This paper develops a general service sector model of repurchase intention from the consumer theory literature. A key contribution of the structural equation model is the incorporation of customer perceptions of equity and value and customer brand preference into an integrated repurchase intention analysis. The model describes the extent to which customer repurchase intention is influenced by seven important factors – service quality, equity and value, customer satisfaction, past loyalty, expected switching cost and brand preference. The general model is applied to customers of comprehensive car insurance and personal superannuation services. The analysis finds that although perceived quality does not directly affect customer satisfaction, it does so indirectly via customer equity and value perceptions. The study also finds that past purchase loyalty is not directly related to customer satisfaction or current brand preference and that brand preference is an intervening factor between customer satisfaction and repurchase intention. The main factor influencing brand preference was perceived value with customer satisfaction and expected switching cost having less influence.

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Customer repurchase intention: A general structural equation model

– The purpose of this paper is to report the state‐of‐the‐art of servitization by presenting a clinical review of literature currently available on the topic. The paper aims to define the servitization concept, report on its origin, features and drivers and give examples of its adoption along with future research challenges., – In determining the scope of this study, the focus is on articles that are central and relevant to servitization within a wider manufacturing context. The methodology consists of identifying relevant publication databases, searching these using a wide range of key words and phrases associated with servitization, and then fully reviewing each article in turn. The key findings and their implications for research are all described., – Servitization is the innovation of an organisation's capabilities and processes to shift from selling products to selling integrated products and services that deliver value in use. There are a diverse range of servitization examples in the literature. These tend to emphasize the potential to maintain revenue streams and improve profitability., – Servitization does not represent a panacea for manufactures. However, it is a concept of significant potential value, providing routes for companies to move up the value chain and exploit higher value business activities. There is little work to date that can be used to help practitioners., – This paper provides a useful review of servitization and a platform on which to base more in‐depth research into the broader topic of service‐led competitive strategy by drawing on the work from other related research communities.

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The servitization of manufacturing: A review of literature and reflection on future challenges

The Critical Incident Technique (CIT) has been used in a variety of service contexts in recent years to explore ser- vice research issues and has been instrumental in advanc- ing our understanding of these issues. Despite the popularity of this methodology, no published research syn- thesis systematically examines this research. The primary purpose of this study is to review the use of the CIT method in service research to (a) help current and future research- ers employing the CIT method to examine their method- ological decisions closely and (b) suggest guidelines for the proper application and reporting of the procedures in- volved when using this method. The study provides an overview of the CIT method, reports the results of a re- search synthesis conducted of 141 CIT studies appearing in service marketing and management publications, dis- cusses implications for service research, and suggests guidelines for researchers employing this method.

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The Critical Incident Technique in Service Research

This article examines key success factors for designing and delivering combinations of goods and services (i.e., hybrid offerings) in business markets. Goods manufacturers, unlike pure service providers, find themselves in a unique position to grow revenues through hybrid offerings but must learn how to leverage unique resources and build distinctive capabilities. Using case studies and depth interviews with senior executives in manufacturing companies, the authors develop a resource-capability framework as a basis for research and practice. Executives identify four critical resources: (1) product usage and process data derived from the firm's installed base of physical goods, (2) product development and manufacturing assets, (3) an experienced product sales force and distribution network, and (4) a field service organization. In leveraging these specific resources, successful firms build five critical capabilities: (1) service-related data processing and interpretation capability, (2) execution risk assessment and mitigation capability, (3) design-to-service capability, (4) hybrid offering sales capability, and (5) hybrid offering deployment capability. These capabilities influence manufacturers' positional advantage in two directions: differentiation and cost leadership. The authors propose a new typology of industrial services and discuss how resources and capabilities affect success across categories of hybrid offers.

Hybrid Offerings: How Manufacturing Firms Combine Goods and Services Successfully:

This paper develops a typology of service maneuvers achieved by manufacturing companies. This typology is based on two dimensions: service specificity (split into customer service, product services and service as a product) and organizational intensity (tactical, strategic or cultural).The paper reviews the benefits and costs associated with service maneuvers and discusses their interplay with the typology. A collaborative option is proposed as an original strategy for supporting the challenging process of implementing a service maneuver, and the costs of running this option are developed in the light of the typology.

Service strategies within the manufacturing sector: benefits, costs and partnership

Proactive product service strategies: An application in the European health market

Analyzing over 800 critical incidents across six service industries this study finds that responsiveness, courtesy/understanding the customer and communication frequently function as satisfiers driving the occurrence of positive incidents. Lack of competence, credibility and, particularly, reliability function as dissatisfiers driving the occurrence of negative incidents. Two generic dimensions emerge from multiple correspondence analysis: service system versus service people, and customer initiative versus employee initiative. The service system is associated with negative incidents, and service people with positive incidents. Substantial differences between service industries in antecedents of critical incidents emerge. Implications and recommendations for service delivery design and management are offered.

Inge Wels-Lips

Papers

Proactive product service strategies: An application in the European health market

Critical services dimensions: an empirical investigation across six industries