The behavioral consequences of service quality
TL;DR: In this article, the authors show that service quality relates to retention of customers at the aggregate level, as other research has indicated, and evidence of its impact on customers' behavioral responses should be detectable.
Abstract: If service quality relates to retention of customers at the aggregate level, as other research has indicated, then evidence of its impact on customers’ behavioral responses should be detectable. Th...
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report an empirical assessment of a model of service encounters that simultaneously considers the direct effects of quality, satisfaction, and value on consumers' behavioral intentions, and further suggest that indirect effects of the service quality and value constructs enhanced their impact on behavioral intentions.
6,176 citations
Cites background from "The behavioral consequences of serv..."
...Specifically, Zeithaml, Berry, and Parasuraman (1996) suggest that favorable behavioral intentions are associated with a service provider’s ability to get its customers to 1) say positive things about them, 2) recommend them to other consumers, 3) remain loyal to them (i.e., repurchase from them),…...
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...Theory suggests that increasing customer retention, or lowering the rate of customer defection, is a major key to the ability of a service provider to generate profits (Zeithaml, Berry, and Parasuraman, 1996)....
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...…numerous studies have endeavored to model these links (e.g., Athanassopoulos, 2000; Chenet, Tynan, and Money, 1999; Clow and Beisel, 1995; Fornell et al., 1996; Garbarino and Johnson, 1999; Roest and Pieters, 1997; Spreng, Mackenzie, and Olshavsky, 1996; Zeithaml, Berry, and Parasuraman, 1996)....
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...…and Sullivan, 1993; Gotlieb, Grewal, and Brown, 1994; Patterson and Spreng, 1997; Roest and Pieters, 1997; Taylor, 1997), others argue for a direct effect (e.g., Boulding et al., 1993; Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1988, 1991; Taylor and Baker, 1994; Zeithaml, Berry, and Parasuraman, 1996)....
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...However, for the purpose of explaining variance in dependent constructs, the weight of the evidence in the extant literature supports the use of performance perceptions in measures of service quality (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry, 1994; Zeithaml, Berry, and Parasuraman, 1996)....
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors question the economic benefits of improving customer satisfaction and question whether there are economic benefits to improving quality and customer satisfaction, and they also question the link between quality and satisfaction.
Abstract: Are there economic benefits to improving customer satisfaction? Many firms that are frustrated in their efforts to improve quality and customer satisfaction are beginning to question the link betwe...
5,428 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine two aspects of brand loyalty, purchase loyalty and attitudinal loyalty, as linking variables in the chain of effects from brand trust and brand affect to brand performance (market share and relative price).
Abstract: The authors examine two aspects of brand loyalty, purchase loyalty and attitudinal loyalty, as linking variables in the chain of effects from brand trust and brand affect to brand performance (market share and relative price). The model includes product-level, category-related controls (hedonic value and utilitarian value) and brand-level controls (brand differentiation and share of voice). The authors compile an aggregate data set for 107 brands from three separate surveys of consumers and brand managers. The results indicate that when the product- and brand-level variables are controlled for, brand trust and brand affect combine to determine purchase loyalty and attitudinal loyalty. Purchase loyalty, in turn, leads to greater market share, and attitudinal loyalty leads to a higher relative price for the brand. The authors discuss the managerial implications of these results.
5,428 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed a framework for understanding the behaviors and practices of service providers that build or deplete consumer trust and the mechanisms that convert consumer trust into value and loyalty in relational exchanges.
Abstract: The authors develop a framework for understanding the behaviors and practices of service providers that build or deplete consumer trust and the mechanisms that convert consumer trust into value and loyalty in relational exchanges. The proposed framework (1) uses a multidimensional conceptualization for the trustworthiness construct; (2) incorporates two distinct facets of consumer trust, namely, frontline employees and management policies and practices; and (3) specifies value as a key mediator of the trust–loyalty relationship. The authors test the proposed model using data from two service contexts—retail clothing (N = 264) and nonbusiness airline travel (N = 113). The results support a tripartite view of trustworthiness evaluations along operational competence, operational benevolence, and problem-solving orientation dimensions. Moreover, the authors find evidence of contingent asymmetric relationships between trustworthiness dimensions and consumer trust. For frontline employees, benevolent b...
3,797 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a multiple-item scale (E-S-QUAL) is proposed for measuring the service quality delivered by a service provider. But, the scale is based on the means-end framework.
Abstract: Using the means-end framework as a theoretical foundation, this article conceptualizes, constructs, refines, and tests a multiple-item scale (E-S-QUAL) for measuring the service quality delivered b...
3,410 citations
References
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Journal Article•
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the development of a 22-item instrument (called SERVQUAL) for assessing customer perceptions of service quality in service and retailing organizations, and the procedures used in constructing and refining a multiple-item scale to measure the construct are described.
21,693 citations
TL;DR: The attainment of quality in products and services has become a pivotal concern of the 1980s as discussed by the authors, while quality in tangible goods has been described and measured by marketers, quality in services is la...
Abstract: The attainment of quality in products and services has become a pivotal concern of the 1980s. While quality in tangible goods has been described and measured by marketers, quality in services is la...
16,185 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the conceptualization and measurement of service quality and the relationships between service quality, consumer satisfaction, and purchase intentions, and investigate the relationship between the two factors.
Abstract: The authors investigate the conceptualization and measurement of service quality and the relationships between service quality, consumer satisfaction, and purchase intentions. A literature review s...
9,593 citations
Journal Article•
TL;DR: Defection rates are not just a measure of service quality; they are also a guide for achieving it; by listening to the reasons why customers defect, managers learn exactly where the company is falling short and where to direct their resources.
Abstract: Companies that want to improve their service quality should take a cue from manufacturing and focus on their own kind of scrap heap: customers who won't come back. Because that scrap heap can be every bit as costly as broken parts and misfit components, service company managers should strive to reduce it. They should aim for "zero defections"--keeping every customer they can profitably serve. As companies reduce customer defection rates, amazing things happen to their financials. Although the magnitude of the change varies by company and industry, the pattern holds: profits rise sharply. Reducing the defection rate just 5% generates 85% more profits in one bank's branch system, 50% more in an insurance brokerage, and 30% more in an auto-service chain. And when MBNA America, a Delaware-based credit card company, cut its 10% defection rate in half, profits rose a whopping 125%. But defection rates are not just a measure of service quality; they are also a guide for achieving it. By listening to the reasons why customers defect, managers learn exactly where the company is falling short and where to direct their resources. Staples, the stationery supplies retailer, uses feedback from customers to pinpoint products that are priced too high. That way, the company avoids expensive broad-brush promotions that pitch everything to everyone. Like any important change, managing for zero defections requires training and reinforcement. Great-West Life Assurance Company pays a 50% premium to group health-insurance brokers that hit customer-retention targets, and MBNA America gives bonuses to departments that hit theirs.
5,915 citations
Book•
01 Jan 1990
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors construct a model that, by balancing a customer's perceptions of the value of a particular service with the customer's need for that service, provides theoretical insight into customer expectations and service delivery.
Abstract: Excellence in customer service is the hallmark of success in service industries and among manufacturers of products that require reliable service. But what exactly is excellent service? It is the ability to deliver what you promise, say the authors, but first you must determine what you can promise. Building on seven years of research on service quality, they construct a model that, by balancing a customer's perceptions of the value of a particular service with the customer's need for that service, provides brilliant theoretical insight into customer expectations and service delivery.
3,872 citations