IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nms/nomsmr/10.15358-2511-8676-2019-1-3.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Configuring Customer Touchpoints: A Fuzzy-Set Analysis of Service Encounter Satisfaction

Author

Listed:
  • Wünderlich, Nancy V.
  • Hogreve, Jens

Abstract

Knowledge about the importance of sub-service encounters or touchpoints within the service process is a topic of interest to both researchers and businesses. However, existing research mainly analyses service encounter evaluations based on composite or overall measures. While these studies make a significant contribution to understanding the importance of specific attributes for evaluating the overall encounter, our study extends existing research by showing how evaluations might be built upon different configurations of touchpoints. Based on a qualitative comparative analysis, we identify the determinants that are ultimately necessary, as well as those that are sufficient, for creating positive customer experiences within airline services. We provide managers with guidance on how to design successful customer experiences and long-lasting customer satisfaction. This knowledge helps service firms invest in quality improvements that will pay off in the long run.We enrich service theory by providing an in-depth view of customer service encounters and by identifying how different configurations of touchpoint evaluations lead to satisfactory service experiences. We establish a complementary explanation of the creation of customers’ evaluations of multiple touchpoints.

Suggested Citation

  • Wünderlich, Nancy V. & Hogreve, Jens, 2019. "Configuring Customer Touchpoints: A Fuzzy-Set Analysis of Service Encounter Satisfaction," SMR - Journal of Service Management Research, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, vol. 3(1), pages 3-11.
    • Handle: RePEc:nms:nomsmr:10.15358/2511-8676-2019-1-3
    DOI: 10.15358/2511-8676-2019-1-3
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/10.15358/2511-8676-2019-1-3
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.15358/2511-8676-2019-1-3?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Srivastava, Mala & Kaul, Dimple, 2014. "Social interaction, convenience and customer satisfaction: The mediating effect of customer experience," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 21(6), pages 1028-1037.
    2. Verhoef, Peter C. & Lemon, Katherine N. & Parasuraman, A. & Roggeveen, Anne & Tsiros, Michael & Schlesinger, Leonard A., 2009. "Customer Experience Creation: Determinants, Dynamics and Management Strategies," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 85(1), pages 31-41.
    3. Ragin, Charles C., 2000. "Fuzzy-Set Social Science," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 1, number 9780226702773, December.
    4. Ragin, Charles C., 2006. "Set Relations in Social Research: Evaluating Their Consistency and Coverage," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(3), pages 291-310, July.
    5. repec:ucp:bkecon:9780226702766 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Santos, Jose Novais & Mota, João & Baptista, Cristina Sales, 2018. "Understanding configurations of value creation functions in business relationships using a fuzzy-set QCA," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 429-434.
    7. Voorhees, Clay M. & Fombelle, Paul W. & Gregoire, Yany & Bone, Sterling & Gustafsson, Anders & Sousa, Rui & Walkowiak, Travis, 2017. "Service encounters, experiences and the customer journey: Defining the field and a call to expand our lens," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 269-280.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Pekovic, Sanja & Rolland, Sylvie, 2020. "Recipes for achieving customer loyalty: A qualitative comparative analysis of the dimensions of customer experience," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    2. Dhrithi Mahadevan & G. Shainesh, 2024. "Conceptualizing customer experience in multi-actor platforms," AMS Review, Springer;Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 14(1), pages 83-103, June.
    3. Kumbure, Mahinda Mailagaha & Tarkiainen, Anssi & Luukka, Pasi & Stoklasa, Jan & Jantunen, Ari, 2020. "Relation between managerial cognition and industrial performance: An assessment with strategic cognitive maps using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 160-172.
    4. Lucia-Palacios, Laura & Pérez-López, Raúl & Polo-Redondo, Yolanda, 2020. "How situational circumstances modify the effects of frontline employees’ competences on customer satisfaction with the store," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    5. Markus Mayer & Markus Voeth, 2022. "Improving negotiation success in B2B sales organizations: is structured negotiation management a success factor?," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 92(2), pages 163-196, February.
    6. Grohs, Reinhard & Raies, Karine & Koll, Oliver & Mühlbacher, Hans, 2016. "One pie, many recipes: Alternative paths to high brand strength," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(6), pages 2244-2251.
    7. Barry Cooper & Judith Glaesser, 2016. "Analysing necessity and sufficiency with Qualitative Comparative Analysis: how do results vary as case weights change?," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 50(1), pages 327-346, January.
    8. Wang, Huanming & Ran, Bing, 2022. "How business-related governance strategies impact paths towards the formation of global cities? An institutional embeddedness perspective," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    9. Katarzyna Boratynska, 2021. "Determinants of Economic Fragility in Central and Eastern European Countries FsQCA Approach," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(3B), pages 827-837.
    10. Delgado García, Juan Bautista & De Quevedo Puente, Esther, 2016. "The complex link of city reputation and city performance. Results for fsQCA analysis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(8), pages 2830-2839.
    11. André Cherubini Alves & Bruno Brandão Fischer & Nicholas S. Vonortas, 2021. "Ecosystems of entrepreneurship: configurations and critical dimensions," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 67(1), pages 73-106, August.
    12. Peters, D.T.J.M. & Verweij, S. & Grêaux, K. & Stronks, K. & Harting, J., 2017. "Conditions for addressing environmental determinants of health behavior in intersectoral policy networks: A fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 195(C), pages 34-41.
    13. Federica Nieri & Luciano Ciravegna & Ruth V. Aguilera & Elisa Giuliani, 2019. "Larger, more internationalized, better behaved? A configurational study of em erging market multinational enterprises' involvement in corporate wrongdoing," Discussion Papers 2019/255, Dipartimento di Economia e Management (DEM), University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
    14. Cambra-Fierro, Jesús & Polo-Redondo, Yolanda & Trifu, Andreea, 2021. "Short-term and long-term effects of touchpoints on customer perceptions," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    15. Ferguson, Graham & Megehee, Carol M. & Woodside, Arch G., 2017. "Culture, religiosity, and economic configural models explaining tipping-behavior prevalence across nations," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 218-233.
    16. Söderlund, Magnus & Sagfossen, Sofie, 2017. "The consumer experience: The impact of supplier effort and consumer effort on customer satisfaction," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 219-229.
    17. Katarzyna Boratyńska, 2021. "A New Approach for Risk of Corporate Bankruptcy Assessment during the COVID-19 Pandemic," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-14, December.
    18. Lawton, Thomas C. & De Villa, Maria Andrea & Santamaria-Alvarez, Sandra Milena, 2024. "Making Sense of Socio-Political Risks in International Business: A Configurational Approach to Embracing Complexity," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 30(2).
    19. Sonja Sperber & Christian Linder, 2018. "The impact of top management teams on firm innovativeness: a configurational analysis of demographic characteristics, leadership style and team power distribution," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 12(1), pages 285-316, January.
    20. Paulo Lopes Henriques & Carla Curado & Mírian Oliveira & Antônio Carlos Gastaud Maçada, 2019. "Publishing? You can count on knowledge, experience, and expectations," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 53(3), pages 1301-1324, May.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nms:nomsmr:10.15358/2511-8676-2019-1-3. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nomos.de/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.