The Effect of Service quality on customer loyalty development: Empirical Evidence from Nigerian Telecommunications Industry

Abstract

In spite of the substantial growth and expansion recorded in the Nigeria telecommunications industry, “the quality of service is still perceived to be poor. This study examined how service quality can influence customer loyalty development in Nigerian Telecommunications Industry. The study used a cross-sectional survey method. Primary data were collected using questionnaires. The multistage sampling technique was used to survey 100 subscribers across the four major mobile telecom operators. Descriptive statistics like mean and standard deviation were employed in analyzing the data and hypotheses were tested using Chi-Square-test for independence. The result of the analysis revealed that the perception of service quality of telecom operators is not significantly poor. The loyalty status of postpaid subscribers is slightly above average. Results of data analysis show that perceptions of service quality of males and females subscribers are statistically significant. In addition, the study found out that male subscribers may not be expected to present more loyalty inclination to GSM operators than their female counterparts. Correspondingly, the study discovered a statistically significant difference in service quality perception across the 6 age groups of such subscribers. The findings of this study concluded that the perception of post-paid subscribers about GSM telecommunication in Nigeria in terms of service quality offered by the operators is not significantly poor, and it has a significant effect on customer loyalty. The study recommends, therefore, that GSM operators should intensify effort to improve service quality in the areas they are performing poorly so as to improve attributes of service delivery in the entire service process and by extension fosters customer loyalty.