Chất lượng dịch vụ và sự hài lòng của khách hàng với dịch vụ thẩm mỹ tại các cơ sở thẩm mỹ tại hà nội

ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI
KHOA QUẢN TRỊ VÀ KINH DOANH
---------------------

LÊ THỊ THANH DUNG

SERVICE QUALITY AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
OF BEAUTY SERVICE AT THE BEAUTY SALON
IN THE CITY HA NOI
CHẤT LƯỢNG DỊCH VỤ VÀ SỰ HÀI LÒNG
CỦA KHÁCH HÀNG VỚI DỊCH VỤ THẨM MỸ
TẠI CÁC CƠ SỞ THẨM MỸ TẠI HÀ NỘI

LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ QUẢN TRỊ KINH DOANH

HÀ NỘI - 2019


ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI
KHOA QUẢN TRỊ VÀ KINH DOANH
---------------------

LÊ THỊ THANH DUNG

SERVICE QUALITY AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
OF BEAUTY SERVICE AT THE BEAUTY SALON
IN THE CITY HA NOI
CHẤT LƯỢNG DỊCH VỤ VÀ SỰ HÀI LÒNG
CỦA KHÁCH HÀNG VỚI DỊCH VỤ THẨM MỸ
TẠI CÁC CƠ SỞ THẨM MỸ TẠI HÀ NỘI

Chuyên ngành: Quản trị kinh doanh
Mã số: 60 34 01 02
LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ QUẢN TRỊ KINH DOANH

NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: TS. TRẦN HUY PHƯƠNG

HÀ NỘI - 2019


DECLARATION

The author confirms that the research outcome in the thesis is the result of
author 's independent work during study and research period and it is not yet
published in other‟s research and article .
The other‟s research result and documentation ( extraction, table, figure,
formula, and other document ) used in the thesis are cited properly and the
permission ( if required ) is given .
The author is responsible in front of the Thesis Assessment Committee ,
Hanoi School of Business and Management , and the laws for above - mentioned
declaration .
Hanoi , date of . . ./ . . . / .

LE THI THANH DUNG


ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I have gained huge knowledge , skill and insights from my MBA course . The
course raises my capacity of administration and management up to the next level .
I declare that this is a true copy of my thesis . The content of this thesis has
been approved by the committee of Vietnam National University , Hanoi - Hanoi

School of Business and Management (HSB). This thesis has not been submitted for
a higher degree to any other University or Institution.
In order to finish this project successfully , I have received many helps ,
supports and guidance from many people who I would like to thank sincerely .
First of all, I would like to thank all the professors of MBA program,
especially Dr. Tran Huy Phuong - my supervisor. Then I would like to thank deeply
to class assistant team of HCC center, respondents and interviewees who allowed
me to gather enough data for this research.
Thank you to Mr.Duong, Miss Xuyen and Mr. Thanh from Mediworld CO.,
LTD which has helped allow study done at this company and have a lot of help
during the interview session with very useful information.
Finally, I also want to dedicate my love and special thanks to my beloved
family, my colleges and my fellow friends who always stand by me during the past
two years and encourages to keep moving from the beginning of my study.
Hanoi , date of . . . . . . / . . . . . . / . .
Le Thi Thanh Dung


TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABBREVIATION ....................................................................................................... i
LIST OF FIGURES.................................................................................................... ii
LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................... iii
INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................1
1. Rationale ...............................................................................................................1
2. Literature review ...................................................................................................2
3. Aims of research ...................................................................................................5
4. Objects of research ................................................................................................5
5. Scope of research ..................................................................................................5
6. Research methodology ..........................................................................................6
7. Thesis structure .....................................................................................................9

CHAPTER

1:

THEORETICAL

BACKGROUND

ON

CUSTOMER

SATISFACTION WITH BEAUTY SERVICE QUALITY .....................................10
1.1: Basic concepts ..................................................................................................10
1.1.1: Beauty service ..........................................................................................10
1.1.2: Service quality .........................................................................................12
1.1.3: Customer satisfaction ..............................................................................13
1.2: Service quality and customer satisfaction .......................................................14
1.3: Service quality assessment models ..................................................................16
1.3.1: Service Quality Grap Model ....................................................................16
1.3.2: Service quality 10 components model ...................................................18
1.3.3: SERVQUAL and SERVPERF models ....................................................19
1.3.4: Theorical framework and Hypothesis .....................................................21
1.3.5: Designing Scales and Questionnaires and Sample ..................................22
1.3.6: Data collection method ............................................................................25
CHAPTER II: ASSESSING THE SITUATION OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
WITH BEAUTY SERVICE AT BEAUTY SALON IN HANOI ............................27
2.1: Introduction of Beauty salon in Hanoi.............................................................27

2.1.1: Introduction of beauty industry ...............................................................27
2.1.2: Introduction of beauty salon in Hanoi .....................................................32
2.2: The situation of customer satisfaction with beauty service at beauty salon in
Hanoi .......................................................................................................................34
2.2.1: The type of beauty service .......................................................................35
2.2.2: Equipment ................................................................................................39
2.3: Survey results on customer satisfaction with beauty service at beauty salon in
Hanoi .......................................................................................................................40
2.3.1: Research sample description ...................................................................40
2.3.2: Reliability and validity of the scales........................................................41
2.3.3: Survey results ..........................................................................................48
CHAPTER III: PROPOSAL ON SOLUTIONS TO ENHANCE CUSTOMER
SATISFACTION WITH BEAUTY SERVICE IN BEAUTY SALON IN HANOI 64
3.1: The Assurance solutions ..................................................................................64
3.1.1:The “AF1 - Employees‟ behaviour instils confidence” solutions ...........64
3.1.2: The “AF2 - Customers feel safe in transactions” solutions .....................64
3.1.3:The “AF3 - Consistently courteous employees” solutions ......................65
3.1.4: The “AF4 - Employees‟ knowledge” solutions .......................................66
3.2: The Tangibility solutions .................................................................................67
3.2.1:The “TF1 - Equipment and facilities” solutions ......................................67
3.2.2: The “TF2 - Physical facilities” solutions .................................................68
3.2.3: The “TF3 - Employees” solutions ...........................................................69
3.3: The Responsiveness solutions .........................................................................70
3.4: Other solutions .................................................................................................71
CONCLUSION, LIMITATION AND IMPLICATION ...........................................75
1. Conclusion ..........................................................................................................75
2. Limitations ..........................................................................................................77
3. Implications .........................................................................................................78
REFERENCES ..........................................................................................................79
APPENDIX ...............................................................................................................83

APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE IN INENGLISH ............................................83
APPENDIX 2: QUESTIONNAIRE IN VIETNAM ...............................................90
APPENDIX 3: RESULT CUSTOMER‟S ANALYSIS .........................................99
APPENDIX 4: RESULT BUSINESS OWNER‟S ANALYSIS.......................... 115


ABBREVIATION
ANOVA

Analysis of variance

KMO

Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Test

KPI

Key Performance Indicator

i


LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1.1: The Relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction ..16
Figure 1.2: Service Quality 5 Gap Model in SERVQUAL ....................................17
Figure 1.3: SERVQUAL model ..............................................................................20
Figure 1.4: 5 factors to customer satisfaction at beauty salon ................................22
Figure 2.1: Favour of beauty service‟s kind ...........................................................38

Figure 2.2: 10 steps‟s skin care ...............................................................................39
Figure 2.3: Validity of the scales of CUSTOMER .................................................43
Figure 2.4: Validity of the scales of Beauty salon OWNER ..................................46
Figure 2.5: Means spot of customer satisfaction by Time use service ...................59
Figure 2.6: Perception of the gender of customer on beauty satisfaction ...............62
Collusion .................................................................................................................63

ii


LIST OF TABLES
Table 1.1: 10 components of service quality ............................................................18
Table 1.2: Compare the two SERVQUAL model and SERVPERF model. .............21
Table 2.1: Global Spa Facilities by Type, 2007 ........................................................32
Table 2.2: Number‟s beauty salons each district in Hanoi .......................................35
Table 2.3: result‟s questionnaires of the beauty service‟s research. .........................40
Table 2.4: Business demographics of the respondents .............................................41
Table 2.5: Reliability of the scales ............................................................................42
Figure 2.3: Validity of the scales of CUSTOMER ...................................................43
Table. 2.6: Labelling of Extracted Factors of customer‟ questionnaires ..................45
Table. 2.7: Labelling of Extracted Factors of customer‟ questionnaires ..................47
Table 2.8: Perception of the customer and business owner on 22 variables of
service quality ...........................................................................................................48
Table 2.9: Perception of the customer and business owner on beauty service
quality dimensions ....................................................................................................49
Tablen 2.10: Result of Linear Regression Model of Customer ................................51
Table 2.11: Results of the hypothesis testing ............................................................53
Table 2.12: Result of Linear Regression Model of Owner .......................................53
Table 2.13: Results of the hypothesis testing ............................................................56
Table 2.14: Results of comparison CS0 and OS0 .....................................................56

iii


INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale
“Mirror mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?”- Fairy tale
Women are the most beautiful creature of Almighty.They present for seducion
and beauty. There is no dout that Beauty always lies in their eyes, smile, hair, skin
and heart. Women's beauty is appeared in many poets by lots of romantic poets and
many songs and lyrics by a lot of sensive musicians . Not only that, no less wars
happened for women‟s beauty. It is truly said that beauty lies in the eyes of the
beholder but a beautiful and attractive face always get privileges everywhere. In any
time, women go out either for work, for shopping, for party or for just hang out with
friends, it takes a huge time for them get ready by doing make up, hair styling, and
using perfume. These things help her a nice look and soothe others eyes.
At social level, physical beauty is an advantage as being beautiful gives a
person much more confidence.
Even it has been demonstrated by Young (2011) that being attractive can give
a person up to 10 folds increases in getting marry. According to Gilmore, Beehr &
Love (1986) Physically attractive job candidates whose qualifications are similar to
those of less attractive candidates are more likely to be hired highly for the same job
. Moreover, the beautiful are more likely to get promoted to higher positions and to
be paid more (Young 2011). it can be surely big advantage if you have a Physically
attractive beauty and Everything will become easy to you.
Women have been aware of their external appearance since ages themselves.
One can change her face and her figure in various numbers of ways now days. In
the old days, Woman used herbal treatment to beautify themselves to maintain
longly their beauty. Nowaday, a beauty salon is to take care of women‟s beauty.
One provides various kind of beauty service such as skin-facial, bleach, pedicure,

manicure, body massage, spa, make up; hair-hair cut, oil massage, ozone treatment,
spa, color; piercing, plucking, henna, waxing and different type of therapy.
Many firms identified the needs of women in beauty and established salon to
meet them. In line with the propositions put forward by Schwer & Daneshvary
1


(2000) and Joy, Sherry, Troilo & Deschenes (2010), Now women tend to spend
more time, energy and money on beautification by visiting beauty salons
In recent years, the beauty care service industry has flourished in Vietnam.
The growing population of beauty-conscious women and their demand for variety
of service is crucial to the growth of the industry.
To enter well in highly potential market of beauty, there is a need for beauty
salon to change to meet more and more customer. Therefore, maintaining high
levels of service quality and developing new methods for improving service quality
in the beauty care industry are noteworthy topics for discussion, so the author
would like to select the content of “Service quality and customer satisfaction of
beauty service at the beauty salon in the city Ha Noi”.
With research content as above, the author poses research questions for this
topic as follows:
- What are the factors influencing customer satisfaction and service quality of
beauty salons.
- What is the current status of customer satisfaction and service quality of
beauty salons.
- What is the evaluation of business owner about customer satisfaction and
service quality of their beauty salons?
- What is the difference between two sides in customer satisfaction and service
quality of beauty salons?
- What are the suitable solutions to improve customer satisfaction on beauty
service of beauty salon?

2. Literature review
 Chin-Hui Yanga,, Yu-Cheng Leeb (2016) conducted a research which
focuses on the influence of high-quality items on customer satisfaction and
evaluation. Though 5 basic conponents of SERVQUAL and SERVPERF models,
they are completed questionaires from 257 customers of beauty beauty salon s
located in six munipalities in Taiwain. To emphasize the importance of these
differences, the authors applied the classification results to the refined Kano‟s
2


model (RKM), and adopted various weighted scores to represent the importance of
customer satisfaction. The importance–performance analysis (IPA ) method and
impact range performance analysis (IRPA) method were employed to determine the
priority of service quality improvements.This study provides a very interesting
figure that the customers placed the most importance on “cordial service,” The
second most important aspect was “beauty care material” followed by “equipment
maintenance”, “service provider knowledge” and “advanced beauty care
equipment” . One of the implications of this study is that higher levels of
satisfaction could be enabled among customers through service improvements. On
the whole, beauty care centers or salons should emphasize improving service
quality based on the criteria that were identified as less satisfactory according to the
customers. The author also made a recommendation for beauty care centers or
salons to apply the principles of considering the most importance on “cordial
service,” “beauty care materials,” “equipment maintenance,” “service provider
knowledge,” and “advanced beauty care equipment.”
 Spyridoula Vryoni, Panteleimon Bakirtzoglou and Panagiotis Ioannou (2017)
designed a research to investigate the impact of service quality on customers'
satisfaction in SPA centers in Greece. By an empirical study of 207 customers of 10
Spa centers. Measurements included the use of the SERVQUAL instrument
(Parasuraman, Zeithaml, & Berry, 1988) to measure perceptions of service quality.

Factor Analysis was used to identify the predictive variables of customers‟
satisfaction. Results indicated from the five dimensions and twenty two items of
SERVQUAL model, willingness to help the customer (responsiveness),
management support in problem solving situations (assurance), food and beverages
(tangibles), feel secure from danger (assurance), employees' commitment to the
comfort of their customers (empathy) and honest and empathic treatment of
customers (empathy)were the most predictive variables of Spa centers customers‟
satisfaction. The conclusion of the study states , there are 6 service quality of 22
items that create customers' satisfaction. Those 6 items could explain Spa
customers' satisfaction at a percentage of 55.61%, namely Willingness help
3


customers, Management‟s support, Food and beverage, Feel secure, Commitment,
Honest treatment. Therefore Spa centers' management is encouraged to focus its
service on those service quality dimensions.
 Sharmin Sultana* Tasnim Islam Shimul Das ( 2016) have done a meticulous
study aimed at measuring customer satisfaction on beauty salons in Chittagong city,
Bangladesh. The study team used questionaires which is developed on SERVQUAL
model to gather data from 100 customers in 5 most popular beauty salons in
Chittagong. The study focuses to identify customer perception on tangibility,
reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy in beauty beauty salon s in
Chittagong and to evaluate the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction. The
statistical tools SPSS is used to calculate the mean and linear regression analysis. The
results have shown that tangibility has the highest mean score among five factors.
Moreover, tangibility factor has significant influence on customer satisfaction. Beauty
salons should consider these factors more to satisfy customer. The author also made 5
recommendation for beauty beauty salon s to apply the principles of Quick and prompt
service, Error-free records, Experienced and courteous employees, Price and quality,
Promotional activities. The limitations of the study are that The study is conducted in

few popular beauty salon located in Chittagong city with 100 respondent and The
respondents‟ response may have the biasness, which may not give true picture about
the chosen research topic.
 Le Huu Trang ( 2011) have done a meticulous study aimed at measuring
customer satisfaction on hotel service at AN GIANG tourist joint stock company in
An Giang provice, VietNam. The study team used questionaires which is developed
on SERVQUAL model to gather data from 175 customers in 3 branches Ben Da
Hotel Sam Mountain, Dong Xuyen Hotel, Long Xuyen Hotel. Each hotel point
selects the number of samples corresponding to the turn of the customer to use the
service of the entire corporation in the first 9 months of the year. The study focuses
to identify customer perception on tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance
and empathy in hotel service in AN GIANG tourist joint stock company and to
evaluate the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction. The statistical tools
4


SPSS is used to calculate the mean and linear regression analysis. The results have
shown CS = 3.46E-016 + 0.515 * assurance factors + 0,254 * responsiveness factors
+ 0.120 * reliability factors + 0.117 * tangibility factors, that means the assurance
factor has the highest mean score among five factors. Moreover, responsibily factor
and relibility factor and tangibility factor has significant influence on customer
satisfaction.
3. Aims of research
Aims of research is giving the recommendations to beauty salons enhance
customer satisfaction with beauty services through identify the most important main
factor and comparing customer‟s perception and business owner‟ perception.
In order to suit with these aims, my thesis give the below missions of research:
- Literature review the previous research on customer satisfaction with beauty
service quality in beauty salon.
- Systematize the basic theories of service, service quality, beauty service,

customer satisfaction, relationship between service quality and customer
satisfaction.
- Research the service quality measurement models, thereby selecting a suiable
model for measuring beauty service quality and customer satisfaction evaluation.
- Survey and analyse the status of beauty service quality and customer satisfaction
of beauty salons from two different view – customer‟s and business owner‟s - by the
selected model then compare them. Limited success evaluation and cause
- Give some recommendations to improve the quality of training services for
beauty salons and enhance customer satisfaction with the service.
4. Objects of research
Objects of research are beauty service quality and customer satisfaction with
this service in beauty salons in Hanoi
5. Scope of research
- Scope of contents: customer satisfaction and service quality of beauty service
- Scope of space: 30 districts in city Hanoi

5


- Scope of time: questionaires were surveyed from November 2018 to March
2019, for 5 months.
- Scope of sample: Individual customers are using and business owners are
providing beauty services of beauty salons, with 495 questionnaries in both side
6. Research methodology
Data collection method
o

Primary data: In order to fulfil the research objectives requirements,

empirical research was conducted with the primary data collected though

questionnaire. It contains 22 items combined with service quality factors
(Tangibility – (4), Reliability – (5), Responsiveness – (4), Assurance – (4), Empathy
– (5)). 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1- Strongly Disagree to 5- Strongly Agree
is used to measure these variables
o

Secondary data: Many local and international articles, websites

related to customer satisfaction and service quality of beauty salon s have been used
as secondary sources of data
The questionnaire survey is the most important method in the thesis, which is
described in detail as follows:
- Sampling:
Sample size: 130 customer in 13 beauty salons in 7 cental districts and 365
business owners of beauty salons
Sampling objects: beauty salons‟s individual customers who used beauty
service and beauty salon‟s private owners who supplied beauty service.
- Design of questionnaires: questionnaires are designed to be in line with the
objectives of the thesis and theoretical framework in a clear and concise manner. To
ensure accuracy, the questionnaire were designed according to the following
process:
Base on research objectives and frameworks to identify the information
needed: factors, variables and metrics
Determine the type of question

6


Determine the content of each question and logic of the questions focused on
the evaluation forms currently used at beauty salon

Draft questionnaires
Submit a questionnaire to the instructor
Instructor guide, review, and agree to conduct the investigation
Ruler: use 5 level of Likert‟s measure from the least to the most
- Basic contents of the questionnaire:
Introduction: the author‟s name, the topic name, the main contents to be surveyed
Assessment of beauty service quality of beauty salons from both sides
according to the developed research model
Data analysis method
The dissertation uses two methods of data analysis: qualitative and quantitative
o

Quantitative methods

- Statistical aggregation: collected data and information collected, selected and
statistical information needed
- Comparison: after collecting and analysing the necessary data from both
sides, comparison will be made over time
- Processing survey data using SPSS software 20.0
Cronbach Alpha
Assess the scale reliability by using the Cronbach Alpha coefficient. Variables
with an item-total correction factor less than 0.3 will be excluded and the criterion
of scale selection is that it has Cronbach Alpha reliability of 0.6 or higher (Nunnally
& Bernstein , 1994). In this thesis, Cronbach Alpha must be from 0.6 to be retained
EFA analyse
EFA analysis is a technique used to shrink and summarize data. This method
is useful for identifying variable sets that are needed for study and are used to find
relationships between variables. In the exploratory factor analysis, KMO (Kaiser –
Meyer – Olkin) value is the index used to determine the appropriateness of factor
analysis. The KMO value must be between 0.5 and 1, and this analysis is

7


appropriate, and if the value is less than 0.5, factor analysis may not to be
appropriate for the data
One – way ANOVA test
A one-way ANOVA is a type of statistical test that compares the variance in
the group means within a sample whilst considering only one independent variable
or factor. It is a hypothesis-based test, meaning that it aims to evaluate multiple
mutually exclusive theories about the data.
In a one-way ANOVA, there are two possible hypotheses.
Hypothesis H0: there is no difference between the groups and equality between means.
Hypothesis H1: there is a difference between the means and groups.
If:
Case 1: Significance of observation (Sig.) < 0.05 is sufficient basis to reject
Hypothesis H0 and accept Hypothesis H1, meaning that the mean value is different
from the test value
Case 2: Significance level of observation (Sig.) >0.05 is not sufficiently
rejected. Hypothesis H0 should accept Hypothesis H1, which means that the mean
value is different from the test value
Robust tests
In case 2 of one – way ANOVA test, continue Robust tests (Samel B.Green,
Neil J.Salkind (2005)). In Robust test, there are two possible hypotheses.
Hypothesis H0: there is no difference between the groups and equality between means.
Hypothesis H1: there is a difference between the means and groups.
If:
+ Significance of observation (Sig.) < 0.05 is sufficient basis to reject
Hypothesis H0 and accept Hypothesis H1, meaning that the mean value is different
from the test value

+ Significance level of observation (Sig.) >0.05 is not sufficiently rejected.
Hypothesis H0 should accept Hypothesis H1, which means that the mean value is
different from the test value
Dependent-sample T-test
8


Carry out the customer‟s assessment of beauty salons and the owner‟s assessment
of beauty salon retail credit quality standards by dependent-sample T-test
With Hypothesis:
- H0: Mean value = test value
- H1: average value is different from the test value.
If:
+ Significance level of observation (Sig.) >0.05 is not sufficiently rejected.
Hypothesis H0 should accept Hypothesis H1, which means that the mean value is
different from the test value
+ Significance of observation (Sig.) < 0.05 is sufficient basis to reject
Hypothesis H0 and accept Hypothesis H1, meaning that the mean value is different
from the test value
o

Qualitative methods

Using qualitative research methods, interviewing some business owners, some
customers. Interview content will be recorded and synthesized as a basis for
designing the questionnaire. Moreover, methods of statistical analysis, statistical
analysis, compilation and comparison will also be used in the dissertation
7. Thesis structure
In addition to the introduction, conclusion, references, appendixes, the
contents of the dissertation is divided into three chapter:

- CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ON CUSTOMER
SATISFACTION WITH BEAUTY SERVICE QUALITY
- CHAPTER

2:

ASSESSING

THE

SITUATION

OF

CUSTOMER

SATISFACTION WITH BEAUTY SERVICE AT BEAUTY SALON IN HANOI
- CHAPTER 3: PROPOSAL ON SOLUTIONS TO ENHANCE CUSTOMER
SATISFACTION WITH BEAUTY SERVICE IN BEAUTY SALON IN HANOI

9


CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ON CUSTOMER
SATISFACTION WITH BEAUTY SERVICE QUALITY
1.1: Basic concepts
1.1.1: Beauty service


Services

Kotler and Armstrong (2004) defined “Service is any act or interest that one
party me provide to another that is essentially intangible and not Bring possession at
all”. According to Lusch and Vargo‟s (2011) and Vargo and Lusch‟s (2004; 2008),
“The application of specialised competences (operant resources – knowledge and
skills), through deeds, processes, and performances for the benefit of another entity
or the entity itself” that is under the so-called value-in-use view. On the other hand,
The Nordic School view services as “Processes that consist of a set of activities
which take place in interactions between a customer and people, goods and other
physical resources, systems and/or infrastructures representing the service provider
and possibly involving other customers, which aim at solving customers‟ problems”
(Grönroos, 2006).
Another way to deal with Parasuraman (1991) explains that in order to know
the perception of customer, it is best to identify and understand their expectations.
Developing a system that addresses customer‟s expectations is essential.
In the thesis, the author proposed and selected the definition of service is
based on Lewis and Booms (1983), “Service is a measure of how well the service
delivered to the customer is commensurate with the expectations of customer.
Creating a quality service means responding to customer expectations in a
consistent way”. This statement clearly demonstrates that the service quality relates
to the expectations of customers and their perception of the service.
Services have some characteristics however there are three specific
Characteristics in this thesis, namely Intangibility, Heterogeneity, Inseparability
- Intangibility
The intangibility is characterized by the activities which cannot be seen, felt,
heard or proven before they are acquired. The inseparability translates to the
10


simultaneity in which services are produced and consumed (Pena, M. M., Silva, E.

M. S. da, Tronchin, D. M. R., & Melleiro, M. M. 2013)
There is no doubt that intangibility is the most fundamental and most
frequently mentioned of the various characteristics of a service (Bateson &
Hoffman, 2011; Parasuraman & Berry, 1985).
- Heterogeneity
Heterogeneity (variability) in the service context implies that it is difficult to
standardise services, especially in labour-intensive services (Bateson & Hoffman,
2011:68; Fisk et al., 2008:9; Kasper et al., 2006:59; Lewis, 2009:234; Lovelock &
Gummesson, 2004:27; Young, 2008:75). The variability (heterogeneity) concerns to
whom, where and when services are provided. The perishability reinforces that services
cannot be stored in advance, so it is necessary that strategies are established for the
balance between existing demand and provision of services (Kloter P, Keller KL, 2003)
Services will vary in different types, such as services in beauty sector and
services in travel sector.
- Inseparability
Inseparability in relation to services implies that the production and consumption
are inseparable and occur simultaneously (Bateson & Hoffman, 2011; Evans &
Lindsay, 2008). The inseparability of services therefore leads to a relatively small timegap between production and consumption, and the services are often consumed as they
are produced. The customer has to be present during the production of many services
and the customer is forced into intimate contact with the production process (Kotler &
Armstrong, 2010; Wilson et al., 2008). So, the interaction between suppliers and
service recipients ( customers) may affect quality of service


Beauty

Going by the dictionary, the quality of being pleasing, especially to look at, or
someone or something that gives great pleasure, especially when you look at it
From Burke viewpoint, in his Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our
Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful, the author wrote that „„Beauty is, for the greater

part, some quality in bodies acting mechanically upon the human mind by the
11


intervention of the senses‟‟. That definition suggests that there is a unique faculty of
beauty that can be stimulated by any and all the senses.
Beauty is always the purest desire of man and it is also the goal of reaching
enternally of mankind


Beauty services

Mentioning to beauty services concept, the author is unable to find any
definition about this concept. There is still a discussion about whether beauty
service is a commodity and its market characteristics. Although there are many
different opinions, many have agreed that, with the guideline of aesthetic theory and
artcriticism, beauty services is still growing and increasing not only the quantity but
also the quality to serve more and more customer who wants to become prettier and
prevent the aging.
1.1.2: Service quality


Quality

Parasuraman et al. (1985:41) defined: “Quality is zero defects – doing it right the
first time”. According to Juran, Gryna and Bingham‟s (1974) definition of quality is
consistent with the user- based approach. It is essential to fitness for use, the extent to
which the product successfully serves the purpose of the user during usage
From Feigenbaum (1951) viewpoint, quality is defined in terms of costs and
prices. Another key concept is definition of quality as value.

Not only Quality is a critical component of customer satisfaction (Gremler et
al., 2001; Radwin, 2000) but also Quality, service quality, and customer satisfaction
are primary concerns in the manufacturing and service industries (Wang, Lo, and
Yang, 2004). Therefore, Quality is one of the most important elements to affect the
activities of the firm.


Service quality

There are various definitions of service quality, according to Gronroos (1984),
the definition of service quality includes two components of service quality: (1)
technical quality and (2) service quality. In that service quality relates to what is
served and functional quality tell how they are served.
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Another key concept, Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (1985, 1988) define
service quality as the distance between service expectations and customer
perception when using the service.
According to Stevenson (2002), quality refers to the ability of a product or
service to meet or exceed customer expectations consistently. “Service quality” is
considered a more important order winner than “product quality” in some
manufacturing industries (Ghobadian, Speller & Jones 1994), as service-quality
improvements can lead to customer satisfaction and cost management that result in
improved profits (Stevenson 2002).
According to Cronin and Taylor (1992) and Yacas et al. (1997), Ahmad and Kamal
(2002), definition of service quality is the most influencing factor for customer
satisfaction. It is clear to see that if a service provider gives customer quality products
that meet their needs, afterward that business has initially made them happy.
Moreover, the mention in former sector (Wang, Lo, and Yang, 2004) show the

closed relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction. It is very
important premise to approve the analysis later.
In the thesis, the author selected and proposed the definition of service quality
according Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (1985, 1988) defining service quality as the
distance between service expectations and customer perception when using the service.
1.1.3: Customer satisfaction
According to Zeithmal and Bitner (2003), “satisfaction is the consumer
fulfilment response. It is a judgment that a product or service feature, or the product
or service itself, provides a pleasurable level of consumption-related fulfilment”.
According to (Nantapaiboon, 2008), Customer satisfaction is an expression of
customers‟ feelings in positive ways towards the experiences after using the service,
of which each of service and situation had met their expectations. Those feelings
can be classified into several levels based on the environment and conditions of
service at a time

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One major contribution of Kumar, Kee and Manshor (2009) was to provide a
terse definition of service quality. They defined that high quality of service can
result in high customer satisfaction and increases customer loyalty.
In line with the propositions put forward by Kotler and Keller (2006),
satisfaction is the level of a person‟s sense state that results from comparing the
perception of a product to his or her expectations. Accordingly, there are three
levels of satisfaction:
- If the customer‟s perception is smaller than expected, the customer doesn‟t
feel satisfied
- If the expectations, the customer feel satisfied
- If the perception is better than expected, the customer feel very satisfied
By way of explanation, customer is the cornerstone of the marketing concept

of satisfying customer‟s needs and desires. A satisfied customer is a significant
factor for maintaining long-term business success and appropriate business
strategies to attract and retain customers.
1.2: Service quality and customer satisfaction
The relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction has been
the subject of continuous discussion among researchers over the past decades. Start
in the 1880s, when businesses realized that maintaining competitive advantage is
not guaranteed by a quality product, standing alone (van der Wal, Pampallis &
Bond 2002). Quality of services can be the difference between success and failure
in both service and manufacturing firms (Gupta, McDaniel & Herath 2005). That‟s
a reason why delivering superior service quality is a prerequisite for success and
survival in today‟s competitive business environment (Gilbert & Wong 2006) as it
can ensure increased customer satisfaction
Service quality and customer satisfaction are very important concepts that
companies must understand if they want to remain competitive and grow. The
quality of services provided and customer satisfaction are critical success factors in
any business (Biljana Angelova and Jusuf Zekiri 2011). Donnelly et al. (1995)

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claim that Quality and customer service have been identified as critical strategic
issues for the organizations.
However, many researchers showed that service quality and customer
satisfaction are two distinct concepts. From Parasuraman et al. (1993) argue that
there are some differences between service quality and customer satisfaction, the
main difference being the “cause and effect”. Customer satisfaction is influenced by
many factors such as: product quality, service quality, price, situational factors,
personal factors. (Zeithalm and Bitner, 2000).
Service quality and satisfaction are two different but closely related concepts

in service research (Parasuraman et al. 1988). Accepting the premise that service
quality is the cause of satisfaction (Cornin and Taylor, 1992; Spreng and Taylor ,
1996). Therefore, service quality is related to service delivery, and satisfaction is
measured only after service has been used.
Customer satisfaction as a result, service quality as a cause, satisfaction is
predictive nature, expectations. Service quality is an ideal standard; customer satisfaction
is a general concept, expressing their satisfaction when consuming a service.
As such, service quality is a factor that greatly affects customer satisfaction. If
a service provider supply customers with good quality products that meet their
demand, that network provider is initially making the customer pleased. To improve
as good customer satisfaction as possible, services providers must promote service
quality. By other way, service quality and customer satisfaction are closely
interrelated. Therefore, when using the service, if customer feels the service is high
quality, they will be satisfied with that service. In contrary point, if customers feel
the service is low quality, dissatisfaction will arise.

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