Determinants of service quality for customers: An overview of quality loyalty

Abstract

The growth of the informal sector in spite of alarming constraints is an appeal to the role which they continue to play in creation of employment opportunities in the fast growing urban sector. In the present shoe shine enterprises scenario, service quality is a vital competitive advantage to maintain customer support and build great base for the enterprise. However, customer loyalty is little known and these categories of enterprise continue to be marginalized. This study examined the influence of customer perceived service quality indicators on loyalty in the shoe shine enterprises in Eldoret town Kenya. The objectives of this study were to; determine the effect of core service on customer loyalty, examine the influence of the human element of service delivery on customer loyalty, examine how systemization of service delivery influence customer loyalty, assess the effect of tangible of a service on customer loyalty and investigate the influence of shoe shine enterprises social responsibility practices on customer loyalty. The study was based on the SERVQUAL model. The research design was survey. A selection of 23 shoe shine enterprises guided the study to arrive at a sample size of 230 respondents selected randomly. Questionnaires were used to collect primary data. Data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The main findings of this study indicated that; the demographic characteristics of the respondents had a significant relationship with customer loyalty. The measures levels for the independent variables played a role in explaining deviations in the dependent variable. The core service, human element of service delivery, systemization of service delivery, tangible of a service and shoe shine enterprises social responsibility practices had a significant relationship with customer loyalty. The findings indicated that customers consider tangible of a service and shoe shine enterprises social responsibility practices as the most critical indicators of their perception of service quality. This study concludes that service quality indicators as perceived by the customers had a higher impact on loyalty in the shoe shine enterprises in Eldoret town Kenya. Arising from the conclusion of this study, it is recommended that Municipal Councils provide infrastructure for shoe shine enterprises in Eldoret town and in Kenya as a whole, which continue to act as a constraint to the growth of the sector. Secondly, shoe shine entrepreneurers should design modern shoe shine enterprises and implement social responsibility practices. Thirdly, the government should create a friendly business environment that promotes the informal sector employment creation role and an organization that is self regulating be formed to oversee the mainstreaming of shoe shine enterprises in the mainstream economy.