Drivers of customer satisfaction and loyalty in swimming pools

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 436-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrícia Moura e Sá ◽  
Patrícia Cunha

Purpose It is widely accepted that doing exercise regularly is essential to promote physical, psychological and social well-being. Yet, often dropout rates tend to be high. The purpose of this paper is to propose a model to understand the potential drivers of satisfaction and loyalty in the sports and fitness context looking in particular at four main dimensions of service quality: infrastructures/physical environment, relationship with instructors/staff, outcomes achieved and customer-to-customer interaction. Design/methodology/approach An extensive literature review was conducted to identify potential drivers of customer satisfaction and loyalty in sports. The proposed model was estimated using data collected from a sample of 384 users of four Portuguese swimming pools facilities by means of a survey questionnaire. Findings The majority of the hypotheses tested found support in the data. In particular, the quality of the interaction with instructors and the results obtained from exercising have a strong impact on satisfaction, which, in turn, is highly correlated with psychological commitment and positive word-of-mouth communication. Research limitations/implications Based on the findings some managerial implications can be derived. Such recommendations can enhance users’ perceptions of service quality and indirectly contribute to a more regular and effective sports practice. Originality/value The importance of enhancing loyalty has been emphasised in sports management literature. Yet, few studies have empirically investigated the simultaneous relationships among service quality dimensions, customer satisfaction and loyalty. This research partially addresses this gap.

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Subash Lonial ◽  
P.S. Raju

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of perceived service attributes in the development of overall customer satisfaction (OCS) and customer loyalty (CL) in a health-care setting. This paper also sheds light on the role of hospitalist physicians (HPs) and offers suggestions to improve patient satisfaction and loyalty. Design/methodology/approach – A telephone survey was used to collect data from recently hospitalized patients with respect to their HP. Structural equations modeling (SEM) was used to confirm the overall relationships between perceived service quality (PSQ), OCS and CL. The sample was then divided into customer relationship groups (CRGs) based on satisfaction and loyalty measures. Discriminant analysis was used to determine which attributes differentiated most between high and low satisfaction and loyalty groups. Findings – Overall relationships among PSQ, OCS and CL were in conformity with the conceptual model. Findings also revealed that service attributes played an important role in distinguishing between high and low satisfaction and loyalty groups, although some attributes were more important than others and different attributes emerged as being key influencers for satisfaction and loyalty. Research limitations/implications – The conceptual model used is a fairly straight forward model, and we have not considered the impact of individual factors such as expectations and value perceptions or involvement levels and demographic characteristics on service quality and overall satisfaction. The data for this study were provided by a major health maintenance organization (HMO), and there is room for improvement in the manner in which certain constructs were measured. For example, OCS, recommendation and retention all used single item measures, and it might have been preferable to use multiple item measures for these constructs. Practical implications – The study shows that organizations can benefit by identifying and focusing on critical attributes as part of their customer relationship management program. Social implications – The SEM results provide strong support for the overall model linking service quality, OCS and CL in a health-care setting. As one would expect, PSQ has a strong impact on OCS, which, in turn, has a fairly strong impact on CL. However, there is also a significant direct linkage between PSQ and CL. This linkage shows that at least a certain portion of CL could evolve independent of the satisfaction level with the HP. This shows that, in addition to trying to improve satisfaction, organizations should also explore influencing loyalty directly, perhaps by the strategic use of service attribute perceptions. Originality/value – The study shows that customer perceptions at the service attribute level can often be the key to the generation and management of customer satisfaction and loyalty. It also has significance for how satisfaction and loyalty with HPs can be improved in a hospital setting.


2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (2/3) ◽  
pp. 152-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerson Tontini ◽  
Júlio Cesar da Silva ◽  
Eliane Fátima Strapazzon Beduschi ◽  
Elis Regina Mulinari Zanin ◽  
Margarete de Fátima Marcon

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the nonlinear impact of online retail stores’ quality dimensions on general customer satisfaction and loyalty. Design/methodology/approach – Using a quantitative approach, 429 online users answered a closed questionnaire regarding their present satisfaction with 26 service attributes, their general satisfaction and loyalty. Using factorial analysis with Varimax rotation, five service-quality dimensions are studied: service accessibility/speed, fault recovery, buying reliability, service and site flexibility and site interaction/feedback. Penalty and reward contrast analysis identifies the Kano model classification of the service-quality dimensions, and the nonlinear impact of these dimensions, and customer satisfaction, on customer loyalty. Findings – The results show that there is a nonlinearity between quality dimensions, customer satisfaction and loyalty. The dimension “service accessibility/speed” has a one-dimensional impact on customer satisfaction, but with higher reward impact than penalty impact. “Fault recovery” is a “must-be”, “buying reliability” and “service flexibility” are “attractive” and “site interaction/feedback” is one-dimensional. Besides, the dimension “service accessibility/speed” has also a direct impact on loyalty if achieving above-average performance, thus reinforcing general customer satisfaction. Originality/value – Few previous papers explore this nonlinearity in online retail services. So, future studies should lead to a theoretical and practical understanding of managing these services. Understanding this nonlinearity may help companies to better identify what improve or offer to customers.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 543-558 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neale J. Slack ◽  
Gurmeet Singh

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to determine the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty and the mediating role of customer satisfaction in the supermarket sector.Design/methodology/approachIn total, 480 supermarket customers participated in an intercept survey in four urban centres of Fiji. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the level of service quality provided by supermarkets, and inferential statistics to determine the gap between customer's service quality expectations and perceptions and to test the research hypotheses.FindingsThe findings indicate service quality of supermarkets is perceived as being unsatisfactory, service quality significantly affects customer satisfaction and loyalty and customer satisfaction partially mediates the relationship between service quality and customer loyalty reducing customer's perceptions of service quality, leading to lower customer loyalty.Practical implicationsThis study provides an indication as to where supermarkets should target their marketing attention and scarce corporate resources and may help in their efforts to service, satisfy, retain and attract more long-term loyal customers in the increasingly competitive supermarket sector. This research could inform government policy makers in sequencing the supermarket sector transformation and assist local supermarkets to adapt to this changing retail landscape.Originality/valueThis study advances our understanding of the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty and the mediating role of customer satisfaction in the supermarket sector.


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 ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafikul Islam ◽  
Selim Ahmed ◽  
Mahbubar Rahman ◽  
Ahmed Al Asheq

PurposeThe main purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of various service quality dimensions, namely reliability, responsiveness, visibility, employee commitment and access to service on customer satisfaction in the private banking sector of Bangladesh. The research also investigates the relationship between customer satisfaction and loyalty and effect of demographic variables on customer satisfaction.Design/methodology/approachThe researchers distributed 320 self-administered survey questionnaires among private banks' customers in Bangladesh and obtained 200 useable responses with a 62.5% valid response rate. The research data were analysed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM) approaches. Analysis of variance and logistic regression have also been used to obtain the supplementary findings.FindingsThe research findings indicate that visibility, responsiveness and employee commitment have positive and significant effect on customer satisfaction, whereas reliability and access to service are found to have insignificant influence on customer satisfaction of private banking services. The findings of this study also revealed that customer satisfaction has positive and significant relationship with customer loyalty. But except respondents' occupation type, all other demographic variables have no statistically significant relation with customer satisfaction.Research limitations/implicationsThe research focused solely on the private banking sector of Bangladesh, and thus the results may not be applicable to other service sectors.Originality/valueThis study conducted on customers' perception of private banking services is based on extended service quality dimensions and its relationship with customer satisfaction towards loyalty. The present research findings are anticipated to offer the guidelines for improving the customer satisfaction and loyalty of private banking services in Bangladesh as well as other countries.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 276-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Subhashini ◽  
S. Preetha

Purpose The service sector is the key driver of a country’s economic growth. The quality of service is more important for the survival of any organization. It is the interactive process by which the organization understands the customer and satisfies their needs. The main purpose of this study is to identify the factors influencing service quality in ocean freight forwarding and to study the association between the factors. Design/methodology/approach This research uses a deductive approach, which understands the theory first and collects the data. A questionnaire is designed to collect the data. The sampling technique used is two-stage sampling. First, the freight forwarders are selected and then the customers, importers and exporters are selected randomly. Likert scales are used to measure quality factors such as tangibility, reliability, responsibility, value, empathy and assurance. The association of factors is empirically evaluated. The SPSS tool is used for the correlation analysis. Findings An extensive review of the literature has been done to study and identify these service quality factors influencing customer satisfaction and loyalty. The result of this extensive literature review revealed that tangibility, responsiveness, reliability, trust, empathy and value are the service quality. It has been proved that there exists a significant association between the service quality factors and is positively related to the customer satisfaction. Originality/value Some studies have examined the freight forwarders’ service quality, but not specifically related to any dimension. This study attempts to bring together the five dimensions of SERVQUAL scale and the value dimension evaluating the cost, freight charges, safety and security criteria in the industry and examines the association between the quality factors and customer satisfaction.


2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (8) ◽  
pp. 1546-1567 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Famiyeh ◽  
Disraeli Asante-Darko ◽  
Amoako Kwarteng

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the moderating role of organizational culture in the relationship between service quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty in the banking sector using data from the Ghanaian banking sector. The idea is to understand the relative importance of the various service dimensions to customers patronizing banking services in Ghana and to ascertain what drives customer satisfaction and whether this satisfaction has implication on their loyalty. Design/methodology/approach The study used a survey and relied on partial least squares structural equation modeling to study the relationship between service quality and its impact on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. Findings The result indicates that the reliability, ambiance and social factors all have a significant positive relationship with the satisfaction of customers doing business with these banks. However, assurance and responsiveness of the employees seem to have no significant relationship with the satisfaction of customers. It is also important to indicate that organizational culture seems to strengthen the positive relationship between the service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction. The results further indicate that customer satisfaction has a direct positive relationship with customer loyalty. Research limitations/implications Reliability, ambiance and social factors remain the three most important drivers of customer satisfaction in the banking sector in Ghana. It is, therefore, important for bankers to consistently undergo training and education in order to deliver more reliable services to customers. Managers should also make efforts to groom employees, provide attractive promotion materials, provide directions to the banks, make sure the banking halls are neat for customers while waiting and the provision of enough parking spaces for customers. One limitation of this work is that the data focused on only the Ghanaian banking environment. Practical implications The research shows the importance of the service quality constructs such as reliability, ambiance and the social factors on customer satisfaction and loyalty in the banking sector. The organizational culture seems to strengthen the positive relationship between empathy, reliability, tangibles and customer satisfaction. It is therefore important for banks to continue to build cultures that will commit employees to their work, so that they feel the sense of ownership of quality in order to contribute meaningfully. Originality/value The work illustrates and provides some insights and builds on the literature in the area of service quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty from a developing country’s environment using the stimulus-organism-response model. In addition, this work further highlights the importance of the moderating role of organizational culture in the relationship between the service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction.


2016 ◽  
Vol 116 (3) ◽  
pp. 388-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Lin ◽  
Jing Luo ◽  
Shuqin Cai ◽  
Shihua Ma ◽  
Ke Rong

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the quality factors influencing customer satisfaction in the electronic commerce (e-commerce) context using a triadic view of customer-e-retailer-third-party logistics provider, and to investigate the impacts of service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty in the e-retailing supply chain. Design/methodology/approach – A literature review is used to determine the conceptual model and develop the measurement scales. Data are collected through a web survey mainly conducted in China. Structural equation modeling is used to analyze the collected data and test the research hypotheses. Findings – The results verify the proposed service quality framework, consisting of two dimensions (electronic service (e-service) quality and logistics service quality), in the e-commerce context. The results indicate that e-service quality and logistics service quality are strongly linked to customer satisfaction; that is, with e-service and logistics service, respectively. e-Service quality positively impacts customer satisfaction with logistics services, but logistics service quality negatively impacts customer satisfaction with e-services. Moreover, customer satisfaction with e-services is positively associated with customer loyalty for both e-services and logistics services. However, customer satisfaction with logistics services has no direct impact on related customer loyalty, and negatively impacts customer loyalty with e-services. Research limitations/implications – The survey focusses only on China; future data should verify whether different cultural backgrounds will impact the research results. Practical implications – The results show that e-retailers should not only focus on e-service quality, but also logistics service quality, which is critical to the success of e-commerce. Originality/value – A two-dimensional (e-service and logistics) service quality framework is proposed and empirically assessed in the context of the e-retailing supply chain. These impacts of the path of service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty are highlighted.


2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 250-269 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ernest Emeka Izogo ◽  
Ike-Elechi Ogba

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to explore the dimensional structure of the SERVQUAL scale within non-western service setting as well as the impact of service quality dimensions on customer satisfaction and loyalty. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative approach was employed, using 32-item, seven-point Likert-scaled questionnaire administered to 384 participants with 55.99 per cent usable response rate. Data were analysed using exploratory factor analysis, Cronbach’s internal consistency and γ test to, respectively, measure scale suitability, usability and strength/direction of association. Findings – The outcome from the study was the reduction of the 32 items to 26 scale items with 0.929 total α score. Further outcomes show that service quality dimensions are significant predictors of customer satisfaction and loyalty with the commitment dimension accounting for the highest degree of this impact. Research limitations/implications – Findings failed to corroborate past research as it was established that distinct efforts to measure customer satisfaction and loyalty within non-western service contexts proved to be less useful. However, outcomes cannot be generalized and as such, the modified scale that emerged from this research should receive more rigorous tests in other emerging services contexts. Practical implications – Automobile repair services firms within Ebonyi State will be better placed in their strategic responses to customer loyalty if they boost customers’ satisfaction through excellent service quality improvement actions. Social implications – The best way to enhance the welfare of the consumers of automobile repair services in Ebonyi State is by improving the empathy, tangibles, responsiveness, reliability and commitment dimensions of service quality. Originality/value – The paper demonstrates that the commitment dimension of service quality emerged as the most significant predictor of customer satisfaction and loyalty. The research also demonstrates that satisfied customers will definitely be loyal because a distinct effort to measure customer satisfaction and loyalty was found to be less useful.


Author(s):  
Rajiv Sindwani

Technology enabled automated banking is referred to as technology-based self-service banking (TBSSB). This paper probes the relationship between TBSSB service quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty. The EFA and CFA identify and confirm the structure constituting of four factors of TBSSB service quality (Convenience, Reliability and Security, Responsiveness, and Personalization), one factor of customer satisfaction, and one factor of loyalty. The model is empirically tested for reliability and validity. AMOS is used to investigate the relationship amid dimensions using SEM. It is found that convenience and personalization have a significant effect on customer satisfaction, and personalization and customer satisfaction have a significant effect on loyalty. The two structural models (partially and fully mediated) are also developed and compared. Customer satisfaction is confirmed as a mediating factor. The study presents managerial implications covering useful insights about the TBSSB factors that need to be focused on for increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty.


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