What are drivers of customer loyalty across economic conditions, industries, firms, and customers [PhD Yi-Chun Ou, 24 April]
Dissertation: Toward a further understanding of drivers of customer loyalty across economic conditions, industries, firms, and customers
Promotor(s): prof. P.C. Verhoef
When: | Th 24-04-2014 |
Start: | 16:15 |
Customer loyalty is important for firms to compete in service industries. The literature indicates that three marketing activities effectively influence customer loyalty. They are value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity, i.e., customer equity drivers (CEDs). However, contextual factors, such as economic climate and competitiveness, can impact the importance of the drivers. This dissertation focuses on examining crucial but untested contextual situations on the link of CEDs and loyalty.
First, we consider economic conditions as a contextual factor and ask how firms can retain customers during recessions, by investigating the moderating role of consumer confidence. We show that value equity is an effective loyalty strategy for service industries during recessions (i.e., relatively lower consumer confidence).
Second, we consider industry- and firm characteristics and ask why CEDs work better in some industries/ firms. We are able to recommend managers which industry- and firm characteristics should be seriously taken into account when developing loyalty strategies and which should be not. For example, we find that loyalty strategies work better in contractual settings (e.g., insurance and mobile phone service providers) than non-contractual settings (e.g., retailing).
Finally, as nowadays firms aim to create strong customer emotions, we study their effects on loyalty and how they influence the role of service value, brands and relationships. Importantly, we show that inducing positive emotions reduces the impact of service value, brands, and relationships. In sum, firms may use the findings of this dissertation to develop context-specific loyalty strategies and thereby strengthen competitive advantages.
Last modified: | 01 February 2023 09.49 a.m. |
More news
-
02 May 2024
Johan Remkes te gast in podcast Leiderschap in Onzekere Tijden Live
Oud-minister en oud-informateur Johan Remkes is op 15 mei te gast in de Podcast Leiderschap In Onzekere Tijden. In de liveopname van de podcastaflevering gaat hij met FEB-hoogleraren Janka Stoker en Harry Garretsen in gesprek over de huidige...
-
29 April 2024
The Maddison Project: New 2023 Update Illuminates Origins of Modern Economic Growth
In a new update of the renowned Maddison Project Database, economic historians shed new light on the genesis of modern economic growth.
-
29 April 2024
Guido Berends and Hylke Dijkstra win FEB Research Awards 2023
The awards for best PhD thesis and best graduate of the research master were presented at the annual PhD conference held on April 18. Guido Berends won the Best PhD Thesis Award 2023 and Hylke Dijkstra won the Research Master Graduate Award 2023.