Modeling Customer-Employee Instant Rapport in the First Service Encounter

Abstract

A service employee’ interaction with a customer in the initial encounter is critically important in creating the customer’ impression of the firm and thereby his/her desire to have future interactions with the firm, yet existing marketing literature lacks an understanding of the role instant rapport plays in service delivery. This study attempts to fill the research gap, proposing and testing a model that explores the mechanisms of customer-employee instant rapport development and the resulting service outcomes.