Success in the retail sector is highly dependent on customer satisfaction. Maintaining a competit... more Success in the retail sector is highly dependent on customer satisfaction. Maintaining a competitive edge depends upon the service providers knowing and enacting what is important to their customers. Multiple studies have employed various research approaches to identifying characteristics of customer satisfaction in different sectors as well as retail sector. However, very few have determined such characteristics using multiple approaches simultaneously in the retail store. This study aims to identify, categorize, and rank the retail store attributes, based on their effects on customer satisfaction. A survey focusing on retail store characteristics that impact customer satisfaction was developed and distributed. Over 400 responses were collected and evaluated, using the Kano model. Results showed that visually appealing facilities and error-free transactions are of prime importance to customers. They are taken for granted, but their absence plays a significant role in customer dissa...
Attracting and enrolling international students have become the primary concern of marketing effo... more Attracting and enrolling international students have become the primary concern of marketing efforts of higher education institutions. For this purpose, understanding the decision-making process of students is vital. This study examines the information sources, requirements, and choice factors of international students who study their higher education in an emerging higher education destination. This study is conducted through a quantitative approach, based on both exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). A survey was conducted with students who enrolled at a state university for the first time. University websites are identified as the most used sources of information. According to the study’s findings, job and scholarship opportunities are identified as the first and most crucial concern of international students. This study is of particular significance for higher education institutions in emerging higher education destinations to better underst...
In the highly competitive retail sector, the provision and measurement of superior retail service... more In the highly competitive retail sector, the provision and measurement of superior retail service quality is crucial for gaining a sustainable competitive advantage. Service quality is an important strategic weapon in retail contexts, particularly in developing defensive marketing strategies. The measurement of service quality in a retail setting is somewhat different from the measurement of service quality in other pure service settings. The most widely known and discussed scale for measuring service quality -SERVQUAL- has not been successfully adapted to and validated in a retail store environment. The ‚retail service quality scale‘ (RSQS) [1] has been validated in the USA, Hong Kong, and Korea, but not in other cultural settings. Only a limited number of studies have attempted to measure service quality in retail settings, so there is a significant gap in the literature regarding this area of research. The present study addresses this gap by applying the RSQS among 648 customers ...
Journal of Business Economics and Management, 2010
Globalisation has resulted in businesses extending their market coverage to include international... more Globalisation has resulted in businesses extending their market coverage to include international markets, which has provided customers with an ever‐expanding choice of domestic and foreign purchase options. It has thus become critical for marketers to ascertain the perceptions and attitudes of consumers regarding their acceptance of foreign products. The most commonly used instrument for this purpose is the ‘Consumer Ethnocentric Tendencies Scale’ ('CETSCALE') (Shimp and Sharma 1987), which has been validated in several developed economies, but which has not been applied and validated in many developing economies. The present study addresses this gap by applying ‘CETSCALE’ among 484 consumers in the developing market of North Cyprus. The study confirms the scale's validity and reliability in the setting of North Cyprus. Consumers’ ethnocentrism is shown to be positively related to intention to purchase domestically produced goods. The study also analyses the relationships between certain demographic characteristics and consumers’ ethnocentrism. The results, managerial implications, and limitations of the study are discussed in detail.Globalizacija versle pasireiške tuo, kad išplete rinku apimtis, itraukdama ir tarptautines rinkas, o tai suteike galimybe pirkejams pasirinkti didesni vidaus ir užsienio prekiu asortimenta. Todel pardavejams labai svarbu išsiaiškinti vartotoju suvokima ir požiūri i užsienio produkcija. Šiam tikslui dažniausiai naudojama priemone ‐ vartotojo etnocentrines tendencijos skale (CETSCALE) (Shimp, Sharma 1987), kuri buvo patvirtinta keliose išsivysčiusios ekonomikos šalyse, tačiau ši priemone nera naudojama ir patvirtinta besivystančiose šalyse. Pateikiamas tyrimas atkreipia demesi i šia taikymo CETSCALE tarp 484 vartotoju besivystančiose Šiaures Kipro rinkose spraga. Tyrimas parodo skales tinkamuma ir patikimuma tyrimams atlikti Šiaures Kipre. Buvo nustatyta, kad tarp pirkejo etnocentrizmo ir noro pirkti šalyje pagamintas prekes yra teigiamas ryšys. straipsnyje analizuojamas ryšys tarp tam tikru demografiniu charakteristiku ir pirkeju etnocentrizmo. Detaliai aptarti gauti tyrimo rezultatai, ju reikšme valdymui ir tyrimo ribotumas.
Design/methodology/approach Nine countries were selected from the Cranfield Network on Comparat... more Design/methodology/approach Nine countries were selected from the Cranfield Network on Comparative Human Resource Management database varying from high to low context. The dependent or criterion variable, was direct communication, independent variables were ...
Design/methodology/approach A survey as designed by the Cranfield Network on International Huma... more Design/methodology/approach A survey as designed by the Cranfield Network on International Human Resource Management (CRANET-G) was used for this study. The survey aims to obtain data that is based on facts and it does not ask for information based on respondents' ...
The present study describes the zone of tolerance for customers’ service expectations and determi... more The present study describes the zone of tolerance for customers’ service expectations and determines their satisfaction level for retail stores. It attempts to diagnose the service quality level of customers’ in retail store setting. A conceptual model RETZOT is presented in this study, and the results demonstrate that evaluation of services can be scaled according to different types of expectations—‘desired’ and ‘adequate’—and that customers use these two types of expectations as a comparison standard in evaluating retail store services. The findings reveal that customers have a narrow zone of tolerance with regards to the services provided by retail stores.
Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 2009
This study aims to diagnose the applicability of the perceived service quality measurement scale ... more This study aims to diagnose the applicability of the perceived service quality measurement scale to students; and to diagnose the student satisfaction level in higher education. It attempts to diagnose the perceived service quality of administrative units such as services provided by the registrar, library, faculty/school offices, rector office, dormitories, sports and health centre. Descriptive and causal analysis is employed. Reliability and dimensionality of the scale is tested. Results indicate that the nature of perceived service quality measurement instrument is found to be two-dimensional: tangibles and intangibles for higher education services. The results and implications are discussed in detail.
Design/methodology/approach The sample of the study consisted of customers visiting four-star, ... more Design/methodology/approach The sample of the study consisted of customers visiting four-star, five-star, and resort hotels located in the Gazimağusa and Kyrenia regions of Northern Cyprus in June and July 2004. The questionnaire was based on service expectations and ...
Success in the retail sector is highly dependent on customer satisfaction. Maintaining a competit... more Success in the retail sector is highly dependent on customer satisfaction. Maintaining a competitive edge depends upon the service providers knowing and enacting what is important to their customers. Multiple studies have employed various research approaches to identifying characteristics of customer satisfaction in different sectors as well as retail sector. However, very few have determined such characteristics using multiple approaches simultaneously in the retail store. This study aims to identify, categorize, and rank the retail store attributes, based on their effects on customer satisfaction. A survey focusing on retail store characteristics that impact customer satisfaction was developed and distributed. Over 400 responses were collected and evaluated, using the Kano model. Results showed that visually appealing facilities and error-free transactions are of prime importance to customers. They are taken for granted, but their absence plays a significant role in customer dissa...
Attracting and enrolling international students have become the primary concern of marketing effo... more Attracting and enrolling international students have become the primary concern of marketing efforts of higher education institutions. For this purpose, understanding the decision-making process of students is vital. This study examines the information sources, requirements, and choice factors of international students who study their higher education in an emerging higher education destination. This study is conducted through a quantitative approach, based on both exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). A survey was conducted with students who enrolled at a state university for the first time. University websites are identified as the most used sources of information. According to the study’s findings, job and scholarship opportunities are identified as the first and most crucial concern of international students. This study is of particular significance for higher education institutions in emerging higher education destinations to better underst...
In the highly competitive retail sector, the provision and measurement of superior retail service... more In the highly competitive retail sector, the provision and measurement of superior retail service quality is crucial for gaining a sustainable competitive advantage. Service quality is an important strategic weapon in retail contexts, particularly in developing defensive marketing strategies. The measurement of service quality in a retail setting is somewhat different from the measurement of service quality in other pure service settings. The most widely known and discussed scale for measuring service quality -SERVQUAL- has not been successfully adapted to and validated in a retail store environment. The ‚retail service quality scale‘ (RSQS) [1] has been validated in the USA, Hong Kong, and Korea, but not in other cultural settings. Only a limited number of studies have attempted to measure service quality in retail settings, so there is a significant gap in the literature regarding this area of research. The present study addresses this gap by applying the RSQS among 648 customers ...
Journal of Business Economics and Management, 2010
Globalisation has resulted in businesses extending their market coverage to include international... more Globalisation has resulted in businesses extending their market coverage to include international markets, which has provided customers with an ever‐expanding choice of domestic and foreign purchase options. It has thus become critical for marketers to ascertain the perceptions and attitudes of consumers regarding their acceptance of foreign products. The most commonly used instrument for this purpose is the ‘Consumer Ethnocentric Tendencies Scale’ ('CETSCALE') (Shimp and Sharma 1987), which has been validated in several developed economies, but which has not been applied and validated in many developing economies. The present study addresses this gap by applying ‘CETSCALE’ among 484 consumers in the developing market of North Cyprus. The study confirms the scale's validity and reliability in the setting of North Cyprus. Consumers’ ethnocentrism is shown to be positively related to intention to purchase domestically produced goods. The study also analyses the relationships between certain demographic characteristics and consumers’ ethnocentrism. The results, managerial implications, and limitations of the study are discussed in detail.Globalizacija versle pasireiške tuo, kad išplete rinku apimtis, itraukdama ir tarptautines rinkas, o tai suteike galimybe pirkejams pasirinkti didesni vidaus ir užsienio prekiu asortimenta. Todel pardavejams labai svarbu išsiaiškinti vartotoju suvokima ir požiūri i užsienio produkcija. Šiam tikslui dažniausiai naudojama priemone ‐ vartotojo etnocentrines tendencijos skale (CETSCALE) (Shimp, Sharma 1987), kuri buvo patvirtinta keliose išsivysčiusios ekonomikos šalyse, tačiau ši priemone nera naudojama ir patvirtinta besivystančiose šalyse. Pateikiamas tyrimas atkreipia demesi i šia taikymo CETSCALE tarp 484 vartotoju besivystančiose Šiaures Kipro rinkose spraga. Tyrimas parodo skales tinkamuma ir patikimuma tyrimams atlikti Šiaures Kipre. Buvo nustatyta, kad tarp pirkejo etnocentrizmo ir noro pirkti šalyje pagamintas prekes yra teigiamas ryšys. straipsnyje analizuojamas ryšys tarp tam tikru demografiniu charakteristiku ir pirkeju etnocentrizmo. Detaliai aptarti gauti tyrimo rezultatai, ju reikšme valdymui ir tyrimo ribotumas.
Design/methodology/approach Nine countries were selected from the Cranfield Network on Comparat... more Design/methodology/approach Nine countries were selected from the Cranfield Network on Comparative Human Resource Management database varying from high to low context. The dependent or criterion variable, was direct communication, independent variables were ...
Design/methodology/approach A survey as designed by the Cranfield Network on International Huma... more Design/methodology/approach A survey as designed by the Cranfield Network on International Human Resource Management (CRANET-G) was used for this study. The survey aims to obtain data that is based on facts and it does not ask for information based on respondents' ...
The present study describes the zone of tolerance for customers’ service expectations and determi... more The present study describes the zone of tolerance for customers’ service expectations and determines their satisfaction level for retail stores. It attempts to diagnose the service quality level of customers’ in retail store setting. A conceptual model RETZOT is presented in this study, and the results demonstrate that evaluation of services can be scaled according to different types of expectations—‘desired’ and ‘adequate’—and that customers use these two types of expectations as a comparison standard in evaluating retail store services. The findings reveal that customers have a narrow zone of tolerance with regards to the services provided by retail stores.
Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 2009
This study aims to diagnose the applicability of the perceived service quality measurement scale ... more This study aims to diagnose the applicability of the perceived service quality measurement scale to students; and to diagnose the student satisfaction level in higher education. It attempts to diagnose the perceived service quality of administrative units such as services provided by the registrar, library, faculty/school offices, rector office, dormitories, sports and health centre. Descriptive and causal analysis is employed. Reliability and dimensionality of the scale is tested. Results indicate that the nature of perceived service quality measurement instrument is found to be two-dimensional: tangibles and intangibles for higher education services. The results and implications are discussed in detail.
Design/methodology/approach The sample of the study consisted of customers visiting four-star, ... more Design/methodology/approach The sample of the study consisted of customers visiting four-star, five-star, and resort hotels located in the Gazimağusa and Kyrenia regions of Northern Cyprus in June and July 2004. The questionnaire was based on service expectations and ...
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