Last summer, Kenta and Sawako spent part of their vacation in St. Louis and Boston,
staying at the St. Louis Hilton and the Boston Hilton. When they checked in at the St.
Louis Hilton the front desk clerk was very friendly and helpful. However, when they
checked in at the Boston Hilton, the front desk clerk was cold and indifferent. The
inconsistent front desk clerk behaviors experienced by Kenta and Sawako resulted
from:
A. Inadequate management of service promises
B. Over-promising in advertising and personal selling
C. Inadequate external marketing communication
D. Inadequate interactive marketing communications
E. Inadequate internal marketing communications
The price for an all-day trip to the Alpine Spa is $235 and includes an hour-long
massage, a facial, a manicure and pedicure and a hair styling and make-up application.
Any of these services can be purchased individually for the total cost of almost $350.
What kind of pricing strategy is Alpine Spa using?
A. Synchro-pricing
B. Complementary pricing
C. Price bundling
D. Results-based pricing
E. Penetration pricing
Which of the following can influence how satisfied a customer is with a service?
A. Customers’ emotions
B. Product features
C. Customers’ perception of service quality
D. Uncontrollable situational factor
E. All of the above
Extron Electronics sells coaxial cables for connecting computers to all types of
peripheral devices like printers, modems and fax machines. For the benefit of its
customers, Extron provides a laminated card with pictures of all the possible cable
connections that a customer could need. With this card, a customer can order from one
to any number of connectors with as many feet of cable as is needed. Orders can be
placed by calling a toll-free, number, sending an email, or using the company’s website.
Company reps are also available 24-hours a day in case the customer is not sure which
drawing on the card matches his or her needs. By integrating its services marketing
communications, Extron is closing provider _____ of the gaps model of service quality.
A. Gap 1
B. Gap 2
C. Gap 3
D. Gap 4
Benford Bank hired marketing researchers when it noticed many people who had
savings accounts with the bank did not have checking accounts and credit cards with it.
The first task of the market researchers was to learn if the bank wanted to know how its
customers perceived the bank as a service provider, if it were more interested in what
customers thought was superior about its savings account, if the bank thought some
customer expectations were not being met or if what the bank really wanted to know
was how it could change its service to better meet customer expectations. The first thing
the research company did was to:
A. Help Benford Bank define the problem and establish research objectives
B. Determine with the bank’s help who should be surveyed
C. Use data mining to see if there were any connections between customers who used
all three services and those who used only one of the services the bank offered
D. Determine what research methodology it would use
E. Decide how data analysis techniques
Price framing would be used when the customer defines value as:
A. All that I get for all that I give
B. Superior quality
C. Quality I get for the price I pay
D. Everything I want in a service
E. Low price
The first step in the process of developing customer-defined standards is to:
A. Develop feedback mechanisms for measurement of standards
B. Establish measures and target levels for standards
C. Identify existing or desired service encounter sequence
D. Decide whether hard or soft standards are appropriate
E. Translate customer expectations into behaviors and actions for each service
To reach business travelers (its largest market) Canadian Airline has installed
continuous “power to the seat” and Internet service for those who need to work on their
laptops for the entire plane trip. By adding these amenities, Canadian Airline has
improved the __________ of the service environment:
A. Spatial input
B. Symbolic design
C. Ambient conditions
D. Targeted artifacts
E. Functionality
As a teenager, Louis spent his summers as a lifeguard. When he and his children went
to swim at a public swimming pool, he noticed its lifeguards seemed to spend all of
their time flirting with each other and not watching for swimmers in distress as Louis
had been taught to do. Because of his __________, Louis had his children pack up their
belongings and leave the pool.
A. Augmented service expectation
B. Personal service philosophy
C. Derived service expectation
D. Cultural service expectation
E. Situational factors
Which of the following statements has been suggested as a plausible explanation for
the customer perception that service quality is declining?
A. Technology-based services, which are superior to human-based services, are not
being implemented enough
B. Services are leveling the playing field and consistently trying to offer the same level
of service to every customer
C. Companies are decreasing their reliance on self-service and increasing the use of
human interaction in the performance of services
D. Customer expectations are higher because of the excellent service they receive from
some companies
E. Even though it is Easy to provide consistent, high-quality service, many companies
do not want to do it
When a lawyer feels a conflict between what she is asked to do and her own
personality, orientation or values she is experiencing _____ conflict.
A. Person/role
B. Vertical
C. Organization/client
D. Inter-client
E. Horizontal
People who complain can be categorized as:
A. Irates, passives and aggressives
B. Passives, activitists, liaisons and negativists
C. Activists, mediators, chronic and passives
D. Voicers, irates, activists and passives
E. Aggressives, passives and mediators
In terms of servicescape complexity, which of the following is a lean service
environment?
A. ATM machine
B. Fred Astaire Dance Studio
C. Vanderbilt University Hospital
D. Microtel Inns & Suites
E. Delta Air Lines
Which of the following is NOT a company-controlled factor that influences customer
expectations?
A. Advertising
B. Personal selling
C. Employee appearance
D. Word-of-mouth communication
E. Pricing strategy
Sometimes firms have service encounters that fail because of ___________, who
intentionally or unintentionally act in a way that is disruptive, rude, or aggressive.
A. Profitable customers
B. Dysfunctional customers
C. Friends
D. Strangers
E. Heterogeneous customers
All of the following are financial measures used in the balanced performance scorecard
EXCEPT:
A. Value of customer referrals
B. Customer satisfaction
C. Volume increases
D. Long-term value of the customer
E. Value of cross sales
The _____ gap is the difference between customer expectations and perceptions.
A. Customer
B. Service
C. Value
D. Quality
E. Delivery
Landis was pleasantly surprised to find a “No Smoking” sign at his favorite pub. He
had to limit his visits because he is allergic to cigarette smoke. Now he can visit as
often and for as long as he likes. Landis was afraid the sign might hurt the pub’s
business, but he was pleased to discover how many of the pub’s regulars felt the same
way he did. The “No Smoking” sign served to:
A. Enhance customer compatibility
B. Decrease customer participation
C. Turn the customers of the pub into productive resources
D. Allow the customer to co-create the service
E. Maintain the drama metaphor
_____ arise(s) when the customer is required to pay a penalty to switch providers.
A. Fixed costs
B. Legal inertia
C. Financial inertia
D. Contractual costs
E. Opportunity costs
Which of the following types of research is unique to services?
A. Trailer calls
B. Market-oriented ethnography
C. Mystery shopping
D. Database marketing research
E. Critical incident studies
A primary goal of firms at the friendship stage of the relationship is:
A. Customer retention
B. The creation of a unique product
C. Creating a competitive advantage through their marketing mix
D. Gaining a familiarity of how the customer creates its service offerings
E. The enhancement of customer relationships
All of the following examples are nonmonetary costs EXCEPT:
A. Time costs
B. Search costs
C. Convenience costs
D. Psychological costs
E. Utility costs
The New York Yankees, a major league baseball team, offer half-price tickets for high
school and college students every Wednesday home game at Yankee Stadium. The New
York Yankees are using a(n) _____ pricing strategy.
A. EDLP
B. Value
C. Penetration
D. Market segmentation
E. Cost-based
The fluctuation in a customer’s zone of tolerance is more a function of changes in the
_____________, which moves readily up and down because of situational
circumstances than of the _______________, which tends to move upward
incrementally because of accumulated experiences.
A. Adequate service level; desired service level
B. Adequate service level; tolerable service level
C. Desired service level; adequate service level
D. Desired service level; tolerable service level
E. Ideal service level; desirable service level
In order to get an accurate cholesterol reading, an individual must fast for at least eight
hours before the test. When you schedule a cholesterol test at your doctor’s office, you
will receive a brochure that will explain the fasting and why it is so very necessary.
Providing this sort of educational literature to patients is one way doctors try to narrow
provider _____ of the gaps model of service quality.
A. Gap 1
B. Gap 2
C. Gap 3
D. Gap 4
Roger Pack is a breeder of Pomeranian dogs. He has used the same grooming salon for
his dogs for the last 10 years. When a new groomer accidentally trimmed too much off
of one of his show dog’s hind quarters, he was upset. He decided not to make a big deal
of the event because of his long-term dealings with the salon owner. Which service
recovery strategy is being used in this example?
A. Make the service fail safe
B. Cultivate relationships with customers
C. Treat customers proactively
D. Use procedural fairness
E. Learn from lost customers
Which of the measurement areas in the balanced performance scorecard is the most
difficult to capture quantitatively?
A. Operations measures
B. Financial measures
C. Customer measures
D. Sales measures
E. Innovation and learning measures
The frontline service employees are referred to as:
A. Gatekeepers
B. Control centers
C. Boundary spanners
D. Service encounter experts
E. External service providers
Which of the following is NOT a benefit of conducting research on the Internet?
A. Higher response rate
B. Control of data quality
C. Ability to target hard to reach populations
D. Opportunity to use multimedia to present video and audio
E. All of the above are benefits of conducting research on the Internet.
Which of the following industries would be ranked highest by the American Customer
Satisfaction Index (ACSI)?
A. Internet retailers
B. Electronics
C. Hotels
D. Supermarkets
E. Internet social media