Customer expectations are beliefs about service delivery that serve as standards or reference
points against which performance is judged. Because customers compare their perceptions
of performance with these reference points when evaluating service quality, thorough knowledge
about customer expectations is critical to services marketers. Knowing what the customer
expects is the first and possibly most critical step in delivering good quality service. Being wrong
about what customers want can mean losing a customer’s business when another company hits
the target exactly. Being wrong can also mean expending money, time and other resources on
things that do not count to the customer. Being wrong can even mean not surviving in a fiercely
competitive market.
Among the aspects of expectations that need to be explored and understood for successful
services marketing are the following: what types of expectation standards do customers hold
about services? What factors most influence the formation of these expectations? What role do
these factors play in changing expectations? How can a service company meet or exceed customer
expectations?
In this chapter we provide a framework for thinking about customer expectations.1 The
chapter is divided into three main sections: (1) the meaning and types of expected service, (2)
factors that influence customer expectations of service, and (3) current issues involving customer
service expectations.