Deck 7: Managing the Customer Mix

Question 1

The customer experience often occurs with multiple customers whose presence may influence each other positively or negatively.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Careful management of customer-to-customer relations is not needed for those service organizations that provide a minimal level of attentiveness to a heterogeneous customer mix.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Customers who are too friendly or too helpful during a service encounter can produce a less than desired influence on other service patrons who are also experiencing the same service at the same time.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Regardless of their behavior,large numbers of customers may affect service experiences.

Question 5

Customer compatibility management is critical to an organization that is interested in relationship marketing.

Question 6

Skillfully managing customer participation and customer-to-customer interactions does little to help organizations improve the service's value from the customer's point of view.

Question 7

Unfriendly interactions between customers and employees are often the result of misunderstandings about the customer's role versus that of the employee.

Question 8

The use of signs to direct customers through the creation of a service is an example of a service script.

Question 9

Customers are a less important influence on the service experience of other customers when a service has a self-service component.

Question 10

Service organizations should attempt to encourage random acts of kindness among customers.

Question 11

Full-service organizations serving small groups of customers typically require higher levels of customer-to-customer management than self-service organizations serving large numbers of people at a time.

Question 12

A customer's evaluation of the service organization is not influenced by how a service employee reacts to situations involving unruly or potentially disruptive customers.

Question 13

A service script is an effective customer training tool for enhancing the performances of services that require a high degree of customer participation.

Question 14

It is not possible for service organizations to train their customers to follow basic rules for producing a satisfying service experience.

Question 15

Most service organizations must pay careful attention to the interactions among their customers.

Question 16

Service organizations should develop policies for handling occasional conflicts that occur when serving numerous types of customers simultaneously.

Question 17

Service organizations should welcome customers who are too friendly or too helpful,as these customers greatly enhance their fellow patrons' service experience.

Question 18

The customer is always right.

Question 19

A customer mix refers to the assortment of people who differ on demographic,socioeconomic,or other characteristics and who patronize a service organization.

Question 20

Satisfying all customers with the same service delivery is virtually impossible.

Question 21

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
_________________ is the practice of selecting the appropriate customer mix in an effort to encourage satisfying customer-to-customer relationships when an organization's customers are in proximity to one another,are likely to interact verbally,have different reasons for using the service,or possess diverse backgrounds.

Question 22

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
_______ and _______ are scientifically developed surveys that are intended to measure service quality.

Question 23

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
To eliminate the hazards of disruptive customer behaviors,service personnel must be prepared to occasionally act as ________________ in managing customer-to-customer relationships.

Question 24

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
_______________ minimizes customer problems.

Question 25

Most cases of customer rage are not closely linked to the service employees,service setting,and/or service process.

Question 26

To reduce the likelihood of customer rage,service managers are recommended to perform all of the listed actions EXCEPT

A)reduce common targets of customer rage in service encounters.
B)take extra steps to prevent triggering rage.
C)actively pursue treatments for preventing or managing customer rage.
D)Each of the listed actions are recommended for reducing the likelihood of customer rage.
E)None of the listed actions are recommended for reducing the likelihood of customer rage.

Question 27

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
__________ the right customers and _________ them to participate in the service are crucial steps in managing customers.

Question 28

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
____________ refers to the array of people with differing ages,gender,socioeconomic backgrounds,knowledge or experience,ethnicity,and other characteristics who patronize a service organization.

Question 29

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
A _________ represents a sequence of events involving customers and employees that are likely to unfold during the process of service delivery.

Question 30

The customer is an important element to consider when developing a service strategy under all of the following conditions EXCEPT when

A)there is a self-service feature to the service.
B)the service requires a high degree of personalization.
C)the customer has a high degree of direct contact with the service organization.
D)the service caters to numerous patrons simultaneously.
E)All of these conditions require the service organization to pay particular attention to the customer element when developing a service strategy.

Question 31

Customers may be disappointed with a service for all of the following reasons EXCEPT

A)The customers may not have the ability to use the service correctly.
B)Customers may have difficulty getting along with other customers.
C)Customers enter the service establishment expecting a different service than the organization delivers.
D)All of these are reasons why customers may be disappointed with a service.
E)None of these are reasons why customers may be disappointed with a service.

Question 32

When training customers to ensure a better service experience,services should recognize that

A)satisfying all customers with the same service delivery is virtually impossible.
B)significant differences in individuals' evaluations of other customers' behaviors are often rooted in easily observable characteristics.
C)some customers may be less inhibited when they are out-of-towners or among strangers.
D)All of these should be recognized by service organizations when training their customers.
E)None of these is relevant to service organizations when training their customers.

Question 33

Service organizations that exert too much control over customers may lose their customers.

Question 34

Service organizations can produce a satisfying customer experience by

A)locating the right customer.
B)educating the customer.
C)developing a plan for managing their customer mix.
D)both locating and educating the right customer.
E)All of these activities can be used to produce a satisfying customer experience.

Question 35

Which of the following customer training tools should be used to encourage satisfying customer-to-customer relationships when customers are likely to interact yet have different reasons for using the service or different backgrounds?

A)Service scripts
B)Customer education
C)Customer compatibility management
D)Each customer training tool is equally effective for encouraging satisfying customer-to-customer relationships.
E)None of these customer training tools is effective for encouraging satisfying customer-to-customer relationships.

Question 36

The efforts of a service provider may be damaged by customers for all of the following reasons EXCEPT

A)The customers do not understand their role in the service delivery process.
B)The customers are disorganized.
C)There are too many customers to serve.
D)All of these are reasons why the efforts of a service provider may be damaged.
E)None of these are reasons why the efforts of a service provider may be damaged.

Question 37

Which of the following categories of customer interactions is (are)less likely to be problematic for service organizations?

A)Friendly interactions between customer and employee
B)Unfriendly interactions between customer and employee
C)Too (excessively)friendly interactions between customer and employee
D)Both A and C.
E)All three categories of customer interactions are unlikely to be problematic for service organizations.

Question 38

Customer rage incidents,at all levels of severity,occur most often in the service sector.

Question 39

COMPLETION QUESTIONS
Customer Mix
Customer Education
SERVQUAL,SERVPERF
Service Script
Selecting,Training
Compatibility Management
Police Officers
Customer Rage
_______________ occurs when customers become angry about some aspect of their service experience and express their anger in mild to extreme ways.

Question 40

You and a partner were discussing customer experiences with your service.Your partner argued that he received a number of customer suggestions for improving the service and he recommended that the service be modified to incorporate these suggestions.To support his position,your partner referred to the old adage that "the customer is always right." Respond to your partner.Explain your answer.

Question 41

Is it necessary for service organizations to manage overly (aggressively)friendly customers?

Question 42

Describe the recommended procedures for improving customer-to-customer relationships during a service encounter.

Question 43

A local service provider hired you to help it improve customer-to-customer relationships.Describe the different tools that you may recommend to the service provider for training its customers.

Question 44

During a recent meeting with managers of a restaurant,one manager complained that some of the customers were disrupting the service experience of the others.A second manager indicated that this is a common problem in any restaurant and that the restaurant cannot be expected to manage its customer-to-customer interactions.How would you respond to the second manager? Explain your answer.

Question 45

What is customer rage,and what recommendations would you offer to service organizations seeking to effectively manage customer rage?

Question 46

Explain how customers themselves can undermine the efforts of service marketers to provide them with satisfying service experiences.