Product-Service Systems In June 2000, Zipcar

Transcript:Product-Service Systems In June 2000, Zipcar:
Product-Service Systems In June 2000, Zipcar launched a new vehicle-sharing service in Cambridge, Massachusetts. use a vehicle whenever they want and making the process of renting a vehicle as simple, convenient, and reliable as possible. Easy reservations Convenient parking Automated check-in and return Attractive brand associations A culture of continuous improvement many service-based businesses are only recently implementing formal methods for the development of their offerings It then introduces a method of representing services as process flow diagrams. Product-Service Systems Physical products are tangible goods Services are largely intangible product-service system In What Ways Are Services and Products Different? Customer involvement Timing Matching capacity and demand Modular architecture Repeated use cycles Customization The Service Design Process Specifically, for both products and services, these tools and methods are important; opportunity identification, identifying customer needs, generating concepts, selecting concepts, establishing specifications, concept testing, economics, project management, and product planning. The Service Concept Recall from Chapter 7, Concept Generation, that the concept is the approach and working principles the product will embody to deliver the basic function of the product and satisfy the customer needs For services, the concept is more typically a textual description of the big idea a narrative of how the service works. The big idea of a service concept can usually be conveyed in a few words, often with a description of the sequence of events and key features. For instance, the concept for Zipcar is Zipcar provides automobile rental for periods of 30 minutes to 4 hours. Zipcar vehicles are parked in specially marked spaces in convenient locations, such as adjacent to apartment and office buildings. Users join the Zipcar service and receive a membership card. They reserve vehicles online, use their card to access the vehicle, and then drive away. They simply return the vehicle to the same spot within the reserved rental period. Billing to the customer's account is automatic. A service concept can be further elaborated with a storyboard. A storyboard is a sequence of graphical illustrations that show the key steps in a service experience The same techniques described in Chapter 7, Concept Generation, can be used to generate service concepts as well as product concepts. For instance, the problem can be decomposed by sequence of user actions, by considering the key functions of the service, or by key customer needs. For example, Exhibit 17-4 shows a decomposition of the car rental service by