The impact of communication effectiveness and service quality on relationship commitment in consumer, professional services

TLDR

Previous research in relationship marketing has mainly examined loyalty and commitment antecedents in industrial markets, distribution channels, or consumer goods, whereas this study focuses on personal financial planning services. This study models the antecedents of clients’ relationship commitment within a professional service characterized by high credence qualities, such as personal financial planning. The authors examine how four explanatory variables—communication effectiveness, technical quality, functional quality, and trust—affect relationship commitment. Results confirm the model, revealing that communication effectiveness is the strongest driver of all antecedent variables and the most powerful determinant of relationship commitment.

Abstract

Most previous research in the domain of relationship marketing has focused on the antecedents of loyalty and commitment in industrial markets, distribution channels or consumer goods. This study, however, models the antecedents of clients’ relationship commitment in the context of a professional service, high in credence qualities (where customers have difficulty in confidently evaluating service quality, even purchase and consumption) ‐ i.e. personal financial planning services. The impact of four key explanatory variables (communication effectiveness, technical quality, functional quality and trust) are examined. The results support the hypothesized model and show communication effectiveness to be a key driver of all antecedent variables, and the single most powerful determinant of relationship commitment.