Relationship marketing tactics, customer entitlement, and customer behavioural responses

Abstract

This study aims at examining the effects of relationship marketing tactics on customer entitlement which then affects customer citizenship behaviour and customer complaint behaviour. The data were collected through surveys on customers of cosmetics companies in Vietnam. The results show that emailing and messaging do not have a significant effect on customer entitlement while firm's preferential treatment towards customers, provision of tangible rewards, and interpersonal communication are significantly associated to customer entitlement. The results also indicate that customer entitlement dramatically influences customer complaint behaviour while the impact of customer entitlement on customer citizenship behaviour is significant, but the magnitude of the effect is modest. Interestingly, customer entitlement serves as a significant partial mediator in the effects of relationship marketing tactics on customer citizenship behaviour and complaint behaviour. The study concludes with significant theoretical and practical implications for service management.