| Author: | Tam, Tsui-wa Christine |
| Title: | An integrated model of online customer loyalty |
| Degree: | M.Phil. |
| Year: | 2004 |
| Subject: | Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations Customer loyalty Consumer behavior |
| Department: | Department of Management and Marketing |
| Pages: | vi, 207 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | There is a paucity of research regarding the interrelationships among different variables in an Internet-based environment. Investigations have been conducted to examine various constructs influencing customer loyalty on the Internet, such as usefulness (Igbaria et al. 1996; Philips et al. 1997), ease of use (Dabholkar 1996; Hoffman and Novak 1996; Willis 1998) and enjoyment (Starbuck and Webster 1991; Webster and Martocchio 1992; Igbaria et al. 1994). However, an integrated online customer loyalty model does not exist with a comprehensive instrument specifically designed to focus on the customer's perception of the quality of a Website in the context of predicting whether that Website will be revisited. This paper seeks to address that gap, by utilizing the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) (Ajzen et al. 1980) in which the TRA particularly as applied to the utilization of information technology in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) (Davies et al. 1989) to find out the customer behaviors in the Internet environment. The purpose of this study is to provide a better understanding of the relationships among perceptions, satisfaction, and loyalty when customers use online portals. Three research objectives served to guide the development of an integrated online customer loyalty model. The first objective was to investigate the relationships among perceptions, satisfaction, and loyalty in online environment, especially in a portal. The second research objective was to develop the dimensions to be used in measuring customer's perceptions towards a portal and to examine how these dimensions influence evaluations of satisfaction and loyalty for an online environment. The third objective was to compare the perceptions of both Chinese and Western customers of their most frequently used portal and to determine whether differences exist that would influence evaluations of and loyalty to the portal. In order to reveal the pertinent dimensions of Website perceptions and establish content validity, existing constructs related to customer satisfaction and loyalty were reviewed from the literature on Information Systems and Marketing. The conceptual framework for the online customer loyalty model was drawn primarily from the relevant research in the literature on services. Data for the study was collected using a survey conducted in person in Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok Airport. The opinions of respondents from both China and the West were collected. Structural model technique was employed to test the online customer loyalty model. The links found in the casual model were interpreted as an integrated model of online customer loyalty. The findings suggest that the customers' judgments of the characteristics of a Website's services were found to be influential in affecting online customer loyalty. Finally, those customers who placed a greater value on the simplicity of use, usefulness of the information provided, and the fun features of a Website indicated that these would have an impact on whether they would use the portal repeatedly and would influence their perceptions of the that Website. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | open access |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| b17811454.pdf | For All Users | 6.6 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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