Customer Evaluations of Service Complaint Experiences: Implications for Relationship Marketing

TLDR

Companies view complaint handling as a way to boost loyalty, yet lack guidance on effective strategies for service failures. The study tests how complaint‑handling satisfaction and prior experience jointly influence trust and commitment. The authors formulate hypotheses and empirically test them using survey data on customer complaint experiences. Most customers were dissatisfied, and justice theory shows they assess outcomes, procedures, and interpersonal treatment; findings reveal that complaint‑handling satisfaction directly boosts trust and commitment, while prior positive experiences only partially buffer poor handling.

Abstract

Many companies consider investments in complaint handling as means of increasing customer commitment and building customer loyalty. Firms are not well informed, however, on how to deal successfully with service failures or the impact of complaint handling strategies. In this study, the authors find that a majority of complaining customers were dissatisfied with recent complaint handling experiences. Using justice theory, the authors also demonstrate that customers evaluate complaint incidents in terms of the outcomes they receive, the procedures used to arrive at the outcomes, and the nature of the interpersonal treatment during the process. In turn, the authors develop and test competing hypotheses regarding the interplay between satisfaction with complaint handling and prior experience in shaping customer trust and commitment. The results support a quasi “brand equity” perspective—whereas satisfaction with complaint handling has a direct impact on trust and commitment, prior positive experiences mitigate, to a limited extent, the effects of poor complaint handling. Implications for managers and scholars are discussed.