepreneurial intensity, distinctive learning capabilities and NSD comprise key components of a model that examines the role of NSD in gaining sustained competitive advantage in service firms. Key theoretical constructs within the model are explored and research propositions presented.

The role of trust and commitment in the prediction of a customer's personal loyalty to an individual service worker was investigated. Personal loyalty was defined as a customer's level of attachment to and exclusive use of a service individual. It was measured by the customer's attitude or relative attitude towards the service worker (relative to other service workers he/she is aware of, or has experienced in the service delivery), and the customer's level of exclusive use of the service worker over a defined period of time.

The hairdressing context provided a research setting in which personal loyalty could exist. Multiple linear regression found that customer commitment to the hair stylist and the dimensions of trust (perceived credibility and benevolence of the hair stylist) were significant indicators of personal loyalty when attitude was used to derive the personal loyalty index. In contrast, when relative attitude was used to construct the personal loyalty index, only commitment and the credibility dimension of trust were significant indicators. The two personal loyalty indices were found to be significantly different from each other. Both personal loyalty indices were effective in predicting customer loss in the event that the hair stylist was to move to another nearby salon

The Internet revolution is challenging marketers to attract and retain customers, who in many cases, migrate to the Web for speed and convenience. This appears to contradict the essence of true relationship marketing which is founded on the emotional dimensions of interpersonal relationships: trust, commitment, investment by individuals, dependence, two-way communications, a sense of attachment, reciprocity, shared benefits and mutuality. The authors analyse recent research into the profiles of Internet users and their expectations when entering into technology-based relationships. Suggestions are presented for those wishing to establish genuine relationships with Internet customers. Such an approach should mitigate the risk to organisations of becoming a commodity and being taken for granted by consumers, thereby precluding the creation of true customer value.

The zone of tolerance is recognised in both the service quality and satisfaction literature as representing both a range of expectations and an area of acceptable outcomes in service interactions. This analysis presents hypotheses which are derived from existing literature, concerning the possible impact of a change in the “disposition of the customer”. That is whether cumulative experience has left the customer favourably or negatively disposed towards the service, and hence the impact on desired and adequate expectations and consequently the zone of tolerance. The study offers a particularly valuable insight as it is framed in a longitudinal dimension. Findings from a quantitative study suggest those who become more favourably disposed towards a service over time are likely to have significantly higher adequate expectations and a smaller zone of tolerance. Further analysis suggests that the change in the disposition of the customer is also significantly related to the change in adequate expectation standards over time.

This paper reports the findings of a research investigation into the effect of knowledge management (KM) on the performance of programme-level services innovation. It explores the factors which influence the way in which the “task knowledge” required to complete the new service development (NSD) process is created, transferred and stored. Based on results of a large survey of UK-based service companies, a number of underlying dimensions of KM activities are identified. Knowledge creation consists of a learning culture, an entrepreneurial climate, organisational creativity and a shared vision. Knowledge transfer is characterised by collaborative working, rich communication, empowerment and shared knowledge. Knowledge storage comprises knowledge systems, decision systems and documentation. A strong relationship between KM and the success and innovativeness of a NSD programme is demonstrated.