Similarity over difference: How congruency in customer characteristics drives service experiences

Abstract

Customers are critical actors in the service ecosystem, with their presence and interaction influencing service delivery and consumption. The interactions between customers in service settings can play an important role, with fellow customers having the potential to impact a focal customer's service experience, evaluations, and subsequent outcomes. Yet research on customer-to-customer interactions within the service encounter is limited. This research has examined the effect of congruency (incongruency) in fellow customer characteristics on focal customer outcomes across two studies. In study one, congruence in customer characteristics is shown to be a critical aspect of the service experience that can affect focal customer outcomes. In study two, status enhancement is shown to plays an important role, enhancing the effect of congruent fellow customer characteristics and mitigating weaker focal customer outcomes that result from incongruent customer characteristics. Importantly, these findings differ by the level of service consumption involvement. Findings present important implications for managers and frontline employees. In particular, regarding the importance of understanding, and potentially managing, congruency in customer characteristics; which can allow favorable responses to the service experience.