Fertility care quality and experiential relationship marketing: a case study of mainland Chinese fertility tourists to Malaysia

Abstract

PurposeThis study examines the relationship between the dimensions of fertility care quality and the dimensions of experiential relationship marketing in fertility tourism.Design/methodology/approachThe data used in this study were based on a sample of 532 Mainland Chinese fertility tourists who received fertility care services in eight private fertility clinics in four Malaysian states, indicating that the proposed model fitted the data.FindingsFindings show that the dimensions of fertility care quality (professional skills, patient orientation and physical comfort) and experiential value positively influence experiential satisfaction. Additionally, experiential trust is positively influenced by both experiential satisfaction and experiential value. Also, experiential commitment is positively influenced by experiential satisfaction, experiential trust and experiential value.Practical implicationsFertility tourism service providers could focus on refining the dimensions of fertility care quality to improve experiential relationship marketing.Originality/valueThis paper provides the data that result in a better understanding of the relationship between the dimensions of fertility care quality and the dimensions of experiential relationship marketing in fertility tourism.