Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

Measuring service quality in retail loyalty programmes (LPSQual) Implications for retailers' retention strategies

Measuring service quality in retail loyalty programmes (LPSQual) Implications for retailers'... Purpose – This research aims to empirically develop a reliable and valid scale for measuring the service quality of retail loyalty programmes (loyalty programme service quality (LPSQual)) in the context of department stores and superstores in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach – By adapting the process proposed by Churchill for developing measures of marketing constructs, an instrument to assess LPSQual in Malaysia is formulated. The methodology consists of developing the scale based on a literature review and qualitative method. The proposed scale is then purified and validated through exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Findings – The proposed instrument (LPSQual) contains 26 attributes in seven dimensions: reward, tangibility, policy, information usefulness, courteousness/helpfulness, personalization and communication. Research limitations/implications – Further testing of the scales across multiple contexts is necessary for validity enhancement. Practical implications – Retail managers must give serious thought to the non‐material or “soft‐benefits” component in a loyalty programme which emphasizes courteous/helpful and personalized services. Thus, managers need to focus on service personnel by providing training to upgrade employees' skills in creating and delivering pleasant experience/service encounters to cardholders. Originality/value – The main contribution of this paper is the development and validation of a new scale called LPSQual, which focuses on service quality in a loyalty programme. On the one hand, it is a pioneer in the study of service quality in loyalty programmes and, on the other hand, it confirms results from other researches on non‐material strategies that can be used in loyalty programmes. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management Emerald Publishing

Measuring service quality in retail loyalty programmes (LPSQual) Implications for retailers' retention strategies

Download PDF
26 pages

Loading next page...
 
/lp/emerald-publishing/measuring-service-quality-in-retail-loyalty-programmes-lpsqual-0pQDCriQRb
Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © 2011 Emerald Group Publishing Limited. All rights reserved.
ISSN
0959-0552
DOI
10.1108/09590551111162257
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Purpose – This research aims to empirically develop a reliable and valid scale for measuring the service quality of retail loyalty programmes (loyalty programme service quality (LPSQual)) in the context of department stores and superstores in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach – By adapting the process proposed by Churchill for developing measures of marketing constructs, an instrument to assess LPSQual in Malaysia is formulated. The methodology consists of developing the scale based on a literature review and qualitative method. The proposed scale is then purified and validated through exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Findings – The proposed instrument (LPSQual) contains 26 attributes in seven dimensions: reward, tangibility, policy, information usefulness, courteousness/helpfulness, personalization and communication. Research limitations/implications – Further testing of the scales across multiple contexts is necessary for validity enhancement. Practical implications – Retail managers must give serious thought to the non‐material or “soft‐benefits” component in a loyalty programme which emphasizes courteous/helpful and personalized services. Thus, managers need to focus on service personnel by providing training to upgrade employees' skills in creating and delivering pleasant experience/service encounters to cardholders. Originality/value – The main contribution of this paper is the development and validation of a new scale called LPSQual, which focuses on service quality in a loyalty programme. On the one hand, it is a pioneer in the study of service quality in loyalty programmes and, on the other hand, it confirms results from other researches on non‐material strategies that can be used in loyalty programmes.

Journal

International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management – Emerald Publishing

Published: Sep 6, 2011

Keywords: Loyalty programmes; Service quality; Scale development; Superstore; Department stores; Malaysia

References

  • A model of distributor firm and manufacturer firm working partnerships
    Anderson, J.C.; Narus, J.A.
  • An empirical assessment of the SERVQUAL scale
    Babakus, E.; Boller, G.W.
  • On the evaluation of structural equation models
    Bagozzi, R.P.; Yi, Y.
  • Quality, satisfaction and behavioural intentions
    Baker, D.A.; Crompton, J.L.
  • An assessment of supermarket loyalty cards in one major US market
    Bellizi, J.A.; Bristol, T.
  • Customers' motivations for maintaining relationships with service providers
    Bendapudi, N.; Berry, L.L.
  • Retail businesses are service businesses
    Berry, L.L.
  • Understanding the bond of identification: an investigation of its correlates among art museum members
    Bhattacharya, C.B.; Rao, H.; Glynn, M.A.
  • Encounter satisfaction versus overall satisfaction versus quality
    Bitner, M.J.; Hubbert, A.R.
  • Investigating drivers of bank loyalty: the complex relationship between image, service quality
    Bloemer, J.; de Ruyter, K.
  • Some new thoughts on conceptualizing perceived service quality: a hierarchical approach
    Brady, M.K.; Cronin, J.
  • Searching for a consensus on the antecedent role of service quality and satisfaction: an exploratory cross‐national study
    Brady, M.K.; Robertson, C.J.
  • Assessing the relationship between loyalty program attributes, store satisfaction and store loyalty
    Bridson, K.; Evans, J.; Hickman, M.
  • The PIMS Principles: Linking Strategy to Performance
    Buzzell, R.D.; Gale, B.T.
  • A measure of export market orientation: scale development and cross‐cultural validation
    Cadogan, J.W.; Diamantopoulos, A.; de Mortanges, C.P.
  • Loyalty trends for the twenty‐first century
    Capizzi, M.T.; Ferguson, R.
  • Consumer perceptions of service quality: an assessment of the SERVQUAL dimensions
    Carman, J.M.
  • Service loyalty: the effects of service quality and the mediating role of customer satisfaction
    Caruana, A.
  • On the use, usefulness and ease of use of structural equation modeling in MIS research: a note of caution
    Chin, W.W.; Todd, P.A.
  • Paradigm for developing better measures of marketing constructs
    Churchill, G.A.
  • Marketing Research: Methodological Foundations
    Churchill, G.A.
  • Measuring service quality: a re‐examination and extension
    Cronin, J.J.; Taylor, S.A.
  • Assessing the effect of quality, value, and customer satisfaction on consumer behavioral intentions in service environments
    Cronin, J.J.; Brady, M.K.; Hult, G.T.M.
  • Relationship quality in service selling: an interpersonal influence perspective
    Crosby, L.A.; Evans, K.R.; Cowles, D.
  • A measure of service quality for retail stores: scale development and validation
    Dabholkar, P.A.; Thorpe, D.I.; Rentz, J.O.
  • On the impact of loyalty cards on store loyalty: does the customers' satisfaction with the reward scheme matter?
    Demoulin, N.T.M.; Zidda, P.
  • Drivers of customers' adoption and adoption timing of a new loyalty card in the grocery retail market
    Demoulin, N.T.M.; Zidda, P.
  • Scale Development: Theory and Applications
    DeVellis, R.F.
  • Do customer loyalty programs really work?
    Dowling, G.R.; Uncles, M.
  • Determinants of information center success
    Essex, P.A.; Magal, S.R.
  • Retail Trade International Asia: China‐Malaysia
    Euromonitor International (Asia) Pte Ltd
  • Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error
    Fornell, C.; Larcker, D.F.
  • The American customer satisfaction index: nature, purpose, and findings
    Fornell, C.; Johnson, M.D.; Anderson, E.W.; Cha, J.; Bryant, B.E.
  • Fifteen critical success factors for real‐time customer loyalty
    Fowler, M.
  • Consumer learning as a determinant of a multi‐partner loyalty program's effectiveness: a behaviorist and long‐term perspective
    Frisou, J.; Yildiz, H.
  • Rich pickings with loyalty cards
    Ganesan, V.
  • Lodging quality index (LQI): assessing customers' perceptions of quality delivery
    Getty, J.M.; Getty, R.L.
  • Customer‐employee rapport in service relationships
    Gremler, D.D.; Gwinner, K.P.
  • A service quality model and its marketing implications
    Grönroos, C.
  • Relational benefits in services industries: the customer's perspective
    Gwinner, K.P.; Gremler, D.D.; Bitner, M.J.
  • Multivariate Data Analysis
    Hair, F.J.; Black, W.C.; Babin, B.; Anderson, R.E.; Tatham, R.L.
  • Impacts of store and chain images on the ‘quality‐satisfaction‐loyalty process’ in petrol retailing
    Helgesen, O.; Havold, J.I.; Nesset, E.
  • The development of an e‐travel service quality scale
    Ho, C.L.; Lee, Y.L.
  • A better way to design loyalty programs
    Hoffman, J.L.; Lowitt, E.M.
  • An examination of restaurant loyalty programs: what kinds of rewards do customers prefer?
    Jang, D.; Mattila, A.S.
  • Service loyalty: implications for service providers
    Javalgi, R.G.; Moberg, C.R.
  • Market orientation: antecedents and consequences
    Jaworski, B.J.; Kohli, A.K.
  • A framework for comparing customer satisfaction across individuals and product categories
    Johnson, M.D.; Fornell, C.
  • Do reward programs build loyalty for services: the moderating effect of satisfaction on type and timing or rewards
    Keh, H.T.; Lee, Y.H.
  • The idiosyncratic fit heuristic: effort advantage as a determinant of consumer response to loyalty programs
    Kivetz, R.; Simonson, I.
  • Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modelling
    Kline, R.B.
  • Customer loyalty programs: are they fair to consumers?
    Lacey, R.; Sneath, J.Z.
  • The RELQUAL scale: a measure of relationship quality in export market ventures
    Lages, C.; Lages, R.C.; Lages, F.L.
  • Which retailers adopt a loyalty program: an empirical study
    Leenheer, J.; Bijmolt, T.H.A.
  • Do loyalty programs really enhance behavioral loyalty? An empirical analysis accounting for self‐selecting members
    Leenheer, J.; Van Heerde, H.J.; Bjmolt, T.H.A.; Smidts, A.
  • The long‐term impact of loyalty programs on consumer purchase behavior and loyalty
    Liu, Y.
  • Competing loyalty programs: impact of market saturation, market share, and category expandability
    Liu, Y.; Yang, R.
  • Keep'em coming back for: dinner house operators encourage customer allegiance with loyalty programs that fuse high‐quality service with new technologies and creative marketing techniques
    Lockyer, S.E.
  • The importance of quality, satisfaction, trust, and image in relation to rural tourist loyalty
    Loureiro, S.; González, F.
  • Customer satisfaction with services: putting perceived value into equation
    McDougall, H.G.G.; Levesque, T.
  • Card loyalty: a new emerging issue in grocery retailing
    Mauri, C.
  • The effects of loyalty programs on customer lifetime duration and share of wallet
    Meyer‐Waarden, L.
  • The influence of loyalty program membership on customer purchase behavior
    Meyer‐Waarden, L.
  • Are studies of dark side variables confounded by socially desirable responding: the case of materialism
    Mick, D.G.
  • Perceived benefits of loyalty programs: scale development and implications for relational strategies
    Mimouni‐Chaabane, A.; Volle, P.
  • The role of personalization in service encounters
    Mittal, B.; Lassar, W.M.
  • Can tourism providers buy their customers' loyalty? Examining the influence of customer‐provider investments on loyalty
    Morais, D.B.; Dorsch, M.J.; Backman, S.J.
  • Contact personnel, physical environment and the perceived corporate image of intangible services by new clients
    Nguyen, N.; Leblanc, F.
  • Relationship hindrance: why would consumers not want a relationship with a retailer?
    Nobel, S.M.; Phillips, J.
  • Psychometric Theory
    Nunnally, I.
  • Do rewards really create loyalty?
    O'Brien, L.; Jones, C.
  • Whence customer loyalty
    Oliver, R.L.
  • Consumer perceptions of interpersonal equity and satisfaction in transactions: a field survey approach
    Oliver, R.L.; Swan, J.E.
  • Program perceived value and program satisfaction influences on store loyalty: insight from retail loyalty program
    Omar, N.A.; Musa, R.; Nazri, M.A.
  • What customers really want: exploring service quality dimensions in a retail loyalty programme
    Omar, N.A.; Nazri, M.A.; Saad, H.S.
  • A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future research
    Parasuraman, A.; Zeithaml, V.A.; Berry, L.L.
  • SERVQUAL: a multiple‐item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality
    Parasuraman, A.; Zeithamal, V.A.; Berry, L.L.
  • Reassessment of expectations as a comparison standard in measuring service quality: implications
    Parasuraman, A.; Zeithaml, V.A.; Berry, L.L.
  • Zero defections: quality comes to services
    Reichheld, F.F.; Sasser, W.E.J.
  • Measuring the quality of relationships in consumer services: an empirical study
    Roberts, K.; Varkie, S.; Brodie, R.
  • Designing loyalty‐building programs for packaged good brands
    Roehm, M.L.; Pullins, E.B.; Roehm, H.A. Jr
  • Loyalty programs and sense of community
    Rosenbaum, M.S.; Ostrom, A.L.; Kuntze, R.
  • Building brand webs: customer relationship management through the Tesco Clubcard loyalty scheme
    Rowley, J.
  • Service quality insights and managerial implications form the frontier
    Rust, R.T.; Oliver, R.L.
  • Study shows satisfaction not the same as loyalty
    Seymour, H.; Rifkin, L.
  • Measuring service quality in hospitals: scale development and managerial applications
    Shemwell, D.; Yavas, U.
  • Brand loyalty programs: are they shams?
    Shugan, S.M.
  • A model of customer perceptions and store loyalty intentions for a supermarket retailer
    Sirohi, N.; Mc Laughlin, E.W.; Wittink, D.R.
  • An examination of the relationship between service quality, customer satisfaction, and store e‐loyalty
    Sivadas, E.; Baker‐Prewitt, J.L.
  • It's nice to get a wee treat if you've had a bad week: consumer motivations in retail loyalty scheme points redemption
    Smith, A.; Sparks, L.
  • Retail loyalty schemes: result from a consumer diary study
    Smith, A.; Sparks, L.; Hart, S.; Tzokas, N.
  • Customer loyalty in e‐commerce: an exploration of its antecedents and consequences
    Srinivasan, S.S.; Anderson, R.E.; Ponnavolu, R.
  • Customer frustration in loyalty programs
    Stauss, B.; Schmidt, M.; Schoeler, A.
  • Do reward programs truly build loyalty for lodging industry?
    Sunny Hu, H.‐H.; Huang, C.‐T.; Chen, P.‐T.
  • An assessment of the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction in the formation of consumers' purchase intentions
    Taylor, S.A.; Baker, T.L.
  • Consumer expectations and the measurement of perceived service quality
    Teas, R.K.
  • Service quality and satisfaction perceptions: curvilinear and interaction effect
    Ting, D.H.
  • Relationship marketing and customer loyalty in a retail setting: a dyadic exploration
    Too, L.H.Y.; Souchon, A.L.; Thirkell, P.C.
  • Service quality in supermarket retailing: identifying critical service experiences
    Vázquez, R.; Rodriguez‐Del Bosque, I.A.; Diaz, A.M.; Ruiz, A.V.
  • Managing customer loyalty through the mediating role of satisfaction in the DIY retail loyalty program
    Vesel, P.; Zabkar, V.
  • Relationship quality evaluation in retailers' relationships with consumers
    Vesel, P.; Zabkar, V.
  • Does customer demotion jeopardize loyalty?
    Wagner, T.; Hennig‐Thurau, T.; Rudolph, T.
  • Service quality and customer loyalty perspectives on two levels of retail relationships
    Wong, A.; Sohal, A.
  • Effects of loyalty programs on value perception, program loyalty and brand loyalty
    Yi, Y.; Jeon, H.
  • Consumer perception of price, quality and value: a means‐end model and synthesis of evidence
    Zeithaml, V.A.
  • Services Marketing: Integrating Customer Focus Across the Firm
    Zeithaml, V.A.; Bitner, M.J.
  • Delivering Quality Service
    Zeithaml, V.A.; Parasuraman, A.; Berry, L.L.