Paper Example on Sensory Experience & Customer Loyalty: Analyzing Factors Correlating to Loyalty

Hypothesis 1: Sensory Experience and Customer Loyalty

Customer loyalty was analyzed using several factors that indicate the behavior of the consumers and how this can be attributed to their experience with the products. The analysis of the factors in the results confirm that there is a direct correlation between customer loyalty and experiential marketing. The loyalty of the consumers, as stated by Smilansky (2017), is indicated by the repeated behavior of an individual to consume the same product over and over. The results confirmed that customer loyalty could be associated with a consumption behavior that revolves around the same brand and where the satisfaction creates a distinctive feeling. The findings are in line with the explanation by Smilansky (2017) and the analysis confirms the repeated behavior is based on the positive experience that the consumers have about a given product or service. The hypothesis stated that there is a significant positive influence of sensory experience on consumer loyalty. The results confirmed that H1a, which is one of the indicators of loyalty, is accepted. It confirms the earlier research by Pham and Huang (2015) that the customer loyalty could be indicated by not just the repeated purchase of products or services but also by the positive feedback that the consumers give to the other consumers and the willingness to share their experience with the people close to them.

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The results also indicated 47.6% of the consumer loyalty can be explained by the independent variables and that the R square value for this variable was as high as 0.702 or 70.2%. The value indicates that this data was highly relevant and valid for this research. Therefore, it confirms that customer loyalty is one of the factors that make up the experiential marketing. The touch and feel that customers associate with the products are part of the satisfaction and they determine if the consumer buys the same products or services in the future. In the determination of the customer loyalty, the results show that consumer loyalty= 0.206 + 0.151 (affective experience) +0.116 (sensory experience) +0.254 (consumer purchase behaviour – 0.036 (cognitive experience) + 0.026 (physical experience) + 0.059(social experience) + 0.080(emotional value) + 0.086(social value) +0.190(functional value). The calculation means that sensory experience, cognitive experience, physical experience, social experience, emotional values are poor predictors for the customer loyalties. In other words, these values cannot be relied upon to determine if the customer becomes loyal to a specific brand. As for the beauty products in the UK, this is an important revelation because it helps the producers in the determination of how to induce, promote, monitor, and predict customer loyalty.

The application of the psychological conceptualization as well as the cognitive effect in the consumption process cannot be measured using the methods used in this research. Therefore, it is difficult to confirm the views by Maghnati et.al, (2012) regarding the way customer loyalty can be determined. The levels of customer loyalty, which includes cognitive loyalty, affective loyalty, conative loyalty, and action loyalty, cannot be measured using these values as well. The emotional attachment that consumers develop towards the products and services is a confirmation that the experience that people have with the products and services could have a direct impact on their purchasing behavior. The results did not include the values that could indicate the customer loyalty ladder. It is invalid to conclude whether all consumers included in the research follow the same steps in the process of becoming loyal consumers. Although there are many factors related to customer loyalty and sensory experience, it is difficult to associate all of them with the personal behavior of individuals. The analysis done in the research is based on the probability and significance level, which means that the analysis indicates what has the highest probability of occurring.

Hypothesis 2: Affectionate Experience on Purchase Behaviour

The second hypothesis stated that there is a significant positive influence of affectionate experience on purchase behavior. The results indicate that there is a close relationship between the purchase behavior and the experiences they have with the products and services. The results confirm the views by Jeong et al. (2009) that indicate that the consumption experience develops overtime after one starts consuming a product or service. The experiences that the hypothesis focused on is felt and not read like a message (Wong and Tsai, 2010). Therefore, it was valid to use the ANOVA method that allows for the comparison of different groups. The ANOVA results in regression 1, 3, 4, and 5 show that the hypothesis was accepted and it was only rejected in regression 2. The analysis confirms that the consumers use the affectionate experience to choose the products and services that they prefer over others. For instance, if they need to choose a beauty product over another, then they could make the decision based on how they feel, the affection they have developed over time, about the product. It means that the consumers compare their experience between alternative products or services.

The information is useful in the UK beauty industry because it helps in determining the way the companies could improve the connection they have with the consumers. It was determined in this research that the affectionate relationship between a consumer and the products in the market can be affected by the nature of the products and the positive feedback from other consumers. The results indicate that the significance of cognitive, social, and physical experiences contribute to the affection that people develop towards the products or services. The above confirms the views by Lin and Chiang (2010) that pleasures, opinions, and myths are part of the affectionate experience that affects the purchase behavior. The concerns of the UK beauty companies should be on how to create an affectionate relationship with the consumers. Further research is required to determine the methods that could be used to ensure the affection is sustained for as long as possible.

Hypothesis 3 and 4: Cognitive and Physical Experiences

The two stated that there is a positive effect of cognitive and physical experiences on the purchasing behavior of the consumers. The results in the previous section confirm that consumer behavior is affected by several collective and individual factors. Given the nature of analysis done in this on the physical and cognitive experiences, it is evident that the two, cognitive and physical experiences, do not have a direct positive effect on the consumer purchase behavior. The analysis shows that most of the consumers who participated in the research did not relate the physical and cognitive experience to their purchase behavior. However, the results did not oppose the views by Schmitt (1999) that experiences are gained through sensory, emotional, behavioural, cognitive, and relational values. Rather, the analysis suggests that the relationship between physical and cognitive experiences does not have a significant impact on the final decision by a consumer to make or not to make a purchase. In other words, there are more reasons that consumers rely on when making a purchase apart from mere cognitive and physical experiences. The two were rejected in regressions 1, 3, 4, and 5. The analysis did not include the gender differences that could have affected the experiences. The research results and analysis indicate that the participants ruled out the cognitive and physical experience they had and their consumption behavior.

Hypothesis 5 to 9: Social Identity, Brand Loyalty, and Others

The focus of the research was basically on the connection between the experiences that people have with the products and services they have and the decisions to purchase again. The beauty products are usually consumed by a certain age bracket. For example, it is expected that young ladies are more likely to use beauty products as compared to women aged above 65 years. However, the research provides insights into the internal and individual factors that affect the decision to purchase a product or service. The above-mentioned hypothesis stated that there is a positive relationship between social identity and brand loyalty and purchasing behavior. It also shows that the consumption process does not necessarily depend on the interaction between the individuals and the products or services. The relevance, appropriateness, and effectiveness of the variables included in these 5 hypotheses are less significant. For example, the social identity of the consumer does not have a direct impact on the decisions that people make when purchasing beauty products. The analysis also confirms that the experimental value mediates the relationship between experimental marketing and consumer loyalties. Therefore, hypothesis 9 was accepted, which means that the experiential value mediates the relationship between consumer loyalty and experiential marketing. The null hypothesis (H10) Consumer purchase behaviour is an intervening variable between experiential marketing and consumer loyalty was accepted because of the decision to purchase acts as an intervening factor in experimental marketing and consumer loyalties.

Limitations

In addition to the knowledge shared about the research process, targets, achievements, and challenges, the research study had several limitations that affected its success. One...