Service experience in the access economy: managing experiences in mobility services

The access economy has emerged as a disruptive force in the business landscape, transforming traditional industries. This term describes a business model that focuses on the sharing, renting, or lending of goods and other resources among individuals and organizations, emphasizing temporary access and usage over permanent ownership. As the access economy continues to gain traction, understanding service experience in this context becomes crucial for researchers and practitioners. Drawing from the mobility sector, this chapter presents an overview of service experience in the access-based economy. We discuss the characteristics of nine access-based mobility services, differentiating traditional ones (e.g., car rental and leasing) from more recent and disruptive ones (e.g., micro-mobility services). We then compare these mobility services through the lens of eight key dimensions of service experience. Our analysis highlights how service experience is multifaceted, as customers perceive access-based services differently depending on their needs and attitudes. We conclude by looking at the future of service experience in the access economy paradigm by illustrating integrated mobility ecosystems that represent convenient, affordable, and customized solutions for individual mobility needs.