Do customer equity drivers affect customer relationship quality and customer relational outcomes in banking

Abstract

Customer relationship quality (CRQ) and customer relational outcomes (CROs) are two of the most prevalent relationship marketing concepts in the service literature. They are particularly relevant to retail banking where building superior CRQ is key to firms' effort in customer acquisition and retention. However, little is known about whether banks' marketing investments in improving customer equity drivers (CEDs) can enhance the quality and outcome of client-firm relationships. Furthermore, it is still unknown whether previously reported relationship between CEDs, CRQ and CRO hold true in markets with different cultural settings. Hence, this study examines whether CEDs contribute to the quality of customer relationship and the outcomes of these relationship in the context of retail banking in Kuwait. The results obtained from a sample of 844 bank customers showed that CEDs have varied effects on relational quality and outcome variables.