The paths from service quality dimensions to customer loyalty

The Level of Internal Customer Satisfaction with the Android-based Laboratory Result Application in an Indonesian Tertiary Hospital

To perform its function of providing health services, the clinical laboratory faces several challenges, especially in the speediness and accuracy of result delivery. Some issues frequently arise during the execution. An approach to overcoming obstacles and improving service quality is to use online applications delivered via the Android system to distribute the laboratory results. This study assessed internal customer satisfaction with the use of this online application. This study employs a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional approach. The customer was given a questionnaire with 15 questions covering five aspects of service quality (tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy). The questionnaire’s validity and reliability were evaluated, and the Cartesian diagram analysis was used to determine the service improvement strategy. The empathy dimension has the highest satisfaction figure, with an average of 95.39%, while the assurance dimension has the lowest, with an average of 84.62%. The majority of the quality subdimensions are found in quadrants II and III of the Cartesian diagram (five parameters each). Most subdimension quality is found in quadrant II, with as many as five subdimension quality, indicating a high level of importance and satisfaction.

Quality perception of accounting firm customers

Purpose

This study aims to verify the dimensions of perceived quality of services which influence the satisfaction of accounting firm clients and verifies whether customer satisfaction influences loyalty and word-of-mouth recommendations.

Design/methodology/approach

A model is proposed and tested using a survey of 292 accounting firm clients; structural equation modeling and partial least squares are used for data analysis.

Findings

The constructs of internal policies, personal relationships and trust influence the satisfaction of accounting firm clients which directly influences word-of-mouth recommendations and customer loyalty; however, the constructs of physical aspects and problem solving have no influence on satisfaction.

Research limitations/implications

The main contribution to the accounting field is an identification of the aspects in which firms should invest to deliver quality to clients. The development of internal policies, personal relationships and trust can lead to more satisfied clients, resulting in loyalty and word-of-mouth recommendations. These are novel results within the literature and can guide accounting firms toward better performance.

Originality/value

This study is justified by the fact that accounting firms must adapt to the new environment and the new requirements of the accounting field and look for solutions that follow the progress of financial and managerial accounting, primarily with regard to service quality, satisfaction, loyalty and word-of-mouth recommendations. We also introduce a new scale to reveal novelties which cannot be observed using traditional service quality scales. This is another important contribution to the quality of accounting services.

The Effects of Chatbot Service Recovery With Emotion Words on Customer Satisfaction, Repurchase Intention, and Positive Word-Of-Mouth

This study sought to examine the effect of the quality of chatbot services on customer satisfaction, repurchase intention, and positive word-of-mouth by comparing two groups, namely chatbots with and without emotion words. An online survey was conducted for 2 weeks in May 2021. A total of 380 responses were collected and analyzed using structural equation modeling to test the hypothesis. The theoretical basis of the study was the SERVQUAL theory, which is widely used in measuring and managing service quality in various industries. The results showed that the assurance and reliability of chatbots positively impact customer satisfaction for both groups. However, empathy and interactivity positively affect customer satisfaction only for chatbots with emotion words. Responsiveness did not have an impact on customer satisfaction for both groups. Customer satisfaction positively impacts repurchase intention and positive word-of-mouth for both groups. The findings of this study can serve as a priori research to empirically prove the effectiveness of chatbots with emotion words.

Comparative analysis of service quality of Big Bazaar and Spencer's: a fuzzy approach

Purpose

The main objective of this study is to compare the service quality of two retail chains of hypermarkets, namely, Big Bazaar and Spencer's, using the trapezoidal fuzzy approach.

Design/methodology/approach

Customers from Big Bazaar and Spencer's of Andhra Pradesh, India, have been surveyed through a well-designed questionnaire. The study attempts to compare the service quality of two major retail giants (Spencer's and Big Bazaar) in Andhra Pradesh by using the trapezoidal fuzzy approach to prioritize the attributes of service quality of retail outlets.

Findings

The result of the study indicates that the expectations of Big Bazar customers are higher as compared to Spencer's. Further, the study reveals – that Spencer's need to improve in the dimension of tangibility while Big Bazar needs to focus more on responsiveness.

Research limitations/implications

As the data taken for the study are primary in nature, chances of bias may arise on the part of respondents, which may affect the validity of results. Further, the study is confined to two retail stores in Andhra Pradesh, India only, which may not reflect the broader picture.

Practical implications

Retailers may provide more importance to two major service quality dimensions, i.e. tangibility and responsiveness while preparing for their service and marketing strategies.

Originality/value

As the study relates to the comparative analysis of service quality of Big Bazar and Spencer's, the findings will be of additional value to these specific retailers. Therefore, it is expected that this study will fill the gap in the literature by prioritizing the expectations and perceptions of customers of Big Bazar and Spencer's.

Determinants of service quality and its effect on customer satisfaction and loyalty: an empirical study of private banking sector

Purpose

The 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/approach

The 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.

Findings

The 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/implications

The research focused solely on the private banking sector of Bangladesh, and thus the results may not be applicable to other service sectors.

Originality/value

This 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.

The effect of supermarket service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction on customer loyalty and disloyalty dimensions

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the effect of service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction on customer repurchase intention, word-of-mouth, complaining behaviour and price sensitivity, as well as the effect of service quality dimensions on customer satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

A public intercept survey collected data from 480 supermarket customers. Statistical package for the social sciences was used to provide descriptive and inferential analysis.

Findings

Results reveal the predominance and magnitude of effect of empathy positively on customer satisfaction, customer repurchase intention and word-of-mouth, and negatively on customer complaining behaviour and price sensitivity. Customer satisfaction also significantly affects these customer loyalty and disloyalty dimensions.

Research limitations/implications

This research was conducted in the supermarket sector of only one country.

Practical implications

Insights have been provided to increase customer satisfaction and customer loyalty outcomes, and negate customer disloyalty outcomes, in the supermarket sector.

Originality/value

This study provides suggestions to supermarket executives regarding the significance of empathetic, customer-oriented behaviour by front-line supermarket service employees.

The effect of service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty and the mediating role of customer satisfaction

Purpose

The 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/approach

In 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.

Findings

The 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 implications

This 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/value

This 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.

A new approach of social media analytics to predict service quality: evidence from the airline industry

Purpose

Research on how to use social media data to measure and evaluate service quality is still limited. To fill the research gap in the literature, the purpose of this paper is to open a new avenue for future work to measure the service quality in the service industry by developing a new analytical approach of using social media analytics to evaluate service quality.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses social media data to measure the service quality of the airline industry with the SERVQUAL metrics. A novel benchmark data set was created for each SERVQUAL metric. The data set was analyzed through text mining and sentiment analysis.

Findings

By comparing the results from social media with official service quality report from the Department of Transportation, the authors found that the proposed service quality metrics from social media are valid and can be used to estimate the service quality.

Practical implications

This paper presents service quality metrics and a methodology that can be easily adopted by other businesses to assess service quality. This study also provides guidance and suggestions to help businesses understand how to collect and analyze social media data for the purpose of evaluating service quality.

Originality/value

This paper offers a novel methodology that uses text mining and sentiment analysis to help the airline industry assess its service quality.

Customer perceived service quality and loyalty in Islamic banks

Purpose

– There is a plethora of research which has dealt with service quality issues in various service organizations. But a few researchers have presented state of service quality from a cultural perspective, especially within an Asian cultural context. The purpose of this paper is to measure service quality of Pakistani Islamic banks through validating a culturally sensitive scale: PAKSERV. Furthermore, the path from service quality to customer loyalty has been presented through applying PAKSERV service quality scale.

Design/methodology/approach

– Following a positivist tradition, the service quality to loyalty path in Islamic banking sector of Pakistan is established. A self-administered survey was conducted to approach 300 Islamic bank customers in major cities of Pakistan. The respondents were purposefully selected based on their extent of using the retail banking services. The data were analysed through employing various quantitative measures such as correlation and structural equation modelling employing AMOS.

Findings

– The findings reveal that Pakistani Islamic banking customers are satisfied with the service quality offered. All the dimensions of PAKSERV are found to significantly contribute towards customer satisfaction and loyalty. However, major focus of customer is on the dimensions such as responsiveness and sincerity which are understandable in high-risk avoiding and moderately power-oriented Pakistani society.

Originality/value

– The research has been first of its type to present the validity of PAKSERV scale in a collectivist cultural context of Pakistan. Furthermore, the path from the customer satisfaction to loyalty by employing PAKSERV scale has been presented for the first time.