Service quality as determinant of customer satisfaction

In contemporary business conditions characterized by extreme volatility, uncertainty and dynamism, the survival, growth and development of a company is conditioned by focus on providing high level of customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is the leading goal and measure of success of the modern company, and its measurement is one of the most important tasks of management. Lack of knowledge on the level of customer satisfaction/dissatisfaction is causing the failure of many companies. Customer satisfaction is the basis for creating customer loyalty, which in turn means their retention in the future. In the service market, a high rate of brands change is evident due to intense competition and demanding customers. Customer expectations regarding service quality and other components of the value (price, delivery, communication with customers), keep rising due to a higher level of customer knowledge, as well as superior offers of service companies. Achieving loyalty in such conditions requires the creation of unique value for customers, which incorporates the wanted elements/attributes package: superior service quality, the appropriate associated products, security, unity, personalized communication, benefits in payment. The aim of this paper is to investigate the relations between the qualities of delivered service as a key determinant of customer satisfaction, as well as to show the contribution of TQM to improvement of service quality and customer satisfaction.