The Effect of Perceived Customer Value of Mobile Communications Users on Customer Satisfaction and Customer Loyalty: Based on the Customer Equity Model

Korean mobile communications service providers are switching their axis of competition towards the retention of their own customers. However, the theoretical framework and experience in the industry for customer relation management(CRM) which is necessary for customer retention is insufficient in this market. Considering these aspects, this study is to develop measurement items for CRM in mobile communication industry and to verify the causal relationship between items based on the framework of customer equity drives. 495 samples from online survey questionnaire were collected from smartphone users in terms of three types of customer value, satisfaction, and customer loyalty to the mobile service provider, and empirically tested using a structural equation modeling technique. The results show that the theoretical model of customer equity driver is also fitted into this industry and confirm the casual relationships between the constructs of the model. Customer value elements are antecedents of customer satisfaction and customer loyalty, customer satisfaction partially and fully mediate the impact of customer value elements on customer loyalty. However, differently from other industry such as airline or hotel industry, relationship value was revealed as the most important factor on satisfaction in mobile communication industry.