What are the services? Explain their distinct characteristics.

A service is an economic activity that is intangible and implies an interaction to be realized between the service provider and the consumer. They are separately identifiable, and intangible activities that provide the satisfaction of wants, and are not necessarily linked to the sale of a product or another service.

The features of services are explained below:

a. The services are intangible and experiential in nature. They cannot be touched. It is not possible to assess its quality before its consumption. So it is important for the service providers to work dedicatedly to create a desired service for the customer to have a good experience. For example, you cannot touch a doctor's treatment. You cannot assess it before undergoing the same. So it is important for the doctors to provide the treatment so that the customer has a favorable experience.

b. The services have to be performed differently every time because there is no standard tangible product. Different customers have different demand and different expectations. The service has to be altered every time to meet the requirement of the customers. For example the mobile services.

c. Service is a simultaneous activity of production and consumption is performed. The production and consumption of services are inseparable. Although it is possible that the service provider designs a substitute for the person by using the appropriate technology but the interaction with the customer remains an important feature of the service. For example, the ATM machines have replaced the banking clerks for the front office activities like a cash withdrawal. But at the same time, the presence of the customer is important.

d. Services do not have any tangible component and cannot be stored for a future purpose. Some service providers can store some associated goods but not the service itself. For example, a railway ticket can be stored but the railway journey will be experienced only when the railway provides it.

e. The participation of the customer in services is important for the service delivery process. The customer can get his service modified according to his own requirement.