Marketing of Services
Additional notes on preparation for the assignment.

Over the seasonal break many of you will be researching the service characteristics of your chosen service sector, and putting together some environmental analysis to share in your next tutorial.

These notes are designed to answer a number of frequently asked questions, and to reassure you if you do not have a large group of fellow students to work with.

I’m a bit put out to discover group work on the agenda – I thought this module was individual coursework assessment only.

The group work research is NOT assessed – its purpose is to help reduce the individual workload for the final assignment. By sharing a number of brief presentations in a tutorial you should be in a better position to contextualize your service organization, learn from fellow students and produce an assignment that meets all of the assessment criteria.

I’m worried – I haven’t been able to get in touch with all members of my group

Work with the people you are in touch with. You will benefit from the research and analysis you do now.

What, exactly are we supposed to do for the next tutorial?

Firstly, research the service category – Mintel and Keynote are good starting points.
1. Develop a PRESTCOM analysis (obviously at this stage you do not have a specific service sector organization – miss out the O)
2. Think about how the service characteristics apply:
e.g. what impact does inseparability have on this sector, are there any common ways you have identified that companies use to overcome or minimize the impact of inseparability?
3. From your research can you identify any obvious challenges or threats in the service sector?

That’s basically all that is required at this stage.
In the module guide I have specified an 8-minute presentation, but do not worry if you are not in a position to present – as long as you bring your research to the tutorial and join