How habits, social ties, and economic switching barriers affect customer loyalty in contractual service settings

• Published in: Journal of business research Vol. 64; no. 8; pp. 800 - 808
• Main Authors: Woisetschläger, David M., Lentz, Patrick, Evanschitzky, Heiner
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Elsevier Inc 01.08.2011; Elsevier; Elsevier Sequoia S.A
• Series: Journal of Business Research
• Subjects: Brand loyalty; Consumer behaviour; Contracts; Contractual relationships; Customer services; Economic behaviour; Habits; Loyalty; Loyalty Switching barriers Habits Social ties Contractual relationships; Satisfaction; Social psychology; Social relations; Social ties; Studies; Switching barriers; Word of mouth advertising; Switching barriers; Contractual relationships; Loyalty; Habits; Social ties
• ISSN: 0148-2963; 1873-7978
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2010.10.007

While existing literature acknowledges positive effects of satisfaction and economic switching barriers for building customer loyalty, studies analyzing interactions of these antecedents reveal mixed findings. Prior research does not consider, as antecedents of switching barriers, either habits or social ties that result from shared service-usage within a family or community. This paper contributes to the literature, first, by replicating the effects of satisfaction, economic switching barriers, and their interaction with customer loyalty and word-of-mouth of subscribers to a contractual service. Second, the study empirically tests the role of social ties as a social switching barrier. Third, the study introduces and tests the effects of habits as a precursor of economic and social switching barriers. Results reveal significant positive effects of satisfaction, economic switching barriers, and social ties on customer loyalty and word-of-mouth. Additionally, economic switching barriers and social ties interact significantly with satisfaction and habits act as a precursor of economic switching barriers and social ties.