BEMM786

SERVICE DESIGN AND INNOVATION

EVALUATE OF SERVICE DELIVERED TO TOURISTS AT EXETER

CATHEDRAL

STUDENT NO: 720068723

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

S No Title Page

1 Customer Experience Mapping 1

Customer Satisfaction
2 Customer Experience Analysis Using Text Analysis. 6
3 Recommendations for Improvement 8
Introduction
Recommendations
Conclusion

4 References

TABLE OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Mean perception and mean expectation curves.......................................................................................3

Figure 2 average mean expectation, mean perception, and gap............................................................................4
Figure 3 satisfaction scores & mean average customer satisfaction score.............................................................4
Figure 4 descriptive analysis....................................................................................................................................5
Figure 5 ease of implementation vs impact.............................................................................................................9

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PART 1: CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE MAPPING

A customer experience map is a tool for visualising the interactions between a customer and a
company for identifying the various touch points that occur during the customer’s journey. The
customer experience maps at the Exeter cathedral are exacted based on the real time experiences of
visitors from their own perspective at four transactions a) on arrival, b) at the welcome desk, c) the
tour of the cathedral, d) and the amenities present at the cathedral, such as toilets, café, and shops. The
experiences of the visitors are classified as positive, neutral, and negative.

Based on the experience maps provided, we can learn that upon arrival at the cathedral, visitors
had a positive experience, which can be attributed to the cathedral's aesthetic appeal, spacious
location, and lively atmosphere. Furthermore, visitors provided positive feedback regarding the tour
of the cathedral. The positive experience of the visitors on arrival at the cathedral suggests that the
cathedral's physical environment and ambiance played a significant role in enhancing their overall
experience. The positive feedback regarding the tour of the cathedral also suggests that the visitors
were satisfied with the information and guidance provided during the tour.

The visitors' dissatisfaction and displeasure at the welcome desk and amenities is evident,
particularly in their feedback provided and recorded emotions. The neutral and negative experiences
at the welcome desk can be mainly attributed to the entrance fee, which did not align with the visitors'
expectations and resulted in a less favourable experience than anticipated. This gap between
expectations and actual experience led to dissatisfaction among the visitors. Additionally, the visitors
expressed dissatisfaction with the amenities at the cathedral, including a lack of toilets and better
shops, as well as a poor experience at the café. These factors further may have contributed to their
dissatisfaction affecting the customers perceive quality.

SERVQUAL is a well-known service quality measurement framework that is widely used in

various industries to assess and improve the quality of services provided to customers. As noted in
Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1988, It is based on a set of five dimensions, including reliability,
assurance, tangibles, empathy, and responsiveness, which are used to evaluate a service experience
from a customer's perspective. SERVQUAL measures the gap between customer expectations and
perceptions of the actual service provided, allowing organizations to identify areas for improvement
and enhance customer satisfaction.

Table 1.1 SERQUAL

Quality Item Mean Mean Gap

Dimension Expectation Perception
Tangibles 1 Up-to-date equipment 3.945 4.567 0.621
2 facilities visually appealing 4.189 5.567 1.1378
3 employees well dressed and appear 5.027 4.837 -0.189
neat
4 Appearance in keeping with the 4.540 5.432 0.891
type of service provided
Reliability 1 When they promise to do 5.567 4.648 -0.918
something by a certain time, they
do so

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 2 When customers have problems, 5.621 4.621 -1.000
they are sympathetic and reassuring
3 Dependable 4.432 5.378 0.945
4 Provide services at the time they 5.486 4.432 -1.054
promise to do so
5 Keep records accurately 4.513 4.621 0.108
Responsiveness 1 Tell customers exactly when 5.486 4.756 -0.729
services will be performed
2 It is realistic to expect prompt 5.405 5.000 -0.405
service from employees
3 Employees always willing to help 6.243 4.351 -1.891
customers
4 Employees should never be too 4.621 4.324 -0.297
busy to respond to customer
requests promptly
Assurance 1 Able to trust employees 5.540 4.621 -0.918
2 Customers feel safe in their 5.648 5.000 -0.648
transactions with employees
3 Employees are polite 6.027 5.270 -0.756
4 Employees get adequate support to 5.486 4.513 -0.972
do their jobs well
Empathy 1 Give customers individual attention 4.675 3.918 -0.756
2 Employees give customers 4.810 4.081 -0.729
personal attention
3 Employees know what the needs of 5.513 5.054 -0.459
customers are
4 Employees to have customer best 4.756 4.189 -0.567
interests at heart
5 Operating hours are convenient to 5.513 5.108 -0.405
all their customers

Table 1.2 – Average Score Gap

Quality Dimension Mean Expectation Mean Perception Gap

Tangibles 4.43 5.10 0.67
Reliability 5.12 4.74 -0.38
Responsiveness 5.44 4.61 -0.83
Assurance 5.68 4.85 -0.83
Empathy 5.05 4.47 -0.58

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CUSTOMER SATISFACTION

As noted by Roland Rust, Katherine Lemon, and Valarie Zeithaml (2004), customer
satisfaction is "a customer's overall evaluation of the performance of an offering to date". To assess
customer satisfaction, we analyse survey feedback scores that are based on questions related to
visitors' opinions about the Exeter Cathedral as a tourist attraction, as well as questions that examine
visitors' perceived experiences. These questions are broadly categorized into five dimensions:
Empathy, Assurance, Responsiveness, Reliability, and Tangibles. The evaluation of customer
satisfaction involves identifying the gap between visitors' expectations of their experience and their
perceived experience of it. This gap represents the difference between visitors' satisfaction and
dissatisfaction. If the perceived experience (P) is less than the expectation (E), it signifies
dissatisfaction amongst the visitors and vice versa. If P=E, it implies satisfaction. Figure 1 represents
Mean expectation and mean perception curves, from which it is evident that, clearly there are gaps in
what visitors are expecting vs what they are experiencing. Additionally, overall feedback score from
the survey data to gain a comprehensive understanding of the visitors' experience at the Exeter
Cathedral is also calculated. Figure 3 shows the mean average satisfaction score- an indication of the
average level of satisfaction among a group of respondents, and overall satisfaction. The mean
average customer satisfaction score is 4.32.

Mean Perception and Mean Expectation Curves

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10

0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12

Mean Expectation Mean Perception

FIGURE 1 MEAN PERCEPTION AND MEAN EXPECTATION CURVES

It also important to note that the expectations of the customers/visitors are influenced by
numerous factors. In the case of the cathedral, the entry price, poor reception, and lack of options for
shopping have influenced a sub-par experience for the visitors leading to dissatisfaction in those
transactions. Clearly visitors expect higher levels of empathy, responsiveness, and reliability from
staff, services, and operations, but their actual experiences fall short of these expectations. A negative
gap suggests that visitors are dissatisfied with these aspects of their experience, and it highlights areas
that need improvement to meet their expectations and increase their satisfaction levels. It is important
to identify the root causes of these gaps and take steps to address them, such as improving the

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physical environment, providing better training for staff, and enhancing operational processes. By
addressing these gaps, the Exeter Cathedral can improve visitor satisfaction and create a more positive
overall experience for its visitors.

By considering both the gap between expectations and perceived experience, as well as overall
feedback scores, we can gain valuable insights into customer satisfaction and identify areas for
improvement in the visitor experience. From figure 2, we can analyse the customer perceived quality
wherein the first four dimension have gaps in what the visitors have perceived vs what they have
expected from the visit which translates to negative experience or poor perceived service quality.

Average Mean Expectation, Mean Perception and Gap

Empathy

Assurance

Responsiveness

Reliability

Tangibles

-2 0 2 4 6 8 10 12

Mean Expectation Mean Perception Gap

FIGURE 2 AVERAGE MEAN EXPECTATION, MEAN PERCEPTION, AND GAP

Satisfaction Score & Mean Average Customer Satis-

faction Score
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0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

Satisfaction Mean Average Customer Satistaction

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 FIGURE 3 SATISFACTION SCORES & MEAN AVERAGE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION SCORE

From the data available in the survey, we shall perform descriptive analysis to analyse the
distribution of satisfaction levels among visitors. This analysis will help us understand the
characteristics of our visitors and their satisfaction levels. In the context of Exeter Cathedral's visitor
satisfaction data, we might use descriptive statistics to examine the distribution of satisfaction scores
and to identify any patterns or trends in the data. For example, we might calculate the mean and
standard deviation of the satisfaction scores and examine how these vary by demographic variables
such as age, gender, and visit frequency. We could also create charts or graphs to visualize the
distribution of satisfaction scores and to identify any outliers or anomalies in the data. These
techniques enable to evaluate insights at a much more granular level and understand the patterns
pertaining to the visitor’s experience, which in turn can be leveraged to improve the perceived service
quality in all the five dimensions.

The chart labelled 4 illustrates the results of a descriptive analysis conducted on the available
data. The analysis focuses on the mean satisfaction scores across different demographic variables,
such as age group, gender, visit frequency, and overall satisfaction scores. From the analysis we can
note that the satisfaction levels are more where the visit frequency is higher, and we can also observe
the satisfaction level in the age groups between 25-34 are higher. Insights like these can drive better
decision making for the cathedral directors.

30

25

20

15

Sum of Satisfaction
10 Sum of VisitFrequency

0
Male

Male
Female

Female

Male

Female

Female

Male

Female

Female

Male

Female

Male

15 16-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 and over

and
under

FIGURE 4 DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS

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Part 2: Customer Experience Analysis Using Text Analysis.

Text mining is an analytical process that seeks to uncover underlying structures and implicit
meanings present in textual data (Mikroyannidis and Theodoulidis 2006). Specifically, text mining
involves analyzing a corpus of documents by converting them into structured data, where each
document is described using a set of concepts, allowing for a comprehensive perspective of textual
and non-textual information (Mikroyannidis and Theodoulidis 2006).

Using the trip advisor data of Exeter Cathedral text analysis is performed, to analyse and
understand the unstructured text from the visitors feedback and derive meaningful insights from it.
This is acheived by converting the data i.e., unstructured, unsolicited customer feedback data into a
stuctured data using IBM SPSS modeler. IBM SPSS Modeler is a data mining and predictive analytics
software application that allows users to build predictive models quickly and intuitively without
requiring extensive programming skills. The software uses a graphical interface to help users visualize
their data and create predictive models through a process of data exploration, data preparation,
modeling, evaluation, and deployment. Using the modeler we conduct an analysis of the correlation
between visitor interactions with staff members at Exeter Cathedral and the ratings given by visitors
on TripAdvisor. The focus will be on investigating the extent and manner in which staff interactions
can impact visitor ratings. The approach involves conducting sentiment analysis of visitor feedback,
which will be accomplished by utilizing Text Link Analysis (TLA) to extract patterns and text link
rules from the Opinion Library and a user-defined library consisting of concept types. This will allow
for the identification of relevant concepts and insights from the feedback provided by visitors, which
can then be used to assess the impact of staff interactions on visitor ratings.

In IBM SPSS, categories are a way of representing nominal or ordinal variables that have a
limited number of possible values. Categories can be used in various analyses, including crosstabs,
frequencies, and descriptive statistics, to summarize and compare data based on these variables. Once
categories are created in SPSS, they can be used in analyses to examine patterns and relationships
among variables. In perfroming the cathedral text analysis staff negative attitude, staff negative
competence, staff positivie attitude, staff positivie competence are used to understand the sentiment of
a feedback pertaining to transaction at the welcome desk. Figure 1.1 represent the distribution of the
created categories with respect to vistor rating.

Secondly, Price negative and Price Positive categories are created that tells how each rating
group felt about the price, whether they felt positively or negatively about the price of the cathedral
service.

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 The categories "Price Negative" and "Price Positive" have been created to indicate the sentiment
of each rating group towards the price of the cathedral service. These categories are based on the
visitors' opinions and feelings about the cost of the service. The "Price Negative" category represents
the visitors who had a negative opinion about the price of the service, while the "Price Positive"
category represents the visitors who had a positive opinion about the price of the service.

By creating these categories, it is possible to analyze how visitors' ratings and opinions about
the price of the cathedral service vary across different rating groups. This information can be useful
for the service providers to understand the visitors' perception of the value of the service and to make
any necessary adjustments to the pricing strategy to improve the overall visitor experience.

In contemporary times, it is becoming increasingly common to incorporate both structured and

unstructured feedback when analyzing customer experiences, as noted by Witell et al. (2011).
Structured feedback, such as quantitative surveys, is now being considered alongside unstructured
feedback, including telephone calls, emails, and social media posts, which provide customers with the
freedom to express their experiences in a more unrestricted manner. This unstructured feedback is
typically presented in a verbatim format and is characterized by a more detailed account of the critical
elements of the customer experience.

It is also important to note that the scholarly literature on the subject is limited, with only a few
academic studies investigating these issues. Text mining for customer feedback analysis has primarily
focused on developing more precise models for automatically predicting the sentiment expressed in
textual data, as highlighted by Gra¨bner et al. (2012). Previous research has emphasized the utility of
various text mining methods, both linguistic and nonlinguistic in nature, for accurately predicting the
overall sentiment of customer reviews, as noted by Taboada et al. (2011). However, despite the
importance of sentiment identification, textual customer feedback contains more specific information
that has largely been neglected in the literature. Critical aspects of an organization's offering that
trigger sentiment evaluations have yet to be adequately explored.

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Part 3 Recommendations for Improvement

Introduction:

Exeter Cathedral is a popular tourist attraction and an important cultural and religious site in the
heart of the city of Exeter in Devon, UK. With a rich history dating back to the 12th century, it attracts
thousands of visitors each year. The cathedral attracts approximately 300,000 visitors each year,
including tourists, pilgrims, and local residents, with the majority of visitors coming from the UK.
The cathedral employs approximately 100 staff, including clergy, musicians, and administrative staff,
and supports a range of local businesses, including hotels, restaurants, and retail shops. The cathedral
offers a range of services and experiences to its customers, including guided tours, exhibitions, music
concerts, prayer services, and special events. It serves a range of customer segments, including
tourists, religious pilgrims, residents, and students. The cathedral's educational programs for schools
and groups, as well as its catering services for private events, provide additional value to its
customers.

According to the annual report of Exeter Cathedral 2021 (the latest report available on the Exeter
Cathedral website), the institution has a strong financial position with an annual income of 4.6 million
GBP, generated from a combination of fundraising, general donations, corporate activities, and
investment income. In addition, the cathedral has approximately 2.7 million GBP of reserves for
investments, indicating a commitment to long-term financial planning and sustainability. These
factors, along with a recent 4.3 million GBP grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund,
demonstrate the cathedral's recognition as a culturally and historically significant institution on a
national level.

Overall, Exeter Cathedral is a well-managed institution with a strong financial position and a
commitment to long-term sustainability. Its mission to serve the community with joy and grow in
prayer and discipleship ensures that it remains an important institution for generations to come. The
cathedral's cultural and religious significance, along with its economic impact as an important local
employer and driver of tourism, make it a vital part of the cultural and economic landscape of Devon.

Recommendations for improvement

Based on the analysis of the data collected in parts 1 and 2 following recommendations are suggested
to improve the customer experience at Exeter Cathedral.

Consider offering a donation system instead of an entrance fee: Some visitors were surprised by
the entrance fee and would prefer a donation system. By offering a donation system, visitors who
cannot afford the entrance fee can still enjoy the cathedral's beauty and learn about its history. (E1)

Improve the amenities and disabled toilet location: Visitors found the toilet location to be
inconvenient and the food at the café to be cold. Clearer signage could be placed to direct visitors to
the disabled toilets, and the café staff could be trained to ensure that the food is served at the correct
temperature. (E2)

Enhancing the Tour Experience: Based on the survey results, there is an opportunity to enhance the
tour experience for visitors. This could be achieved by improving the signage, audio guides, and the
quality of guided tours. Visitors would benefit from having more information about the Cathedral's
history, art, and architecture. (E3)

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Customer Service Training: The survey revealed that some visitors felt that the staff at Exeter
Cathedral were not welcoming or friendly. There is an opportunity to improve customer service by
providing training for staff on how to greet visitors, provide information, and handle complaints. Staff
could also be trained to promote the Cathedral's services and encourage visitors to return. (E4)

Address noise concerns: Visitors were worried about children making too much noise. The cathedral
could consider providing designated areas for families with children to explore, as well as a play area
outside the cathedral to allow children to run and play without disturbing other visitors. (E5)

Make the shop more visible: Some visitors found the shop to be a bit hidden away. By placing
signage directing visitors to the shop, more people may be encouraged to visit and purchase souvenirs.
(E5)

Improving Access: Some visitors with mobility issues reported difficulty in accessing the Cathedral.
There is an opportunity to improve accessibility by installing ramps, elevators, and other assistive
devices to ensure that all visitors can enjoy the Cathedral. (E6)

Innovative Services: The survey revealed that visitors would appreciate more innovative services,
such as virtual tours and interactive exhibits. This could be achieved by using technology to enhance
the visitor experience and create a more engaging and interactive tour. (E7)

Figure 5 represents ease of implementation of the recommendations vs the impact it might have on the
visitor’s experience, from organisational perspective.

FIGURE 5 EASE OF IMPLEMENTATION VS IMPACT

Conclusion:

In conclusion, Exeter Cathedral has the potential to offer a world-class visitor experience. By
enhancing the tour experience, improving customer service, improving access, and offering
innovative services, the Cathedral can attract more visitors and create a memorable experience for all.
The recommendations provided in this report take into account the strategic aims and financial
position of the Cathedral, as well as best practices in service and customer experience design.

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References

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Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A., & Berry, L. L. (1988). SERVQUAL: A multiple-item scale for
measuring customer perceptions of service quality. Journal of retailing, 64(1), 12-40.
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-4359(88)80002-0

Rust, R. T., Lemon, K. N., & Zeithaml, V. A. (2004). Return on marketing: Using customer equity to
focus marketing strategy. Journal of marketing, 68(1), 109-127.
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Mikroyannidis, A., & Theodoulidis, B. (2006). Text mining and its potential applications in business
intelligence. In Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Recent Advances in Soft
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387-33141-1_47

Witell, L., Kristensson, P., Gustafsson, A., & Löfgren, M. (2011). Idea generation: Customer co-
creation versus traditional market research techniques. Journal of Service Management, 22(2), 140-
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Gräbner, P., Pramatari, K., & Fischbach, K. (2012). Sentiment mining in social media—A state of the
art analysis. In Proceedings of the 20th European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS) (pp. 1-
12). Barcelona, Spain: Association for Information Systems. Available at
https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2012/57/

Taboada, M., Brooke, J., Tofiloski, M., Voll, K., & Stede, M. (2011). Lexicon-based methods for
sentiment analysis. Computational Linguistics, 37(2), 267-307.
https://doi.org/10.1162/COLI_a_00049

Exeter Cathedral Annual report 2021,

https://www.exeter-cathedral.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Consolidated-Financial-Statements-
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Laura Philips, Lecture Slides, Week 1 to 9, BEMM786- Service, Design and Innovation:
https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=14409

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