Develop a service that stands out
Customers don't buy a service, they buy convenience, experiences, or "hard" benefits: time, quality, cost savings. A service is always a relationship since the customer takes part in the "production". To make a service stand out your company must know the customer's world: What are the benefits that the customer rates highly, what is the process that the service is meant to support.
Here is a compendium of a service development process:
Identify needs and opportunities
- Segment your customers based on their lifestyle or professional needs. Identify the similar and the specific needs in different segments. Use "personas" to make customer stories.
- Experience the present service process by "being the customer".
- Analyse the service process. It is common that 20 % of the problems cause 80 % of the overall quality costs.
- Ideate and prototype service improvements or radical changes. Do not limit your thinking to existing structures or functions. Involve customers in the process.
- Create a service blueprint covering the onstage and backstage actions, ICT systems and the tangibles. Expand the blueprint to customer touch points before and after the service.
- Evaluate what will work and what is financially viable and rewarding in the long run.
- Create the business plan for the service. Determine your own involvement and the use of business partners.
- Show real management commitment.
- Start implementing the new service process by systematizing it. Eliminate waste.
- Persistently make the new process operational. Set measurable goals, measure progress, and reward accordingly.
- Encourage customer and employees to constantly improve the service.