Causes and outcomes of customer satisfaction in business-to-business markets relationship marketing in the South African cement manufacturing industry

Close relationships between cement manufacturers and their customers in business-to-business markets are becoming a necessity in today’s competitive markets. The literature search reveals that, three constructs of relationship marketing (trust, commitment and satisfaction) are the most studied and well known. This study contributes to the body of knowledge by adding two constructs (supplier competencies and communication) as vital causes to customer satisfaction and the outcome being customer loyalty and cooperation. The study produced a framework of dimensions of relationship marketing in the South African Cement Industry and its hoped will help marketing managers in the industry and related sectors in coming up with relationship marketing strategies that can go a long way in helping them retain, attract, satisfy, and achieve long-term profitable relationships for both the supplier and the customer. A judgemental sample of major cement customers (362) throughout South Africa’s nine provinces were contacted using face-to-face interview technique with self-administered questionnaires. The results support the conceptual model presented; supplier competencies, trust, commitment and communication have a positive association with satisfaction; and satisfaction, in turn, relates positively to all the two outcomes of cooperation and loyalty. It is recommended that a cement manufacturer must invest in strategies that enhance trust, communication, commitment and supplier competencies in order to satisfy its customers who will in turn contribute to customer cooperation and loyalty.

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Trust and communication as predictors of customer satisfaction in business-to-business relationship marketing in the South African cement manufacturing industry

Journal of Governance and Regulation ◽

10.22495/jgr_v4_i2_c1_p2 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 98-104 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Phineas Mbango ◽

Maxwell Agabu Phiri

Keyword(s):

Customer Satisfaction ◽

South African ◽

Relationship Marketing ◽

Manufacturing Industry ◽

Cement Industry ◽

Business Relationship ◽

The South ◽

The Face ◽

Cement Manufacturing ◽

Business To Business

Customer satisfaction has become relevant in the South African cement industry as it leads to customer loyalty and cooperation. In the current climate, to ensure long-term profitability, cement suppliers need to adopt strategies to ensure customer satisfaction. This study’s literature search has revealed that there is limited published research, particularly in South Africa, which deals with customer satisfaction determinants in the cement industry. The major objective of the study was to test if trust and communication influence customer satisfaction in the context of business-to-business relationship marketing in the South African cement manufacturing industry. The methodology involved a survey and was quantitative in nature. Data were collected from 362 major business-to-business cement customers throughout South Africa’s nine provinces using the face-to-face interview technique using a seven-point Likert scale structured self-administered questionnaires. The data collected in the empirical study were analysed using descriptive, correlation and regression analysis. The empirical results of this study suggest that, in order to maintain customer satisfaction, a cement supplier has to invest in ways of enhancing customer trust and communication. As a result this study makes both theoretical and practical contribution in the field of relationship marketing

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Customer satisfaction as a mediator between causes (trust and communication) and the outcome (customer loyalty) in business-to-business relationship marketing in the South African cement manufacturing industry

Journal of Governance and Regulation ◽

10.22495/jgr_v4_i3_p8 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 4 (3) ◽

pp. 79-88 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Phineas Mbango ◽

Maxwell Agabu Phiri

Keyword(s):

Customer Satisfaction ◽

Customer Loyalty ◽

Manufacturing Industry ◽

Methodological Approach ◽

Structural Equations ◽

Cement Industry ◽

Theory And Practice ◽

Business Success ◽

Sequential Logic ◽

Business To Business

Customer loyalty has become more relevant in the cement industry since the unbundling of the cartel system in 1994, the entrance of new competitors into the market and the effect of globalization. This study’s literature review reveals that there is limited published research in the Cement Industry, particularly in South Africa, which deals with customer loyalty management. The major objective of the study was to test satisfaction as a mediator between causes and outcome, the causes being trust and communication and the outcome being customer loyalty. The methodological approach followed was a survey and quantitative in nature. Data were collected from 362 major business-to-business cement customers throughout South Africa’s nine provinces using the face-to-face interview technique with self-administered questionnaires. The data collected in the empirical study were analysed using the structural equations modelling (SEM). The results show that in order to maintain customer loyalty, a cement supplier has to focus on strategies to build relationships on the basis of creating customer satisfaction and/or exceeding customer needs and wants. They also need to invest in enhancing customer trust and communication. Another important finding is that trust and communication have no direct effect on loyalty. Customer satisfaction is therefore the most important mediator as it leads to customer loyalty. Customer loyalty is crucial for business success in terms of repeat purchase, referrals (word-of-mouth marketing), retention and long-term profitability. There exists evidence from literature of an outcry for a need for future studies to examine causes and outcomes of satisfaction to specific industries. This study contributes to theory and practice by closing that gap, by providing a framework of causes and outcomes of satisfaction specifically aimed at the cement industry. Another contribution of this study is its examination of the sequential logic of causes and outcomes of satisfaction in business-to-business relationships in the cement industry. This study hopes to make a practical contribution in helping marketing managers of cement companies to come up with marketing strategies of ensuring customer loyalty

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Factors that Inhibit Sustainable Adoption of Industry 4.0 in the South African Manufacturing Industry

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13031013 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (3) ◽

pp. 1013

Author(s):

Whisper Maisiri ◽

Liezl van Dyk ◽

Rojanette Coeztee

Keyword(s):

South African ◽

Education System ◽

Industry 4.0 ◽

Manufacturing Industry ◽

Youth Unemployment ◽

Small Scale ◽

The South ◽

Qualitative Descriptive ◽

Cultural Construct ◽

Sub Saharan

Industry 4.0 (I4.0) adoption in the manufacturing industry is on the rise across the world, resulting in increased empirical research on barriers and drivers to I4.0 adoption in specific country contexts. However, no similar studies are available that focus on the South African manufacturing industry. Our small-scale interview-based qualitative descriptive study aimed at identifying factors that may inhibit sustainable adoption of I4.0 in the country’s manufacturing industry. The study probed the views and opinions of 16 managers and specialists in the industry, as well as others in supportive roles. Two themes emerged from the thematic analysis: factors that inhibit sustainable adoption of I4.0 and strategies that promote I4.0 adoption in the South African manufacturing industry. The interviews highlighted cultural construct, structural inequalities, noticeable youth unemployment, fragmented task environment, and deficiencies in the education system as key inhibitors. Key strategies identified to promote sustainable adoption of I4.0 include understanding context and applying relevant technologies, strengthening policy and regulatory space, overhauling the education system, and focusing on primary manufacturing. The study offers direction for broader investigations of the specific inhibitors to sustainable I4.0 adoption in the sub-Saharan African developing countries and the strategies for overcoming them.

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Integrative taxonomic methods reveal an incorrect synonymisation of the South African Pseudonereis podocirra (Schmarda) as the widespread Pseudonereis variegata (Grube) from Chile

Invertebrate Systematics ◽

10.1071/is18016 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 32 (6) ◽

pp. 1282 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Jyothi Kara ◽

Angus H. H. Macdonald ◽

Carol A. Simon

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Species Delimitation ◽

Haplotype Network ◽

The Body ◽

General Description ◽

The South ◽

Morphological Examination ◽

Genetic Structuring ◽

The Status

The nereidid Pseudonereis variegata (Grube, 1866) described from Chile includes 14 synonymised species from 10 type localities with a discontinuous distribution, but no taxonomic or molecular studies have investigated the status of this species outside Chile. Two synonymised species, Mastigonereis podocirra Schmarda, 1861 and Nereis (Nereilepas) stimpsonis Grube, 1866, were described from South Africa and investigated here using morphological examination. MtCOI species delimitation analyses and morphology were used to determine the status of P. variegata in South Africa. Morphological examination revealed that museum and freshly collected specimens from South Africa that conform to the general description of P. variegata are similar to M. podocirra and N. stimpsonis with respect to the consistent absence of homogomph spinigers in the inferior neuropodial fascicle, expanded notopodial ligules and the subterminal attachment of dorsal cirri in posterior parapodia. The synonymy of M. podocirra and N. stimpsonis as P. variegata are rejected and P. podocirra, comb. nov. is reinstated. Morphologically, Pseudonereis podocirra differed from specimens from Chile with regard to the numbers of paragnaths, the absence of homogomph spinigers and changes in parapodial morphology along the body. Independence of these species was further supported by genetic distances, automatic barcode gap discovery and multi-rate Poisson tree process species delimitation analyses of 77 mtCOI sequences. Haplotype network revealed no genetic structuring within the South African populations. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:F0B1A5AF-9CE9-4A43-ACCF-17117E1C2F21

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UNDERSTANDING THE SOUTH AFRICAN FINANCIAL MARKETS: AN OVERVIEW OF THE REGULATORS

Obiter ◽

10.17159/obiter.v31i3.12328 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 31 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Lynette Swart ◽

Vivienne A Lawack-Davids

Keyword(s):

Financial Markets ◽

South African ◽

Regulatory Framework ◽

The Body ◽

Regulatory Environment ◽

The South ◽

Body Of Knowledge

This article examines the regulatory framework pertaining to the South African financial markets. The authors explain selected terminology and provide an overview of regulators in order to create an understanding of the regulatory environment to enhance transparency and add to the body of knowledge in financial markets law.

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An Introduction to Business Marketing

Business Marketing: The Theory and Practice of B2B ◽

10.23912/978-1-906884-54-3-1750 ◽

2011 ◽

Author(s):

Chris Fill ◽

Scot McKee

Keyword(s):

Supply Chains ◽

Relationship Marketing ◽

Perceived Value ◽

Marketing Mix ◽

Business Markets ◽

Principal Characteristics ◽

B2b Marketing ◽

Goods And Services ◽

Business To Consumer ◽

Business To Business

This chapter explores some of the principal characteristics used to define business markets and marketing. It establishes the key elements of business-to-business (B2B) marketing and makes comparisons with the better-known business-to-consumer (B2C) sector. This leads to a consideration of appropriate definitions, parameters and direction for the book. After setting out the main types of organisations that operate in the B2B sector and categorising the goods and services that they buy or sell, the chapter introduces ideas about the business marketing mix, perceived value, supply chains, interorganisational relationships and relationship marketing. This opening chapter lays down the vital foundations and key principles which are subsequently developed in the book.

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