Lawrence F. Cunningham

Perceived risk and the consumer buying process: internet airline reservations

Purpose – This research aims to investigate the premise that the use of internet airline reservation systems is perceived to be riskier than traditional airline reservation shopping.Design/methodology/approach – A survey of 263 respondents investigated perceived risk at various stages of the consumer buying process.Findings – The results reveal that perceived risk for airline reservation services follows a pattern throughout the consumer buying process. When viewed as a dynamic process, perceived risk for internet airline services shows more radical changes in risk levels than the traditional service. The analyses indicate that performance, physical, social, and financial risk are related to perceived risk at certain stages of the consumer buying process.Practical implications – A major finding of this study is that there is a risk premium for internet airline reservation services and the risk premium permeates all stages of the consumer buying process. It is further demonstrated that the internet risk pr...

Assessing Service Quality as an Effective Management Tool: The Case of the Airline Industry

This article reports the findings of a study that measured (1) perceived service quality of passenger airlines based on the SERVQUAL and the traditional industry-based measures, and (2) consumer awareness and usage of the Air Travel Consumer Report published and disseminated by the Department of Transportation. The results identify several SERVQUAL and industry-based items that significantly influence consumers’ perception of overall service quality and intention to repatronize. In addition, the results suggest that the Air Travel Consumer Report is not properly disseminated nor used by most consumers. Implications of these results for airline companies and transportation policy makers are discussed.

A comparison of consumer views of traditional services and self‐service technologies

Purpose – Few marketing studies look at service classifications for self‐service technologies (SSTs) and none directly compare consumer‐based perceptions of traditional services to SSTs. To fill this gap, this study aims to examine how customers perceived traditional services and SSTs on service classifications criteria proposed by Lovelock, Bowen and Bell.Design/methodology/approach – In two separate studies consumer ratings for each classification method on each service were obtained. Using multi‐dimensional scaling (MDS), 13 traditional services and 12 SSTs were separately mapped onto a perceptual space of service classifications.Findings – The comparison of the two perceptual spaces reveals that consumers viewed the classifications of convenience, person/object, and delivery for SSTs differently than that for traditional services. The classifications of traditional services were represented by two dimensions of customization/standardization and person/object. In contrast, the classifications of SSTs w...

Consumer views of self-service technologies

This study examined how customers perceived and classified a set of 12 self-service technologies (SSTs) based on multidimensional scaling. The authors describe first, how the classifications developed by Lovelock are perceived by consumers and then, how the individual SSTs map onto those classifications. Results of the study show that 67% of the variance in classification is explained by two dimensions of customization/standardization and separability/inseparability. The authors also propose a typology for the SSTs based on their groupings in the classification framework. The authors discuss the managerial implications of the findings and suggest directions for future academic research.

Perceptions of Airline Service Quality Pre and Post 9/11

Marketing managers must be always alert to some kind of brand crisis that can occur unexpectedly. The September 11 terrorist attack dramatically changed the business environment in the United States and elsewhere and had the most pro-found impact on the American airline industry. This article reports the results of a series of longitudinal surveys on consumer perceptions of airline service quality, risks associated with air travel, and satisfaction with airlines before and after the 9/11 crisis. The results show that although the number of trips declined over the course of the research, passengers’ overall satisfaction with the airline industry, airline satisfaction, and intention to repatronize their airline generally did not change in a statistically significant manner. The implications of the results are discussed from a brand management perspective.

Consumer views of service classifications in the USA and France

In the services marketing literature, few service classifications are based on how customers view services, and fewer of these have been validated cross-culturally. To fill this gap, this research presents the results of a study that examined how US and French customers perceived and classified a set of 13 services based on multidimensional scaling. Service classifications were developed on a perceptual space where the actual services were mapped for two countries, the USA and France. The results of the study suggest that there are two underlying dimensions that explain approximately 80 percent of the total variance in service perceptions and classifications. The dimensions and correlations for the classifications and services displayed many consistencies and some differences among American and French consumers. Directions for future academic research and managerial implications are cited and discussed.

Customer perceptions of service dimensions: cross-cultural analysis and perspective

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a study that examined how customers in the USA, France, and Korea perceived and classified a set of 13 services based on multidimensional scaling (MDS). Design/methodology/approach – A MDS framework was used to map service classifications and actual services in the USA, Korea and France. Results from each country were then compared to the other two countries to determine similarities and differences. Findings – Results from this research suggest that there are two underlying dimensions that explain approximately 80 percent of the total variance in service perceptions and classifications. Underlying dimensions of the classifications across the three cultures were virtually identical. Differences among the countries were based on relative positioning of classifications and/or services on the underlying dimensions. Research limitations/implications – Evidence from diverse cultures implies that consumers perceive services in a somewhat simplistic, two-dimensional fashion rather than the complex set of classifications proposed by researchers. Although the complex classifications may be of use to service providers in organizing the delivery of services, the presentation and positioning of those services is along a much simpler framework in the minds of customers. Originality/value – This is the first time consumer-based perceptions of services have been examined systematically across cultures using a MDS approach.

Customer perceptions of service dimensions: American and Asian perspectives

This article reports the results of a study that examined how US, Korean and Taiwanese customers perceived and classified a set of 13 services based on multidimensional scaling (MDS). Service classifications were developed on a perceptual space where the actual services were mapped for three countries, US, Korea and Taiwan. The results suggest service perceptions and classifications. The dimensions and correlations for the classifications and services displayed many consistencies and some differences among American, Korean and Taiwanese consumers. Directions for future academic research and managerial implications are cited and discussed.

Transportation agencies experiences with decision support systems for airport ground access planning

This article reports on a field investigation into the ways that transportation agencies use quantitative and qualitative information for making strategic decisions regarding airport ground access. The study analyzes the value of this information for planning airport ground access improvements at seven major international airport sites.The major finding of the research is that quantitative modeling for strategic decision support is very difficult, costly and time consuming. Modelers are confident that the models are accurate and reliable but executives generally lack confidence in the results. Transportation officials believe that the information supplied is flawed by a number of defects that minimize its value for strategic decision makers. The information defects described in this article provide an analysis of the structural difficulty of using quantitative modeling for transportation problems of strategic importance. To date, qualitative information is not frequently used, but some transportation agencies are considering its application to designing transportation services. Although this study is limited to airport ground access, the authors feel that this evidence, in conjunction with the evidence from other studies in the transportation area, dictates a need for wariness in the development of decision support systems for transportation planners. Developers of decision support systems for transportation planners must be aware of modeling costs and defects and consider how to improve the timeliness, relevance and credibility of information quantitative models provide transportation executives. Fundamentally it is important to recognize that decision makers tend, either singularly or in concert with other individuals or groups, to be the champions of a long-term vision for the community. When modeling produces inconsistent or wide ranging results that contradict their position, decision makers may not only discard modeling activities, but lose confidence in the models altogether. As a consequence, transportation planners are faced with the challenge of how to improve quantitative modeling. The most reliable and effective means for improvement is incorporation of qualitative techniques which provide greater understanding of customer perceptions and human behavior.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DEVELOPING CUSTOMER FOCUS IN STATEWIDE TRANSPORTATION PLANNING PROCESS

The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 ushered in a new era in transportation planning, transforming the missions of transportation departments into more diverse agendas that include information management and long-range planning. Todays transportation officials face a complex task. Success in transportation planning is measured not just in terms of connectivity and operational efficiency, but in the ability to respond to a host of complicated concerns; the ability to achieve a variety of operational, managerial, and financial objectives; and in proficiency in involving the public in the entire transportation planning process. The Colorado Department of Transportation, in cooperation with the Graduate School of Business Administration at the University of Colorado at Denver, conducted a three-phase investigation on the development of customer focus in the statewide transportation planning process. From this systematic methodology, the research team established a series of recommenda...