Influence of Special Treatment, Interactive Features, Physical Features, and Price on Customer Loyalty Restaurant Industry

1. Introduction

Restaurants and food points in region of Rahim Yar Khan are playing strategic role in supply of jobs and provision of food to wide range of customers. Research work disclosed that a small restaurant or food point provides jobs for 5 to 7 persons whereas this counting reaches 10 to 15 persons in large restaurant or food point. This indicates that the food business has significant contribution towards economic growth in the region. Every month a restaurant mushrooms to compete the prevailing market in the aforesaid region. This race is posing challenges for food businesses. They are under continuous pressure of coping with the issues of customer retention as well as attracting to new customers. Loyal customers are a permanent source of cash inflows for them. Though such customers spend a significant share of their earnings in their selected food points and restaurants, they are price sensitive and care about service features and treatment from food businesses (Research findings).

In addition to mushrooming of food businesses, other factors such as availability of information, consumer awareness and efforts from competitors are challenges for almost every business in the race. According to Ryding, (2010), such trends empower customers to switch. Consequently businesses are keen to establish good customer relations, use of customer focus strategies and prompt use of human resources (Belas & Gabcova, 2016). Such efforts are meant for customer loyalty (Pan, Sheng, & Xie, 2012). Customers’ physical interactions, and emotional involvement affect loyalty of customers (Stan, Caemmerer, & Cattan-Jallet, 2013).

Success of a business bases on customer loyalty to a great extent where approximately 25% contribution in profit of a business is result of customer loyalty (Tang, 2014). According to Mascarenhas, Kesavan, & Bernacchi, (2006), Customer loyalty is, “the closest step to the repurchasing behaviour of customers” that is related with previous experiences of customers with goods and services. Another definition of customer loyalty is as, “final consequences of the overall and cumulative experience which customers have with a firm” (Brunner, Stöcklin, & Opwis, 2008). To establish and maintain loyalty, businesses tend to provide quality customer services. Service quality and customer loyalty are positively related. It is also vital to know that how the quality is perceived by customers (Belas & Gabcova, 2014). Present research is based on service features (physical features and interactive features) influencing loyalty of customers. In addition to these features, special treatment and price paid by customers are also considered as independent variables.

Researcher, during data collection stage, came to know that 95% customers were price conscious. Price was also an important factor regarding revisits and loyalty. Almost every respondent in the present research showed the desire to be treated specially, which promotes good relationships between business and its customers. Special treatment does focus on relationships rather than products and services (Hennig-Thurau et al., 2002).