1. Define the various characteristics that differentiate services from products.
2. Adapting Services to the Internet
The way that services are offered to consumers is changing drastically because of the impact of the Internet. How have the following industries had to change to adapt to this technological change? Select one out of the four industries.
- Banking - Go to the US Bank homepage [https://www.usbank.com] and select internet banking from the homepage. Take at look at Citibank [https://www.citibank.com], and eMortgages.com [https://www.emortgages.com]
- Healthcare - Visit one of the following prescription drug sites: Lipitor [https://www.lipitor.com], Rogaine [https://www.rogaine.com], or Prozac [https://www.prozac.com]. Try one of these sites: Dentists.com [https://www.dentists.com], Healthline [https://www.healthline.com], or WebMD.com [https://www.webmd.com].
- Insurance - Log on to Best Quote US [https://www.bestquoteus.com/] and/or Instant Quote [https://www.instantquote.com]. How does this compare to the "old" way of buying insurance? Visit and explore some of the links.
- Travel - Visit one of the following travel sites: Cheaptickets.com [https://www.cheaptickets.com], Travelocity.com [https://www.travelocity.com], Expedia [https://www.expedia.com]. How have the growth of these online reservation sites affected the travel agencies? What role do Travel agencies now play in the marketplace?