Master of Agribusiness / Department of Agricultural Economics / Kevin P. Gwinner / SiteOne Landscape Supply is the largest distributor of lawn care products for professionals of the landscape industry in U.S.A. and Canada. SiteOne is aware of the importance of customer satisfaction and it is interested on increasing satisfaction by improving customer service. There is a high concentration of Latino landscapers in Texas, whom customer service needs may differ from non-Latino customers. Therefore the purpose of this project was to study customer satisfaction of Hispanic and non-Hispanic landscapers considering the following thirteen service attributes: competitive prices, available stock, cleanliness of facilities, business follow up, timely assistance, timely deliveries, accuracy of orders, helpful staff, approachable staff, knowledgeable staff, Spanish-speaking staff, training in Spanish, and labels in Spanish. The data was collected throughout a survey which was presented to SiteOne customers in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. A total of 224 surveys were collected. The methods used to analyze the data were importance-performance (I-P) and regression analyses. The major differences found in the I-P grids are related to the three Spanish language attributes. Spanish-speaking staff, training in Spanish and labels in Spanish are statistically significant more important to Hispanic than non-Hispanic landscapers. Available stock is the most important attribute for non-Hispanic, and it is the second most important for Hispanic customers. SiteOne has an opportunity to improve their stock availability, especially for nursery, fertilizers and pesticides. Other factors that are very important to customers and they perceive that SiteOne is doing an excellent job are: timely assistance, timely deliveries, accuracy of orders, and approachable, knowledgeable and helpful staff. The importance of competitive prices was rated as high as the previous six service attributes, however the mean of pricing performance was not as high as that group of attributes. From the multivariate regression analyses, it was found that pricing was the only variable with statistical significance to predict changes in customer satisfaction for the non-Hispanic group. No statistical significance was found in the regression model run for Hispanic clients. Some negative coefficients with statistical significance were found for stores #199 and #220 in the models run to analyze branch performance. It is recommended that these results be compared with other measurements to determine the nature of the issues that may be present in these locations.

M.Phil. / The issue of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) within organisations has gained importance over the last five years, and the trend is set to continue with new CRM software vendors entering the market regularly. For a business, it is cheaper to retain existing customers than to acquire new ones, therefore increased customer loyalty and interaction is important. The value that electronic CRM (eCRM) allows is that it increases customer interaction, by eliminating physical intervention and subsequent errors. The Internet has allowed this interaction to become more sophisticated, with service information instantly available to both the customer and the business. The number of channels for interaction has also increased. Specifically, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) need low cost eCRM solutions that adapt to their business models and IT structures. The South African SME is limited by certain budgeting, resource and time constraints, and the owner of the SME cannot always devote time in search of a suitable eCRM solution for his business. The multitudes of vendors, offering various levels of functionality with increased focus on the SME sector, allow the SME many choices. However, companies selecting eCRM software vendors often lack an objective basis due to a lack of alternative information sources. Vendors making unsubstantiated and incorrect claims about the functionality of their software, further complicate the problem. From an SME point of view, the functionality and cost criteria of the eCRM solution is the most important. However, the minimum functionality criteria that vendors’ software packages must adhere to, in order to be considered an eCRM suite are: Customer Analysis; Marketing Automation; Sales Automation; Customer Service and Support; and Web-centricity. The research problem lies therein that South African SME owners or managers are unsure which functionalities are available, and which to deem important when considering eCRM solutions for their businesses. The objective of this study is to formulate a matrix of functionality that eCRM solutions must adhere to in order to be successfully implemented by the SME. This matrix is not prescriptive, but will guide SME management by identifying criteria and functionality that the solution needs to contain. The aim is to help SMEs select the right software, not to select the software for them.

M.B.A. / In recent years South African travel industry has been facing ferocious competition. The competitive business environment has driven managers to consider the performance of their organizations in order to increase market share, or in other words, improve the quality of service as the ultimate weapon for achieving high performance. The delivery of service quality to customers requires a congruence in the perceptions of the customers and the providers of service. The aim of this research is to examine if there are any statistically significant differences in the perceptions of received service between the three major groups i.e. the customers, the staff and the managers of travel agencies. The information was gathered by means of a mail survey. A questionnaire was developed (based on SERVQUAL), where all possible answers of respondents were pre-specified and standardized, in order to ease the comparison of responses. The findings of the research revealed significant differences between the perceptions of customers and staff and that of managers and staff of the travel agencies but not between managers and customers. Of most concern, were the differences in the perceptions of the dimension of reliability, which was considered the most important dimension by the customers. Therefore, the managers of travel agencies in South Africa need to devise strategies and seriously consider the issue of internal marketing to achieve this alignment in the perceptions

This dissertation is based on the assumption that the Port Elizabeth Municipality should deliver essential services effectively, efficiently and economically so as to attain excellence in service delivery. The essential services dealt with in this study are electricity; refuse collection; sewerage; and water services. Attaining excellence in service delivery will lead the Port Elizabeth Municipality to improve and sustain the quality of life of the local inhabitants. The primary objectives of this dissertation include, inter alia: An historical analysis of delivery systems of the former government prior to 1994, which provides the primary reasons and purposes of delivery systems, and the effects on the Port Elizabeth Municipality. Reformation and transformation of South African local government since 1994, with particular reference to the Port Elizabeth Municipality. A normative model for service delivery, which is designed to accelerate service delivery in the local spheres of government, with special reference to the Port Elizabeth Municipality as the locus of this study. The nature, extent and evaluation of the existing service delivery by the Port Elizabeth Municipality from 1994 to 1999. An empirical survey is conducted in the form of questionnaires to the directors, heads of departments, senior managers, as well as councillors. Approaches and strategies for attaining excellence in service delivery, which include, inter alia: a government-business paradigm and an equilibrium approach. Lastly, a number of recommendations are made and conclusions are drawn based on the findings of the empirical survey in order to deliver essential services equitably, efficiently, effectively and economically to attain excellence in service delivery in the Port Elizabeth Municipality.

Social norms have been claimed to influence customer retention when the social network the customer engages with is well aware of a customer’s use of the product or service. This research investigates whether social norms will also influence customer retention for services that are used so infrequently that the social network the customer engages with is not aware that the customer has the product or service. The specific services investigated are also impacted by the fact that the customers themselves are not entirely certain as to their individual need of the product, namely credence goods. The aim of this research is to provide a profile of a customer that would be more influenced by social norms; which knowledge would allow organisations to target specific customers. Using the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests, hypotheses were tested by analysing questionnaire feedback data on 100 active insurance customers and 100 inactive insurance customers from within the South African financial services market. Empirical support for the effect of social norms on customer retention of credence goods is found. Empirical proof that females are more influenced by social norms than males was found as well as the link between culture value orientation to social norms. In this research a link between a customer’s age to social norm influence was not found. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / ccgibs2014 / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / MBA / Unrestricted

M.Comm. / Gegewe die agtergrond en die probleemstelling kan die studie soos volg geformuleer word: Die primere doelwit van die studie is om die gaping tussen die persepsie van supermarkbestuurders oor die diens wat gelewer word in hulle ondernemings en die persepsie van hul klante oor die diens wat werklik gelewer is, te ondersoek. Daarbenewens sou die studie ook bepaalde sekondere doelwitte he: 1.3.1. Om die belangrikheid van bestuursdeelname by die lewering van kwaliteit diens aan te dui. 1.3.2. Om aan te dui hoe belangrik goeie klantediens vir die algehele beeld en bemarking van die ondememing is. 1.3.3. Om vas te stel of bestuur die behoeftes van die klant in ag neem by die daarstel van 'n klantediensbeleid. 1.3.4. Om te bepaal of bestuur werklik bewus is van water kwaliteit klantediens in sy ondememing gelewer word. 1.3.5 Om te bepaal wat die verwagtinge is wat die klant koester met betrekking tot klantediens.

M.Comm. / The importance of service is constantly increasing in most economies (Gronroos 1988), and service is becoming exceedingly vital to success for manufacturers of goods as well. Service is very frequently referred to as the definitive competitive tool (Kyj 1987; Coppett 1988) and some writers (Quinn and Gagnon 1986) have warned that services if not managed suitably could follow manufacturing into decline, as inattention to quality, emphasis on scale economies, and short-term orientation predominates. Indeed Levitt (1981) has questioned the services-goods dichotomy, and states that all products, whether they are services or goods, possess a certain amount of intangibility perhaps the fundamental difference between the two referred to by most other writers. It is this intangibility which is seen as being the fundamental distinguishing characteristic of services.

This research investigated the service offering in appliance sales departments of prominent retail stores in an emerging economy to ultimately indicate whether stores‟ customer service, i.e. their presentation of the marketing mix is conducive for informed, responsible buying decisions. The study was prompted by significant changes in the profile of South African consumers since 1994 when a new socio-political dispensation was introduced. A sharp increase in the middle-income group since has resulted in an increased demand for housing, electricity and consequently also major household appliances. Retail responded more than willingly. Unfortunately the consequences of limited product related consumer socialization for millions of previously disadvantaged consumers and subsequent lack of structural and transactional knowledge in terms of their ability to cope in the market place was given little attention. The research involved four phases of data collection and the participation of five prominent department stores in Tshwane, RSA that was arranged through liaison with industry. Phase 1 involved an in store survey: store managers assessed the customer service in the stores in the presence of the researcher, according to indicators that were based on the marketing mix. In phase 2, respondents (n=296) were recruited in the stores immediately after closure of a sales deal: questionnaires were completed on the spot. It involved (1) an investigation of their satisfaction with the customer service; (2) an investigation of their perception of the service quality through a SERVQUAL scale and (3) a product knowledge test that pertained to the functional and performance attributes of the appliances that they purchased. During phase 3, experienced salespeople (n=18) were involved in a projective technique that expected of them to act as the managers of their respective stores and to propose recommendations to augment their stores’ service offering to be more conducive for informed, responsible buying decisions. Finally, in phase 4, representatives from industry explained their potential contribution to augment customer service in retail stores. Findings revealed shortcomings in the customer service in retail that should be addressed to enhance informed, responsible buying decisions. In phase 1, store managers candidly admitted that in general, price was attended to more attentively than elements such as processes that could enhance informed buying decisions. In the customer survey, exploratory factor analysis revealed a collapse of the original customer service scale from six elements to three, which suggests a more integrated judgement of customer service in the context of this research. Emphasis on price and product was diminished and directed towards value for money and personnel orientations. Similarly the five dimensional SERVQUAL scale was reduced to two dimensions (Supportiveness and Impressiveness). The product knowledge test was used to indicate whether consumers’ judgement of the service offering was supported by evidence of informed, buying decisions. Consumers’ scores contradicted their apparent satisfaction with customer service and their positive perception of service quality. Sales personnel unequivocally accentuated their potential to augment customer service but revealed conditions that limit optimal performance. Representatives of industry acknowledged areas of concern and recommended concerted effort by retailers due to their direct interaction with consumers as well as personnel. The findings of this study provide invaluable evidence that consumers “not necessarily know what they do not know”. Shortcomings in the customer service in retail are revealed and guidelines are provided to augment the service offering to the benefit of the parties involved. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Consumer Science / unrestricted

In today’s competitive arena, organisations need strategically to shift their focus from primarily concentrating on new customer acquisitions and rather to realise the importance of improving customer defections, thus looking at strategically retaining the existing customer base. Customer retention to all intents and purposes reflects the core of any service offering organisation and drives the competitiveness and viability of the business. Customer retention is a concern for all sector organisations including the medical aid schemes industry. It has been proven that retaining customers is less costly than attracting new ones and through a satisfied customer a business can elevate its competitiveness in the market. The significance of the study hinges on the importance of each business having comprehensive knowledge of why customers remain loyal patrons or why they choose to defect. It is important to note that the financial resources and time the business expends on improving service to the customer become futile if not matched by the high performance of the internal business units’ strategies. Having an understanding of customer movement will assist the organisation in properly addressing such issues and employing strategic processes that will enable the business to improve its retention strategies and curb defections. The primary objective of the current study was to investigate the impact internal service quality and customer relationship management have on customer retention. The study employed the SERVQUAL model as a measuring tool in establishing the relationship. The study investigated how customer retention (the dependent variable) is influenced by the different elements of internal service quality, namely assurance, empathy, service reliability, responsiveness, tangibles and elationship management, which represented the independent variables. The sample comprised eighty-one (81) out of a possible 130 AA Medical Scheme participants through the organisation’s four national offices. The empirical results showed that of all the variables relationship management, responsiveness and the tangibles have a positive impact on customer retention in medical aid schemes.

Service delivery is critical to the customer’s perception of value and is core to the success of an organisation. Excellent customer service incorporates the critical aspects of: expedient service delivery; open and honest communication; individual, personalised service; engendering customer loyalty; problem-solving; under-promising and over-delivering; meeting and exceeding expectations; efficient use of infrastructure, systems and procedures to facilitate efficient operations and, in particular, effective use of knowledge management with a focus on customer lifecycle care (Kingstone, 2004, 2005; Zarbock, 2006). Best-practice organisations now use Customer Relationship Management (CRM) programmes that are customer-centric based in order to ensure excellent customer service delivery. Recently, organisations such as Tesco and Nordstrom have adopted customer-centric CRM successfully, providing concrete proof that this CRM model is sustainable and that it produces the highly lucrative win-win benefits which organisations seek (Beasty, 2005; Hallberg, 2001:19; Gratehouse, 2002; Rowe, 2002). 5 Glossary • Continuous improvement: an approach to improving performance which assumes more and smaller incremental improvement steps (Pycraft, Singh, Phihlela, Slack, Chambers, Harland, Harrison, & Johnston, 2002); • Connectivity: the ability to communicate with another system or piece of hardware or software, or with an internet site (Encarta World English Dictionary); • Customer-centric: the use of every touch-point to stimulate interest, close business, satisfy a need or demonstrate commitment to the customer relationship (Gianforte, 2005); • Customer expectations: the customer's perception of the quality of service (LeBoeuf, 1991) and value (Thompson, 2004); • Customer Experience Management: managing customer interactions to build brand equity and long-term profitability (Thompson, 2006a); • Customer lifecycle care: to ensure that every touch-point fulfils its value-potential, regardless of whether the interaction happens in marketing, sales or customer service (Gianforte, 2005); • Customer loyalty: customer’s attitudes and behaviour relating to their perception of value at every touch-point where they feel welcome, important and valued (Thompson, 2004); • Customer Relationship.