Type and timing of rewards as influencing factors on the value perception of a customer loyalty program

Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)

• Chapter 1 – Introduction
• 1.1 The context of the study.
• 1.2 Research Motivation: What is missing in the previous research
• 1.3 Overall Problem Statement
• 1.3.1 Sub-questions
• 1.3.1.1 Theoretical part.
• 1.3.1.2 Practical part...
• 1.4 Managerial Motivation.
• 1.5 Academic Motivation.
• 1.6 Conceptual Model
• 1.7 Structure of the thesis..
• Chapter 2 - The customer loyalty concept.
• 2.1 Introduction.
• 2.2 The concept of customer loyalty.
• 2.3 A different view on customer loyalty.
• 2.4 Other definitions of customer loyalty, attitude vs. behaviour.
• 2.5 Situational and normative factors influencing customer loyalty.
• 2.5.1 Social and situational factors according to Dick and Basu and Oliver .
• 2.5.2 Additional normative (social) drivers influencing loyalty
• 2.5.3 Additional situational factors influencing loyalty...
• 2.5.4 Other influencing factors on loyalty....
• 2.6 Conclusion..
• Chapter 3 - Customer loyalty programs
• 3.1 Introduction
• 3.2 Definition of customer loyalty programs
• 3.3 The difference between customer loyalty programs and promotion activities
• 3.3.1 Sales Promotion in form of coupons, stamps or vouchers.
• 3.3.2 Affinity campaign.
• 3.3.3 Customer card programs
• 3.3.4 Club programs...
• 3.3.5 Integrated loyalty program.
• 3.3.6 Proactive loyalty reward program..
• 3.4 The effects of customer loyalty programs.
• 3.5 Critical remark on customer loyalty programs..
• 3.6 Conclusion.......
• Chapter 4 Consumer buying decision process
• 4.1 Introduction.
• 4.2 The different problem solving processes
• 4.2.1 Routinized choice behaviour..
• 4.2.2 Limited decision making.
• 4.2.3 Extensive decision making.
• 4.3 High involvement purchase decision making process
• 4.3.1 Problem recognition .
• 4.3.2 Information search...
• 4.3.3 Evaluation of alternatives.
• 4.3.4 Purchase
• 4.3.5 Post-purchase evaluation.
• 4.4 Critical assessment of customer decision making and the role of loyalty
• 4.4.1 Pre-decisional constraints..
• 4.4.2 Mood.
• 4.4.3 Differences in gender.
• 4.4.4 High involvement vs. low involvement problem solving
• 4.4.5 Control of information flow
• 4.4.6 The influence of e-commerce.
• 4.4.7 Prior decision making..
• 4.4.8 The role of regret...
• 4.5 Conclusion..
• Chapter 5 - Hypotheses Development.
• 5.1 Introduction.
• 5.2 Problem statement and sub-questions
• 5.3 Hypotheses development......
• 5.3.1 Type and timing of reward.
• 5.3.2 The role of moderating factors.
• 5.3.3 Influence between type and timing of reward.
• 5.4 Conclusion...
• Chapter 6 - Research and questionnaire design.
• 6.1 Introduction.
• 6.2 Research environment and sample choice
• 6.3 Research design...
• 6.4 Questionnaire design.
• 6.5 Conclusion........
• Chapter 7 - Data analysis.
• 7.1 Introduction.
• 7.2 Descriptives......
• 7.3 Factor analysis..
• 7.4 Hypotheses testing...
• 7.4.1 The type of reward
• 7.4.2 The timing of reward.
• 7.4.3 The dedication based relationship.
• 7.4.4 The constraint based relationship..
• 7.4.5 The relational benefit relationship.
• 7.4.6 The interrelation between the type of reward and timing of reward.
• 7.5 Discussion of hypotheses results...
• 7.5.1 Discussion of the type and timing results..
• 7.5.2 Discussion of dedication and constraint based relationship influence..
• 7.5.3 The influence of timing on type of rewards
• 7.6 Additional findings.........
• 7.6.1 Benefits knowledge influence on value perception........
• 7.6.2 Car dealer / garage usage influence on value perception
• 7.6.3 Age influence on value perception...........
• 7.6.4 Gender influence on value perception of loyalty programs
• 7.6.5 Household differences on value perception ........
• 7.6.6 The relationship between value perception and loyalty
• 7.7 Discussion of additional findings.
• 7.8 Conclusion........

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)

This thesis investigates the influence of reward systems on the value perception of a customer loyalty program, focusing on the automobile industry, a high involvement setting. The research explores the impact of both the type of reward (direct vs. indirect) and the timing of reward (delayed vs. proactive) on customer value perception.

• Examining the influence of reward systems on customer loyalty program value perception
• Investigating the impact of reward type (direct vs. indirect) on value perception
• Analyzing the impact of reward timing (delayed vs. proactive) on value perception
• Exploring moderating factors such as customer relationship maintenance motivation and relational benefits
• Determining the relationship between reward type and timing

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)

Chapter 1 introduces the research context, motivation, and problem statement, outlining the gaps in existing research on customer loyalty programs. The chapter also presents the conceptual model and the thesis structure. Chapter 2 delves into the concept of customer loyalty, exploring various definitions, perspectives, and influencing factors. Chapter 3 focuses on customer loyalty programs, defining them, differentiating them from promotion activities, and examining their effects and critical aspects. Chapter 4 examines the consumer buying decision process, particularly in high-involvement settings, analyzing the role of loyalty in decision making. Chapter 5 develops hypotheses related to the type and timing of reward, moderating factors, and their influence on each other. Chapter 6 details the research design, sampling methods, and questionnaire development. Chapter 7 presents the data analysis, including descriptives, factor analysis, and hypotheses testing. The chapter also explores additional findings concerning benefits knowledge, car dealer usage, and age influence on value perception.

Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)

The main keywords and focus topics of this thesis include customer loyalty, customer loyalty programs, reward systems, value perception, direct and indirect rewards, delayed and proactive rewards, high involvement setting, automobile industry, moderating factors, relationship maintenance motivation, relational benefits, and empirical research.