Explain the three-staged model of service consumption.
According to the three- stage model of service consumption, consumers go through three major stages when they consume services: the pre- purchase stage, the service encounter stage and the post- encounter stage. This approach is helpful because it assists academics in developing a clear research focus and direction, and managers in setting objectives and shaping consumer behaviour in a targeted manner, and therefore facilitates efficient resources allocation.Research has been con-ducted on all three stages to examine their major determinants, influences (direct and indirect), processes and outcomes.
The pre- purchase stage of the decision- making process for services is more complex in comparison with that for goods as it involves a composite set of factors and activi-ties. Because consumers participate in the service production process, the decision- making process takes more time and is more complicated than in the case of goods. Consumer expertise, knowledge and perceived risk play important roles in this pre- purchase phase.In the pre- purchase stage, a need arousal triggers consumers to start searching for information and evaluate alternatives before they make a purchase decision. There are various sources that could trigger needs: the unconscious mind (e.g., impulse buying), internal conditions (e.g., hunger) or external sources (e.g., marketing mix), to name a few. Consumers can engage in impulse buying or ‘unplanned behaviour’. Impulse buying occurs less frequently in services than in goods due to the higher perceived risk and variability associated with services.However, service research has neglected the role of impulse buying although it is an important phenomenon extensively studied in the goods context.As such, the information search process described in the next section focuses on conscious consumer decision- making processes
The service encounter stage involves consumer interactions with the service firm. In this stage, consumers co- create experiences and value, and co- produce a service while evalu-ating the service experience.Nowadays, customers are empowered and engaged in the service delivery process. Consumer engagement has recently attracted research attention in the branding and services literature.Consumer engagement has been considered the emotional tie that binds the consumer to the service provider and can be used as a proxy for the strength of a firm’s consumer relationships based on both emotional and rational bonds consumers have developed with a brand supports the view that engagement is a construct particularly applicable to services because services usually involve a certain degree of interactivity such as that
seen between consumers and frontline personnel, and therefore implies a reciprocal rela-tionship. Engagement might include feelings of confidence, integrity, pride and passion in a firm/brand. In addition to these affective elements, consumer engagement with service brands has been considered a behavioural manifestation toward a brand or firm that goes beyond a purchase and includes positive word of mouth, rec-ommendations, helping other consumers, blogging, writing reviews and even engaging in legal action. Recent works recognize that consumer engagement involves cognitive (e.g., absorption), emotional (e.g., dedication) and behavioural (e.g., vigour and interaction) element define customer engagement as ‘a psychological state that occurs by virtue of interactive, cocreative customer experiences with a focal agent/object (e.g., a brand) in focal service relationships’. Thus, service encounters could provide the context in which customers can create, express and enhance their engagement (positive or negative) with a service firm.
The last stage of service consumption is the post- encounter stage and involves consum-ers’ behavioural and attitudinal responses to the service experience. Consumer satisfac-tion and perceived service quality have dominated the research agenda at this stage of the service consumption process due to their association with business performance. However, consumers who are satisfied and have high perceptions of service quality do not necessarily return to the same service provider or buy their services again. As a result, there has recently been a shift in the consumer research agenda toward other important post- purchase outcomes, such as perceived service value, consumer delight, consumer reactions to service failures (e.g., complaining and switching behaviour) and consumer responses to service recovery