Services

Marketing
Project
Hotel Saravana Bhavan
Akriti, Ishita, Khadija, Rakesh and
Sanaa

Statement of Purpose:
Every organization requires a mystery shopping technique which gives the customers
view on a different basis. This element is prominent and apparent in each
organizational scenario which needs to be managed in a planned way as to carve the
best possible results.
The basic concept of using secret shoppers is to have individuals experience real-time
and onsite quality of services and record how the mystery shoppers felt about the
quality of services and if the employees met or exceeded the companys standards
Aim: To use the mystery shopping technique as a method of assessing the quality of
product and services in a restaurant (Saravana Bhavan).
Objectives:

To assess the quality of product in the restaurant i.e. Saravana Bhavan

To assess the effectiveness and quality of staff
To assess the service environment on the basis of the following parameters

mainly: The cleanliness, appearance and ambience of the restaurant

To suggest ways of improving the product and services in the restaurant
To suggest strengths and weaknesses of the customer service experience at
Saravana Bhavan

About the Restaurant

Location Connaught Place
50 Janpath, Near Palika Bazar, Near McDonald's, Connaught Place, New Delhi
Cuisine: South Indian
Hotel Saravana Bhavan is one of the largest vegetarian restaurant chain in the world,
founded in 1981 offering south Indian cuisine. They have more than 20 outlets in
Chennai , 33 in India and 47 around the world
Services offered by Saravana Bhavan
Fast Food, Take Away, Home Delivery, Outdoor Catering, Party Orders and more.
Review of literature:

The trend of food and beverage industries in India is growing in the positive direction
because of the customer behavior of eating out. Many reasons, hungry, social business
and personal reason, affect guests to visit the restaurant. Whatever the reason,
customers expect their dining experience to be positive (Ninemeier and Hayes, 2006).
Developing high-quality dining experience (Rong and Jun, 2012) is the better way to
create value of service to attraction (Sandstrm et al, 2008). Increasing market
competition and growing customer service demands influence the organization to
improve efficiency the service processes (Mascio, 2007).
The good service process is the first for the restaurant to gain competitive advantage,
to marketing success and to growing (Hee and Young, 2001). Restaurants that use the
delivery of high service quality have the stronger competitive position (Kit and Ka,
2001).

Customer Satisfaction and Customer Expectation

The outcome of customers evaluation of a service is the satisfaction that
based on a comparison of the recognition of service delivery with their previous
expectations
Restaurants need to understand the customers service expectations that are essential
for delivering greater service because they represent implicit performance standards
that customers use in assessing service quality. Customer expectations include two
levels are desired expectation and adequate expectation. Desired expectations
represented the customer wanted the service to perform that the service should be.
Customer satisfaction and perceived quality
Customer satisfaction is defined as a customers overall evaluation of his or her
purchase and consumption experience of a good or service. In addition, perceived
quality refers to consumers judgment about the performance of product or service.
Researchers in marketing generally agree that satisfaction and perceived quality are

two of the most fundamental elements in effective service management as well as

highly inter-related.

Customer Experience and Service Process

Services are the experience that depends on human and delivery system.
Because of the growing of Service Business, the organization should move into the
customer experience management that is importance to creating customer loyalty by
creating meaningful and memorable. (Bitner et al., 2007).
Experience can be determined as the aggregate and increasing customer awareness
created during the process of learning about, obtaining and using a product or service
(Jiang, 2008). Customer experience has been treated as embedded in service quality. It
is also measured by comparing expectations before, and perceptions after the
experience, or perceptions only, through different predetermined service attributes
(Walter et al, 2010).
Service process is the part of the customers experience creation. (Johnston and Clark,
2001:2005) That includes the human element (the people who interacting with
customers) and the material production process (Ford and Heaton, 2000). The service
process is a collection of activities that represents all of the steps over a period of time
(Bitner et al., 2007).

Previous studies on customer expectation and service-quality perception in the

foodservice industry have revealed certain important attributes, such as low price,
food quality, value for money, service, location, brand name, and image (Tam, Yung,
2003). Food plays a pivotal role in the restaurant experience and its taste,
presentation, textures, colors, temperature, freshness, nutritive value and smell are

identified by restaurant guest as important quality attributes. The portions size and
menu variety are considered as determinants enhancing pleasure in the food
experience. Service delivery is an integral part of a restaurant product, and
employees performance and attitude play a crucial role in the process. Successful
restaurants employ managers and employees who perform at a high level and work to
accomplish the restaurants goals. Restaurant employee are expected to be competent,
attentive, fast, friendly, helpful, prompt, empathetic, honest and responsible. All these
qualities are integral part of assessing the quality of service staff. Dining is more than
eating out for a majority of guests who may not want to feel at home. They may seek
a memorable experience away from home, and physical environment can play a
critical role in creating that memorable experience. Facility aesthetics, ambience,
lighting, table settings, layout, and service staff are elements of a physical
environment that had a significant impact on customer revisit intention and a
restaurants brand image. Perceived price fairness is a critical factor influencing
customer satisfaction. Therefore, it is crucial to be in accordance with the quality in
order to escape guests dissatisfaction, complaining, and bad WOM (Word-of-mouth).

Table showing restaurant quality dimensions

Construct
Food quality

Variable
tastiness of food, menu variety, nutrition, food
is served at the appropriate temperature, food
presentation is attractive, serving size, menu

Service quality

design, healthy options, freshness

employees are always willing to help me,
employees have the knowledge to answer my
questions, the chain restaurant brand has my
best interests at heart, staff appearance,

Physical environment

attentive stuff, friendly dining managers

dcor, ambience, facility aesthetics, lighting,
layout, table settings, and service

Price fairness

staff

appearance
good value for money, resaonable price items,
overall value of the dining experience

Types of restaurants
Restaurants can follow various formats, but some commonly known formats are the
Quick Service, Fast Casual and Casual Dining formats. Among the most common
Restaurants formats are the following:

Casual Dining: Serves moderately priced food in a casual atmosphere. Except

for buffet-style restaurants, casual dining restaurants typically provide table
service. They usually have a full bar with separate bar staff and a limited wine

menu. E.g.: Saravana Bhavan

Quick Service: Speed of service and low cost are key considerations in this
format. A feature that distinguishes them from traditional restaurants is
absence of crockery and cutlery. The customer is expected to eat the food

directly from the disposable container it was served in. E.g.: McDonalds
Fast Casual: Promises a somewhat higher quality of food and atmosphere than

Quick
Service. Average prices charged are higher than quick service prices and nondisposable plates and cutlery are sometimes offered. This category is a

growing concept that fills the space between fast food and casual dining
Fine Dining: These are full service restaurants with specific dedicated meal
courses. Dcor of such restaurants feature higher quality materials with an eye
towards the ambience desired by the restaurateur. The wait staff is usually
highly trained and often wears more formal attire. E.g.: Oh! Calcutta

Mystery shopping as a tool to learn services marketing

A popular technique used in consumer research to evaluate the effectiveness of retail
staff is the 'mystery shopper' technique.
Mystery shopping can be a critical component of a companys toolbox to develop
and maintain service standards. It has been used extensively in a variety of industries,
including the hospitality industry, for this very purpose. It can also serve as a means
for helping to maintain a sustainable business model, in todays consumer driven
world.
The mystery shopper process involves a group of people who are selected and trained
by an enterprise or organization that provides a mystery shopper service. These

mystery shoppers disguise themselves as customers to gather information (Cobb,

1995; Dwek, 1996). After visiting the restaurant, the mystery shopper completes a
series of detailed reports to provide the principal with relevant information, such as
front-line staff performance, product quality, service delivery procedures and other
potential problems involving the evaluated organization (Finn and Kayande, 1999;
Finn, 2001).
Mystery shopping can take various forms: it might be syndicated or ad hoc; it might
be qualitative or quantitative; it might be structured or unstructured. It can be selfstanding or part of other research. The mode is also variable: it can be by telephone or
in person; it has even been extended to the Internet, where shoppers evaluate online
outlets.
The mystery shopper is a technique applying the anonymous observation of a service
delivery procedure from a customer perspective Moreover, mystery shopper methods
were applied to explore the influence of emotion displayed by contact personnel on
consumption expenditure and re-patronage intentions.In addition, the mystery
shopper method has also been applied in other service industries to evaluate service
quality.
Furthermore, mystery shoppers provided useful information about the service quality
at various levels. The mystery shoppers evaluated the sales effectiveness of restaurant
staff on several factors including whether the staff listened to their customers, if the
tellers were friendly, and how long it took to serve a customer, as well as other aspects
of the hospitality services.
In the restaurant industry, mystery shoppers observations provides good index for
measuring restaurants service quality (Lynn, 2002). The advantages of mystery
shopper are that the anonymous inspector which analyzes the needs of all customers
and could collect a large amount of information of customer reaction
for restaurants (Oronsky and Chathoth, 2007). For another perspective, compare to
customer surveys, mystery shopping also provides a cost-effective method and
different feedback for restaurants (Mathe and Slevitch, 2013). This is due to before
the evaluation process, the mystery shopper need to experience the necessary
professional training and therefore will provide the feedback necessary to appraise

restaurants service (Urban, 2013). Therefore as suggested by the literature above, this
paper used mystery shoppers observations when conducting restaurants rating.
Mystery Shopping as Part of the Service Delivery Process
A companys goals often aim to train its employees to consistently deliver quality
services. Concurrently, mystery-shopping measurement has been used effectively to
objectively evaluate whether employees follow the visions of a companys quality
service. Areas that are often measured during a mystery shopping visit include the
condition of the driveway, condition and lighting of the parking area, lighting and
general maintenance of the front area, security, pavement surface, landscapes, outdoor
signage, clear direction, accessibility, the cleanliness of the foyer and the lobby,
timely assistance, greeting manners, friendless and professionalism of staff and
managers, effectiveness of greeting and serving procedures, and quality of services
throughout the visit. Mystery shopping visits can also determine if there are visible
and clear exits, functional facilities, and instructions about what should be done in
case of fire and other emergencies.
Based on the outcome of a mystery shoppers observation and experience, a
hospitality business may consider establishing training strategies to ensure that the
quality of services meet and/or exceed company policies and standards. For example,
a ringing phone needs to be picked up within seven seconds, a front-door greeting
needs to be performed within seven seconds, the waiting time for check-in and checkout should not exceed five minutes, a staff member cannot pass a guest without
greeting them, and staff members should assist customers in a pleasant voice and with
professional manners. Examining the quality of food items, pleasant facilities, and
retaining the potential and existing customers with bonus offers and extra assistance
will be a good strategic start.
Mystery shopping has been criticized for wasting time and money in service
encounters that do not result in sales and may lose other legitimate customers.
Additionally, the morale of employees can be affected; there may be fear of
disciplinary action or loss in wages. Finally, there may be a real loss of earnings by
staff who rely on sales-related commissions or bonuses. Codes of conduct cover
'mystery shopping'. The ESOMAR (1999) Mystery Shopping Guide, for example,

recommends that, if there are difficulties in following any of the guidelines, mystery
shopping should not be carried out.

Other ethical issues are also involved in mystery shopping. Because this involves
observing people without their informed consent, the mystery shopper technique
raises numerous ethical issues, including those related to the lack of informed consent,
and misrepresentation and deceit, since an inherent feature of mystery shopping is to
pretend to be a customer. These issues are particularly pronounced if the encounter is
recorded in some way as this has even greater potential to violate their privacy, also
thereby potentially raising legal considerations.

The restaurant: Saravana Bhavan

The restaurant industry is continuously growing worldwide. As the number of
restaurants increase, people have many options for choosing a restaurant. When guests
dine out at a restaurant, they cognitively evaluate what they experience. Hotel
Saravana Bhavan is one of the largest vegetarian restaurant chains in the world,
founded in 1981 offering south Indian cuisine. They have more than 20 outlets
in Chennai , 33 in India and 47 around the world They offer about 350 different dishes
in over 10 categories.
Methodology:
Mystery shopping: The primary technique used in the present study was the mystery
shopping technique. The mystery shopping technique is a method of assessing the
quality of product and services in a Saravana Bhavan. The mystery shopper technique
is a method whereby a researcher assumes the role of a customer unknown to the
Customer Services staff. This gives the researcher a good idea of the experience of a
customer in that particular establishment. The data collected is often seen as freer
from errors as it is first hand and does not rely on secondary accounts or self-reports.
Also, the researcher is seeing what the staff actually do, not what they would choose
to do, say they would do, or are supposed to do.

We were a group of five mystery shoppers who visited the selected restaurant with the
objective of assessing the customer services and product. We booked different tables:
one for a group of two and the other group of 5 and behaved as average customers.
We however made observations, inquires, asked for help, made contact with the staff
in order to fulfill our predecided objectives.
Rating Scale: Although Mystery shopping technique was considered an appropriate
qualitative method for fulfilling our exploratory objectives yet to give it more
objectivity a 5 point Likert type rating scale was also used. Secret shopper survey
form restaurant published by DownTown Development Roechester with certain
changes suitable in the present context was used.
Service-Blueprinting: This is a service planning help tool. Coenen et al. (2011)
defines a service blueprint as visually displays activities by simultaneously
depicting the process of service delivery, the points of customer contact, the roles of
customers and employees, and the physical surrounding of the perceived process. It
can be used for developing new innovative services as well as for improving existing
services. The method is also appropriate for ensuring the quality of service processes.
It can also be used for new employee training or for showing clients a service cycle
overview. The Service-Blueprinting output consists of a graphically-presented
overview of the service process and its activities. Service-Blueprinting allows for
visualization of the service development process in its early stages. In each process
step, contact points between client and firm (and physical element, if a tangible
service) become visible. It is possible to identify failure points and discover areas for
innovation as well. This technique eases the identification of cost saving potentials
and offers an excellent base for further Service-process management.
A typical service blueprint consists of five components (Bitner et al., 2007):
(1) Customer actions: All of steps that show the customers activity.
(2) Onstage/visible contact employee actions: Face-to-face actions between
the customers and employees
(3) Backstage/invisible contact employee actions: All of the employee
actions, but the customer cant see.
(4) Support processes: All the tangibles that customers are exposed to that can
influence their quality perceptions.

(5) Physical evidence: All the activities carried out by individuals and units within the
company who are not contact employees.

Data and results:

Data Study is based upon both primary and secondary data sources.
Primary Data Sources:
5 point rating scale: Secret shopper survey form restaurant. The scale
measured 4 dimensions including restaurant appearance, restaurant
staff, food and miscellaneous. The examples for each dimension are
given below:
1. Restaurant

Appearance:

Was

the

restaurants

outside

appearance attractive Did the restaurant have curb appeal?

2. Restaurant Staff: Were you promptly greeted by the
host/hostess?
3. Food: What is your overall impression of the menu selection?
4. Miscellaneous: This did not have any ratings but had two
questions: What was your total amount spent? Were the
restaurant hours convenient? Yes/No

Informal talk with the staff

Informal talk with the customers
Observations

Secondary Data Sources: Collection of data from

The official website of Hotel Saravana Bhavan

Various media platforms (Article, journals etc.).

Data Analysis
Two types of analysis were carried out. The quantitative analysis was carried out on
the rating scale while a qualitative analysis was carried out on the informal talks and
the observations.

Quantitative Analysis: Means and standard deviations were calculated for the three
dimensions of Secret shopper survey form restaurant including restaurant
appearance, restaurant staff, and food.

Table 1: Showing means and SD for Secret shopper survey form restaurant on restaurant
appearance
Mean
(n=5)

Standard
deviation

0.20

0.11

3. Was the restaurant clean and attractive inside?

0.15

4. Was the host/hostess area attractive and spacious?

0.31

5. How do you feel about the overall appearance of the

restaurant?

0.22

Overall average

2.2

Restaurant appearance
1 indicates requiring improvement while 5 indicates
excellent
1. Was the restaurant's outside appearance attractive?

2. Did the outside appear to be clean - clear sidewalks,

clean windows and doors, etc.?

Table 2: Showing means and SD for Secret shopper survey form restaurant on restaurant
staff.
Mean
(n=5)

Standard
deviation

0.10

2. Was the greeting friendly & professional?

0.12

3. Were you seated promptly?

0.13

Restaurant Staff
1 indicates requiring improvement while 5 indicates
excellent
1. Were you promptly greeted by the host/hostess?

4. Was the server knowledgeable about the menu selection?

0.21

5
5. Did the server suggest a beverage or appetizer?

0.21

6. Was the server's appearance appropriate to the nature of

the restaurant?

0.22

7. Was the greeter's appearance appropriate to the nature of

the restaurant?

0.23

8. Did the food arrive in a timely fashion?

0.29

9. Did the server check back with you during the course of
your meal?

0.30

Overall average

Table 3: Showing means and SD for Secret shopper survey form restaurant
on restaurant food.
Mean
(n=5)

Standard
deviation

0.20

2. Did your meal arrive as ordered?

0.18

3. How would you rate the overall food presentation?

0.75

4. Did the food meet expectations, i.e. quality, temperature?

1.34

5. Was the menu item a good value for the price?

1.30

6. At the completion of your meal, did your server invite

you to return?

Overall average

3.8

Food
1 indicates requiring improvement while 5 indicates
excellent
1. What is your overall impression of the menu selection?

0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0

Average Score
Percentage

Table 4 showing average percentage score for each factor

Phone Inquiry
Was the telephone answered promptly
and professionally?
Was the telephone answered in a
friendly and enthusiastic manner?
Were all of your questions answered
accurately?

Yes

No
3

Table 5: Frequency Table showing the anwers of Phone Inquiry in Yes/No form

In-person Inquiry
Yes
No
Was your question answered promptly and
4
1
professionally?
Was it answered in a friendly and enthusiastic
4
1
manner?
Were all of your questions answered accurately?
3
2
Table 6: Frequency Table showing the answers of Phone Inquiry in Yes/No form
Qualitative Analysis: We first discussed and wrote down all our observations on
various criteria that we had predecided. We then tried to take out pertinent themes
from our observations and talks with the staff.

Interpretation and Discussion

Phone Inquiry
Among the five mystery shoppers , three mystery shoppers were randomly selected to
make a phone inquiry at Hotel Saravana Bhavan.
The first mystery shopper inquired about the location of the restaurant , the second
and third inquired whether the restaurant takes any reservation
All the mystery shoppers rated telephone manners positively on the following
parameters
Response Time: The staff member picked up the call after around 5 rings .
Speech Clarity: The staff member was able to guide the mystery shopper in an
understandable manner
Courtesy: The mystery shopper was greeted by the staff member
Accuracy of Directions: The location of the restaurant was given in a clear
manner.
Inquiry in Person
All the five mystery shoppers made a personal inquiry to the concerned staff member
whether there is a reservation policy. In contrast with the staff member who answered
our telephone call, the concerned person answered in a less courteous manner.
Perhaps the reason attributed can be the long queue which the staff member had to
handle.
7 Ps of Service
Product/Service Delivery: Saravana Bhavan mostly serves South Indian Vegetarian
Cuisine. When we reached Saravana Bhavan there was a huge crowd outside and on
further enquiries we were told by the restaurant manger that we would have to wait
for 20 minutes in order to get a table for five. There was no sitting place outside and
no arrangement of calling the guests on the phone once the table was available. This
was definitely a big drawback of the restaurant and some people were leaving and
going to nearby restaurants.
In our experience, the food was slightly cooler than we would have wished for.
Nonetheless, we could tell the restaurant had established strict standards around
measurable specifications (quality, quantity, timing). However, one food item on the
menu was not available even though it was the peak hour. Fresh lime soda was served
with the ingredients but on request, the waiter gladly made it for us. One of the items
(Laddoo) was served in an innovative packaging (spherical container, photo in

collage), which was fascinating for all us. Yet, it was difficult to open and so we asked
the waiter for help. He, too, seemed to have trouble opening it. Dosas were served on
banana leaves something unheard of in city like Delhi. What impressed all of us was
the swiftness with which our food was served. Overall, the taste, presentation,
textures, colors, freshness, nutritive value and smells of the food were definitely very
positive. The portions size and menu variety were also something we had not
experienced in other restaurants serving South Indian food. .
People: The staff was efficient but not particularly friendly. We were served water
within the first 2 minutes of sitting yet were not greeted. In contrast, a man simply
pointed out our seats to us on entering the restaurant. We also noticed that most of the
staff was from South India and had good knowledge about the products they were
offering. The staff was very busy running around and taking orders from the myriad
of guests. Hence, it was kind of difficult to place a order. It took the waiter 10 minutes
to provide us with a menu card and that too after asking; the reason could be that we
arrived at the peak hour. We were also asked to leave after we finished our food and
could not chat. We found this humiliating.
The people sitting next to us were celebrating a birthday and became very loud at
times. Some other restaurants deal with such situations by creating a different section
for celebrations.
Place: Saravana Bhavan is currently has 3 main outlets in Delhi two in Connaught
Place (Block P and Janpath) and one in Karol Bagh while there are many smaller
outlets in Malls. It is located in busy main streets to allow walk in customers. Yet,
what we found disappointing was lack of parking space.
Promotions - Creating Expectations - External vs. Internal: Since a service offering
can be easily replicated promotion becomes crucial in differentiating a service
offering in the mind of the consumer. Thus, service providers offering identical
services invest heavily in advertising their services.
Saravana Bhavan, however, doesnt heavily rely on advertising and marketing but on
simple, quality food and the good word of mouth by its customers. However, one

innovative method of advertising was observed when we were seated on the table.
The restaurant had placed a sheet which had listed all the locations around the world
where the branches of the restaurant are located. The list is definitely impreesive.
Pricing: Pricing of services is tougher than pricing of goods. While the latter can be
priced easily by taking into account the raw material costs, in case of services
attendant costs - such as labor and overhead costs - also need to be factored in. Thus a
restaurant not only has to charge for the cost of the food served but also has to
calculate a price for the ambience provided.
The price for two (Masala dosa, plain dosa, fresh lime and ladoo) in Saravana Bhavan
is around Rs. 500 which we found reasonable. The food was very filling.
Process: The process of service delivery is crucial since it ensures that the same
standard of service is repeatedly delivered to the customers. Therefore, most
companies have a service blue print which provides the details of the service delivery
process, often going down to even defining the service script and the greeting phrases
to be used by the service staff.
Physical Evidence: Since services are intangible in nature most service providers
strive to incorporate certain tangible elements into their offering to enhance customer
experience. For this reason, restaurants invest heavily in their interior design and
decorations to offer a tangible and unique experience to their guests.
Type of Servicescape:
Interpersonal Service as it involves interaction between both the customers and
employees.
Hotel Saravana Bhavan is a high contact service where customers are an integral part
of service
Service Environment of Hotel Saravana Bhavan :
Ambience :In our experience, Saravana Bhavan paid minimal attention to interiors
and exteriors of the restaurant.There was no music playing so it was very loud due to
other customers Yet the hygiene was paid close attention to- the floors and tables were

being cleaned regularly unlike in other competing restaurants like Haldiram where
one must wait for the tables to be cleaned.
Spatial Layout and Functionality :The seats were uncomfortable and kept too close to
other tables. One element missing was a waiting area, which crowded the entrance
making it difficult to enter or leave the place. Further, Saravana Bhavan has unisex
bathroom which was not well maintained. This made our experience less enjoyable.
Dimensions of Secret shopper survey form restaurant
Based on the qualitative analysis the following conclusions can be drawn on the four
dimensions of Secret shopper survey form restaurant including restaurant
appearance, restaurant staff, and food.
Restaurant Appearance: This included questions related to outside appearance;
cleanliness of sidewalks, windows and doors, etc cleanliness and attractive inside,
attractiveness and space inside. Overall the rating obtained on this dimension was
only 2.2 which is much below average and needs some improvement. The restaurant
takes no responsibility of keeping the surrounding areas clean and hence has received
very low ratings on this dimension. However putting some greenery and making the
exteriors more attractive can further boost the image of the restaurant.
Restaurant Staff: This dimension included questions related to whether the customers
were greeted by the host/hostess and if yes then whether the greeting was friendly &
professional, whether the guests were seated promptly, whether the server
knowledgeable about the menu selection, whether the server suggest a beverage or
appetizer, appropriateness of the server's appearance to the nature of the restaurant,
appropriateness of the greeter's appearance to the nature of the restaurant, whether the
food arrived in a timely fashion, and whether the server checked back with the
customer during the course of the meal. Overall the rating obtained on this dimension
was only 3 which is average and can still be improved. Very low ratings were
obtained on four questions: Were you promptly greeted by the host/hostess? Was the
greeting friendly & professional? Were you seated promptly? Did the server check
back with you during the course of your meal? Thus the management of the restaurant

needs to improve on the welcome of the customers and the waiting lines outside need
to be managed more effectively. For e.g. like some restaurants, Sarvana Bhavan can
also take phone numbers of the waiting people outside the restaurant and ring them
some time before the tables are available.
Food: This dimension related to overall impression of the menu selection, whether the
meal arrived as ordered, overall food presentation, whether the food meet
expectations, i.e. quality, temperature, whether the menu item was a good value for
the price, and whether the server invited the customer to return. Overall the rating was
quite dimension was quite high i.e. 3.8. Only one question got a very low rating i.e.
At the completion of your meal, did your server invite you to return? where the
rating obtained was 1 and hence needs to be looked into by the management.
On the basis of our experience the following strengths and weaknesses can be inferred
Strengths
Food: The food is the USP of the restaurant ,we can also infer that the service
quality is perhaps acceptable for most of our shoppers because the core
product is excellent
Response Time: The food was delivered within 10 minutes of ordering
Reasonable Price: As the price is very reasonable, Saravana Bhavan is
definitely one of our top choices in South Indian Cuisine .The low price can be
attributed to the mediocre service quality as its not a proper dining restaurant
where customers are actually encouraged to stay longer.
Cleanliness of the Restaurant
Weaknesses
Long Queue : This deserves much attention as a lot of customers chose to
leave the restaurant owing to long queues and went to McD instead which is
not even a direct competitor in terms of cuisine
No Greetings from the Staff Member
Hotel Saravana Bhavan claims to be a traditional South Indian restaurant;
although the food quality is excellent the staff involved were not very active
Ambience and Layout: Lighting and loud noise makes the experience a little
bitter. Also many customers do not prefer Unisex bathrooms.

 No checking whether customer requires any assistance :In two instances where
our mystery shoppers had ordered a fresh lime soda (required to be actually
made) and Laddoo (was packed and required assistance in order to get it
opened)
Customers asked to leave : Owing to the long queues where other customers
are waiting , as soon as you finish your meal you are asked to leave.Although
this is a tactic as Saravana Bhavan believes in serving as many customers as
possible it can leave a not so pleasant experience at the end for the customer
Recommendations
1) In the case of Unsatisfactory Food

Have servers explain the menu and dishes

Describe the hotness scale

Allow a discount or another dish free of charge in case of dissatisfaction

2) In case of Poor Service

Develop sound hiring practices to ensure that the right people are hired for the
job

Train employees to manage people and treat customers well

Ensure servers are attentive and aware of the stage the customers are at the
meal

Empower Employees

3) Long Wait to be seated

Allow reservations to be made online and by phone

Hand out menus while customers wait

Be friendly and give accurate length of time of wait

Allow customers to leave and come back if faced with a long wait

Blueprint Implications
1. Marketing

Minimize service design and standards gap.

Examine service from customer point of view

Determine if customer expectations are met

Indicate customer co-creation in marketing

2. Human Resources

Highlight areas where training and recruitment are particularly important

Hire a host / hostess that greets the customer upon arrival as it is important for
customers first impressions

The Host/Hostess should make more eye contact with the customers.

HR should emphasize that the host/hostess be friendly and efficient

3. Operations

Highlights interdependency between employees

Dependency on Technology

Importance of Service innovation

Conclusions:
Saravana Bhavans dining room will never win a beauty contest. We would say that its
best for us to ignore the dcor and enjoy the dosa.
Many hospitality businesses have utilized mystery-shopping approaches to examine
their quality of services and various areas that need to be improved in all aspects.
Tourism, hospitality, retail, banking and other various businesses have also used
mystery shopping over the last two decades. Past studies have examined the quality of
hospitality and tourism services based on guest expectations and preferences
The basic concept of using mystery shoppers is to have individuals experience realtime and onsite quality of services and record how the mystery shoppers felt about the
quality of services and if the employees met or exceeded the companys standards.
For this reason, we believe that this mystery shopping, in hospitality business like
Saravana Bhavan, is an important means of developing and maintaining a sustainable
business. While the sustainability of a business is largely dependent upon people,
profits and planet in the hospitality industry, it is also dependent upon meeting
service standards and developing a feedback loop. Mystery shopping programs have
demonstrated their ability to contribute to organizations in this regard

Appendix
Questionnaire
Answer in Yes/No form
Phone Inquiry
Was the telephone answered promptly and professionally?
Was the telephone answered in a friendly and enthusiastic manner?
Were all of your questions answered accurately?
Inperson Inquiry
Was your question answered promptly and professionally?
Was it answered in a friendly and enthusiastic manner?
Were all of your questions answered accurately?

Rate the following as

1 indicates requiring improvement while 5 indicates excellent
Restaurant appearance
1. Was the restaurant's outside appearance attractive?
2. Did the outside appear to be clean - clear sidewalks, clean windows and doors, etc.?
3. Was the restaurant clean and attractive inside?
4. Was the host/hostess area attractive and spacious?
5. How do you feel about the overall appearance of the restaurant?
Restaurant Staff
1. Were you promptly greeted by the host/hostess?
2. Was the greeting friendly & professional?
3. Were you seated promptly?
4. Was the server knowledgeable about the menu selection?
5. Did the server suggest a beverage or appetizer?
6. Was the server's appearance appropriate to the nature of the restaurant?

7. Was the greeter's appearance appropriate to the nature of the restaurant?

8. Did the food arrive in a timely fashion?
9. Did the server check back with you during the course of your meal?
Food
1. What is your overall impression of the menu selection?
2. Did your meal arrive as ordered?
3. How would you rate the overall food presentation?
4. Did the food meet expectations, i.e. quality, temperature?
5. Was the menu item a good value for the price?
6. At the completion of your meal, did your server invite you to return?