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The Impact of Service Quality on Rural Customer Loyalty Behaviours
Abstract
Within the context of rural SMEs this paper investigates those aspects of service quality that impact on customer loyalty behaviours such as giving word-of-mouth (WOM). Critical Incident Technique (CIT) was used to gather experience of these services and how these experiences impacted on loyalty behaviours from a sample of rural SMEs' customers. Reported incidents were classified into three major dimensions: unexpected employee behaviours; gestalt evaluations of the service experience and responses to failures. Reported experiences showed that badly treated first-time customers will not return. However, increased familiarity with a high quality service provider is increasingly rewarded with repeat business but such customers cannot be taken for granted and if dissatisfied are likely to give negative WOM. The implications for rural SMEs are that with regards to new customers they have only one chance to impress. Their customers like to talk and they will spread stories about good and bad service.
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Addresses the relevance of marketing principles and how marketing should be practised in very small or micro firms by studying new start businesses in the West Yorkshire area. Reports qualitative research findings from in-depth interviews with a sample of 18 small business founders using simple content analysis and case study techniques. Addresses specific topics including customers and customer focus; competitive advantage and positioning; marketing communications; marketing planning and strategy; and key issues involved in business growth and development. Concludes with a summary of how marketing is practised in small businesses, based on the research findings; an examination of marketing in different types of businesses; and recommendations on how marketing can help small businesses improve performance and achieve growth.
Financial service providers have long placed considerable faith in positive word of mouth communication as a means of attracting new customers and a variety of studies of customer choice of bank highlight the significance of personal recommendation. Given that financial services tend to be characterised by a predominance of experience and credence qualities, word of mouth communication is particularly valuable, providing the potential consumer with vicarious experience of the service under consideration. The impact of word of mouth is probably at its strongest when it originates from social contacts because of their greater perceived reliability. By its very nature, this form of communication is outside the formal control of an organisation and yet its impact is such that the ability to influence or encourage word of mouth could be a powerful marketing tool. This paper provides an exploratory analysis of the importance of word of mouth and the factors which influence its role within an organisation’s marketing strategy, with particular reference to customer referral campaigns. Empirical evidence is collected from the (rapidly changing and liberalising) financial services sector in India.
The service encounter frequently is the service from the customer's point of view. Using the critical incident method, the authors collected 700 incidents from customers of airlines, hotels, and restaurants. The incidents were categorized to isolate the particular events and related behaviors of contact employees that cause customers to distinguish very satisfactory service encounters from very dissatisfactory ones. Key implications for managers and researchers are highlighted.
The service encounter frequently is the service from the customer's point of view. Using the critical incident method, the authors collected 700 incidents from customers of airlines, hotels, and restaurants. The incidents were categorized to isolate the particular events and related behaviors of contact employees that cause customers to distinguish very satisfactory service encounters from very dissatisfactory ones. Key implications for managers and researchers are highlighted.
Research suggests that while customer satisfaction and loyalty provide a foundation for high levels of customer lifetime value, they support a range of customer behaviors with widely varying values, characterized by mere loyalty (repeat purchase), commitment (willingness to refer others to a product or service), apostle-like behavior (willingness to convince others to use a product or service), and ownership (willingness to recommend product or service improvements). As a result of these findings, it is of increasing importance that the small number of apostles and owners in a customer portfolio that can drive all of the profits should be identified and cultivated.
Word-of-mouth is a rarely quantified phenomenon, in spite of its importance for service firms. Therefore, referrals remain a neglected determinant of customer lifetime valuation, although some authors claim them to be the astronomical part of customer equity. The paper discusses different approaches to the calculation of positive word-of-mouth, leading to a monetary referral value of a company’s customers.
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relationships between marketing and quality in the value-creation process. Design/methodology/approach – The paper combines the findings from a literary review and multiple case studies to develop a conceptual framework of the synergistic relationship between total quality management (TQM) and marketing in creating customer value. Findings – Two main conclusions arise from the study: TQM is a platform for the full realisation of marketing potentialities by revitalising the marketing concept and fostering its implementation; and TQM and marketing are complementary and synergistic in facilitating efficient management of the process of value creation and delivery. Research limitations/implications – The developed framework is only part of the complex relationship between marketing and quality. Nevertheless, it provides a solid basis from which to integrate the knowledge, tools, and methodologies of marketing and quality. Practical implications – The study provides valuable practical insights into the effective management of marketing and quality in the creation and delivery of customer value. Originality/value – The paper addresses a gap in the literature by analysing the synergistic links between TQM and marketing in the value-creation process.