Smartphone experience, satisfaction, and referral: an ecosystem perspective

ABSTRACT

Following an ecosystem perspective and drawing on the stimulus-organism-response model, this research examines how experiential stimuli, including consumers’ experiences with their smartphones, phone service providers, and smartphone applications affect satisfaction with smartphones, which then leads to referral behaviors. An online survey questionnaire was completed by 444 respondents, and structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed model. Findings recognize the stimulating role of experience with products and services (i.e., smartphone applications and service providers) that comprise the smartphone ecosystem, highlight the mediating role of satisfaction in the relationship between experiences and word-of-mouth (WOM) referrals, and shed light on the reciprocal power of WOM referrals in the context of smartphone satisfaction. As opposed to the majority of research focusing on smartphone adoption factors, the present research provides insights on post-adoption experiences of consumers with their smartphones. Moreover, the ecosystem view of the study moves beyond the mere phone features and considers the role of other technological products and services that interact with smartphone devices and shape consumers’ experiences with smartphones.

KEYWORDS:

• Smartphone application
• smartphone experience
• satisfaction
• word-of-mouth
• smartphone ecosystem

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Atefeh Yazdanparast

Atefeh Yazdanparast (PhD, University of North Texas) is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Clark Univeristy. Her research interests include social psychology of consumer decisions, interplay of technology and consumer behavior, and sensory marketing. Her research has been published in journals such as the Journal of Consumer Psychology, Journal of Business Ethics, European Journal of Marketing, Psychology & Marketing, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, and Journal of Marketing Management.

Gina A. Tran

Gina A. Tran (PhD, University of North Texas) is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Florida Gulf Coast University. Her research interests include consumer behavior and technology, social media marketing, and digital marketing. Her research has been published in journals such as Psychology & Marketing, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Journal of Product & Brand Management, Journal of Advertising Research, Business Horizons, and Management Research Review.