Net-Based Customer Service Systems: Evolution and Revolution in Web Site Functionalities

As Web sites become an increasingly important component of firms’ customer service systems, there is a need for research aimed at understanding their roles, functionalities, and effective design. Using a multi-method design, we propose and validate a descriptive taxonomy of customer needs amenable to online fulfillment. We then propose, and offer preliminary validation of, a five-stage model for explaining and predicting the development of a firm’s Web site design and functionality. Our findings suggest that firms’ Web sites are by and large in the early stages of development, but that executives in leading service firms have begun to conceptualize and plan for subsequent stages. Our paper concludes with managerial implications and avenues for further research.