Relationship Value－The Key Determinant of Customer Engagement in Relational Exchange

[[abstract]]關係行銷是長期動態的關係式交易且著重於保留顧客，但過去的文獻均偏重在探討廠商保留顧客能得到的利益，卻忽略了消費者加入及維持長期關係的關鍵驅動力－關係價值認知。基於上述研究缺口，本研究的目的在深入探討關係價值的意義及其與重要的影響因素和結果變數之關聯。本研究提出一個建議的「顧客關係參與模型」，主張顧客參加及維持長期商業關係的關鍵因素是他們的關係價值認知，而關係價值的高低取決於關係特別利益與關係特別成本的差額。關係價值受到一些重要因素的影響，並轉而影響對關係的滿意、信任、承諾、與離去傾向。本研究並以實證研究支持此模型的適切性。 本研究的實證部份是以問卷作為調查工具，採人員訪問法完成394份有效問卷，研究結果發現，當關係時效性、關係創新性、關係可靠性、關係優越性、關係相容性、與關係可見性愈高時，關係參與者對關係價值的認知也愈高，而對關係價值的認知愈高，關係參與者的滿意度、信任度、與關係承諾度也愈高，進而離去傾向則愈低。本研究最後比較三種不同的關係價值衡量模型，發現總體模型（包含4個題項）最具成本效益，並具高信度；複合模型（包含16個題項）的信度最高，但題項甚多。本研究除了針對研究發現說明其行銷意涵，亦對產學界提出若干管理與未來研究建議。[[abstract]]Relationship marketing is a long-term dynamic relational exchange focusing on retaining customers. However most past research on relationship marketing has been limited on exploring companies’ benefits of retaining customers and neglecting the important role that relationship value plays in the consumer’s decision on participating and maintaining a particular relationship program rather than others. Based on the foregoing research gap, the purpose of this study is to fully explore the authentic meaning of relationship value and to examine the relationships between relationship value and some of its important determinants and outcome variables. This study suggests a model of consumers’ engagement in relationships, which conceptualizes relationship value to be the key factor that prompts the consumer to participate in and maintain a particular relationship program. It also posits that relationship value will be dertermined by several important variables and will in turn influence some factors critical in maintaining the relationship program. In the second part of the study we conducted an empirical survey to examine the fitness of this model. Based on a sample consists of 394 general consumers, we found that when the degree of the timeliness, innovation, reliability, relative advantage, compatibility, and observability of a particular relationship program is high, the consumer’s perceived relationship value of the program also will be high. And when the perceived relationship value of the program is high, the consumer will have higher satisfaction, trust, and commitment with respect to the relationship program, which in turn will lead to a lower propensity to leave the relationship. At the end of the study, we compared and contrasted three different measurement models of relationship value. The result showed that the overall model consisting of 4 scale items is the most cost saving but still owning high reliability. In contrast, the compound model that consists of 16 scale items has the highest reliability, but involving too many scale items. We discussed the marketing implications of these research findings and also provided several suggestions for both practitioners and researchers who will be interested in this field