Characteristics of services: -

The characteristics of the services differentiate the services from the tangible goods .

1. Intangibility-Services are intangible and therefore cannot be touched, handled, smelt or tested  (physical senses) .This is because service itself is an activity . A services however, can be experienced . A service also gives a certain amount of satisfaction to the consumer. On account of the intangibility, there is no ownership created in case of services. A service can only be generated and used and can never be owned.

2. Heterogeneity/ Variability- Given the very nature of services, each service is offering is unique and can not be exactly repeated even by the same service provider while product can be mass produced and be homogenous the same is not true of services. e.g. All buyers of a particular  at Mc Donalds are almost identical .

However, the same  is not true of the  of the service rendered by the same counter staff consecutively to two customers.

 3. Perishability-Services can not be stored, saved, returned or resold once they have been used.

                              Once rendered to a customer the service is completely consumed and can not be delivered to another customer .e.g. A customer dissatisfied with the services of a barber can not return the service of the haircut that was rendered to him .

4.Inseparability/ Simultaneity of the production and consumption - This refers to the fact that services are generated and consumed within the same time frame . e.g. a hair cut is delivered to  consumed by a customer simultaneously unlike say a takeaway burger which the customer may consume even after a few hours of purchase .

       moreover, it is very difficult to separate a service from the service provider .

5. Ownership- No ownership is created in case of services. At the time of creating a service or delivering a service , the service provider dos not own the service . He only owns the physical infrastructure necessary to create the service. Similarly at the time of consumption or after the consumption , the service consumer does not own the service . He only consume the services .

                             After the consumption has only the experience but the service itself  would have become non-existent . A srevice can not be owned by anybody because it is basically an intangible product.