The influence of online logistics service mode on customer loyalty: the moderation effect of signal credibility and switching costs



He, Y
(2018) The influence of online logistics service mode on customer loyalty: the moderation effect of signal credibility and switching costs. Master of Philosophy thesis, University of Liverpool.

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Abstract

With the fast development of society and technology, customers’ demand for homogeneousness is gradually decreasing, while the demand for diversification and customisation is increasing. In this sense, online logistics service mode (OLSM) emerges to better satisfy customers’ needs. OLSM is a kind of customised service provided by the online retailer, which consists of several logistics elements such as delivery time, logistics service provider and so on. In particular, it enables customer to choose their preferred delivery time and ways to delivery, as well as decrease customer’s perceived uncertainty, which further enhances customer loyalty. The provision of OLSM requires more investment from online retailers and brings more complexity. Although it could enhance customers’ loyalty to some extent, many online retailers in China still hesitate to provide such customised service since there is a lack of theory or research to show the mechanism about how OLSM affects online customer’s loyalty. Hence, the aim of this dissertation is to examine the relationship between OLSM and e-loyalty, and to seek for how OLSM affects e-loyalty based on signalling theory and relationship marketing theory. Seven basic hypotheses were tested, as parts of a theoretical model. Data was collected through a questionnaire and statistical analysis software such as SPSS, AMOS and EXCEL was used to analyse the data to check the reliability, validity, and test the proposed hypotheses. The empirical results reveal that OLSM positively influences relationship quality (e-satisfaction, e-trust and e-commitment), and relationship quality positively affects e-loyalty; OLSM positively influences e-loyalty via relationship quality; signal credibility moderates the relationship between OLSM and relationship loyalty, and the mediation effect of relationship quality on the relationship between OLSM and e-loyalty; switching costs moderates the relationship between e-satisfaction and e-loyalty, and the mediation effect of e-satisfaction. This research contributes to knowledge in several ways. Most importantly, it defines the definition of OLSM and discovers the mechanism about how OLSM affects e-loyalty. In addition, it discusses the moderation effect of logistics service price from the perspective of signalling theory.

Item Type: Thesis (Master of Philosophy)
Divisions: Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Management
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 09 Aug 2018 14:38
Last Modified: 19 Jan 2023 01:32
DOI: 10.17638/03022496
Supervisors:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3022496