Pricing objectives and their antecedents in the services sector

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into how service firms price the services that they render in the market. In particular, the association between the pricing objectives that they pursue and the organizational and environmental characteristics that influence pricing decisions are investigated.

Design/methodology/approach

Data are collected from 170 companies operating in six different service sectors in Greece through personal interviews. Moreover, qualitative research through 26 in‐depth interviews is also conducted.

Findings

Following the classification scheme put forward by Avlonitis and Indounas, it can be concluded that a combination of different organizational and environmental characteristics leads to each one of the eight pricing objectives examined in the study.

Research limitations/implications

The above findings indicate the need to treat pricing decisions using a contingency approach. Formulating a specific pricing objective requires an examination of certain organizational and environmental concerns. The significance of these findings notwithstanding, the context of the study (Greece) is the most important caveat, since it limits the ability to generalize the results to other countries.

Originality/value

This paper represents the first attempt to empirically examine the potential association between the aforementioned pricing objectives and characteristics.

Citation

Indounas, K. and Avlonitis, G.J. (2009), "Pricing objectives and their antecedents in the services sector", Journal of Service Management, Vol. 20 No. 3, pp. 342-374. https://doi.org/10.1108/09564230910964426