Service Quality: Revisiting The Two Factors Theory | Nimit Chowdhary & Monika Prakash

The present paper is based on the findings of the ongoing Ajmer Experiments. Ajmer Experiments are quasi-experiments that inquire into the consumer evaluation of service quality. The paper presents the two factors? theory of the author. The paper suggests that a more detailed approach is required wherein each factor needs to be considered independently and not as an aggregate dimension. The paper reports evidence to support two-factor theory for services that was discarded by earlier researchers. The paper argues to differentiate between the factors and the outcome of performance along these factors. The study describes the two factors as ?vantage factors? and ?qualifying factors?. Marketers need to be selective in that certain factors behave as vantage factors while others as qualifying factors. The two are different in nature and require a differential treatment. The paper also analyses the nature and behavior of these two types of factors. Managerial implications of these factors are also dealt with in this paper.