scholarly journals Differentiating service quality impact between the online and off-line context: an empirical investigation of a corporate travel agency

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ling Fang ◽  
Zhen Lu ◽  
Linyin Dong

PurposeCorporate travel represents a significant source of revenue for the tourism industry. Therefore, the quality of service is essential for maintaining and expanding corporate cliental bases. Despite the importance, the extant literature has yet sufficiently examined corporate travel service quality (SQ) and its impact. To make up for the drawback, this study aims to differentiate the impact of SQ perceptions on customer satisfaction between the online and off-line contexts through an empirical investigation in one of the top five corporate travel agencies in North America.Design/methodology/approachThe well-established SERVQUAL measurement is applied in differentiating the impact of SQ dimensions between the online and off-line context. To empirically test the proposed corporate travel agency (CTA) SQ conceptual model, a set of survey data of “Welcome Back Survey” from HRG (a top five CTA in North America) was examined.FindingsThe study finds that for online services, assurance, responsiveness and empathy affect perceived SQ, whereas for off-line services, assurance, empathy and tangible are the three dimensions of perceived SQ.Research limitations/implicationsBy relying on the existing survey, the off-line context has one less dimension than the online context. Yet as an early effort in differentiating the differences in the impact of SQ between two service contexts, the study offers insightful findings.Practical implicationsThe findings will be helpful for business managers of CTAs to identify the factors that influence SQ in both online booking and off-line booking context. In particular, assurance and empathy are two dimensions that exert a significant impact on customer satisfaction.Originality/valueThis paper is the first to compare the differences of the SQ of online and off-line corporate travel.

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 532-554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tommy Lau ◽  
Man Lai Cheung ◽  
Guilherme D. Pires ◽  
Carol Chan

Purpose The abolishment of the wine tax in Hong Kong has led to increased wine consumption and increased demand for wine-related professionals, such as sommeliers. Yet the importance of sommeliers’ value-adding performance in the context of upscale Chinese restaurants has not been examined. To address this gap, the SERVQUAL framework is adopted to examine the influence of sommeliers’ service quality (SQ) on customer satisfaction (CS) and loyalty in the context of upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach The survey method is used to collect data from 302 units of the population of interest, partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) is used to test the links between constructs. Findings Four of the seven dimensions of sommeliers’ service quality, namely, empathy, tangibles, credibility and assurance, have a significant positive impact on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty, whereas the impact of perceived value and responsiveness on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty is positive but only marginally significant. Reliability has a weak and non-significant impact on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Research limitations/implications Examining a small number of upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong limits generalisation of the findings to other contexts. Replication of the research in different contexts will enhance generalizability. In terms of implications, the discussion highlights the importance of sommeliers’ service performance on customers’ SQ perceptions SQ, CS and loyalty, all of which are important variables for restaurateurs. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of the influence of the quality of sommelier’s SQ on CS and loyalty in upscale Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong. Given the lack of attention to this service role in the literature, the study contributes theory from which further understanding can develop.


2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 411-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rishi Kant ◽  
Deepak Jaiswal

Purpose In the present competitive scenario in the Indian banking industry, service quality has become one of the most important facets of interest to academic researchers. The purpose of this paper is to determine the dimensions of perceived service quality and investigate their impact on customer satisfaction in the Indian banking context, with special reference to selected public sector banks in India. Design/methodology/approach On the basis of the empirical study, the authors validate a measurement model using structural equation modeling for investigating the impact of perceived service quality dimensions on customer satisfaction. The study sample consists of 480 respondents in the National Capital Region (NCR) of India; the data were collected through a structured questionnaire utilizing a seven-point Likert scale while implementing a purposive sampling technique. Findings The perceived service quality dimensions identified were tangibility, reliability, assurance, responsiveness, empathy, and image. The empirical findings revealed that “responsiveness” was found to be the most significant predictor of customer satisfaction. On the other hand, “image” (corporate image) has a positive but the least significant relationship with customer satisfaction followed by all other constructs. The exception is “reliability,” which is insignificantly related to customer satisfaction in Indian public sector banks. Research limitations/implications The study cannot be generalized in the context of Indian banking sectors, as it only focused on the public sector. The findings of this study suggest that the six dimensions of perceived service quality model are a suitable instrument for evaluating bank service quality for public banks in India. Therefore, bank managers can use this model to assess the bank service quality in the context of Indian public sector banks. Originality/value There is dearth of research focusing on corporate image as a dimension of perceived service quality and its effect on customer satisfaction in the Indian banking context. Furthermore, similar studies were rarely found in the Indian context, especially within the public banking sector. Hence, this paper attempts to accomplish the research gap by empirically testing the satisfaction level of a large sample of the population in NCR toward six dimensions of perceived service quality rendered by selected public sector banks in India.


2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (6) ◽  
pp. 1207-1222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Quang Nguyen ◽  
Tahir M. Nisar ◽  
Dan Knox ◽  
Guru Prakash Prabhakar

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the five dimensions of service quality on customer satisfaction in the UK fast food market and to indicate which factors among the five dimensions have a main role in driving overall customer satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach Primary data in the form of 147 questionnaire responses were been collected from a variety of quick service fast food restaurants in the UK. Likert seven-point rating scales were used to structure the questionnaire. Data were collected from the customers at two KFC restaurants, two McDonald’s restaurants, and one Burger King Restaurant. Findings The results of the analysis indicate that tangibles, responsiveness and assurance play the most important role in driving customer satisfaction in the UK fast food industry, followed by reliability and empathy. Results of correlation and regression analysis show that physical attributes (tangible) of service quality are key to customer satisfaction. In a nutshell, the tangibles variable is the most important factor driving customer satisfaction in the context of the UK fast food market. Originality/value This research incorporates unique and original insights in relation to the British fast food restaurants market and the results constitute novel findings pertaining to the importance of physical facilities and attributes. This account of the relative importance of service quality dimensions in fast food restaurants in the UK adds value to the field. The findings of this research have contributed to a better understanding of the main factors that influence service quality and customer satisfaction and have implications from a managerial point of view in the highly competitive UK fast food and wider foodservice industry.


2015 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muahmmad Kashif ◽  
Sharifah Suzana Wan Shukran ◽  
Mohsin Abdul Rehman ◽  
Syamsulang Sarifuddin

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of PAKSERV measures on customer satisfaction and loyalty in the Malaysian Islamic banking context. Design/methodology/approach – The dimensionality of the PAKSERV scale is examined with confirmatory factor analysis. A survey approach is adopted to collect data from 300 Islamic banking customers in Kuching, Malaysia. Findings – Results reveal an excellent model fit for the PAKSERV scale in collectivist cultural context of Malaysia. All dimensions of PAKSERV are validated except reliability. The issue of non-validity of the reliability dimension in an Islamic banking context is explained by extant literature. Practical implications – Islamic banks are recommended to focus on all the PAKSERV scale dimensions to impart service quality. Given a collectivist cultural setting, a “network marketing” approach is recommended to maintain a desirable level of customer satisfaction and loyalty. Originality/value – The PAKSERV scale has been employed for the first time to investigate the service quality-loyalty path in a collectivist cultural context. The validity of the PAKSERV scale has been operationalized for the first time in a collectivist cultural context.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Bandara WMAH ◽  
Dahanayake SNS

The hotel industry is one of the integral constituents in the flourishing tourism industry and is extremely competitive. In this competitive arena, service quality has become a crucial success factor in maintaining hotel standards. A strong, sustainable, outstanding service industry requires good service quality standards.  However, due to the intangible nature of service products, measuring service quality is substantially challengeable than measuring the quality of physical products. Hence, this study attempts to investigate the impact of food and beverage service quality on customer satisfaction in the star graded hotels. Dambulla is one of the major tourist destinations in Sri Lanka, has been identified as the study area. A total of 150 foreign departure tourists who have visited three and above star graded hotels in the respective area were selected through a convenient sampling technique. A widely accepted SERVQUAL model was utilized to ascertain the findings. Primary data were collected through a self-administered structured questionnaire. Descriptive, frequency, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analysis were conducted to analyze data using SPSS. The results reveal that there is a positive significant impact of tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance of food and beverage service quality on customer satisfaction in the star graded hotels in Dambulla area. On the contrary, empathy shows that there is no impact on customer satisfaction. Moreover, tangibility is the most influential service quality attribute that affects customer satisfaction. Thus, the authorities must pay their attention towards improving the tangible evidence such as staff attires and appearance, aesthetic upkeep of interior and exterior, and provide reliable service for their guests with greater customer care.


2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 606-622 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin Paul ◽  
Arun Mittal ◽  
Garima Srivastav

Purpose – In today’s world, with increased competition, service quality has become one of the most popular areas of academic investigation. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of various service quality variables on the overall satisfaction of customers and compare the private and public sector banks using a sample from India. Design/methodology/approach – With the help of forward stepwise regression, the authors explain how a variety of variables are both negatively and positively influencing customer satisfaction. The authors collected data from 500 respondents in India; 250 of which were customers of private sector banks, and 250 of which were customers of public sector banks. The authors had a response rate of 65 percent. Findings – In the case of private sector banks, knowledge of products, response to need, solving questions, fast service, quick connection to the right person, and efforts to reduce queuing time were found to be the factors that are positively associated with overall satisfaction. Assistance to the customer, appearance, and follow up are negatively associated with customer satisfaction. On the other hand, in the case of public sector banks, knowledge of the product and fast service are the factors which are associated positively and appearance is the only factor that is negatively associated. Originality/value – The components of service quality that are positively associated are not the same in public sector banks as they are in private sector banks.


2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anas Abdelsatar Mohammad Salameh ◽  
Hartini Ahmad ◽  
Faisal Zulhumadi ◽  
Faruq Muhammad Abubakar

Purpose This study aims to explore the impact of system quality dimensions, namely, ease of use, accessibility, interactivity and website innovativeness on service quality (SQ) and customer satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach The study used a quantitative approach, by using a survey method. The unit of analysis was the individual. A total of 618 questionnaires were randomly distributed to university students and staff in Jordan. The partial least square path-modeling method was used in the estimation of causal relationships of the constructs examined in the study. Findings The outcomes of this study showed that ease of use, interactivity and website innovativeness have significant positive relationships with the SQ. Consequently, SQ significantly influences customer satisfaction. Research limitations/implications Limitations of this research were related to the unit of analysis, as it was conducted within the geographical region of Jordan and the university context, where the culture and level of the technological advancement may be different than other countries. Practical implications This research can assist mobile commerce (m-commerce) service policymakers to formulate significant policies that could enhance the nature of services being rendered and thus bring greater benefits to the customers. Originality/value This research has extended the body of knowledge on emerging trends in m-commerce innovation adoption, more specifically in the university context. Furthermore, it offers insight on the importance of m-commerce in the minds of customers, in such a way that it will bring about the intention to repeat patronage in the future.


2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 323-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Perry John Forsythe

Purpose – The impact of service quality on customer satisfaction during detached housing construction in Australia is investigated for a targeted customer – one whose expectations focus on “price and product” and not “service quality”. The purpose of this paper is to see if service quality impacts on customer satisfaction during construction, despite the apparent conflict in expectations. Design/methodology/approach – A detailed single case study methodology is used, focusing on the aforementioned customer as the unit of measure. A longitudinal design is employed by measuring customer satisfaction and service quality “gap scores” at four stages during construction, using a survey instrument adapted from the consumer research literature. This is coupled with qualitative interview data coded into a linked set of definable service incidents. Findings – The study finds that irrespective of having price and product oriented pre-purchase expectations, customer satisfaction is closely related to perceptions of service quality during onsite construction. This only occurs for a selective set of “active” service quality dimensions – especially responsiveness and reliability dimensions. These dimensions appear to be driven by the customer’s underlying level of exposure to both positive and negative service incidents, and the ratio between the two appears to direct the strength and direction of “gap scores”. Once the physical end product materialises, the customer gradually focuses more on the objectivity and realisation this offers, and less on service quality. Originality/value – The paper facilitates theory development in terms of generating testable variables effecting the dynamic relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction, during construction. The approach enables an increased ability to identify and explain how contextual variables, linked to specific customer types, impact on the relationship. The generalisability and validity of the findings are discussed.


2015 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 442-456 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hashim Zameer ◽  
Anam Tara ◽  
Uzma Kausar ◽  
Aisha Mohsin

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of services quality, customer satisfaction and corporate image on customer perceived value in the banking sector of Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach – A model is developed to show the relationship between dependent and independent variables taken from the existing literature. The data are collected from 200 respondents taken from the five major cities of Pakistan using structured questionnaire. Correlation and regression are applied to estimate the relationship between variables and find out the extent to which the independent variables have impact on the dependent variable. Findings – Results show that there is a positive relation between the service quality, customer satisfaction and corporate image. It is also analyzed by the results that service quality and customer satisfaction have high impact on the customer perceived value where corporate image also effect the customer perceived value. Originality/value – This paper identified the impact of service quality, customer satisfaction and corporate image on the customer perceived value that helps the services sector especially banks how they can improve the customer perceived value through improving their service quality, customer satisfaction and corporate image.


2015 ◽  
Vol 49 (11/12) ◽  
pp. 1923-1940 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher White

Purpose – The purpose of the study is to examine the way different motivational types from Self-Determination Theory (SDT) influence antecedents of customer satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach – The findings in this study were generated with a quantitative design using path analysis on data collected at two stages during an extended service encounter. Findings – Each motivation type played a unique and important role in influencing the antecedents of satisfaction, namely, positive and negative emotions and perceptions of service quality. As hypothesised, motives associated with higher levels of autonomy were consistently stronger predictors of positive emotions and service quality. The influence of motives on the antecedents did not change significantly over time, whereas significant differences were noted between all antecedents and satisfaction. The model explained 54 and 63 per cent of the variance in satisfaction in times one and two, respectively. Originality/value – This is the first time that motivation as conceptualised from an SDT perspective has been applied to understanding the dynamic nature of customer satisfaction. The findings offer considerable opportunities for follow-up studies and the motivation types can provide practitioners with a stable and efficient segmentation option.


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