Studies examining customer engagement (CE) with retailers have been sparse. We propose and test a comprehensive model of CE in three separate retail contexts. Building on the relationship marketing framework, we propose that satisfaction, trust and affective commitment are antecedents of CE. CE, a second order construct, manifests in terms of attitudinal loyalty, as well as intention to repurchase, willingness to advocate and actual spending.
Two national surveys were conducted in Canada. Study 1 focused on apparel (N = 225) and grocery (N = 229) retail sectors. In Study 2, survey responses from customers of one specific pharmacy retail chain (N = 464) were combined with their actual spending with the retailer. Structural equation modeling was used to test CE as a second-order construct.
Data from both studies supported the proposed model and hypotheses across all datasets. CE requires retailers to provide customer experience that builds trust and emotional attachment, which in turn leads to brand advocacy and increased spending with the retailer.
These studies show that CE is determined by satisfaction, trust and commitment. Retailers must focus on meeting and exceeding customer expectations, so they are highly satisfied. By consistently delivering the brand promise retailers can build trust and elicit affective commitment from customers which are crucial for developing CE.
This study demonstrates the process of CE creation in retail as well as the outcomes of engagement, with validation in three different retail settings. We combine data on consumer spending from a retailer's CRM system with their survey responses to demonstrate the real-world validity of our model.
