This Activity Assignment Will Help Students Understand Custo

This activity/assignment will help students understand customer evaluations, perceptions of quality and customer satisfaction

This activity/assignment will help students understand customer evaluations, perceptions of quality and customer satisfaction. Activity: Discuss a time when exceptional customer service solidified your brand loyalty or a time that customer service was so terrible that you will no longer use that brand. The assignment is to answer the question provided above in essay form. This is to be in narrative form and should be as thorough as possible. Bullet points should not to be used.

The paper should be at least 1.5 - 2 pages in length, Times New Roman 12-pt font, double-spaced, 1 inch margins and utilizing at least one outside scholarly or professional source related to marketing management. The textbook should also be utilized. Do not insert excess line spacing. APA formatting and citation should be used.

Paper For Above instruction

Customer evaluations and perceptions of quality profoundly influence brand loyalty and consumer behavior. My personal experience vividly illustrates how exceptional customer service can solidify brand loyalty, while poor service can swiftly erode it. Several years ago, I had an enlightening experience with a local electronics retailer, which reinforced my trust and loyalty toward their brand. Conversely, my recent encounter with a national airline exemplifies how subpar service can lead to complete brand disavowal.

The positive experience occurred when I purchased a new laptop from the electronics retailer. From the moment I entered the store, the staff exhibited genuine friendliness and attentiveness. A sales associate patiently understood my needs, explained various models, and recommended options that aligned with my usage. The checkout process was smooth, and the staff ensured I had all necessary accessories and instructions. What stood out was their after-sales follow-up, as I received a call a week later asking if I was satisfied with the product and if I needed further assistance. This personalized approach strengthened my perception of their commitment to customer satisfaction and reinforced my loyalty to their brand.

The importance of customer service in shaping perceptions of quality aligns with the theoretical framework presented by Kotler and Keller (2016), who emphasize that customer perceptions of service quality influence overall satisfaction and brand loyalty. Their research indicates that exceptional service can surpass product quality in meaning, leading to positive word-of-mouth and repeat purchases. My experience exemplifies this; the attentive service elevated my perception of the retailer's overall quality, fostering a strong brand connection.

Contrastingly, my recent experience with a major airline was disheartening. I encountered severe delays and unhelpful staff during a flight cancellation. Despite multiple attempts to seek assistance, the airline staff exhibited indifference, providing minimal information and offering inadequate compensation. The flight delay caused significant inconvenience, and the staff’s dismissive attitude further deteriorated my perception of their commitment to customer satisfaction. This experience, coupled with their lack of responsiveness and empathy, eroded my trust in the airline brand, leading me to avoid future flights with them.

This incident highlights the critical role of service quality in shaping brand perception. Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry (1988) identify tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy as key dimensions of service quality. The airline's failure in responsiveness and empathy directly impacted my perception negatively. This aligns with the Service Quality gap model, where failures in service delivery generate gaps between customer expectations and perceptions, ultimately affecting customer satisfaction (Zeithaml, Parasuraman & Berry, 1990).

In conclusion, my experiences emphasize that customer service significantly influences perceptions of quality and brand loyalty. Superior service can convert customers into brand advocates, while poor service can swiftly lead to disloyalty. Businesses should recognize that investing in employee training and customer-centric practices is essential for fostering positive evaluations and long-term customer relationships. As noted by Grönroos (2007), service quality is a vital determinant of customer satisfaction and loyalty, and organizations that prioritize customer experience can achieve a competitive advantage.

References

• Grönroos, C. (2007). Service management and marketing: Customer management in service competition. John Wiley & Sons.
• Kotler, P., & Keller, K. L. (2016). Marketing management (15th ed.). Pearson.
• Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A., & Berry, L. L. (1988). SERVQUAL: A multi-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality. Journal of Retailing, 64(1), 12-40.
• Zeithaml, V. A., Parasuraman, A., & Berry, L. L. (1990). Delivering quality service: Balancing customer perceptions and expectations. Simon and Schuster.
• Additional scholarly sources to be used as needed for comprehensive support.