Souad Djelassi* Univ. Lille (IUT C ), SKEMA Business School, EA LSMRC

Transcription

1 DETERMINANTS DE LA SATISFACTION ENVERS LES TECHNOLOGIES SELF-SERVICE ET LE MAGASIN : MEDIATION DE LA SATISFACTION A L EGARD DU TEMPS D ATTENTE Souad Djelassi* Univ. Lille (IUT C ), SKEMA Business School, EA LSMRC souad.djelassi@univ-lille2.fr Mbaye Fall Diallo Univ. Lille (IMMD), SKEMA Business School, EA LSMRC mbayefall.diallo@univ-lille2.fr * IUT «C» de Lille2, Rond Point de l'europe, BP Roubaix Cedex 01. Tél. +33 (0) Résumé : Cette recherche étudie les déterminants de la satisfaction envers les technologies self-service (TSS) et le magasin tout en se focalisant sur l effet médiateur des deux dimensions de la satisfaction à l égard du temps d attente (le temps cognitif et le temps affectif). Les résultats des deux études quantitatives sur les caisses automatiques (N1=377) et le self-scanning (N2=337) mettent en évidence un effet positif de la fréquence d'utilisation des TSS sur l expérience avec les TSS et la satisfaction envers les TSS. Ils soulignent un effet positif de l expérience avec les SST sur la satisfaction envers le magasin et la satisfaction envers les TSS. Les analyses montrent un effet médiateur du temps cognitif sur la relation entre l expérience avec les TSS, la satisfaction envers le magasin et la satisfaction envers les TSS. Le temps affectif ne médiatise pas la relation entre l'expérience avec les TSS et la satisfaction au niveau global. Mots clef : Expérience ; fréquence d utilisation ; temps cognitif ; temps affectif ; satisfaction ; technologies self-service. DETERMINANTS OF SATISFACTION TOWARDS SELF SERVICE TECHNOLOGIES AND THE STORE: MEDIATION OF WAITING TIME SATISFACTION Abstract : This research investigates the determinants of satisfaction towards self-service technologies (SST) and towards the store while focusing on the mediation of the two dimensions of waiting time satisfaction (cognitive time and affective time). The results of the two quantitative studies with self-checkout (N1=377) and self-scanning (N2=337) emphasize a positive effect of frequency of use of SST on customer experience with SST and satisfaction towards SST. They also underline a positive effect of customer experience with SST on both satisfaction towards the store and satisfaction towards SST. Analysis highlight a meditation effect of cognitive time on the relationship between customer experience with SST, satisfaction towards the store and satisfaction towards SST. Affective time does not mediate the relation between customer experience with SST and customer satisfaction overall. Keywords: Experience ; frequency of usage ; cognitive time ; affective time ; satisfaction ; self-service technology. 0

2 DETERMINANTS OF SATISFACTION TOWARDS SELF SERVICE TECHNOLOGIES AND THE STORE: MEDIATION OF WAITING TIME SATISFACTION Introduction 1 Companies in different sectors extend their installation of self-service technologies (SST). Self-checkout, ATMs, check in terminals in hotels or airports are many examples of these technologies. The enthusiasm of companies for SSTs may be explained by their economic and marketing benefits (Marzocchi and Zammit, 2006). From an economic point of view, SSTs allow savings of costs, in particular labor costs, and an increase of productivity. From a marketing point of view, SSTs may be, for customers, a source of satisfaction (Orel and Kara, 2014) and of extrinsic (convenience, time savings, higher quality service ) and intrinsic (enjoyment, feelings of independence) benefits. However, the use of SST does not always induce a positive attitude and may even have a negative effect on customer satisfaction due to the depersonalization of the service experience (Elliott, Hall and Meng, 2013). By replacing the interaction with the staff by another one with the machine or the technology, the use of SST alters the service experience. If prior research has significantly enhanced our understanding of the drivers of SST adoption, there is a great deal unknown about the consequences of SST usage. Weijters et al. (2007) as well as Orel and Kara (2014) underline the lack of empirical research on the outcomes of SST usage. They emphasize that the effect SST has on consumer satisfaction and commitment remains unclear and need to be explored. This research addresses this shortcoming and responds to the call of the authors. Its main purpose is to examine the consequences of SST usage and SST experience on waiting time satisfaction and ultimately on customer satisfaction towards SST and towards the store. Furthermore, this research contributes to existing studies by establishing the mediation effects of the two dimensions of waiting time satisfaction - cognitive and affective - on the relationships between customer experience and satisfaction. We study these relationships in a specific context (retailing) because retail companies have invested a lot over the past years on new technologies without a clear knowledge of their effects on customer experience and satisfaction. Literature and conceptual framework SST usage and experience. The SST use may be seen as a specific context conductive of customer experience (Akesson et al., 2014). SSTs result in a participation of the customer in the service process. As any other customer experience, SST experience has emotional aspects whether favorable or unfavorable. SST experience may be playful and hedonic (Marzocchi and Zammit, 2006). As the consumer performs by himself the totality or a part of the service, the use of SST may be an area of freedom and source of pleasure, enjoyment, feelings of autonomy, control and independence. However, SST experience may be also worse, stressful when the use of SST is perceived as difficult, when the system fails or takes too much time (Akesson et al., 2014). Frequent use of SST may gradually grow the comfort and the familiarity with the SST. It may result in a more favorable experience with SST. Customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is defined as the individual emotional reaction to his or her evaluation of the total set of experiences realized from patronizing the retailer (Westbrook, 1981, p.71). It is a major issue for companies because it impacts 1 To respect the number of pages recommended we limited the number of references and authors citations. 1

3 financial performance, boosts the efficiency of future advertising and promotion investments and enhances human capital performance. Waiting time satisfaction. In services where customers are physically present, waiting time is an intrinsic part of the service experience. As the overall satisfaction, waiting time satisfaction may be defined as a post-experience, judgemental evaluation including both cognitive and affective aspects of waiting (Durrande-Moreau, 1999). The cognitive component of wait is the consumers perception of waiting time in terms of acceptable, reasonable, tolerable (Durrande-Moreau, 1999), as well as short or long (Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). The affective component is an emotional reaction towards wait such as irritation, boredom, frustration, anger, stress, etc. (Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Conceptual model and hypotheses. Figure 1 presents the conceptual model and table 1 summarizes the hypotheses Figure 1: Conceptual model Waiting time satisfaction Control: sociodemographics (age, gender, income, education) Customer SST usage process Cognitive waiting time Customer satisfaction Frequency of use of SST Customer experience with SST Affective waiting time Satisfactionstore Satisfaction SST Table 1: Research hypotheses Hypotheses H1a. The frequency of use of SST influences positively the customer experience with SST. H1b. The frequency of use of SST influences positively customer satisfaction towards the store H1c. The frequency of use of SST influences positively customer satisfaction towards SST H2a. Customer experience with SST influences positively customer satisfaction towards SST. H2b. Customer experience with SST influences positively customer satisfaction towards the store 2 Justification According to the customer familiarity literature (Alba and Hutchinson, 1987), repetition improves task performance by reducing the cognitive effort required to perform the task. Thus it may improve customer experience. Zhu et al. (2007) argued that consumers with prior experience with SST gain a sense of control and give favorable judgment and evaluation of the SST. Mano and Oliver (1993) highlight the influence of consumption experience on customer satisfaction. Marzocchi and Zammit (2006) demonstrate that the hedonic experience with self-scanning use has a positive impact on retail satisfaction

4 H3a. Customer experience with SST influences positively cognitive waiting time satisfaction, towards the store. H3b. Customer experience with SST influences positively cognitive waiting time satisfaction, towards SST. H4a. Customer experience with SST influences positively the affective waiting time satisfaction, towards the store. H4b. Customer experience with SST influences positively the affective waiting time satisfaction, towards SST. We used previous works which underline the role of SSTs on time perception and which show that waiting time reduction is an expectation for customers in using SSTs (Weijters et al., 2007). Customer experience influences waiting time (Marzocchi and Zammit, 2006). In its part, waiting time has an impact on customer satisfaction (Pruyn and Smidts, 1998). Tom and Lucey (1995) show that waiting time affects customer satisfaction with the checker (here the checker is replaced by the the SST) but also with the store. Methodology and results Research methodology. This research was undertaken in the French retail context which is experiencing an unprecedented use of new technologies to improve customer shopping experience and strengthen retail sales. A qualitative pilot study (N=20) allowed to better understand customer usage of SST, identity sectors with potential (e.g. retailing), but also to figure out important factors driving customer satisfaction both towards SST and towards the store. Then, two quantitative studies (using questionnaires) were undertaken in retail settings (respondents targeted just after the food shopping trip in a hypermarket). Study 1 (N1=377) dealt with self-checkout while study 2 (N2=337) was interested in self-scanning. Respondents are well distributed across the socio-demographic variables: sex, age, household income and education). Measurement of variables (with Likert scales ranging from 1 to 7) is based on well established prior studies. Customer experience with SST was measured with four items from Dabholkar (1996) and Dabholkar et Bagozzi (2002). To measure cognitive waiting time, we employed three items from Durrande-Moreau (1999) and Pruyn and Smidts (1998). For affective waiting time we used five items from Taylor (1994) and Hui and Tse (1996). We operationalized customer satisfaction toward the SST with one item adapted from Westbrook (1980). Analyses and results. Preliminary analyses (with SPSS 18) established the adequation of the data to multivariate analyses (absence of missing values, of outliers, etc.). Following Gerbing and Anderson (1988), confirmatory factor analyses (with Amos 18) validated the measurement models of the different constructs. Reliability indices (Jöreskog ρ) are greater than 0.70, AVE values (ρcv) higher than à 0.50 (convergent validity) and discriminant validity satisfied (ρvc > squared correlations between constructs) (Fornell et Larcker, 1981). Furthermore, invariance of measurement scales was established between the two technologies investigated (self-checkout and self-scanning) using multiple group analysis in Amos. Our results indicated that frequency of SST use positively affects customer experience with SST (γ=0.45, p<0.01) and customer satisfaction towards SST (γ=0.13, p<0.01), but not customer satisfaction towards the store (p>0.05). These results support hypotheses H1a and H1c, but reject H1b. They also showed that customer experience with SST positively affects satisfaction towards the store (γ=0.45, p<0.01) and satisfaction towards SST (γ=0.53, p<0.01), validating hypotheses H2a and H2b. The analysis of the mediation effects of waiting time satisfaction indicated that cognitive waiting time has a significant mediation effect on the 3

5 relationship between customer experience with SST and satisfaction towards the store (γ=0.10, p<0.01), but also on the relationship between customer experience with SST and satisfaction towards SST (γ=0.13, p<0.01). Thus, H3a and H3b are validated. The results highlighted a positive effect of customer experience with SST on affective waiting time (γ=0.43, p<0.01). However, the latter does not influence satisfaction towards the store (p>0.05), or satisfaction towards SST (p>0.05) overall. Therefore, the mediating effects of affective waiting time are not significant (H4a and H4b rejected). Nevertheless, the analysis of relationships in each type of technology showed a significant mediating effect of affective waiting time for self-scanning (γ=0.08, p<0.01), but not for self-checkout (p>0.05). These results are discussed in the next section. Discussion and conclusion As retailers extend their implementation of SSTs, investigating the effects of SSTs on customer experience and satisfaction becomes crucial. Recent studies point out the lack of research on this topic (Orel and Kara, 2014). Our study addresses this issue by investigating the influence of SST usage and customer experience and waiting time satisfaction on satisfaction towards SST and the store. Several theoretical implications can be derived from this research. The results showed that both frequency of SST use and customer experience with SST have positive influences on customer satisfaction towards SST. Customer experience with SST has also a positive effect on satisfaction towards the store. These results are in line with the research of Mano and Oliver (1993) and Marzocchi and Zammit (2006). Furthermore, this research is the first to highlight that cognitive and affective dimensions of waiting time satisfaction depend on the customer experience with SST. Thus, a pleasant experience with SST leads to acceptation and tolerance of waiting and to a positive emotional reaction towards the wait (Weijters et al., 2007). Our research also indicates that cognitive waiting time satisfaction plays a more important role than affective waiting time satisfaction on customer satisfaction towards the SST and satisfaction towards the store. Customer evaluation of waiting as acceptable, tolerable and short generates greater customer satisfaction. However, perceive waiting as less stressful, irritating, etc. doesn t have an impact on customer satisfaction. This result may be explained by the fact that when a consumer uses an SST, he (she) is more concerned with saving and reducing waiting time than spend a pleasant waiting time. In terms of managerial implications, the findings of our research suggest that it is important for retailers to identify and assess outcomes of SST use. Given the role of SST experience on customer satisfaction towards waiting time, SST and the store, retailers should pay a particular attention to ensure that consumer appreciate his (her) experience with SST. SST must be easy to use and perform reliably. If necessary, consumers should have help timely when using SST. These conditions will allow retail companies to avoid waiting lines and will induce positive evaluations of the SST and of the store. Our results show that frequency of SST use generates a good SST experience. Therefore, retailers need not only to facilitate SST use but also to communicate on SSTs benefits to encourage its frequent use. This research has some limitations. Loyalty towards the SST and towards the store may be two important outcomes of SST use and should be integrated in future research. Our study is also limited to the retail context. Future research may investigate consequences of customer experience with SSTs in other contexts such as restaurants, airports, banks, etc. 4

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