How Customer Engagement and Customer Participation Affect Customer Satisfaction in the Professional Services Industry

Abstract:

Several studies have examined the relationship between customer participation and customer satisfaction of service delivery and provider (Lovelock and Young, 1979, Zeithaml, 1981, Mills & Morris, 1986, Benapudi and Leone, 2003, Chan, Yim, and Lam, 2010, and Wu, 2011). This research will establish a relationship between Customer Engagement, Customer Participation, and the outcome of Customer Satisfaction. This study focuses on the inseparability characteristic of professional services where Customer Engagement (CE) and Customer Participation (CP) affect Customer Satisfaction (CS) of professional service delivery and provider. This research will separate out the empirical relationship between service Customer Engagement (CE) and service Customer Participation (CP), where CE is more psychological, where customers think, feel, and trust and CP is more behavioral, or physical, where customers act and do. The premise of this research is that Customer Engagement is necessary for Customer Participation, which is necessary for Customer Satisfaction thus customers can engage without participating but not effectively participate without engaging. Further, Customer Engagement and the motivations behind Customer Participation are becoming particularly relevant to professions characterized as customized, high contact, and high in credence properties (Plé, Lecocq, and Angot, 2010). As such, this study focuses on customer participation in the professional services industry such as legal, architecture, financial/insurance services, engineering, accounting, medicine, and real estate in an effort to provide learning for professional service providers. Six hypotheses are tested. Study limitations and future research are also discussed.As such, this study focuses on customer participation in the professional services industry such as legal, architecture, financial/insurance services, engineering, accounting, medicine, and real estate in an effort to provide learning for professional service providers. Six hypotheses are tested. Study limitations and future research are also discussed. As such, this study focuses on customer participation in the professional services industry such as legal, architecture, financial/insurance services, engineering, accounting, medicine, and real estate in an effort to provide learning for professional service providers. Six hypotheses are tested. Study limitations and future research are also discussed.As such, this study focuses on customer participation in the professional services industry such as legal, architecture, financial/insurance services, engineering, accounting, medicine, and real estate in an effort to provide learning for professional service providers. Six hypotheses are tested. Study limitations and future research are also discussed.

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