The Dimensions of Touchpoint Consistency Between Multiple Service Providers and Their Influence on the Customer Experience: An Experimental Study in the Tourism Industry
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2018-07-10
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en
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This study is about the dimensions of touchpoint consistency and the relationships between overall touchpoint consistency, customer experience and customer satisfaction. The context of this study is the tourism industry. Literature has shown that dimensions of consistency have only been studied to a limited extent. Therefore in-depth interviews with 90 respondents were held to discover the dimensions of consistency by using an open view without large restrictions from literature. Respondents were asked to relive their city trip in order to investigate consistency. After coding and analysing the interviews, seven different dimensions of consistency were found. These dimensions are sociability, communication, quality, impression, service provider identity, service provider characteristics and coordination. Each dimension is needed to eventually achieve the highest degree of consistency.
Furthermore, the relationships between overall touchpoint consistency, customer experience and customer satisfaction were investigated. The outcomes of the surveys showed that overall touchpoint consistency does not have a significant influence on customer experience. The small sample size is considered to be the reason for this finding which contradicts the literature and expectations. On the other hand, the surveys showed that overall touchpoint consistency does have a significant positive influence on customer satisfaction, with an explained variance of 5,3%.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen