Three Main Characteristics of Services

Customization, unstorability, and intangibility are three main characteristics of services. Three services I picked from real life are watching the opening ceremony for 2010 Winter Olympic game, physical check or bill payment through a bank website.
The first characteristic of customization means customers usually highly participate in these service processes. It means customers judge the quality of the services as the services are provided. Different customers might have different judgment on the same service. The reason might be that different people have different expectation and requirements on the same service. For example, many audiences think the 2010 Winter Olympic opening ceremony is wonderful; however, some people don’t think so.
The second characteristic of unstorability means that services cannot be stored as physical inventory of goods. For example, the doctor will cancel the physical check if you are not in the clinic on time. You have to make another appointment for your medical examination.
The third characteristic is intangible. It means that services cannot be seen or touched, but they can be experienced. For example, when paying bills through a bank website, the service you can get is to pay your bill conveniently and quickly without going to the counter of bank by yourself.
These three characteristics influence the way of service delivery to customers by service companies. By understanding these characteristics, organizations can better select the appropriate mix of service and goods to meet customer needs and create most effective operating systems to deliver services and provide merchandises.