Ans 1. The basic services provided by Charlie Green’s Xpresso Lube Company were oil-change; quick oil and lubricants. Charlie had a bad experience earlier with the oil change companies and after he set up the Xpresso lube business his goal was to provide the most rewarding experience to his customers. Along with oil-change service, the coffee shop was also started that catered to the tastes of the customers. When the business was started, Charlie also brought in a music band to entertain the customers in evening. He also combined his transportation service with the oil-change business to provide transportation to his customers to travel from the workshop to their work when they dropped their vehicles at the service center. The service package also included a waiting area for the customers where they could involve themselves in reading the latest books while their vehicle was serviced. Due to the presence of the lifts in workshops, the customers could go in and could practically see the problem in their vehicles, and the helpful technicians guided the customers and informed them about the exact problem in the vehicle.
Ans 2. Xpresso Lube had well experienced repairmen who not only took good care of the car, but also provided good service to the customers. As far as services are concerned, characteristics such as speed as delivery, service homogeneity, customer responsiveness are important (Avlonitis, Papastathopoulou 2006). The large waiting area provided leisure to the customers. The car service environment offered easy chairs, coffee shop, and music to entertain the customers. Charlie, a person with multiple skills and talent had a vision to provide the best services to his customer. He combined the oil change business with the transportation business to provide to and fro services to his customers to their offices. The technicians were well equipped with knowledge and were courteous, and ensured that the car performed to it best that made the life easier for the customer.
Ans 3. The nature of act depicted in Xpresso Lube was totally customer participation where the customer was allowed to participate and get to know the problem in the car and were advised the best solutions. Charlie and his Xpresso Lube Company maintained high contact with the customers to ensure a smooth relationship. Keeping the customers happy ultimately results in building a good relation and boosts the business. The customization and judgment can be evaluated as very high in Xpresso Lube as it catered to the various needs of the individuals and respected the considerations of the customers. The services that were provided were well equipped to meet the needs of the individual customers. The Pull strategy was applied for the demand and supply in Xpresso Lube. In services, production and consumption occur more or less simultaneously and the interaction between the customer and the service provider during service delivery is critical (Avlonitis, Papastathopoulou 2006). The method of service delivery was based on case management and compassionate service.
Ans 4. A few services that can add value to the customer are, providing free samples of the new products, prepaid or gift cards, sending updates about any product upgrade, service after sales by calling up the customer and checking on the functionality of the product and customer’s experience with the product. The business can tie up with other companies and offers freebies, discounts, and one on one free offer. Feedback services and making the customer feel special by evaluating on the feedback is important value add to the customer and the business.
Xpresso Lube was located near the University of Texas in Austin that had good population and due to this advantage the business had good inflow of customers as it was located on the main street near the university. There were many stores nearby Xpresso Lube and customers could easily walk in the stores like the bookstore, ice-cream shops, toy shops, and the food store when their cars were being serviced.
References
Avlonitis, George J., Papastathopoulou, Paulina. (2006). Product and Services Management. Pine Forge Press
