Title: Relationship marketing tactics, customer entitlement, and customer behavioural responses

Authors: Thi Bich Hanh Tran; Anh Dung Vu

Addresses: Faculty of Business Administration, FPT University, Hanoi, Vietnam; VNU Vietnam Japan University, Hanoi, Vietnam ' Faculty of Arts and Sciences and College of Business and Management, VinUniversity, Vinhomes Ocean Park, Gia Lam District, Hanoi, Vietnam

Abstract: This study aims at examining the effects of relationship marketing tactics on customer entitlement which then affects customer citizenship behaviour and customer complaint behaviour. The data were collected through surveys on customers of cosmetics companies in Vietnam. The results show that emailing and messaging do not have a significant effect on customer entitlement while firm's preferential treatment towards customers, provision of tangible rewards, and interpersonal communication are significantly associated to customer entitlement. The results also indicate that customer entitlement dramatically influences customer complaint behaviour while the impact of customer entitlement on customer citizenship behaviour is significant, but the magnitude of the effect is modest. Interestingly, customer entitlement serves as a significant partial mediator in the effects of relationship marketing tactics on customer citizenship behaviour and complaint behaviour. The study concludes with significant theoretical and practical implications for service management.

Keywords: relationship marketing tactics; customer entitlement; customer citizenship behaviour; customer complaint behaviour.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSEM.2021.117244

International Journal of Services, Economics and Management, 2021 Vol.12 No.2, pp.109 - 128

Received: 18 Apr 2020
Accepted: 06 Sep 2020
Published online: 24 Aug 2021 *

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