Crafting your business place

Working in the service industry for more than 20 years, I have witnessed many innovations in the service industry from the past to the present. Especially in the physical service environment from the marketing mix that we all know for service of the 8Ps (product, place, price, promotion, physical environment, process, people, productivity). As we are living in this digital era where social media shake the awareness of many service providers to put more attention to their places’ ambiance. I mean, let’s be honest, who doesn’t want their place to be ‘instagrammable’ for their customers, and get free advertised through social media? It is an instant vast promotion. And yet… this article is not only about the ‘unique’ interior décor, it’s more into it.

Having said that, designing the service environment is an art itself that takes considerable time and effort which a critical phase of an operational plan. Service environments, also called servicescapes, relate to the style and appearance of the physical surroundings and other elements encountered by customers at service delivery sites. Important design that can help engineer customer experience, convey the planned image of the company, to urge the desired responses from customers and employees, support service operations, and enhance both quality and productivity. As intangible as they are, service quality is often difficult to assess by customer. They frequently use the service environment as a quality signal.    

The physical service environment plays a key role in shaping the service experience and enhancing customer satisfaction. It is as simple as how you would react if you are in two different places, between an unpleasant place and a pleasant place. An illustrative condition, you have to wait for a doctor who is late for your appointment in some clinic. Would you be more patient to wait in a non-airconditioned room, a bit warm, full of people, a hard bench, or would you prefer an airconned room, cool air, air-freshener, not crowded, comfortable sofa, a TV with movies, some reading magazines, a water dispenser on the corner? The most basic level, pleasant environments tend to draw people in, whereas unpleasant ones result in avoidance behaviors. And what happens when finally the doctor comes after 2 hours of waiting? A complaint. Or worse, you chose to find another doctor in a different clinic. Imagine such experiences as a romantic candle-lit dinner in a restaurant, a relaxing spa visit, or an exciting disco club. When a customer has strong affective expectations, it is important that the environment be designed to match those expectations.    

When the customer feels pleasant, it’ll increase their effect on buyer behavior. Servicescape has many design elements, they are:

1. The ambient conditions

Characteristics of the environment that touches your five senses. The resulting atmosphere creates a mood that includes lighting, color scheme of the interior, sounds such as noise and music, temperature, and scents or smells.

2. Space and functionality

Spatial layout refers to floor plan, size and shape of furnishings, equipment. Functionality refers to items to facilitate the performance of service transactions. They create visual as well as functional servicescape for delivery and consumption to take place.

3. Signs, symbols, and artifacts

In a service environment, there are signals to communicate or guide customers to find their way. We don’t want our customers to become disoriented because they cannot derive clear signals from a servicescapes, leading to anxiety and uncertainty about how to proceed and obtain the desired service. Customers can easily feel confused and lost. Think about if you were in a hurry and tried to find your way through an unfamiliar hospital or shopping mall.

Designing service environments has a lot to do with customers’ perception and feelings. It is an art indeed. Beyond aesthetic considerations, the best service environments must keep the needs of the customer in mind if they are to achieve the goal of guiding these customers or patient journey smoothly through the service process.