| Why do some customers return to a service provider after a service failure while others do not? Neither Individual differences nor extent of the failure have adequately resolved the issue. This study investigated the effects of brand equity on consumer's perceptions following a service failure and/or recovery. Specifically, this research hypothesized that failures and recoveries attributed to high brand equity service names would be evaluated less harshly than if the same failure and recovery was attributed to a fictitiously named service provider.; While branding and branding related issues have a rich wealth of research surrounding them, studies have predominantly focused on physically tangible goods. As services comprise increasingly large portions of the business sector, this omission demands attention. Congruity theory was used to was used to explain how consumer's might balance brand related information against service experiences, and the resulting impact on behavioral intentions.; The results of the study Indicate that, as captured here, brand equity has little or no explanatory effect in understanding why some customers return following a service failure while others do not. However, the overall model does offer some additional insight into customers' perceptions of risk, service quality and satisfaction, service encounter experiences and their impact on behavioral intentions. The results also indicate that brand equity in a service setting may vary somewhat from that of a physically tangible good. |
