The Role Of Service Quality In Shaping Consumer Behaviour And It's Impact On Customer Base On Businesses

This study aims to investigate the effect of service quality in shaping consumer behavior and the impact on the customer base of businesses from the perspective of retail banking customers in the United Kingdom. The study draws on customer behavior and attitude premised on the SERVQUAL and SERVPERF models originated by Parasuraman et al., (1988), Cronin and Taylor (1992), and Brady and Cronin (2001) respectively as well as other researches based on the literature on customer satisfaction and loyalty. We used both quantitative and qualitative research approaches in our study and relied mainly on primary data. We made use of a 7 point likert scale to develop indexes for the main constructs measured in this study and applied correlation analysis to evaluate the hypothesized relationships. Further we qualitatively analysed aspects of the data hinging on explanatory aspects of our research. The results among other things revealed that whilst service quality (especially responsiveness and empathy) and bank image and reputation are important instigators of customer satisfaction and loyalty, competitive pricing showed a weak linear relationship with customer satisfaction and loyalty (r˂5). Finally we discussed the management implications of the study in terms of customer retention and profitability strategies for the banks in the U