Response-based segmentation using Finite Mixture Partial Least Squares: theoretical foundations and an application to American Customer Satisfaction Index Data

When applying multivariate analysis techniques in information systems and social science disciplines, such as management information systems (MIS) and marketing, the assumption that the empirical data originate from a single homogeneous population is often unrealistic. When applying a causal modeling approach, such as partial least squares (PLS) path modeling, segmentation is a key issue in coping with the problem of heterogeneity in estimated cause-and-effect relationships. This chapter presents a new PLS path modeling approach which classifies units on the basis of the heterogeneity of the estimates in the inner model. If unobserved heterogeneity significantly affects the estimated path model relationships on the aggregate data level, the methodology will allow homogenous groups of observations to be created that exhibit distinctive path model estimates. The approach will, thus, provide differentiated analytical outcomes that permit more precise interpretations of each segment formed. An application on a large data set in an example of the American customer satisfaction index (ACSI) substantiates the methodology’s effectiveness in evaluating PLS path modeling results.

Evaluating service quality and customer satisfaction evaluation in an emerging markets

Developing economies offer tremendous potential for future growth and organizations appreciating these consumers’ requirements stand to reap considerable returns. However, compared with more developed economies published consumer studies are few. In particular, there is a dearth of service quality research and hardly any from Africa. Furthermore, the little available research tends to apply Western methodologies, which may not be entirely appropriate. This research investigates East African consumer perceptions of retail banking using an approach that takes account of the research context. Qualitative research was undertaken to define the relevant service attributes. Performance along these was then investigated through a survey with over 2000 respondents. Principal component analysis identifies 13 core service dimensions and multinomial logistic regression reveals which are the key drivers of customer satisfaction. Comparison of the results with studies from other regions confirms that established standardized research instruments are likely to miss or under-represent service attributes important in developing countries.

An investigation of the relationships between service quality, customer satisfaction, perceived value and behavioural intentions

Customer satisfaction and service quality are two important concepts in the marketing literature. However, there has been some confusion about the conceptualisation and measurement of these two concepts and the nature of the relationship between them. The primary objective of this research was to develop a more thorough understanding of these concepts, and a model that could help to explain the links between them and their relationships with post-purchase behaviour. A preliminary theoretical model was developed, based on an exhaustive review of the literature. Following exploratory research, the model was revised by incorporating "Perceived Value" and "Perceived Sacrifice" to help explain customer's post-purchase behaviour. A longitudinal survey was conducted in the context of the restaurant industry, and the data were analysed using structural equation modelling. The results provided evidence to support the main research hypotheses. However, the effect of "Normative Expectations" on "Encounter Quality" was insignificant, and "Perceived Value" had a direct effect on "Behavioural Intentions" despite expectations that such an effect would be mediated through "Customer Satisfaction". It was also found that "Normative Expectations" were relatively more stable than "Predictive Expectations". It is argued that the present research significantly contributes to the marketing literature, and in particular the role of perceived value in the formation of customers' post-purchase behaviour. Further research efforts in this area are warranted.

The role of the sales employee in securing customer satisfaction

Purpose: Previous research has emphasized the pivotal role that salespeople play in customer satisfaction. In this regard, the relationship between salespeople's attitudes, skills, and characteristics, and customer satisfaction remains an area of interest. The paper aims to make three contributions: first, it seeks to examine the impact of salespeople's satisfaction, adaptive selling, and dominance on customer satisfaction. Second, this research aims to use dyadic data, which is a better test of the relationships between constructs since it avoids common method variance. Finally, in contrast to previous research, it aims to test all of the customers of salespeople rather than customers selected by salespeople. Design/methodology/approach: The study employs multilevel analysis to examine the relationship between salespeople's satisfaction with the firm on customer satisfaction, using a dyadic, matched business-to-business sample of a large European financial service provider that comprises 188 customers and 18 employees. Findings: The paper finds that customers' evaluation of service quality, product quality, and value influence customer satisfaction. The analysis at the selling firm's employee level shows that adaptive selling and employee satisfaction positively impact customer satisfaction, while dominance is negatively related to customer satisfaction. Practical implications: Research shows that customer-focus is a key driver in the success of service companies. Customer satisfaction is regarded as a prerequisite for establishing long-term, profitable relations between company and customer, and customer contact employees are key to nurturing this relationship. The role of salespeople's attitudes, skills, and characteristics in the customer satisfaction process are highlighted in this paper. Originality/value: The use of dyadic, multilevel studies to assess the nature of the relationship between employees and customers is, to date, surprisingly limited. The paper examines the link between employee attitudes, skills, and characteristics, and customer satisfaction in a business-to-business setting in the financial service sector, differentiating between customer- and employee-level drivers of business customer satisfaction.

Identification and analysis of moderator variables:investigating the customer satisfaction-loyalty link

Purpose – Research on the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty has advanced to a stage that requires a more thorough examination of moderator variables. Limited research shows how moderators influence the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in a service context; this article aims to present empirical evidence of the conditions in which the satisfaction-loyalty relationship becomes stronger or weaker. Design/methodology/approach – Using a sample of more than 700 customers of DIY retailers and multi-group structural equation modelling, the authors examine moderating effects of several firm-related variables, variables that result from firm/employee-customer interactions and individual-level variables (i.e. loyalty cards, critical incidents, customer age, gender, income, expertise). Findings – The empirical results suggest that not all of the moderators considered influence the satisfaction-loyalty link. Specifically, critical incidents and income are important moderators of the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Practical implications – Several of the moderator variables considered in this study are manageable variables. Originality/value – This study should prove valuable to academic researchers as well as service and retailing managers. It systematically analyses the moderating effect of firm-related and individual-level variables on the relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty. It shows the differential effect of different types of moderator variables on the satisfaction-loyalty link.

How employer and employee satisfaction affect customer satisfaction:an application to franchise services

In small-service settings, how do owner satisfaction, front-line employee satisfaction, and customer satisfaction relate to one another? The authors use generalized exchange theory (GET) to examine how satisfaction levels of these three constituents are reciprocated. The authors examine a European franchise system comprising 50 outlets, 933 employees, and 20,742 customers. Their results show two important findings. First, the effect of owner-franchisee's satisfaction on customer satisfaction is fully mediated by front-line employee satisfaction. Thus, managers of a service outlet can strongly impact the satisfaction and behavioral intentions of their customer base, even without direct contact with them. Second, the link between customer satisfaction and purchase intention is moderated by employee satisfaction at an outlet. The link between customer satisfaction and customer purchase intentions is almost twice as strong when employees are satisfied than when they are not. Thus, there is a "doublepositive effect:" not only does higher employee satisfaction at an outlet directly lead to higher customer satisfaction but it also indirectly strengthens the association between customer satisfaction and their repurchase intentions.

Az ügyfélszerzési mód hatásának vizsgálata a vevőelégedettségre és a lojalitásra a szervezeti piacon (Analyzing the impact of the customer acquisition mode to the customer satisfaction and loyalty on the corporate market – assessing the effect of recommendation with applying structural equation modelling)

A kutatás célja a marketingeszközök hosszú távú hatásának pontosabb megértése szervezetközi viszonylatban a vevőértékelési modellek egyik nehezen számszerűsíthető tényezője, az ajánlás hatásának vizsgálata által. A hatások elemzésére a strukturális egyenlőségek módszerét (Structural Equation Modelling) alkalmazta a szerző. Rámutatott, hogy az ajánlással szerzett ügyfelek elégedettebbek, lojálisabbak és gyakrabban ajánlják a vállalatot a más módon szerzett ügyfeleknél. Az összefüggések feltárása és bizonyítása különösen az ajánlás kumulatív hatása miatt jelentős. Az eredmények gyakorlati alkalmazásával lehetőség nyílik az ügyfélkör differenciáltabb, értékalapú szegmentációjára, amely pontosabb célcsoport-meghatározást lesz lehetővé, és hosszú távon hozzájárul a vállalat optimális ügyfélportfóliójának kialakításához. ______ The research is aimed at more precise understanding of longterm effects of marketing tools in business to business relations by analysing the impacts of recommendation potential, one of the hardly measurable factors of customer value concept. Structural Equation Modelling is applied for conducting effect analysis. The results show that customers acquired with recommendation are more satisfied, more loyal, and make more recommendation that other customer. These results are more interesting if we take the cumulative effect of recommendation in account. They provide bases for a more differentiated segmentation of customers, which results in a more accurate identification of target groups. In the long-run, the application of the customer-value concept considerably contributes to creating an optimal customer portfolio for companies.

Customer Satisfaction, Quality in Cruise Industry

Record numbers of passengers are sailing on board cruise ships, with the industry claiming high levels of customer satisfaction. Conversely, little is known about the specific factors which make up customer satisfaction with the cruise experience. The authors examine customer satisfaction data from nearly 15,000 guests of a large U.S. cruise line to determine which aspects of the cruise experience have the greatest impact on overall satisfaction and perceptions of quality.

Adapting the Customer Satisfaction Index to the Lodging Industry: Foreign Customers' Evaluations

As a standard form of measuring customer satisfaction, the Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) has been utilized in many countries. By using the Korean Customer Satisfaction Index (KCSI) methodology, this study attempted to investigate foreign customers’ evaluations of luxury hotels in Seoul, South Korea. In doing so, some efforts were made to overcome the methodological problems associated with the KCSI for the lodging industry. Data for this study were collected through a mall intercept survey using a self-administered questionnaire. Precisely 783 responses, collected solely from foreign guests who had stayed at a luxury hotel in Seoul, were included in the study.

Service Quality and Black Customer Satisfaction - A Perspective on the United States Restaurant Industry

This paper examines the issue of racial discrimination of Black United States (U.S.) restaurant patrons from a service quality and customer satisfaction perspective. In spite of the progress the industry has made in recent years to alleviate this problem, many contemporary examples clearly demonstrate that racial discrimination is still of great concern. The articles stresses the importance of an ethical approach in human resource management-intensive and offers suggestions for reducing discriminatory practices in U.S. restaurant service delivery.

Customer Satisfaction and Behavioral Intentions: The Case of Aruba-- Small Island Nation

Tourism studies related to small island destinations have become a research stream amongst many academics in recent years. The current study investigates tourist satisfaction related to a tour operator on the island of Aruba that specializes in jeep and bus tours. As there is an increased expenditure pattern for these types of activities, companies are looking for ways to improve customer satisfaction and behavioral intentions. Results indicate that tourists are generally satisfied with the tour company; however a difference in satisfaction ratings was obtained for respondents 61 years old or above. Four factors were extracted from tourists’ satisfaction attributes and three of these factors, including the overall tour value, tour guide, and sound systems used during these tours, were found to be strong predictors of behavioral intentions measured by the likelihood to rebook and the likelihood to recommend the tour company to family and friends. Operational and marketing strategies were suggested based on the findings of the study.

Customer characteristics, satisfaction, and repurchase intention

One area of services marketing which has remained relatively underdeveloped, is the nature of the relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty, and the moderating influences on this relationship, despite the fact that loyalty is essential for service business survival (Reichheld, 1993). This paper reports research regarding the relationship between consumer satisfaction, repurchase intention, and demographic characteristics. A telephone survey was conducted of 500 city residents, focusing on their visitation of tourism special events. The study found support for the findings of some recent, non-Australian, non-services research studies, in that respondent demographics were found to moderate the relationship between satisfaction and repurchase behaviour (in this case, repurchase intention), in an Australian services context.