Commodities in the Service Sector: Particularities and Implications for Marketing

So far, the focus in the scientific discussion of commoditization has been primarily on products. The standardization of products, which is referred to as “commoditization,” has progressed further in recent years. Commodity offers can be observed in the industrial as well as the consumer sector. The development of new business models, e.g., operator or subscription models, such as IT or software as a service models, is a reaction to the commoditization of products and, in turn, also drives the commoditization of services. The rising degree of automation of basic services with simple, routine-based interactions is additionally reinforcing the trend toward the commoditization of services. The integration of homogeneous products and services into hybrid commodity offers is also expected to gain further momentum. The development of commodities is made possible by higher market and price transparency for consumers, also regarding services, due to the rapid development of comparison portals as well as a generally increasing polarization of purchasing behavior. Transferring and extending the findings of research concerning product commoditization into the field of commodity services appears to be of relevance. The aim of this chapter consists of a structured classification and discussion of the commodity concept in the field of services. In addition to the necessity of a conceptual clarification as well as the description of central characteristics of commodity services, the resulting peculiarities of consumer behavior in the context of this service type are also illuminated, and finally the strategic as well as operational perspectives for service providers are discussed.