Antecedents of Word-of-mouth towards professional B2B service

Mai Ngọc Khương ,Nguyen Xuan Nhi ,Le Thi Thao Linh

doi:10.5267/j.msl.2020.11.013

Abstract

This research was conducted to investigate the antecedents directly and positively affecting organization’s word-of-mouth towards professional service, primarily in the context of B2B professional general insurance services in Vietnam. The empirical results of this research indicated that five out of seven factors, namely interpersonal skills, premium, technical skills, reputation and risk coverage had both significantly positive direct and indirect effects on organization’s word-of-mouth with the mediation role of organization’s perceived service quality. Based on the empirical results, it is suggested that insurers should improve organization’s perceived service quality, and thereby enhance their word-of-mouth behavior.

Highlights

The Vietnamese insurance industry experienced rapid growth during the period 2014-2018 with an average 16% growth rate, wherein the non-life insurance sector increased by 11.7%
Having reviewed the literature and results of previous studies, this research was conducted to test the direct effects of explanatory variables on perceived service quality (PSQ) and WOM in professional B2B general insurance industry in Vietnam, and explore the indirect effects of those variables on WOM with mediation role of PSQ
Strong influence of risk coverage factor on Organization’s Word-of-mouth (ORWOM) through organization’s perceived service quality (OPSQ) in this study suggested increased ability to reduce perceived risk, which leads to higher customer perception towards service quality and the wider spread of WOM communication (Wangenheim, 2005)

Summary

Introduction

The Vietnamese insurance industry experienced rapid growth during the period 2014-2018 with an average 16% growth rate, wherein the non-life insurance sector increased by 11.7%. The service quality concept appears in a vast majority of studies involving the level of customer satisfaction, customer perceived quality and value that lead to the customer behavioral intentions, improvement in business performance and competitive advantage for an organization (Khajeheian, 2016). Having reviewed the literature and results of previous studies, this research was conducted to test the direct effects of explanatory variables on perceived service quality (PSQ) and WOM in professional B2B general insurance industry in Vietnam, and explore the indirect effects of those variables on WOM with mediation role of PSQ. A new measurement scale could be built based on the revision of previous research results, and additional findings in the general insurance industry in Vietnam, because an in-depth insight into the antecedents of WOM and the correlations between WOM and other factors may significantly contribute to the development of professional insurance service providers

Methods

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion