A Services Marketing Mini Case Question 2

Read the Mini Case A Disappointing Experience' then answer the following questions.

Case:

Fiona and Grant had planned a weekend away at a favourite spot in the country that they hadnt visited for some years. They were keen to revisit the beautiful heritage B&B where they had stayed on their honeymoon, but what really captured their attention was information they read in a magazine about a special catered dinner served on an old steam train as it journeyed through the countryside. The menu looked really appealing and the pictures of the train and dinner carriage promised a memorable experience. This was confirmed by the people who ran the B&B who said that although they hadnt yet experienced the dinner train personally, they had heard lots of good reports about it. They also offered to make a booking for Fiona and Grant.

From Fiona and Grants perspective, however, the evening proved to be a great disappointment. First, to their surprise they found they were seated with another group of four rather than on their own as requested and as the pictures in the magazine suggested. When they registered their disappointment about this they were simply told that there were no tables for two available on the train. The quality of food also disappointed, partly because it was not nearly as appealing and palatable as had appeared in the magazine article and was not up to the standard they were accustomed to in the city, but also because the choice was very limited. To add to their disappointment, they found the ride somewhat bumpy, thus making it difficult to eat and drink without making a mess on table. Finally, the table service, provided mainly by young inexperienced and not very knowledgeable locals, also fell short of Fiona and Grants expectations based on their experience elsewhere. As a result, they relayed all of this to the B&B owners and suggested they not recommend the train to anyone else.

Questions:

Fiona & Grant experienced a gap between their service expectations & perceptions. Which SERVQUAL dimension seems to be the main contributor to this customer gap or is there more than one main source?