116) When John checked into his Orlando hotel, the front desk clerk informed John that his room
would not be ready for another 20 minutes. John didn’t mind waiting; he had arrived well ahead
of the standard check-in time and this wait time fell within his ________, the area between his
expectations regarding desired service and the minimum level of service he will accept.
A) zone of tolerance
B) delivery gap
C) zone of intolerance
D) service gap
E) patience zone
117) When Jaime arrived at her hotel room and saw that the bed sheets had not been changed
from the last hotel guest and there were cockroaches in the bathroom, she chose to go elsewhere.
An undone, bug-infested room was not in Jaime’s ________, which is the difference between
what she really wants and what she will accept before looking for another hotel.
A) zone of tolerance
B) delivery gap
C) zone of intolerance
D) service gap
E) patience zone
118) All of the following are recommended strategies for service recovery except
A) listening to the customer.
B) finding a fair solution.
C) resolving problems quickly.
D) silencing an irate customer.
E) following procedural fairness when solving problems.
119) Barnes & Noble bookstores have computers available for associates to use to search for
books requested by customers and to place special orders. These computers are an example of
A) instrumental support.
B) employee incentives.
C) emotional support.
D) line extensions.
E) the delivery gap.
120) One afternoon, the clerk at the customer service desk of a large retail store got bored and
started stating different return policies to each customer. Customers waiting in line and
overhearing the different policies would probably feel that the store’s handling of returns lacked
A) procedural fairness.
B) variability.
C) organizational fairness.
D) intangibility.
E) explanatory fairness.
121) Which service gap is the Ritz-Carlton Hotel trying to address when it takes time and spends
up to $1,700 to train a new employee?
A) standards gap
B) knowledge gap
C) performance gap
D) communication gap
E) recovery gap
122) Why is it important for marketers to pay special attention to providing excellent customer
service?
123) Dentists know most consumers are hesitant to use their services, in part because what they
provide can be painful or uncomfortable at best, but also because much of what they provide is
intangible. What is intangibility? How can dentists attempt to overcome intangibility aspects of
their service?
124) What are the potential gaps in the Service Gaps Model? What is it designed to do?
125) Garrett was impressed with the service he received at a local wine store. He thought the
salesperson was attentive and knowledgeable. His friend Juanita, who was with him and is very
knowledgeable about wine, thought the salesperson was pushy and not well informed. What does
this example suggest about customers’ service expectations?
126) Online reviews of the Paradise Motel by its customers indicate that the motel offered stale
food, it advertised babysitting services that were not readily available, and had an assistant
manager with a poor attitude. If you were the new manager of the Paradise Motel, how would
you use the five dimensions of service quality to identify and correct the problems?
127) Flora wants to develop a zone of tolerance analysis for her veterinary practice. What is a
zone of tolerance in service quality? What types of questions would she need to ask to conduct
her analysis?
128) The Federal Aviation Administration posts monthly percentage on-time arrival data for all
the major airlines on its website. Some airlines are regularly on the top of the list, while others
are frequently on the bottom of the list. What type of service gap does this list illustrate? What
can airlines on the bottom of the list do to address this gap?
129) Most retail stores in the United States do 60 percent or more of their business in the period
between Thanksgiving and Christmas. What can these stores do to get sales staff to provide
“service with a smile” during this stressful part of the year?
130) Airline passengers in Europe receive much greater monetary compensation when they are
bumped due to overbooking than do passengers in the United States. How do airline passengers
determine what is “fair” when there is a service failure?
131) Many states have enacted “lemon” laws providing rights to consumers who purchase cars
that need an excessive number of repairs. Service departments at auto dealerships quickly figure
out which new models are going to create problems and often what the problems will be. If you
were the service manager at a dealership, what would you do to address service problems like
these?
132) In Europe it is common for hotel guests to ask to see the room before they agree to rent it
for the night. Which difference between a service and a product does this custom help overcome?
133) One professor was known for never teaching the same course the same way twice. Which
difference between a product and a service does this represent? How could the professor use this
to his or her advantage?
134) How do airlines and movie theaters overcome the perishability of their services?
135) Jackson manages a men’s styling salon in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. He has trained his
sales staff to report comments and requests for services the store currently does not offer. Which
services gap might this information help reduce?
136) The school Brenda attends has an advising and registration day where students go to a large
hall to sign up for classes. The school Taylor attends assigns each student to an individual faculty
member who advises each student through their course of study. Taylor’s school is most likely
emphasizing which of the five dimensions of service quality?
137) How can services marketers use customer complaints to better understand customer
expectations?
138) What is the difference between a service standard of “be nice to customers” as compared to
a service standard of “greet every customer, and if possible by name”?
139) Bob’s Motel shows photos of a wide, sandy beach on its website, leading visitors to assume
the motel is located on or near the beach. However, in reality Bob’s Motel is located half a mile
from the beach. Which of the service quality gaps does this demonstrate?
140) The Crystal Beach Resort has a five-star rating and wants to keep it that way. The resort has
specific standards for service and has trained its employees to deliver service according to these
standards, but even one unhappy customer could endanger the resort’s reputation. What can the
manager do to ensure that frontline employees offer consistent, excellent service to every visitor?
141) When visiting a museum, you would expect to find knowledgeable museum guides who
would be able to give you historical information on the museum’s collections and special
exhibitions. If you did not find any trained museum guides to assist you, then the museum has
what type of gap? Explain why you chose your answer.
142) Explain the concepts of distributive fairness and procedural fairness. Give an example of
each.
143) What should a service provider do when a customer gets emotional about the service
failure?
144) What are some of the outcomes that result from a communication gap?
145) Explain the concepts of emotional support and instrumental support. When are they
important?
146) Name three ways a firm can evaluate service quality, and give examples of each.
147) Debbie spoke to the customer service representative at Sprint Cellular and was told her text
messages would be unlimited on her plan. However, when she got her bill, she had been charged
extra for text messages. She called the company back and was told that since she didn’t record
the conversation, they couldn’t verify what she was told and she’d have to pay the bill. Explain
which service gap(s) occurred in this instance.
148) What does it mean to say that a service is perishable? Name three services that would be
considered perishable.
149) Name a profession in which it might be considered unethical to market one’s services.
Explain why.