Customers' relational models as determinants of customer engagement value

2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Velitchka D. Kaltcheva ◽  
Anthony Patino ◽  
Michael V. Laric ◽  
Dennis A. Pitta ◽  
Nicholas Imparato
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Customer Relationship ◽  
Customer Engagement ◽  
Service Firms ◽  
Relational Models ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Firm ◽  
The Social ◽  
Different Types

Purpose – The authors apply Alan P. Fiske's relational models framework to customers' engagement with service firms – specifically, they propose that customers who hold different relational models for the service firm are likely to engage with the firm in dissimilar ways, thus generating different types of customer engagement value for the firm. Fiske's relational models framework is eminently suitable for studying customer-service firm engagement because it is widely adopted in the social sciences as a rigorously developed framework for conceptualizing social interactions. Design/methodology/approach – The article bridges Fiske's relational models framework and Kumar et al.'s customer engagement value framework, and conceptually demonstrates that customers employing different relational models for the service firm are likely to generate different types of customer engagement value for the firm. Findings – The article demonstrates conceptually that customers' relational models, schemata, and scripts influence how consumers engage with the firm and the type of customer engagement value accruing to the firm. Research limitations/implications – This research has implications for service firms' relationship strategies. First, service marketers can determine the desired customer engagement value(s) and then craft their customer relationship strategy so that it maximizes those engagement value(s). The article suggests relationship strategies that service firms may implement for encouraging customers to adopt different relational models. Originality/value – No research has bridged relational models theories and customer engagement value theories.

Measuring corporate social responsibility in Islamic banking: what matters?

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 357-388
Author(s):  
Muhammad Bilal Zafar ◽  
Ahmad Azam Sulaiman
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Customer Relationship ◽  
Islamic Banking ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Five Dimensions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Csr Disclosure ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose This paper begins with a challenge to explore the scope and dimensions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Islamic banking and design a CSR disclosure index, which may gauge the level of CSR disclosure in Islamic banking. Design/methodology/approach It adopts a two-fold approach to develop the CSR disclosure index for Islamic banking, such as “identification” and “prioritization.” In the ambit of identification, it relies on the existing literature related to CSR and Islamic banking. However, it undertakes analytical hierarchy process (AHP) method for prioritization through the sample of 104 experts related to Islamic banking of Pakistan. Findings It concludes the CSR index for Islamic banking contains five dimensions, including 79 items across 20 sub-dimensions. The results of AHP indicate that the CSR dimensions are important for Shariah governance, employee, community, customer and environment. Moreover, within dimensions, the most important sub-dimensions are Shariah compliance, customer service and quality, green investing/banking, customer relationship, training and development and poverty alleviation. Practical implications The CSR disclosure index of this study has important implications for academicians, such as it paves the ways for further investigations and practical usage of index to gauge the level CSR disclosure of Islamic banking. Moreover, it delineates the spectrum of responsibilities for managers of Islamic banking under the domain of CSR. Originality/value The proposed CSR disclosure index is comprehensive and stresses on the social responsibility of Islamic banking toward stakeholders. In nutshell, this study offers what is expected from the practitioners of Islamic banking in the domain of social responsibility.

Social media engagement, service complexity, and experiential quality in US hospitals

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 833-845 ◽  
Author(s):  
Youngsu Lee ◽  
Joonhwan In ◽  
Seung Jun Lee
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Demographic Data ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Customer Engagement ◽  
Service Firms ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Media Engagement ◽  
Experiential Quality

Purpose As social media platforms become increasingly popular among service firms, many US hospitals have been using social media as a means to improve their patients’ experiences. However, little research has explored the implications of social media use within a hospital context. The purpose of this paper is to investigate a hospital’s customer engagement through social media and its association with customers’ experiential quality. Also, this study examines the role of a hospital’s service characteristics, which could shape the nature of the interactions between patients and the hospital. Design/methodology/approach Data from 669 hospitals with complete experiential quality and demographic data were collected from multiple sources of secondary data, including the rankings of social media friendly hospitals, the Hospital Compare database, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) cost report, the CMS impact file, the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Analytics database and the Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care. Specifically, the authors designed the instrumental variable estimate to address the endogeneity issue. Findings The empirical results suggest a positive association between a hospital’s social media engagement and experiential quality. For hospitals with a high level of service sophistication, the association between online engagement and experiential quality becomes more salient. For hospitals offering various services, offline engagement is a critical predictor of experiential quality. Research limitations/implications A hospital with more complex services should make efforts to engage customers through social media for better patient experiences. The sample is selected from databases in the US, and the databases are cross-sectional in nature. Practical implications Not all hospitals may be better off improving the patient experience by engaging customers through social media. Therefore, practitioners should exercise caution in applying the study’s results to other contexts and in making causal inferences. Originality/value The current study delineates customer engagement through social media into online and offline customer engagement. This study is based on the theory of customer engagement and reflects the development of mobile technology. Moreover, this research may be considered as pioneering in that it considers the key characteristics of a hospital’s service operations (i.e., service complexity) when discovering the link between customers’ engagement through a hospital’s social media and experiential quality.

How Does Employee Infusion Use of CRM Systems Drive Customer Satisfaction? Mechanism Differences Between Face-to-Face and Virtual Channels

MIS Quarterly ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 719-754
Author(s):  
Liwei Chen ◽  
J. J. Po-An Hsieh ◽  
Arun Rai ◽  
Sean Xin Xu
Keyword(s):  
Customer Satisfaction ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
User Satisfaction ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Customer Relationship ◽  
Service Firms ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Virtual Channels ◽  
Service Channels ◽  
Expectation Confirmation

To attain customer satisfaction, service firms invest significant resources to implement customer relationship management (CRM) systems to support internal customer service (CS) employees who provide service to external customers in both face-to-face and virtual channels. How CS employees apply sophisticated CRM systems to interact with customers and how the mechanisms through which their CRM usage affects customer satisfaction vary across service channels and bear important implications. We approach these issues by investigating the concept of infusion use, defined as CS employees’ assessment of the extent to which they use a CRM system to its fullest potential to best support their work in the CRM-enabled service interaction context. Drawing on the IS success framework and expectation confirmation theory, we first formulate a baseline model that explains the direct and indirect mechanisms through which CS employees’ infusion use of CRM systems leads to customers’ expectation confirmation, which in turn affects customers’ satisfaction. We then draw on the lenses of media richness and communication adaptation to theorize why these two mechanisms exert differential influence in face-to-face and virtual channels. We test the hypotheses by collecting multiwave data from CS employees, customers, and firm archives of a Fortune 500 telecom service firm. We find that (1) CS employee infusion use can directly contribute to customer expectation confirmation and indirectly do so through CS employees’ satisfaction with the system (i.e., user satisfaction), and (2) the direct mechanism plays a more critical role in the face-to-face channel, whereas the indirect mechanism is more important in the virtual channel. Our findings inform managers of the avenues through which employees’ infusion use promotes CRM-enabled service success across face-to-face and virtual service channels.

The power of information on customers’ social withdrawal and citizenship behavior in a crowded service environment

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuqin Wei ◽  
Tyson Ang ◽  
Nwamaka A. Anaza
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Social Withdrawal ◽  
Citizenship Behavior ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Service Experience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Employees ◽  
Service Environment ◽  
Extended Service

PurposeCrowding in service environments is a constant concern for many firms due to the negative consequences it has on consumers and companies alike. Yet, scant empirical research exists on firm-generated initiatives aimed at improving customer service experiences in crowded situations. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how information, a managerially actionable variable, influences social interactions (in the form of customer social withdrawal and citizenship behavior) and service experience.Design/methodology/approachTwo experimental studies were conducted using an extended service context.FindingsThis research demonstrates that receiving information about crowds in advance results in heightened social withdrawal, which improves customer service experience. However, providing consumers with a platform to share crowding information increases customers’ citizenship behavior toward service employees and other customers, which, in turn, improves customer service experience.Practical implicationsFor extended service encounters (e.g. air travel) where social interactions are inevitable, companies should encourage customers to share their real-time experiences with other customers in hopes of creating more positive social interactions (e.g. citizenship behavior) within the crowded environment.Originality/valueExisting investigations of crowding stem from an overemphasis on the physical and atmospheric aspects of the environment by treating crowds as a “fixture” in the servicescape, rather than as “active participants” involved in the crowding environment. While the mere presence of crowds alone has negative effects, this research takes it a step further by examining interactions among and between customers and service employees within the crowded service environment.

Satisfaction with democracy and social capital in Greece

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 614-628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irene Daskalopoulou
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Multivariate Regression Analysis ◽  
Political Organization ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Satisfaction With Democracy ◽  
The Social ◽  
Different Types ◽  
European Values ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Continuum

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how different types of social capital contribute to the satisfaction with democracy (SWD) in Greece. Understanding the relationship between different variants of social capital and SWD allows one to situate the Greek democracy in the continuum of democracy types, from primary to modern. Design/methodology/approach The study uses microdata extracted from the European Values Surveys of 2002-2010 and multivariate regression analysis. Findings The results are compatible with a conception of the Greek political organization as a civil virtue democracy. A change in the nature of the relationship is observed after the recent economic crisis in the country. Research limitations/implications The study contributes to the empirical knowledge regarding the relationship between different variants of social capital and SWD. Originality/value Using a typology approach, the micro-relationship between democracy and social capital is analyzed as embedded in a continuum of different democracy types. In addition, this is the first study that uses microdata to analyze the effect of social capital upon SWD in Greece. The results of the study provide valuable understanding of the social and institutional arrangements that might sustain Greece’s efforts to meet its overall developmental challenges.

Bridging employee curiosity and service creativity: a new lens

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuen-Hung Tsai ◽  
Li-li Zheng
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Sharing ◽  
Service Firms ◽  
Frontline Employees ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Task Autonomy ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
And Task

PurposeThis study develops a framework to examine how, why and when different traits of employee curiosity affect service creativity by considering the roles of knowledge sharing and task autonomy.Design/methodology/approachTo reduce common method bias, this work separated the variables investigated into three parts, each of which was randomly used to collect data at three different periods. A total of 822 matched questionnaires obtained from frontline employees of service firms provided useable data for hypothesis tests. A moderated mediation approach was employed to analyse the data.FindingsResults are as follows: (1) Deprivation sensitivity, joyous exploration and social curiosity have positive effects on knowledge collecting (KC) and knowledge donating (KD). (2) KD mediates the relationships between the three curiosity traits and service creativity. (3) Task autonomy enhances and suppresses the mediating effects of KC and KD, respectively, on the curiosity–service creativity relationship.Research limitations/implicationsThis study has two main research implications: First, as different types (traits) of employee curiosity have different effects on service creativity, a single-dimensional view of employee curiosity may mask the differences of individual dimension and lead to a oversimplified conclusion. Second, lifting the vein from employee curiosity to service creativity has to consider the roles of knowledge sharing and task autonomy.Originality/valueThis research is the first to contribute to the service innovation literature by revealing the underlying mechanisms through which different types of employee curiosity affect service creativity and uncovering the moderating roles of task autonomy in the process mechanisms.

National bank of Fujairah’s digital platform “NBF Connect”

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
Devid Jegerson ◽  
Syed Zamberi Ahmad
Keyword(s):  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
Customer Relationship ◽  
Customer Engagement ◽  
Product Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Platform ◽  
Online Social Media ◽  
Global Banking ◽  
National Bank

Learning outcomes To understand the goals and key performance indicators of online social media marketing and the primary drivers of interaction in a social community. To analyze the challenges faced by the team during the launch of the new digital platform National Bank of Fujairah (NBF) Connect, interacting with an already online present small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) community. To analyze the concept of community marketing in an emerging country and appreciate the value of digital platforms in customer relationship management. To identify and critically evaluate insights on which ideas for marketing communication activities for NBF Connect can be built upon. To build an operational plan for NBF Connect customer engagement on online social communities. Case overview/synopsis In 2020, NBF launched a new digital platform for SMEs in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) called “NBF Connect” with the purpose of redefining banking services for the small businesses sector. The digitalization wave in the UAE was revolutionizing various industry sectors. The global banking industry was already impacted by digitalization and some banks in the UAE, especially in the retail segment (Emirates NBD, 2017), had already introduced many technology-led innovations bringing more effectiveness in the processes and better customer experience. However, the SME banking segment was lagging in terms of innovation. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic situation, with compulsory lockdowns and social distancing, changed the way of doing business for entire industries and increased the pressure on banks for the provisioning of new digital products. Rose joined NBF in the first part of 2020 as Product Owner of the project NBF Connect. The new digital platform was ideated by NBF to be differentiated from other banking products. It was co-created with insights from and regular interaction with the SME community. After the deployment of the first version of the platform in April 2020, Rose realized that the user adoption and commercial results were below par. Over the next three months, only a few users were using the platform with shallow interactions. This case study looks at Rose’s journey as NBF refined and evolved its SME banking platform, including developing and positioning the digital platform in the market, identifying competitive advantages and developing the right commercial strategy to monetize NBF’s investment in the digital platform’s development. Complexity Academic Level Students are expected to have knowledge of the issues relevant to marketing and communication management, product management and business development. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 8: Marketing

A conceptual framework for understanding the antecedents and consequences of social selling: a theoretical perspective and research agenda

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Barney-McNamara ◽  
James Peltier ◽  
Pavan Rao Chennamaneni ◽  
Keith Eric Niedermeier
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Information Exchange ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Customer Relationship ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Antecedents And Consequences

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide a detail review of the social selling literature and to offer future research needs. Social selling has gained the attention of sales researchers. Rather than merely a new tool, social selling redefines the traditional sales process. However, the literature is spread across topics of social media and sales, social customer relationship management, salesforce automation and social selling, and does not provide an agreed-upon definition or tested construct for implementation. Design/methodology/approach The paper presents a comprehensive literature review of social selling and all related terminology. Findings The authors propose a social selling framework that includes personal branding, information exchange, networking and social listening to define and outline the construct while suggesting the antecedents and outcomes to guide future research. Findings from a literature review include outlining key theories used in social selling research. Originality/value This review offers a conceptual framework of social selling, including both antecedents and outcomes, to inform future research and guide academics and practitioners.

scholarly journals Social and technical chains-of-effects in business-to-business (B2B) service relationships

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (6) ◽  
pp. 1225-1246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russel P.J. Kingshott ◽  
Piyush Sharma ◽  
Smitha Ravindranathan Nair
Keyword(s):  
Social Exchange ◽  
Customer Loyalty ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Customer Relationships ◽  
Service Firms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Online Platforms ◽  
Service Relationships ◽  
The Social ◽  
Business To Business

Purpose This paper aims to combine the social–technical systems and social exchange theories with the resource-based view of the firm, to investigate how business-to-business (B2B) service firms manage their social and technical resources to manage customer relationships. Design/methodology/approach An online survey-based study with 321 managers working in Australian small and medium (SME) firms is used to test hypotheses about the sequential and substitutional impact of four social and technical resources (service quality, satisfaction, trust and commitment) on customer loyalty, using both offline and online platforms. Findings The findings show that both social and technical chains of effects are viable channels for B2B service firms to build customer loyalty; however, mixing of both social and technical resources results in the weakening of both these chains. Research limitations/implications The results based on B2B service relationships between Australian SME firms and their banks may not be generalizable to other contexts. Practical implications This research would help managers in B2B service firms understand the pitfalls of combining their social and technical resources because it may hamper their ability to build customer loyalty. Hence, they need to learn how to synergize their marketing resources across both offline and online platforms to achieve optimal results. Originality/value This research introduces social and technical chains of effects as a novel way to examine the ability of B2B service firms to optimize their social and technical resources in a synergistic manner to build and nurture stronger customer relationships.

The mediating roles of gratitude and obligation to link employees’ social exchange relationships and prosocial behavior

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 644-664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haemi Kim ◽  
Hailin Qu
Keyword(s):  
Prosocial Behavior ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Social Exchange ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Prosocial Behaviors ◽  
Social Aspects ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Exchange Relationships ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social

Purpose This study aims to investigate the psychological mechanisms underlying hospitality employees’ social exchange relationships at work by applying the social aspects of work and the social exchange theory. Design/methodology/approach MTurk was used for conducting a cross-sectional questionnaire survey, targeting frontline employees who were working in full-service restaurants. Descriptive statistic, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were performed. Findings Customer-employee exchange had a positive relationship with gratitude. Moreover, gratitude was positively associated with both role-prescribed customer service and extra-role customer service. Leader-member exchange and coworker exchange were positively related to obligation. Obligation had positive association with both role-prescribed customer service and extra-role customer service. The mediating effects of gratitude and obligation were statistically significant. Research limitations/implications Employees’ social exchange relationship with customers promotes prosocial behaviors by arousing gratitude in them. Moreover, their social exchange relationships with supervisors and coworkers lead to prosocial behaviors by provoking obligation from them. Originality/value This research shows the importance of the social aspects of work to contribute to employees’ prosocial behavior in the hospitality industry. Moreover, it proves the critical roles of emotions to guide employees’ decisions about social exchange.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document