Fröyset Emil, Öström Pontus
The value perception gap
between customers and sellers
A case study on aftersales service within maritime industry
Industrial Management
Degree Project
Preface
This master’s thesis was written during spring 2020 as a part of our examination in our master’s in industrial engineering and management at Karlstad university. The distribution of work in the thesis was divided equally among the two of us and we believe we are equally responsible for the work in all areas. First, we would like to thank our supervisor Peter Magnusson for providing us with valuable guidance and support. We would also like to thank our supervisor at the case company as well as all of you who shared your experiences and knowledge with us during the interviews. Last but not least we would like to thank all of our members from the feedback group; Nina Löfgren, Johannes, Daniel and Jonathan. Thank you all for the reflections on our paper and the valuable feedback provided.
Conducting this thesis during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic was a challenge to say the least. The restrictions and the stressful situation that the pandemic brought along unfortunately restricted our access to the case company as well as to their customers which resulted in that we did not get as in-depth understanding of the case company and their customers as we had hoped for. We believe that in order to get a full understanding about the differences in sellers and customers perception of value you have to spend a lot of time with both sides, which unfortunately was not possible under the duration of our thesis.
Karlstad, June 2020
Abstract
Increased competition and lower margins on products cause many traditional manufacturing companies to resort to services to increase revenues and differentiate themselves from competitors. A challenge manufacturing companies and their sellers face within this change lie within understanding what their customers value in the contexts of service and how to convey these values into superior value propositions. This research intends to increase understanding in what the difference is in the perception of value between sellers and their customers and what the implications for these differences are. This is done by the means of a case study with a setting in the maritime industry. Empirical data was collected through eight interviews, of which four was with the case company’s sellers, three was with customers to the case company and one was with an external industrial service manager. From the interviews the following conclusions could be drawn. Firstly, the findings indicate that the sellers and the customers had similar perception of what value is, where both sides emphasized on the importance of economical and functional values. Secondly, the findings indicate that the implication of the differences on the perception of value lies in that the sellers mostly focuses on the value that the services could provide to the customers while the customers regarded the value in relation to sacrifices. An implication of this is that the sellers might believe that the customers gain more value from their services than the customers believes they do. This misperception of customer perceived value could lead to challenges in selling services and the loss of customers to competitors that offers a better trade-off between benefits and sacrifices.
Sammanfattning
Ökad konkurrens och minskade marginaler på produkter får många traditionella tillverkningsföretag att söka sig till tjänster för att på så sätt öka sina intäkter och särskilja sig ifrån sina konkurrenter. En utmaning som tillverkningsföretag möter inom denna förändring ligger i att förstå vad deras kunder värderar i tjänstesammanhang och hur de kan förmedla dessa värden i överlägset värdeförslag. Denna forskning har för avsikt att öka förståelsen för vad skillnaden är i uppfattningen av värde mellan säljpersonal och dess kunder och hur skillnaderna kan påverka genomförandet av förslag till servicevärden. Detta undersöktes i en fallstudie på ett företag inom den maritima industrin. Empiriskt data samlades in via åtta semistrukturerade intervjuer var av fyra med säljare på samarbetsföretaget, tre med kunder till samarbetsföretag och en med en utomstående industriell servicechef. Från intervjuerna kunde följande slutsatser dras. För det första indikerar resultaten att skillnaden i uppfattning av värde mellan säljarna och kunderna är likartad och att det största fokuset ligger på den funktionella och ekonomiska dimensionen. För det andra indikerar resultaten att implikationerna av skillnaderna på uppfattningen av värde ligger i att säljarna mestadels fokuserar på det värde som tjänsterna kan erbjuda kunderna medan kunderna betraktade värdet i förhållande till de uppoffringar eller kostnader som medföljer. En implikation av detta är att säljarna leds till att tro att kunderna får mer värde av tjänsterna än kunderna uppfattar att de får. Denna missuppfattning av kundupplevt värde kan leda till utmaningar när det gäller att sälja tjänster och bortfall av kunder till konkurrenter som ger bättre avvägning mellan fördelar och uppoffringar.
Nyckelord: Service, kundvärde, värdeerbjudanden, kundperspektiv, maritim
Content
1. Introduction ... 8
1.1. Problem discussion ... 9
1.2. Aim and purpose ... 10
1.3. Research questions ... 10
2. Theory ... 11
2.1. Service growth in manufacturing firms... 11
2.2. Drivers and challenges for service growth ... 13
2.2.1. Drivers from a manufacturing company’s perspective ... 13
2.2.2. Drivers from the customer perspective ... 14
2.2.3. Challenges from a manufacturing company’s perspective ... 15
2.2.4. Challenges from the customer perspective ... 15
2.3. Customer value ... 16
2.3.1. Economic ... 17
2.3.2. Functional ... 18
2.3.3. Emotional ... 18
2.3.4. Social ... 19
2.4. The value proposition implementation cycle ... 19
2.4.1. Value-in-Use ... 20
2.4.2. Value design & assessment ... 20
2.4.3. Value quantification ... 21
2.4.4. Value communication ... 22
2.4.5. Value documentation ... 22
2.4.6. Value verification and review ... 22
2.5. Summary ... 23 3. Method ... 25 3.1. Research approach ... 25 3.2. Research design ... 26 3.3. Data collection ... 27 3.3.1. Interviews ... 27 3.4. Data analysis ... 30 3.5. Trustworthiness ... 32 3.5.1. Transferability ... 32 3.5.2. Dependability ... 32 3.5.3. Confirmability ... 32
3.5.4. Credibility ... 32
3.6. Ethical considerations ... 33
4. Empirical findings ... 34
4.1. Economic value from sales perspective ... 34
4.2. Economic value from customer perspective ... 35
4.3. Functional value from sales perspective ... 36
4.4. Functional value from customer perspective ... 36
4.5. Emotional value from sales perspective ... 38
4.6. Emotional value from customer perspective ... 39
4.7. Social value from the sales perspective ... 40
4.8. Social value from customer perspective ... 40
5. Discussion ... 42
5.1. Differences in value perception ... 42
5.1.1. Different perception in economic value ... 42
5.1.2. Different perception in functional value ... 43
5.1.3. Different perception in emotional value ... 44
5.1.4. Different perception in social value ... 45
5.2. Implications of differences ... 46
6. Conclusions ... 49
6.1. Managerial implications ... 50
6.2. Limitations and future research ... 51
References ... 52
Appendices ... 58
Appendix I – Detailed description of the service steps ... 58
Appendix II – Example on how to quantify the value of risk reduction ... 59
Appendix III – Sales-staff Interview guide in Swedish ... 61
1. Introduction
With increased globalization traditional manufacturing companies in developed countries are increasingly facing higher competition from emerging economies around the world (Neely 2008). The manufacturing industry has moved from having simple market conditions towards being complex, highly dynamic and hostile (Gebauer et al. 2011). With this change in the product market, other tactics must be explored for continuous growth and to stay competitive. One trend amongst many manufacturing companies in developed countries is supplementing their business models with increased focus towards services in an effort to differentiate themselves against competitors and to increase market growth (Quinn 1992; Gadiesh & Gilbert 1998; Wise & Baumgartner 1999). Oliva & Kallenberg (2003) proposes four different service steps a manufacturing company can undertake in order to become more service focused. While having the right competence and knowledge to produce the services in each step is important, it is equally important to understand how the customers create value with the help of service and how that value should be communicated. One strategic tool that can be used by companies to communicate to the customers how the services aims to provide value is the value proposition (Payne et al. 2017). The value proposition is a promise of potential value and is developed with the purpose to solve customer’s problem and highlights how the supplier differentiates their value offerings compared to its competitors (Anderson et al. 2006; Payne et al. 2020).
There are several reasons for manufacturing firms to differentiate themselves from competitors through increased focus on services in their business strategy. The first among them is that services can generate a substantial flow of revenue across the installed products entire life cycle (Wise & Baumgartner 1999). Products built to last for a longer time often needs maintenances and upgrades as to keep functioning at a high level. Services in general has higher margins when compared to products and provides stable revenues that are more resistant to economic cycles (Wise & Baumgartner 1999). Other than economic reasons, manufacturing firms can use their deep knowledge within their product area to create services that are harder for their competitors to replicate compared to the products. This can create a competitive advantage since the company can both supply the product and the know-how to their customers (Sasser et al. 1997). Lastly customers are demanding more services as they want to focus on their core businesses. By outsourcing services to other companies, they are able to narrow down their organizations and focus on their core
competencies instead of performing the services themselves (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003). With the amount of benefits that sales of services and solutions can provide to manufacturing companies it’s not surprising that more companies are trying to incorporate more services in their businesses.
1.1. Problem discussion
With a few exceptions the transition into service for manufacturing companies has been slow and cautious according to Oliva and Kallenberg (2003). There are many challenges for companies trying to work towards implementing services into their businesses instead of just providing products. Strategical factors such as organizational principles, structures and new processes are some of the challenges that managers must bear in mind when organizing the company for service sales (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003).
One common challenge manufacturing company face when transitioning towards service is that the salespeople is often not used to selling immaterial value propositions instead of selling tangible products where value can be more readily conveyed through e.g. product specifications and the material value (Ulaga & Loveland 2014). This transition can easily lead to a mismatch between what the sellers are offering and what the customers’ requirements and needs really are (Strandvik et al. 2012).
Using customer value as a basis for sales and pricing has become increasingly adopted by companies as a way of differentiating their products and services from their competitors (Keränen & Jalkala 2014). Although how customers value services and how they reason when accepting new offerings is a relatively understudied area of management literature. Most of previous research focuses on the provider perspective when changing focus from products towards services (Luoto et al. 2017), thus there is more research needed in the area of the customer perspective in order to be successful with this change (Fliess & Lexutt 2019). There is also a lack of research on customer’s perception of value directly regarding service since a large majority of the literature on customer’s perception of value has a basis in products.
Understanding what drives customer value formation is a key constituent in all business areas (Keränen & Jalkala 2014; Heinonen & Strandvik 2015) and any insight in what customers perceive as valuable in their daily activities will be worth a lot to companies trying to increase their sales of services. Since
communicate customer value. The marketing science institute suggested that any insight in this area can have significant implications for a firm’s long-term financial health and identified the creation and communication of enduring customer value as one of the most important tasks in marketing (Marketing Science Institute 2014). Since that it is often up to the sellers in a company to communicate the value of an offering to the customers (Payne et al. 2017), their perception of customer value relative to the customers perception becomes equally important.
1.2. Aim and purpose
In order to make more accurate value propositions and increasing service sales, manufacturing companies needs to align their perception of value with their customers. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to better understand how the perceptions of value in services may differ between sellers and customers. By identifying possible differences between sellers and customer, this study might help manufacturing firms to align their service offerings and value propositions to match the needs of the customers. To fully understand what creates value for the customers of manufacturing firms and what drives them into accepting service offerings, it is crucial to study this from the customer perspective and to compare this with how sellers communicates the value in their offerings to their customers. By identifying differences in value perception between sales staff and their customers the aim is to give suggestions for how to align the suppliers service value proposition with customer perceived values.
1.3. Research questions
RQ1: What are the differences between seller and customer’s perception of
value in service offerings?
2. Theory
This chapter includes the theoretical framework that the thesis was built on. The chapter ends with a summary of the theoretical framework and an explanation of how the framework was used.
2.1. Service growth in manufacturing firms
A common denominator for manufacturing companies that is providing services is that they started with supplying services built around the company’s existing physical products (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Magnusson et al. 2019). Often this is done both in an attempt to increase the life time of the installed base of products but also to support the sales of new products (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Neely 2008). These type of services are often low in customization and requires low relationship intensity, but as customers request more services to support them, the service often gradually increase in complexity and in the required relationship intensity(Mathieu 2001; Oliva & Kallenberg 2003). The shift to more advanced services can be better understood with the use of the four service steps, table 1, proposed by (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003). It is important for a manufacturing company to understand that different service steps provide the customers with different value and therefore changes the focus of their value propositions (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Magnusson et al. 2019). In table 1 the service steps are presented along with their most common service types and their respective value for the customers.
Table 1: Modified steps of service (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Magnusson et al. 2019)
Service steps Service types Value for customers
Step 1.
Basic installed base services Documentation Transport to client Installation/commissioning Product-oriented training Help desk Inspection/diagnosis Repairs/spare parts Product updates/upgrades Refurbishing Recycling/machine brokering Accessibility (reactive) Step 2.
Maintenance services Preventive maintenance Condition monitoring Spare parts management Full maintenance contracts
Accessibility (proactive)
Step 3.
Professional services Process-oriented engineering Process-oriented R&D Spare parts management Process-oriented training Process-oriented consulting
Efficiency and effectiveness of
the customer’s processes
Step 4.
Operational services Managing maintenance function Managing operations
Risk reduction and increased overall efficiency of
the customers company A manufacturing company is however rarely confined to a single step and can offer basic services to some customer but offer more advanced service to others (Kowalkowski et al. 2017). As the services becomes more advanced in the later steps and since no two customers are the same, the higher service steps need higher grade of customization and understanding of the customers business and operation (Magnusson et al. 2019). Although, being in a higher step is also not always the goal of a manufacturing company and neither is it necessarily better to be in a later step. In appendix I the four service steps are described in more detail.
2.2. Drivers and challenges for service growth
The following subchapters digs deeper into the drivers and challenges that manufacturing companies and their customers faces as the manufacturing companies tries to increase services in their business.
2.2.1.Drivers from a manufacturing company’s perspective
The drivers for manufacturers to introduce services in their offerings and increase their service focus have generally been motivated by three different type of categories in the management literature: financial, strategic and demand-based motivations (Mathieu 2001; Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Gebauer & Fleisch 2007; Baines T. S. et al. 2009). In the literature the financial drivers commonly refer to the higher profit margins and consistent reliable revenues from services compared to products (Wise & Baumgartner 1999; Oliva & Kallenberg 2003). By offering combination of products and services, firms tend to be more counter cyclical and more resistant to the economic cycles that affect investments and goods purchases (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Gebauer & Fleisch 2007).
The strategic drivers are primary related to the increased globalization and competition which have led manufacturing firms to differentiate their offerings through increased service focus by using service elements and subsequently provide important competitive opportunities (Gebauer & Fleisch 2007; Hou & Neely 2013). By using services as an approach to differentiate from competitors it can build up barriers towards the competitors since combined product-service offerings are more difficult to imitate (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003).
Lastly, the demand-based drivers arise as customer are increasingly demanding more services and tend to outsource services to focus on their core competencies and activities. The increased focus on core competencies amongst the customer leads to increased technical complexity demanding higher specialization (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Lightfoot H. et al. 2013). Through service differentiation manufacturers can then address more complex customer needs, allowing for more flexible firms that creates customer loyalty by intensifying contact opportunities with the customer (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Lightfoot H. W. & Gebauer 2011; Keränen & Jalkala 2013).
In parallel to the discussions in the economic and management literature, the environmental literature has stated the increased service focus as a driver to increase environmental performance (Goedkoop et al. 1999). Firms with
product-products sold in order to achieve a high turnover and profit. In comparison, firms with service- oriented business models get payed for the service offered, making the products, materials and consumables a cost factor that is needed to provide the service. Hence, the firms will have incentives to make the products as cost- and material efficient as possible and to re-use different parts at the end of the products lifecycle. These different incentives could lead to a minimization of material used and wasted (Tukker 2015). As Firms changes their business models and customers changes perception of ownership it is believed to be possible to reduce the environmental impact of products (Neely 2008). With this change it lies in the providers interest to maximize the life cycle of the products and customers interest to minimize usage to consequently pay as little as possible (Mont & Plepys 2003; Neely 2008).
2.2.2.Drivers from the customer perspective
Pressure to downsize in order create more flexible firms with more focus on the core competencies drives the customers to demand more services from their suppliers (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003). By outsourcing e.g. installations and maintenance work to companies with specialized skills in the particular area they can save time and manpower that can be focused on activities that are more directly value adding to their businesses.
One common driver for customers to demand more services is non-ownership, where instead of buying a product the customer signs up on long- or short-term leases and rentals on expensive and durable products. The customers then obtain exclusive use of an item without being forced to tie up capital (Lovelock & Gummesson 2004). Services as these can serves as a financial incentive as they offers stabilized and more predictable maintenance and support costs (Neely 2008), and serves as a risk reduction as well for the customers, knowing that if something goes wrong, they will have resources they need in terms of best talent and latest technology (Kremic et al. 2006). Another variant of risk reduction is paying for a product based on outcome or use (Neely 2008). This gives the customers an incentive to use the product as efficiently as possible, limiting the use to when its needed. Since the payments from the customer to the supplier depends on the continuous use of the product the suppliers gain interest in keeping the product operational as long as possible which can serve to reduce risk for the customers (Neely 2008).
2.2.3.Challenges from a manufacturing company’s perspective
When a company changes its business model from being product focused towards focusing more on services there are several challenges that may arise. One common challenge is the aspect of internal alignment of the organization (Kindström 2010), where firms have difficult seeing and understanding the economic benefits and potentials that services entail (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003). This challenge is related to the changes that must be done in the culture of the organization, because of the major difference in selling tangible products compared to selling intangible services (Martinez et al. 2010). The relationship- and value-based nature of service sales also constitute a challenge for typical product sellers as the sales process of services demand other specific skills and competences than for selling products (Raddats et al. 2019). Many firms do realize the market potential of services and decides to enter the market but without a clear strategy of how to implement service offerings with the result of unsuccessful service launching (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003). Lastly, there is also a need for changes regarding the relationships with customers, since services requires working in a closer relationship with higher investments in both time and complexity (Grönroos 1996; Martinez et al. 2010; Pessôa & Becker 2017).
2.2.4.Challenges from the customer perspective
For the customers there are numerous risks involved with outsourcing services to other actors (Kremic et al. 2006). For manufacturers providing services it is important to bear these risks in mind as to understand how the customers react to service offerings. First, there is a loss of control when outsourcing a service to another actor (Kremic et al. 2006). If service contracts are not clearly specified or in other ways inappropriately managed, situations can arise where the providers may benefit from providing lower quality service or changing the price unwarrantedly in an attempt to exploit the customers situation (Kremic et al. 2006).
Another challenge when downsizing and outsourcing functions in a company is the risk of developing gaps in knowledge and learning ability, making the company dependent on the provider (Kremic et al. 2006). The loss of knowledge and a dependency on a provider to perform an activity can result in a decrease in flexibility within the company even though flexibility often is regarded as a driver for outsourcing (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Kremic et al. 2006).
Lastly, information asymmetry between the customer and the provider might constitute a challenge for outsourcing services according to Gallouj (1997), as
higher position of control. Today there is a trend towards relational marketing in which services is based on longer contractual relationships which challenge the customers in managing and controlling long-term risk, understanding their costs and profitability implications (Neely 2008).
2.3. Customer value
In literature the are many definitions of what conceptualizes as customer value, creating a lack of consistency in what customer value is (Graf et al. 2008; Gallarza et al. 2011). In their article on customer value, Graf et al. (2008) differentiates between two definitions of customer value from the customer perspective, which are perceived customer value and desired customer value. The focus of desired customer value is on the needs and desires of the customer and involves a higher level of abstraction of value dimensions (Holbrook 1994; Woodruff 1997; Graf et al. 2008). Customer desired value is used to explain what needs, desires and benefits customers seek to fulfil by buying and using service and products (Graf et al. 2008). In figure 1, customer desired value is illustrated as only the left bar and constitutes of the sum of benefits customers wants. Perceived customer value meanwhile conceptualizes as a trade-off between benefits and sacrifices (Zeithaml 1988; Graf et al. 2008). Following this definition, there is a perceived value in an offering if the benefits of the offerings adds up to a total that is higher than the total amount of sacrifices, as visualized in figure 1. The sacrifices are sometimes described as a monetary term, such as the purchasing price of a product or a service (Patterson & Spreng 1997; Ulaga & Eggert 2006). The lack of consistency on the definition of customer value in literature makes the term easy to confuse. In this thesis the term customer value was used synonymously with desired customer value and benefits while customer perceived value was used to describe the trade-off between benefits and sacrifices.
Defining value is a complex matter as different customers and individuals perceive value in different ways as the perception of value is a subjective construct (Eggert & Ulaga 2002). Further Eggert & Ulaga (2002) describes the perception of value as being relative to competition of other alternatives e.g. a service compared to a competitor’s service. Payne et al. (2020) describes that the process of value creation is experienced pre-exchange (searching, anticipation, deciding), during exchange (the process of interaction) and post-exchange (the use value). During the process the customer value can be derived from a set of core value dimensions which in turn comprises of a set of various sub-dimensions (Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011). Although highly context dependent (Ulaga & Eggert 2006), researchers has generally agreed on four core customer value dimensions that is persistent in most settings (Rintamäki et al. 2007; Smith & Colgate 2007; Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011; Müller 2012; Payne et al. 2020). These four core value dimensions are: Economical value, functional value, emotional value and
social value as can be seen in figure 2. In the following subchapters the core value
dimensions is described in more detail.
Figure 2: Core value dimensions (Payne et al. 2020).
2.3.1.Economic
The economical dimensions do not just consider a products or services pricing, although pricing is one of the most important and effective driver of customer value (Rintamäki et al. 2007). The dimensions also include economical aspects related to customers, such as time, energy, cost-savings and financial risk (Rintamäki et al. 2007; Neely 2008). For example, aftermarket services such as maintenance work and spare parts management can deliver economical value by reducing customer downtime, saving them money and valuable time. While a service economical value is relatively easy to design, they are also easy to substitute (Müller 2012), making them more readily available for competitors to copy. The economic value is also related to payment conditions (Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011), some customers might want to pay the total amount for a service up front, while some customers better respond to being able to divide the payments on a longer time period. Customer can also gain economic value from non-monetary conveniences that their suppliers can support. Decreasing the time, effort and energy the customer has to spend on numerous visits or meeting
with the supplier to come to an agreement on service terms adds to the total economic value of the customer (Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011).
2.3.2.Functional
The functional value dimension relates to the customers who is primarily searching for solutions where the perceived utility is derived from an alternative’s capacity for physical performance (Rintamäki et al. 2007). The functional value concerns how a certain product or service has the desired characteristics, usefulness and if it performs the desired functions (Smith & Colgate 2007). Functional value also involves the technical competence of a company, enabling knowledge to be shared and applied to the customers (Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011). According to Woodruff (1997) three key aspects of functional value where the first relates to appropriate features, functions and characteristics such as quality and customization. The second aspect concerns appropriate performance which can be reliability, service-support outcomes and quality of the performance. Lastly, there is the aspect of appropriate outcomes in form of strategic value, operational benefits and effectiveness.
2.3.3.Emotional
Emotional value represents the perceived utility as a result from an alternatives ability to perpetuate feelings or affective states such as comfort, security, passion, fear ( Smith & Colgate 2007) or trust (Lapierre 2000; Bennett & Gabriel 2001) The emotional value dimension is derived from the feelings and emotions that a product or service generates for the buyer (Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011). Callarisa Fiol et al. (2011) identifies three different factors that affects the emotional value, which are experience, personalized treatment and interpersonal relationships. Experience is a consequence of the exchange of information and emotions between the supplier and customers. Personalized treatment and interpersonal relationship relate to the social benefits an established relationship generates. The customers know what they are going to receive from the suppliers offering which contributes to a more relaxed situation and makes relationships more fluid and longer lasting (Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011). In B2B settings it is not uncommon with intense and long periods of interactions between customer and sellers (Gwinner et al. 1998; Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011). With long lasting relations between customer and seller the interaction might progress to being more familiar and fraternizing than been strictly professional (Gwinner et al. 1998). This can result in a personal recognition between customer and seller, which Callarisa Fiol et al. (2011) states is one of the most highly valued factors in the creation of social benefits.
2.3.4.Social
The social dimension of value within B2B settings refers to reputation and perceived social image according to Callarisa Fiol et al. (2011), further stating that it’s about the consequences of purchase and consumption of a service or a product for different customers. Lapierre (2000) defines social value as the image of the supplier based on reputation and the credibility. Reputation may be viewed as a mirror of the firms history which serves to communicate information to the target customers regarding the quality of the products and services in comparison with its competitors (Nguyen & Leblanc 2001). The social dimension captures the importance of customer, and society’s as a whole, assessment of a company (Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011). Callarisa Fiol et al. (2011) stresses the importance of supplier information management to create a credible and reputational image towards its customers and especially when customers are sensitive to the supplier’s social behavior.
2.4. The value proposition implementation cycle
The knowledge about what customer value is, are of little use for a company and a seller if they cannot properly communicate it or provide it to their customers. Adapting and communicating value propositions on a customer segment level is typically the job of a company’s marketing department, while on an individual customer level it is usually the job of the sellers (Payne et al. 2017). One approach to implement value-focused selling is through the use of the value proposition cycle (figure 3) that builds on identification, quantification, communication and verification of customer value (Töytäri & Rajala 2015). The process can be conceptualized as an iterative process where firms can use all or only parts of this value selling process (Kienzler et al. 2019). Payne et al. (2017) defines the value proposition as “a strategic tool facilitating communication of an
organization’s ability to share resources and offer a superior value package to targeted customers”. From the customer perspective, the value proposition is developed
with the purpose to solve customers’ problems (Reinartz & Ulaga 2008), and inquires a shift from the traditional focus on products efficiency and functionality towards the offering's effectiveness for the customers processes
(Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Rabetino et al. 2017). The sections that follows will go further into the different parts of the value proposition implementation cycle.
Figure 3: The value proposition implementation cycle (Payne et al. 2020)
2.4.1.Value-in-Use
Traditionally customer value has been considered as value-in-exchange where the value of functions and performance of products are determined by the supplier and then delivered to the customers (Eggert et al. 2018). The more recent literature has evolved gradually towards an approach that considers the customers to be actively involved in the value creation process with emphasis on resource integration and value in use (Eggert et al. 2018). This view of value origins from the service-dominant logic of marketing which implies that value cannot be delivered to the customer, value is determined by the customer based of the value-in-use (Vargo & Lusch 2004; 2008). With the perspective of value in use, it is the customer that perceives and determines value, where value-in-use is co-created as a result of the company’s interactions with customers in the implementation of value propositions (Payne et al. 2020).
2.4.2.Value design & assessment
In order to understand how the offering can create value for the customers, there is a need to undertake a resource assessment, customer and competitor research and assessment of fit with the elements in the business model (Payne et al. 2020). A critical part of the value proposition design is to capture the experiential perspective of the customers to understand what it’s like to be the
customers (Lanning 1998). The customers should therefore be involved in designing the value proposition as it can help to impact the perception of value and build stronger relationships between the company and its customers (Payne et al. 2020). The value proposition should be designed so that it in clear fashion answers the customers question about whether they should buy something from the company or not. A single value proposition might not be suitable for every customer and therefore it might be necessary to design multiple value propositions and adjust them over time so that they resonate with the specific customer segment.
2.4.3.Value quantification
One of the biggest challenges in carrying out the transition towards selling value, is to quantify the value of the proposed solutions and its predicted impact on customers' business, situation and environment (Storbacka 2011; Töytäri & Rajala 2015). Most companies struggle to convert their value propositions into quantified benefits for the customers, showing a gap between what customers demand and what competence sellers have regarding value quantification (Hinterhuber 2017). In order for customer to assess the difference and performance between a supplier’s value proposition and the major competitors the benefits should be converted into monetary terms to make it clear to customers how the proposition will lower cost or add value relative other alternatives (Anderson et al. 2006). According to Payne et al. (2020), suppliers should consider a dual perspective where both quantitative customer benefits and qualitative customer benefits being considered. This perspective includes tangible customer benefits in form of cost reduction, cost avoidance and risk minimization, as well as more intangible customer benefits such as ease of doing business and reputation. The value offered should also be quantified iteratively with involvement from the customer since value assessment and quantification rarely can be conducted without close cooperation with the customer. There are different methods salespeople can base the value quantification on, such as specific value calculations, value studies, simulations, decision trees, lifecycle calculations, return-on-investment studies, and knowledge about value created for customers (Terho et al. 2012; Saccani et al. 2013). Hinterhuber (2017) indicated the importance of providing quantifiable benefits to customers and that value quantification capabilities have a substantial and positive effect on firm's performance.
2.4.4.Value communication
This phase of the cycle focus on communicating the proposal and promise of value to customers (Payne et al. 2020). The phase represents initiation of a dialog and co-creative engagement regarding what the value proposition should include, to then representing a promise to be fulfilled by the company. It is important that the supplying firm ensures that the customer receives and truly understands the value proposition (Payne et al. 2020). As firms increasingly moves towards higher levels of service focus by changing their value propositions through enhanced products offerings with innovations and services, it also requires that the sellers develop the capabilities to communicate the value of these service-based offerings accordingly (Matthyssens & Vandenbempt 2010; Gebauer & Kowalkowski 2012). Salespeople need to understand and persuasively communicate superior value proposition provided with evidence for their claims to customers in order for their strategic focus on value creation to have an impact on performance (Anderson et al. 2007 referred to in Terho et al. 2012).
2.4.5.Value documentation
When building persuasive value propositions towards the customers it is important for the providers to thoroughly document the values (Anderson et al. 2006; Payne et al. 2020). By building up capabilities and tools for internal documentation the sales force can have access to more demonstratable values to propose to the customers (Terho et al. 2012). Without documentation of the values that services provide for the customer it gets harder to express the value in financial terms. If a service provides the customers with increased profit or cost savings etc. the provider should make sure this is captured internally within the company as to use it to demonstrate the services superior value (Payne et al. 2020). Together with the customers, providers should decide what results they will track and at what intervals of time e.g. annually, quarterly, monthly (Payne et al. 2020). It is important that the customers are willing to sign off on formal documents, stating the benefits that the services have provided them so it doesn’t become an instance of the providers groundlessly claiming that their services add value (Payne et al. 2020).
2.4.6.Value verification and review
Value verification and review is the final phase to determine whether the value proposition successfully resonates with the customers (Payne et al. 2020). This phase involves longitudinally assessing individual customer segments requirements and the value dimensions that is important to them. This is done
continuously over time as the customers evaluate their own in-use experience of the provided service (Payne et al. 2020). The main point of the value verification is to identify demonstratable financial results or other valuable measures and report this back to the customers. Payne et al. (2020) suggest using agencies or researchers to verify and report feedback to customers as to keep it unbiased from internal sale staff. Verifying and reviewing the value proposition that is presented towards the customers is important as to keep it renewed and relevant. In some cases, value propositions can remain relevant and unnecessary to alter for periods of years or even decades, although as companies and their services evolve and their customers’ needs change over time, regular review of the value proposition is critical to assess its relevance if circumstances have changed (Payne et al. 2020).
2.5. Summary
A summary of the theoretical chapter was made in order to present a full picture of how the theoretical subchapters fit together and how they were used to find differences in value perceptions between sales staff and their customers. A summary of the theory used, and its key references are shown in table 2.
Table 2: Summarizing table of theory used
Theory Key elements Key references
Service growth in manufacturing firms
The typical services in manufacturing and their proposed main values for customers
(Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Magnusson et al. 2019)
Drivers and challenges for service growth
Understanding the perspectives of both sides
(Oliva & Kallenberg 2003; Kremic et al. 2006; Neely 2008) Customer value What customer value is
and what core
dimensions of value that exists
(Zeithaml 1988;
Woodruff 1997; Ulaga & Eggert 2006; Rintamäki et al. 2007; Smith & Colgate 2007; Graf et al. 2008; Callarisa Fiol et al. 2011; Payne et al. 2020) Value proposition Understanding the
process of which value is proposed to the customer
(Anderson et al. 2006; Terho et al. 2012; Töytäri & Rajala 2015; Payne et al. 2017; 2020)
For a manufacturing company with high expertise in its own products, it is possible to propose value to the customers with a range of different services, in
used to describe the different service steps a company can undertake. The services in the four steps move from delivering services that support the customers products towards supporting the customers processes (Oliva & Kallenberg 2003), a transition that make the services more advanced and with contracts often ranging over longer periods of time than for basic services. Further, Magnusson et al. (2019) adds to the service step by distinguishing the main value for the customer in each step.
By using a set of core value dimensions as a foundation, the customers drivers and challenges can be understood in terms of economic, functional, emotional and
social values (Rintamäki et al. 2007; Smith & Colgate 2007; Müller 2012; Payne
et al. 2020). These dimensions can be used as a foundation in order to pinpoint the different values the customers seek within a service step and to highlight it better with the use of value propositions. Since a major challenge for traditional manufacturing companies lies within switching from selling products to selling more intangible services (Martinez et al. 2010), making a value proposition could help both parties by making the service offers more tangible using values and numbers. The combined theory will be used to find differences in value perception and any implications of these differences when implementing value propositions.
3. Method
In this chapter the research approach and design are described along with explanations of how the interview and the collection and analysis of data was carried out. The chapter also includes details on how the research was conducted with regards of trustworthiness and ethical considerations.
3.1. Research approach
The purpose of this thesis is to better understand how the perceptions of value in services may differ between sellers and customers. By identifying possible differences between sales staff and customer, this study might help manufacturing firms to align their service offerings and value propositions to better match the needs of the customers. Due to the investigating nature of the research topic, where two opposite sides subjective perceptions were studied, a qualitative research approach was used to gain deeper understanding of the different perspectives (Bell et al. 2018). Since there is little previous research done in this specific subject and the research topic is highly investigating, a qualitative study was the most appropriate method (Gray 2017). The approach enabled the researchers to collect in-depth information from the interviews as to create a general overview of the subject (Easterby-Smith et al. 2015). Since the research aimed to investigate and create an understanding of the differences in value perception amongst sellers and customers, the study takes the form of a case study. The case study enabled the researchers to get a deeper understanding of the research questions from different perspectives (Gray 2017).
The research was conducted with an abductive approach where the researchers set out to interpret and understand two sets of perspectives going back and forth between theoretical framework and empirical fieldwork with the objective to better match theory with reality, following a so-called systematic combination process (Dubois & Gadde 2002). The research process (figure 4) was initiated with a literature study with focus on servitization and was later narrowed down towards customer value and value propositions. The next step of the process was to make a draft of an interview guide and reaching out to potential participants. The first interview was conducted with an expert in industrial services to get more information about the subject of service and customer value. The second interview round was conducted with sales staff of the case company to get their view of customer value and value propositions. The third part of the interview study was conducted with the customers of the case
When the interviews were conducted, a second round of literature study was performed in order to complement the existing framework with the new insights from the empirical data.
Figure 4: The research process
3.2. Research design
The thesis was conducted in cooperation with a maritime propulsion company located in Sweden and takes setting in the maritime industry where two different point of views were studied. The first perspective was from the sellers of the company while the other perspective was from the company’s customers. Studying both perspectives provides valuable insight in the similarities and the differences in value perception between the two parties. The company was at the time of the research in a process towards increasing its service focus and in changing their offerings from ‘cost-plus’ to customer value. The company offers a wide set of services for its customers where the largest part of the company’s service portfolio consisted of after-sales services aimed towards the aftermarket of their sold products, such as maintenance, overhauls, repairs and upgrades etc. but they also provided more advanced services such as training activities, analysis, condition monitoring, operational services and turn-key solutions. As a manufacturer of propulsion system for larger maritime vessels the company operated within a complex network of stakeholders and in an industry with a traditional product-oriented focus which makes it an interesting context for service research. The company has customers in several different marine segments but due to the time frame of the thesis, only one segment was included in the empirical study. The segment chosen to be included in the thesis was the shipping companies as they were thought to have similar service needs due to the similarities in the products used and in their business activities. The shipping companies included in the thesis had between 7-20 ships within their companies.
3.3. Data collection
Together with the supervisor of the case company the employees in the sales staff that had the most customer contact as well as knowledge regarding aftermarket services were selected to participate in the study. The interviewees were contacted via email and asked to be a part of the study and was at the time presented with an outline of the study as well as a rough draft of the interview guide. By presenting them with a draft of the interview, the interviewees had time to think through situations related to the research area as to not be caught completely off guard when the actual interviews began. The customers in the study was picked out together with members of the case company’s sales staff as they had good insight in which customer employees that had most knowledge and experience in the research area. A semi-structured interview was also conducted with an external industrial service manager with many years of experiences and expertise within developing services and value proposition. Due to the strain that the Covid-19 pandemic put on the maritime industry the number of customers willing to participate in the study were lower than originally intended. Furthermore, the customer interviews that were conducted suffered weeks in delays since it was hard to find willing participants at the time being.
3.3.1.Interviews
Semi-structured interviews were used for the sellers at the case company and their customers in order to allow the participants to expand their answers, express their feeling and go deeper into specific topics. The questions in the interviews were mainly based on the theoretical framework and the outcomes from discussions with the case company supervisor. When conducting semi-structured interviews, the interviewers rereferred to a guide that contained a mixture of both open and closed questions where the interviewers had to steer the interview based on own judgement (Gray 2017). Through the use of semi-structured interviews, the list of questions could be addressed in a more flexible manner to stimulate a discussion within the given framework (Easterby-Smith et al. 2015). Two different interview guides were made, one for the sellers and one for the customers in order to capture the different perspective regarding customer value and value proposition.
The interviews were conducted through the online conference application Zoom and was conducted in Swedish and later translated into English to be presented in the thesis. One of the researchers led the interview focusing on the
questions. The semi-structured interview with the industrial service manager was conducted with the intention to gain more knowledge about the theoretical framework and the interactions between customers and sellers. During all the interviews the responses were documented through note taking and recordings to fully cover all area of interest. Eight interviews were conducted, and varied in length between 30 to 60 minutes, as can be seen in table 3. All the recorded data was carefully listened to and transcribed so the words of the interviewee were captured accurately.
Table 3: Table containing interviewees, company pseudonyms, their area of work, their role in this thesis, date of the interview and interview length.
Interviewee Company Position/Title Role in this thesis Interview date (yyyy-mm-dd) Interview length (mm:ss) A Alpha Industrial services manager Provided knowledge about the theoretical subject 2020-02-28 40:59
B Beta Sales support Service and customer knowledge in case company
2020-04-06 40:20
C Beta Sales manager Service and customer knowledge in case company
2020-04-07 48:14
D Beta Sales manager Service and customer knowledge in case company
2020-04-08 58:51
E Beta Sales manager Service and customer knowledge in case company 2020-04-08 35:59 F Gamma Technical superintendent Case company customer 2020-04-23 63:16 G Delta Technical manager/fleet manager Case company customer 2020-04-27 34:54 H Omega Technical superintendent Case company customer 2020-05-14 52:42
3.4. Data analysis
Data analysis is the process of disaggregating data into smaller parts in order to reveal their characteristics and structure (Gray 2017). The data from the transcriptions were analyzed through thematic analysis since it is a suitable method for identifying and analyzing patterns within qualitative data (Gray 2017). Thematic analysis was used in order to create themes that captures important data relating to the research question of the study where the practical approach and different steps suggested by Braun & Clarke (2006) was used for data analysis, as can be seen described in table 4.
Table 4: Thematic analysis process adopted by Braun & Clarke 2006
Phase Description
Step 1: Familiarizing with the data. The data were transcribed, read and re-read where initial ideas were noted down. This gave the researchers an overview of the collected data.
Step 2: Initial coding. Interesting patterns and potential themes were highlighted and coded. Some of the surrounding data was kept in order to not loose context.
Step 3: Search for themes. Codes were grouped together into potential themes and sub-themes.
Step 4: Review themes. The different themes were reviewed and discussed whether there was sufficient data for the theme to be trustworthy.
Step 5: Define and name the themes. Names and definitions of the themes
were generated and refined so that they all had a purpose in relation to answering the research questions. The thematic analysis was performed with some initial themes based on the theoretical framework where the sub-themes evolved from the data analysis linking data with predefined themes from theorical framework. The four main themes used to fit the research question was economical value, functional value, social value and emotional value. The main themes and sub-themes identified
can be seen described in table 5 together with one example of empirical illustration and explanations.
Table 5: Themes and sub-themes used in the thematic analysis.
Theme Sub-theme Example
empirical illustration Example explanation
Economical
value Payment conditions, Financial risk, Energy reductions & cost-savings, time & resource savings
Payment conditions/financial risk: “I want to know what
the total will be because it is not interesting for me to get an hourly rate because then I will have to try with my bad experience to work out how long it will take[..] it should also be included in their risk to give a fixed price” – Customer (F)
The
customer perceives economic value from shared finical risk in maintenance work where payment conditions can be used to divide the risk between customer and supplier
Functional
value Reliability, technical competence, flexibility, customization, quality
Quality: "The greatest
value-creating factor of a service is high quality at a reasonable price" - Customer (G)
One of
the greatest value creating factors relates to the relationship between quality and costs.
Emotional
value Interpersonal relationship, trust, experience, honesty, security
Interpersonal relationship: "But
that can also, I can say another big company that had a contact person against our shipping company for a couple of years and it was a person who did not work at all, no understanding and no knowledge, so I would say that the company lost a terrible amount of reputation in two years, so it is pretty much personal, who you have as a contact person to the company as to have a good relationship." - Customer (H)
The emotional value is important in form of interpersonal
relationships, the relationship with the seller can affect the reputation of the whole company
Social value Reputation,
image, credibility Image/Credibility: "In a way you know that Beta is a serious company that has been around for a long time and they will exist in the future, so compared to a smaller company you do not know, they may be gone next week or maybe next year." -
The customer describes that knowing that a company has a long history and a serious reputation is a value as it presents a credible image
3.5. Trustworthiness
To make sure that the research and its findings are trustworthy the researches followed the framework of Skrtic (1985) as referred to by Gray (2017). The framework constitutes of following four parts: Transferability, dependability,
confirmability and credibility.
3.5.1.Transferability
Transferability is to which extent the findings can be applicable in other context (Gray 2017), meaning other than the one being studied within the scope of this thesis. To improve the transferability the researchers has tried to make descriptions on how data was collected and analyzed as rich and easy to follow as possible so that the reader can judge the possibilities of transferring the findings to other contexts.
3.5.2.Dependability
Dependability means whether the conclusions drawn are reliable and whether the same result would be achieved if the study was conducted repeatedly (Gray 2017). The dependability of the research was improved by describing the method used in the study and by using external audits with the thesis supervisor and seminars.
3.5.3.Confirmability
Confirmability is in conventional term the degree to which the researchers can remain objectivity (Gray 2017). The confirmability was improved by using open-ended questions and reviewing them together with the thesis supervisor before using them in the interviews. By doing this the researchers decreased the risk of asking biased and leading questions. The recordings of the interviews were listened to and transcribed by both researchers as to make sure that nothing was misinterpreted and transcribed in a way that alter the confirmability. During the thematic analysis of the transcribed material both researchers participated as to decrease misinterpretations and biases.
3.5.4.Credibility
The last part in upholding trustworthiness within the thesis was done by focusing on credibility. To increase the credibility, triangulation of data, sources and theory was used (Gray 2017). The transcripts were offered to the participants of the thesis for respondent validation, so that they could reply with
comments about any necessary adjustments where something was misheard or misinterpreted.
3.6. Ethical considerations
Conducting ethical research means that it should be done with regards of respect and moral considerations while being transparent and truthful with the participants and companies involved in the research. This is done in order to protect the integrity of the companies and the individuals while not disclosing any harmful information about them without informed consent (Gray 2017). Before the interviews the participants in thesis where disclosed with what the purpose of the study was and why the data would be collected. This was presented in a letter with additional information on the interviews and how their data would be handled. The participants were informed that they could decline to answer any questions, quit the interview at any time or decline to participate in the interview at all without stating a reason. The researchers have deliberately tried to collect as little as possible personal information about the participants and the participants is referred to with aliases within the thesis to uphold their anonymity.
4. Empirical findings
In this chapter, gathered data from the interviews has been analyzed with regard of the theoretical framework that was developed during the literature study. The analysis of the data was done thematically according the process stated in sub-chapter 3.5 Data analysis. From the thematical analysis four main themes with associated sub-themes was developed to fit the first research question, the main themes and sub-themes can be seen in table 5. To fit the research questions, the main themes ‘Economic value’, ‘Functional Value’, ‘Emotional Value’ and ‘Social value’ was developed, each having three to five sub-themes. In the following sub-chapters, the empirical findings are presented from both customer and sellers’ point of view according to the four developed main themes. The findings in the sub-chapters was necessary to answer both research questions 1 and 2.
4.1. Economic value from sales perspective
The economic value of service was mentioned in all the interviews with the sellers although with slightly different focus. Mostly the sellers focused on the potential cost savings that could be acquired by the customers by using Betas services. As sales manager (D) explained that the customers are all about saving and making money, making the economic value the one of the main reasons to why the customers wanted services. Further the sales manager explained that greatest value for the customers lies in cost efficient solutions that is adaptive to the customer’s needs. Both spare parts and service is expensive and as sales manager (E) explained that the customers see value in being able to predict their costs and being able to make a budget for them ahead of time. The propulsion equipment that the service is aimed for is critical to the customers operations and if it stops functioning the customers stand to lose a lot of money if they should need to dock and perform unscheduled maintenance. By following up on the health of the propulsion equipment and making plans for the ship’s dockings the unplanned maintenance can be reduced to a minimum. As sales manager (E) exemplified:
“well, depending on what service it is then, but some services can do so that the customer can
plan their operations in a better way, they may not have to dock after five years but can wait until after seven years, for example. If we have a monitoring service that monitors the health of the equipment then they can plan better, they can save money on maybe not having to dock as often as they had initially thought.” – Sales manager (E)
Using the service to keep their equipment healthy and functioning is largely based on the value of decreasing financial risk. Seller (B) stated that apart from keeping the customers up and running, the customers saw great value in reducing fuel consumption and in managing their fuel economy and that this is done in order to save money. Another example of how Beta supplies their customers with economic value is through their operational service (step 4 in the service step) which sales manager (E) describes in the quote below.
“It creates value by giving the customer a fixed price which they pay every month or every year
and in this way he can make a budget for 10 years ahead where they know exactly how much it costs to maintain their equipment, and by having this service ensuring that they are operational for 10 years .” – Sales manager (E)
4.2. Economic value from customer perspective
The economic value for the customers mostly concerns the financial risk associated with the services. A great value lies in the possibility to reduce financial risk and to be able to better plan and budget for future costs. Customer (F) states that when Gamma buys maintenance service it’s not interesting to be offered an hourly rate without knowing how long the service will take. By sharing the risk associated with the uncertainty of how long the service will take and instead offering a fixed price, the customers receives economic value by knowing in advance what the operational expenditures will be.
“I want to know what the total will be because it is not interesting for me to get an hourly rate because then I will have to try with my bad experience to work out how long it will take[..] it should also be included in their risk to give a fixed price” – Customer (F)
Since the shipping market is very cyclical where some years are great and others bad, the customers do see a big financial risk in tying themselves up in long service contracts. Service contracts can offer risk reduction in form of continuous payments, but the customers need the payment conditions to consider the market conditions in order to serve as a financial risk reduction and become an economic value. In order to tie themselves up to agreements lasting for several years customer (F) states that there must be an economic incentive with clear financial benefits for Gamma, otherwise there are no reasons to sign such contracts.
Regarding the economic value in services that reduces energy and costs, only customer (H) mentioned this as an important value. As Omega uses a lot of
economic value in services in cooperation with Beta to reduce the effect since it also reduces cost and environmental impact. The customers also want to reduce the number of suppliers used in order to save time spent on finding the right supplier, but states that due to the sacrifice that must be made in form of costs when using Beta, it is not worth it. Both Gamma and Omega sees it as more beneficial to spend time and resources on finding suppliers that are cheaper on services and spare parts than using Beta.
“I would like to use Beta to a greater extent, but you have to stick to the most important thing because of the cost. So, in some cases, we have actually used smaller companies just because they are cheap and because some things they do just as well.”– Customer (H)
4.3. Functional value from sales perspective
A big reason for customers to choose Beta’s services according to the sellers are that the customers are scaling down their organization and consequently need to buy more services since they don’t have all the knowledge needed within the organization. Sales manager (D) says that because of their high technical competence, customers buy both services and products from Beta as they know they will receive high quality in both and that they can rely on the performance. Another reason for the customers to choose their services are because of that they have to use the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for warranties to be valid and due to the fact that they have constructional drawings for their sold products and services.
“The OEM supplier is the one who handles this and has a responsibility and knows what is required[..] firstly, we make constructional drawings and we are a big supplier, it should be safe to buy from us and know that they get the right quality” – Sales manager (D)
The functional value related to Betas technical competence are also mentioned related to the importance of reliability in products and services. If the equipment doesn’t work as supposed and the customers must perform unplanned maintenance it will get very expensive, Seller (B) stated that a great value is monitoring and docking plans to avoid unforeseen incidents.
"Follow-up and docking plans to avoid unplanned stops (like service of car), a great value is that the boats should only go. That we can stick to planned stops.”– Seller (B)
4.4. Functional value from customer perspective
The functional value for all the customers was frequently mentioned as the ratio between quality and price for the service offering. The customers mention that
