Satisfaction with e-learning: Theoretical approaches and empirical measurements

The emergence of e-learning transforms behavioural patterns of all participants in the education market. It is necessary to try alternative approaches and marketing tools to design effective online courses and ensure their integration to the educational process. The article analyses the opportunities and constraints on using the key marketing concept of customer satisfaction in terms of e-learning. In marketing, satisfaction is the central indicator of a company’s performance and success, since it serves as a prerequisite for expanding the customer base and building loyalty. The methodological framework embraces the theories of strategic marketing and consumer behaviour. The empirical part of the study includes the qualitative (identification of factors affecting satisfaction) and quantitative stages (method for assessing student satisfaction, including satisfaction indices and building a perceptual map). The methods applied by the authors encompass factor and cluster analysis. With the help of the Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI), we indicate that the current level of overall satisfaction with online courses provided by the National Open Education Platform is high (79 %). Based on perceptual maps, as well as factor and cluster analysis, the paper highlights a number of factors that are the most important for student satisfaction and categorizes them into groups. The most significant factor is the course design, and the least significant one is learning outcomes control, which includes the certificate value and the proctoring procedure. The method for assessing student satisfaction with e-learning is of use when designing online courses based on the in-depth understanding of the needs of online platforms’ users.