Opening the black box: Assessing the mediating mechanism of relationship quality and the moderating effects of prior experience in ISP service

Purpose - To examine empirically the mediating role of relationship quality on the relationships between relational selling behavior, network quality, service recovery, and loyalty, and the moderating role of prior IT experience on the above relationships in ISP service. Design/methodology/approach - Data were obtained via questionnaires from randomly selected ADSL customers of Chunghwa Telecom. The constructs were measured using existing scales. SEM was used to examine the effects. Findings - Relational selling behavior, network quality, and service recovery indirectly influence loyalty through the mediation of relationship quality, consisting of satisfaction and trust. The effects of relational selling behavior on satisfaction and trust are stronger for inexperienced than for experienced customers. Those of network quality on satisfaction and trust are similar for both experienced and inexperienced customers. Those of service recovery on satisfaction and trust are stronger for experienced than for inexperienced customers. Research limitations/implications - There are three limitations. First, customer loyalty may be only partially reflected since it was measured by self-reports. Second, there may exist common method variance. Third, the generalizability of the findings might be limited. Practical implications - IT service organizations should invest in training programs and advertising campaigns, the ways of transferring information and services to users, to improve relationship quality. Managers should be careful not to try partnering initiatives with customers without knowing their prior IT experience. Originality/value - This study presents a thorough understanding of how relational selling behavior, network quality, and service recovery indirectly influence loyalty through satisfaction and trust, and how prior IT experience moderates the above relationships in ISP service.