An Introduction to Service Design

Service management literature acknowledges interactions as “the moment of truth” of services, the moment when value in services is constituted. “Service encounters” occur when a person (user) interacts with a service via a touchpoint. Touchpoints are the material face of services and comprise the artifacts that support the service’s interactions. They not only physically enable the interactions but also are key to make them better, more efficient, more meaningful, and more desirable. Services are therefore also material because they are anchored or supported by some kind of artifact. The interaction that happens in the moment of truth is crucial in determining the perceived value of the service for people, who at that point are able to assess results against cost and effort of the service provider.