The Role of Service Quality, Perceived Value, and Relationship Quality in Enhancing Customer Loyalty in the Travel Agency Sector

ABSTRACT

Relationship quality is crucial to enhancing a tourist’s loyalty. Little empirical research has been conducted to link service quality, perceived value, and relationship quality to customer loyalty in the travel agency sector. This study attempts to investigate the role of service quality, perceived value, and relationship quality on customer loyalty among tourists. Relationship quality consists of three components: customer satisfaction, customer trust, and customer commitment. Structural equation modeling is used to test the linkages between the six variables that have been identified. Findings reveal that service quality and perceived value of a travel package are antecedent factors to the relationship quality with a travel agency; three components of relationship quality significantly influence a customer’s loyalty to a travel agency.

KEYWORDS:

• Service quality
• perceived value
• satisfaction
• relationship quality
• loyalty

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ivan Ka Wai Lai

Ivan Ka Wai Lai is an Associate Professor at Macau University of Science and Technology, Taipa, Macao (E-mail: [email protected]).