Armel Alloh | Institut National Polytechnique Félix Houphouët-Boigny (original) (raw)

Drafts by Armel Alloh

The growth of new information and communication technologies (Internet, mobile money, mobile phon... more The growth of new information and communication technologies (Internet, mobile money, mobile phone, etc.) is corroborated by the explosion of on-line sales services in Côte d'Ivoire. Aggressive competition is pushing industry professionals to look for new niches of growth and consider now customer loyalty as a competitive advantage. Service quality has a preponderant importance for both e-companies and e-consumers. In an environment characterized by customer volatility, companies must ensure irreproachable service quality. A company that adopts a superior service quality will succeed in satisfying its customers, which will enhance its competitive advantages. Indeed, without offering him an acceptable service quality, customer being dissatisfied will not hesitate to quit.

Purpose: Our study focuses on assessing service quality dimensions, as defined by the SERVQUAL model, provided by e-companies and measuring their customers’ satisfaction and loyalty levels by questioning hundreds of them interviewed in their respective households.

Research design, methodology and approach: A questionnaire was developed and administered by students through a structured random selection method that give equal chance to all participants. Through a quantitative survey, a random and methodical approach, 281 self-administered questionnaires were distributed to respondents to obtain a useful sample of 110 e-users. This made it possible to measure customers’ satisfaction level before and after using the e-commerce services and thus to deduce a future favorable disposition to loyalty.

Key findings and Research implication: The results analyzed showed that SERVQUAL, through the perceived value model, was a comprehensive, effective and simple instrument to measure satisfaction and loyalty. Results show E-service quality dimension that impacts most on loyalty is Reliability. Negative perceived value indicates room for e-Service quality improvement in order to retain customers. Surprisingly, given positive impact of Price on customer satisfaction & Loyalty, it is strongly recommended to take this factor into account when setting up eventual e-commerce loyalty program.

Contribution and originality: This study provided a modest contribution to the already very rich library on the research about the impact of the SERVQUAL model in developing countries environment, especially in Côte d’Ivoire. Anyone interested in or Ivorian e-professionals could have a better understanding about e-commerce market, customers’ insights and also learn to improve their strategies to develop E-service quality, retain more subscribers and increase market shares. The study limitations, implications, and directions for further research are also discussed.

Key words: E-commerce, SERVQUAL, Perceived value, Satisfaction, Loyalty

The growth of new information and communication technologies (Internet, mobile money, mobile phon... more The growth of new information and communication technologies (Internet, mobile money, mobile phone, etc.) is corroborated by the explosion of on-line sales services in Côte d'Ivoire. Aggressive competition is pushing industry professionals to look for new niches of growth and consider now customer loyalty as a competitive advantage. Service quality has a preponderant importance for both e-companies and e-consumers. In an environment characterized by customer volatility, companies must ensure irreproachable service quality. A company that adopts a superior service quality will succeed in satisfying its customers, which will enhance its competitive advantages. Indeed, without offering him an acceptable service quality, customer being dissatisfied will not hesitate to quit.

Purpose: Our study focuses on assessing service quality dimensions, as defined by the SERVQUAL model, provided by e-companies and measuring their customers’ satisfaction and loyalty levels by questioning hundreds of them interviewed in their respective households.

Research design, methodology and approach: A questionnaire was developed and administered by students through a structured random selection method that give equal chance to all participants. Through a quantitative survey, a random and methodical approach, 281 self-administered questionnaires were distributed to respondents to obtain a useful sample of 110 e-users. This made it possible to measure customers’ satisfaction level before and after using the e-commerce services and thus to deduce a future favorable disposition to loyalty.

Key findings and Research implication: The results analyzed showed that SERVQUAL, through the perceived value model, was a comprehensive, effective and simple instrument to measure satisfaction and loyalty. Results show E-service quality dimension that impacts most on loyalty is Reliability. Negative perceived value indicates room for e-Service quality improvement in order to retain customers. Surprisingly, given positive impact of Price on customer satisfaction & Loyalty, it is strongly recommended to take this factor into account when setting up eventual e-commerce loyalty program.

Contribution and originality: This study provided a modest contribution to the already very rich library on the research about the impact of the SERVQUAL model in developing countries environment, especially in Côte d’Ivoire. Anyone interested in or Ivorian e-professionals could have a better understanding about e-commerce market, customers’ insights and also learn to improve their strategies to develop E-service quality, retain more subscribers and increase market shares. The study limitations, implications, and directions for further research are also discussed.

Key words: E-commerce, SERVQUAL, Perceived value, Satisfaction, Loyalty