Determinants Of Customer Satisfaction In Airline Industry Tourism Essay Example

dimensionality as a determinant of customer satisfaction. They found that price satisfaction encompasses multiple dimensions such as price-quality ratio, price equity, price transparency, price dependability, and comparative price.The analysis of these dimensions shows that monetary value transparency involves improving information accessibility, offering more customer options, simplifying transactions, enhancing communication among customers, and creating a general feeling of distrust and dissatisfaction. The authors argue that as a result of this, customers will increasingly demand open, honest, and complete information regarding products and prices. Therefore, monetary value transparency plays a vital role in pricing policy. They conclude that monetary value transparency exists when customers can easily access a clear, comprehensive, current, and effortless overview of a company's quoted prices. Additionally, they define the price-quality ratio as the value consumers perceive in a product or service based on their assessment of price and quality. Customer value is also defined as a knowledge-based concept that captures the difference between received benefits and made sacrifices. The authors state that high customer value occurs when perceived quality surpasses perceived costs while low customer value occurs when costs exceed quality.In their conclusion, the authors stated that buyers' perceptions of value involve finding a balance between the perceived benefits of the product and the perceived sacrifices involved in payment.

1.1 Background of the survey

The history of Saudi Airline dates back to 1945 when US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gifted King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia with a Douglas DC-3 plane. This event marked the gradual development of Saudi Arabia's civil air power industry.

Saudi Arabian Airlines, which is fully owned and controlled by the Saudi government under the Ministry of Defense, was

established in September 1946. In 1962, it acquired two Boeing 720s, allowing it to officially begin operations on February 19, 1963. Over time, this steady growth has positioned Saudi Airline as a prominent player in the industry, particularly in Asia.

While it ranks as the second-largest airline in terms of turnover in the region (trailing behind Emirates but surpassing Qatar Airways and Etihad airlines), its passenger traffic numbers place it third after Qatar Airways and Emirates. Its success can be attributed to its advantageous location between Africa, Asia, and Europe, as well as being situated within the largest state on the Arabian Peninsula.Despite the limited transportation options for a population of around 28 million people, stakeholders are concerned about maximizing external opportunities in Saudi Arabia. To address this issue and promote economic development, the government has encouraged privately owned low-cost airlines to compete with Saudi Arabian Airlines domestically and internationally. As a result, NAS airline and Sama airline were established by private investors in February and March of 2007 respectively, focusing primarily on domestic routes.

The excessive subsidization of the transportation system in Saudi Arabia poses a strategic challenge for both air and land transportation sellers. They must determine the most effective approach to efficiently acquire, serve, and retain profitable customers within and outside the country. Although subsidized fuel prices do not affect the Saudi Arabian airline directly, experts argue that removing price caps would enable sellers to compete without limitations. This is believed to be the main reason behind Saudi Arabia airline's struggle against international airlines such as Emirates and Qatar Airlines.

Some writers also suggest that an airline's service quality can differentiate it from competitors, ultimately

increasing its market share and profitability.Recently, Ekiz et al.(2006) introduced AIRQUAL as an alternative scale to SERVQUAL for measuring airline service quality. The study found that the scale included five dimensions: airline tangibles, terminal tangibles, staff, empathy, and image. This scale effectively measured the quality perceptions of airline customers.

While the AIRQUAL scale was successfully developed, other researchers have noted that it did not identify the impact of Airline price, solution quality, and employee job satisfaction on customer satisfaction. These variables have been shown to be important indicators of customer loyalty.

To address these limitations and expand upon previous research on Airline service quality and customer satisfaction, this proposed study aims to conduct further investigations as mentioned by Ekiz et al.(2006) and other authors. By conducting studies like this one, we can gain a better understanding of the true behavioral intentions of airline customers in Saudi Arabia and around the world. Additionally, this research introduces an additional variable (Price) based on literature such as Kurt et al.(2006), which explores different aspects of price satisfaction and its role in determining customer satisfaction.The authors of this study have found through empirical evidence that price satisfaction encompasses various aspects, including the ratio of price to quality, fairness of price, transparency of price information, reliability of price, and comparison with other prices. The quality of solutions provided by a service provider directly influences a client's satisfaction regarding job concerns. To achieve the objective of this proposed study, a conceptual model is presented that includes concepts such as monetary value, customer loyalty, overall satisfaction with the service or product received, quality of service or product, solution quality provided by the service provider,

and employee satisfaction. The research questions focus on analyzing patterns in the Airline industry to determine how Price/Fare, Product/Service Quality, and Solution Quality impact Customer satisfaction. These questions aim to gather feedback from clients who use Saudi Airline and Singapore Airline (a comparable industry leader) in order to identify the factors that truly contribute to their Satisfaction and loyalty. Specifically: How does Price/Fare influence Customer satisfaction? How does Product/Service Quality affect Customer satisfaction? How does Employee Job Satisfaction impact Product/Service Quality? How does Employee Job Satisfaction influence Solution Quality? How does Solution Quality impact Customer satisfaction? And finally, how does Customer satisfaction affect Customer Retention in the Airline Industry?The main goal of this survey is to investigate the relationship between Price perception, Service Quality, Employee Job Satisfaction, and Solution Quality on client satisfaction and loyalty in the Airline industry. The purpose of this survey is to assess how factors such as Price perception, Service Quality, Employee Job Satisfaction, and Solution Quality affect customer satisfaction and loyalty in the Airline industry. It also aims to explore the role of customer satisfaction in mediating customer loyalty within the airline industry. The theoretical model used for this study adopts a market orientation approach and examines the connection between Efficient Airline projects as an independent variable and customer loyalty as a dependent variable. In order to simplify matters, specific objectives have been formulated by the researcher to address the research problem and provide answers to research questions. The objective is to establish a theoretical framework that explains the impact of Price perception, Service Quality, Employee Job Satisfaction, and Solution Quality on both Customer Satisfaction and Customer Loyalty. Furthermore, it

seeks to examine how Customer Satisfaction influences Customer Retention/Loyalty. This survey focuses on determining which aspects of Airline operations influence Customer Satisfaction specifically within Saudi Arabia Airline and Singapore Airline in the Airline industry.The researcher plans to use various sampling techniques to investigate the factors affecting customer satisfaction and loyalty in the tourism industry, specifically focusing on airline customers. The research will utilize a combination of qualitative and quantitative techniques, including conducting in-depth interviews with directors and professionals from the Saudi Arabia airline industry. The aim of this research is to identify the variables that determine customer satisfaction and loyalty in the Airline Industry, contributing to the development of alternative theories and models for improved operations. Additionally, this research explores the connections between airline operational processes, service quality, and contemporary customer satisfaction theories. Limited empirical research currently exists on the influence of price, solution quality, and employee satisfaction on customer satisfaction and loyalty within this area.The research aims to explore the relationship between client satisfaction theories and airline operation processes. It seeks to conceptualize and empirically observe how these procedures affect client satisfaction and loyalty. The goal is to develop a method of measuring this impact, assisting practitioners in understanding the connection between service quality and client satisfaction within the airline industry. Additionally, it will provide airline management with a better understanding of factors influencing their operation procedures' connection with client satisfaction. Understanding how solution quality and price impact their relationship with customers can benefit airlines, HR directors, and production directors. The significance of employee satisfaction in enhancing service quality is also highlighted. The knowledge gained from this research can aid decision-making processes for airline

management. Customer satisfaction is closely linked to service quality, emphasizing its importance. Primary data will be collected through a questionnaire from selected Saudi Arabian airline clients, while qualitative measurements will involve assistance from Airline Experts/Managers.This text provides an overview of the different chapters in the research, highlighting their content and purpose. The and their contents are preserved.

The research topic "determiners of client satisfaction in airline industry" is introduced, along with an explanation for selecting price, service quality, and solution quality as determiners. Additionally, it includes statements regarding the research problem, research questions, research aims, scope and limitations of the study, and significance of the research.

This chapter defines the dimensions of service quality and provides a theoretical background on airline marketing by reviewing literature on tourism marketing and customer satisfaction. It also summarizes the theoretical background used by the researcher to develop a theoretical model and hypothesis.

In this chapter, both qualitative and quantitative methods that will be employed in this research approach are discussed. The text below provides an overview of these methods. It outlines procedures for case study selection, data collection, and data quality assurance to ensure validity.

Chapter four focuses on describing and analyzing practices of Saudi airline companies.

Findings regarding the Saudi airline industry are presented for further discussion in chapter five.

This chapter analyzes, discusses, and draws conclusions about research questions posed earlier in relation to the theoretical framework.The text also takes into account the implications for management and offers alternative recommendations for future research.