The success of an online recovery strategy is largely attributed to the provider's response speed. Essentially, engagement in conversation with the customer immediately after he/she complains shortens the pre-recovery phase. Service firms expect complaints from consumers when a service failure occurs. Advances in modern information and communication technologies (ICT) infrastructures have changed the way in which customer-firm interactions take place and the nature of the conduct of services. Computer and internet technologies mean that services can be provided over long distances without the requirement for the physical presence of customers and employees. With the continued rapid development in the field of modern computer-mediated marketing environments (CMME) more and more services will be delivered in technology-mediated environments (TMEs). This chapter provides some insights on failure recovery strategies as competitive tools in computer-mediated marketing environments.
The Internet offers a platform over which complaining is effortless, yet impactful. A wide and geographically dispersed audience can be reached over the Internet, and compared to offline environments, switching is easier on the Internet since customers can browse, and look for alternative providers with ease. In light of this, gaining an understanding of how to manage online service failures effectively is crucial to the success of firms operating in online environments. Extant research has mainly investigated customer reactions to service failure and recovery encounters taking place in offline brick and mortar outlets. The internet, along with other emerging technologies offers consumers several platforms to interact with others and to subsequently complain about service failure. Drawing on extant studies, this chapter focuses on how service failure and effective recovery strategies can enhance the competitive position of organisations.
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