Customer-Employee Rapport in Service Relationships

TLDR

Business survival depends on solid customer relationships, yet the marketing literature offers limited guidance on which relational aspects matter, especially regarding the underexplored concept of rapport. The study investigates the role of rapport in customer‑employee interactions within service firms with high interpersonal contact to address this literature gap. The authors examine rapport in service settings marked by frequent interpersonal interactions to assess its relevance. The study identifies two distinct dimensions of rapport in two service contexts, finds that both positively predict satisfaction, loyalty intent, and word‑of‑mouth, and proposes future research avenues.

Abstract

Relationships are an important aspect of doing business, and few businesses can survive without establishing solid relationships with their customers. Although the marketing literature suggests that personal relationships can be important to service firms, little specificity has been provided as to which relational aspects should receive attention. In this study, the authors examine one specific aspect of customer-employee relationships, rapport, that they believe may be particularly salient in service businesses characterized by a high amount of interpersonal interactions. Rapport has received relatively little attention in the marketing literature; the goal of this study is to fill this gap in the literature. In two different service contexts, the authors find support for two empirically distinct dimensions of rapport. They also find a positive relationship between these dimensions and satisfaction, loyalty intent, and word-of-mouth communication. They conclude by suggesting future research directions for further academic inquiry of rapport in service contexts.