The main objective of this study was to determine the effects that customer satisfaction and service quality have on customer behavior in an online environment. The findings of this study are similar to previous studies conducted by service quality researchers.
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction
Introduction
Motivation for the Study
Customer service quality is related to customer loyalty, customer retention, and increased organizational profits (Reichheld & Sasser, 1990). The purpose of this study is to develop an understanding of customer perceptions of online shopping and then further isolate aspects of what customers expect from a call center that supports an online shopping site and what they expect from a voice encounter. with a customer service agent.
Focus of the Study
- Service Quality
- Customer Satisfaction
- Customer Behaviour
The components of service quality and customer satisfaction often overlap, as both contribute to the overall satisfaction of the customer experience. A customer's experience with a business is likely to be multiplied by interactions with other prospective customers through word of mouth.
Problem Statement
In this current study we examined issues of service quality within an online shopping environment and the quality of the after-sales support call center that supported the website. The objective was to determine the service quality issues that affected a customer's online shopping experience and the degree of influence that website's after-sales support call center had on a customer's intention to revisit and repurchase on that site. the Internet and the impact these variables have on the Organization's profitability.
Limitations of the Study
- Population and Sample Size
- Sampling Techniques
- Identifying and targeting respondents
- Literature Review
- Sources of Secondary Data
Judgmental sampling was chosen for the purpose of this study and respondents were selected after confirming that they had both online shopping and call center experience. For electronic journals, electronic databases such as OPAC, Nexus and Science Direct were consulted to assess the status and importance of service quality and customer satisfaction in the market.
Conclusion
Published articles from consultants specializing in the areas of customer satisfaction and service quality were used.
Introduction
The two main concepts of this study are customer satisfaction and service quality and the impact these two measurable values have on an organization's ability to maintain its customer base and competitive advantage in the market. This study delves into the dimensions of customer service and service quality and the direct and indirect impact each of these components have on each other and the overall impact they have on the organization.
Customer Satisfaction
- Satisfaction as a function of Disconfirmation
- Satisfaction as a Function of Perception
- Measuring Customer Satisfaction
- Service Variability and its Impact on Customer Satisfaction
- Trust and Service Variability
- The Effect of Waiting Times on Customer Satisfaction
- Components of Customer Service
- Difference Between the Marketing of Products and Services
- Intangibility
- Heterogeneity/Variability
- Simultaneous Production and Consumption
- Perishability
- Customer service and expectations
- Factors Influencing Customer's Expectations of Service
- Sources of Desired Service Expectations
- Sources of Adequate Service Expectations
- Transitory Service Intensifiers
- Perceived Service Alternatives
- Customer's Self Perceived Service Role
- Predicted Service
- Sources of both Desired and Predicted Service Zeithaml and Bitner (2000) explain these as follows
- Explicit Service Promises
- Implicit Service Promises
- Word of Mouth Communication
- Past Experience
- The Impact of Corporate Image on Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction
It is an important factor in the overall evaluation of the service and the company. The service provider is an integral part of the satisfaction gained by the customer.
Service Quality
- How is Service Quality Measured?
- Service Quality Dimensions
- Reliability
- Promises
- Empathy
- Tangibles
This refers to the willingness of the service provider to assist the customer and provide prompt and efficient service. Customers at Woolworths South Africa are aware of the service assurances that the organization promises.
Electronic Service Quality
- Criteria Customers use in evaluating Electronic Service Quality
- Information availability and content
- Aesthetics
- Dimensions Relating to Usefulness in Gathering Information
- Dimensions Relating to Usefulness in Carrying Out Transactions
- Dimensions Related to Entertainment Value
- Previous Studies on Electronic Service Quality
- WebQual - Loiacono, Watson and Goodhue
- WebQual - Barnes and Vidgen
- SiteQual - Yoo and Donthu
- etailQ
- Electronic Service Quality Model (E-S-QUAL)
- Privacy/Security
- Fulfilment and Reliability
The scale is designed to be answered without the need for a respondent to complete the purchase process and is therefore a specific assessment of a site's transaction rather than a comprehensive assessment of a site's service quality. This study did not include aspects of customer service or fulfillment; rather, it only dealt with aspects of the website and measured satisfaction rather than service quality.
Call Centres .1 Background
- Factors Affecting CSA Work Performance
- Call Centre Capacity Management and Service Quality
- Service Profit Chain
- Customer Expectations and Voice to Voice Service Encounters
- Service Recovery
- Perceptions of Commitment to Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction within the Call Centre Environment
- The Impact of Customer Satisfaction and Service Quality on Customer Behaviour
The customer in a voice-to-speech service encounter is highly dependent on the reliability of the CSA, as there is only verbal contact. Boshoff et al (1999) argued that this reflected a customer-perceived commitment on the part of the employee to provide maximum service quality and satisfy the customer. The content of the response or the CSA's explanation has a clear impact on the customer's levels of satisfaction with the encounter (Bitner et al (1990)).
Demographics
While advertising also had an impact on attraction, customer usage rates were driven by service quality rather than advertising. However, the relationship between service quality and profits is neither straightforward nor simple (Greising, 1994; Zahorik and Rust, 1992). There are several documented findings on the impact that service quality has on customer loyalty.
Conclusion
A demographic profile (often shortened to "a demographic") provides enough information about the typical member of this group to create a mental picture of this hypothetical aggregate. The effects of service quality and customer satisfaction are interconnected in that they are instrumental to the sustainability of an organization and are shown to be attributable to customer loyalty. This chapter delves into the concepts of service quality and customer satisfaction within an online environment and after-sales call center.
CHAPTER THREE
Research Methodology
- Introduction
- Objectives of the Study
- Sampling Technique and Description of the Sample
- Definition of Sampling
- Target population
- Sample frame
- Sampling approach and technique
- The Research Instrument The questionnaire contained three parts
- Research Design
- Statistical analysis of data
- Conclusion
The questionnaire was designed to be specific and capture information relevant to the study's three aims. The first 6 questions of the questionnaire were formulated to address objective 1 and were related to biographical information about the respondents. After this, the author explained how visual representation was used to illustrate analysis of the data.
Presentation of Results
Introduction
Demographics Frequency Analysis
- Gender
- Respondents' Age
- Race
- Occupational Category
- Frequency of Use
- Service Provider
It was found that in the race category, a large group (44%) of the respondents were of Asian descent. There were approximately (10%) of the respondents who shopped daily and 9% consisted of annual shoppers. BT Broadband accounted for 37% of the market share, Bulldog Broadband (31%), Telewest (22%) and Easynet accounted for 4% of the market share.
Graphical Representations of Factors
- Factor: System Availability
- Reliability of Website
- Accessibility
- Flexibility
- Factor: Fulfilment / Reliability
- Trust
- Price Knowledge
- Factor: Efficiency
- Ease of Navigation
- Efficiency
- Site Aesthetics
- Customization/Personalization
- Factor: Security
About two-thirds of respondents (60%) indicate that the website is reliable and that the products advertised are available. Two-thirds of respondents agreed that the website is reliable and that the information provided is accurate. Just over a quarter of respondents disagreed that the website is easy to customize.
Correlations
- Gender and Return Customer
- Age and Return Customer
- Race and Return Customer
- Quality Call Service Quality versus Returning Client
- Response Time Call Centre versus Returning Client
- Courtesy of the Customer Service Agent (CSA) versus Returning Client
- Knowledgeable versus Returning Client
Because the P-value in the ANOVA table is less than 0.05, there is a statistically significant relationship between Quality Call Service Quality and repeat customer at a confidence level of 95.0% or higher. Because the P-value in the ANOVA table is less than 0.05, there is a statistically significant relationship between Courtesy and repeat customer at the 95.0% confidence level. Because the P-value in the ANOVA table is less than 0.05, there is a statistically significant relationship between the knowledge variable and repeat customer at 95.0%.
Conclusion
Since the P-value in the ANOVA table is less than 0.05, there is a statistically significant relationship between call center response time and repeat customer at a 95.0% confidence level. There is a statistically significant relationship between the sales support variables and repeat customer, with the exception of call service quality. Less than 10% reported being below average, indicating that their interaction with the transaction was much lower than their expectations and that the actual on-site transaction was less than pleasant.
Introduction
- System Availability
- Efficiency
- Fulfilment/Reliability Dimension
- Privacy and Security
- Gender and Return Customer
- Age and Return Customer
- Race and Return Customer
- Contact Method
- Quality of Service
- Quality Call Service Quality versus Returning Client
- Response Time
- Response Time Call Centre versus Returning Client
- Courtesy of the Customer Service Agent (CSA) versus Returning Client
- Knowledge
- Knowledgeable versus Returning Client
- Query Resolution
The results of the tests of the variables Quality call service quality and customer return revealed that the P value in the ANOVA table is less than 0.05. The test results of Call Center Response Time and Return Customer variables revealed that the P value in the ANOVA table is less than 0.05. The test results of customer service agent politeness and return customers variables revealed that the P value in the ANOVA table is less than 0.05.
Discussion
The average of the test results of this segment tends more towards 2, which implies that there is some agreement with the questions that make up the factors. The implications of these results are that respondents agree with the statements made in the questionnaire. The test results of this segment revealed that there is a statistically significant relationship between Sales Support variables and those of the Returning Customer, except for Quality Call Service Quality.
Conclusion
Customer perceptions of service quality are of great importance in developing a strong corporate image and subsequent customer retention. 34;We know that e-service quality affects satisfaction, intention to purchase and purchase", (Zeithaml et al (2002)). Most of this evidence is either anecdotal or based on surveys such as (Bizrate), but there is sufficient data on site abandonment and site complaints to suggest that e-service quality is a key driver of loyalty intentions, which include repeat purchases, positive word-of-mouth, and recommendations to others.
Recommendations and Conclusion
Introduction
Recommendations for Future Research Measures that should be taken for future studies include
Research is needed examining the interrelationships between technology readiness, e-service quality, and e-customer shopping behavior. Research is needed to determine whether customization/personalization is seen as effective and whether the techniques used, for example, identify similarities between customers; Time-consuming e-mails and unnecessary data requested are drivers of e-service quality or not. There are minimal research findings available on customer age, gender or income and how this affects repeat visits and evaluation of e-service quality.
Recommendations Pertinent to this Study
According to Bauer et al (2006) research, website reliability was the most important determinant of global quality perception. According to Parasuraman et al (2005), the system availability dimension was defined as the correct technical functioning of the site. The findings of this study revealed a score tending towards agreement on the importance that system availability had on the quality of electronic services.
The Call Centre as a Tool for Customer Satisfaction
Parasuraman et al (2005)'s research found that the correlation analyzes of system availability and privacy with perceived value and loyalty intentions were slightly lower than those of the efficiency and fulfillment dimensions, but of the same order of magnitude. Most service provider call centers in the UK offer service that operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. They believe that if a customer's problem is solved, they are more likely to make a purchase than someone who is merely satisfied.
Conclusion
Customers.com/Best Practices, Boston, USA. 1993), The antecedents and consequences of customer satisfaction for firms, Journal of Marketing Science, Vol.12, No.2. International Journal of Service Industry Management, Electronic Vol. 1995), Strategic determinants of service quality and performance: Evidence from the banking industry, Management Sciences, Vol.41, No.ll. Making service quality financially accountable, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 2003), Barriers to teamwork development in UK firms, Industrial Relations Journal, Vol. 1999), Interactivity in Commercial Web Sites:.
Journal of Management Information Systems, Vol. 2000), Integrated Internet Marketing, Communications of the ACM, Vol. 2001), Research Methodology for the Business and Administrative Sciences. Zeithaml et al., (1996), The behavioral consequences of service quality, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 2000), Services Marketing, Irwin McGraw-Hill, United States of America.
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