Service Marketing in Education

As stated in the prompt, service guarantees are a critical part of a firm’s service recovery process. According to the text, “A guarantee is a particular type of recovery tool that can be used to both “fix the customer” and “fix the problem”. “ The guarantee serves as a promise or peace of mind that the product being offered will preform as promised. If the promise is not met then the firm will take actions to make up for it. Generally with a service it is not possible to receive a return, or undo the performance.

In order to consider the effectiveness of a guarantee you must take into account the characteristics. The first characteristic is unconditional. This means no strings attached. The guarantee should not impose any conditions. By conditions this means restrictions, proof required, and limitations. Guarantees with these types of restrictions are usually not effective. The second characteristic is meaningful. Customers will expect to be reimbursed in a way that fully covers their dissatisfaction, time, and hassle. The third characteristic is that the guarantee is easy to understand. The guarantee should be communicated clearly to both customers and employees. The fourth and final characteristic is that the guarantee is easy to invoke. Some firms make customers write detailed letters or give some form of documented proof of the failure. This too often leads to a failed guarantee.

When considering the feasibility of an instructor offering a student satisfaction guarantee in the classroom there are many things to consider. First and foremost, when considering a satisfaction guarantee you must decide what should be guaranteed. I believe the performance of the professor should be guaranteed. This would be considered a specific results guarantee. It can be written in some form like the following: “ If you are not satisfied with the performance of your professor, you are eligible to receive your money back”.

There are many reasons why service guarantee is appropriate in an educational setting. These reasons can serve