Consumer evaluation processes in a service setting

Through a child-care choice survey, a number of hypotheses put forward by Zeithaml concerning the process of consumer search for services are tested. Findings include: 1. Personal sources of information about services are far more important to buyers than are mass media sources. 2. Consumers limit their search to one or 2 service providers. 3. Price and physical attributes of services play a less important role in choice than experiential, abstract attributes. 4. Consumers do not generally switch service providers voluntarily.