Are drivers of customer satisfaction different for buyers/users from different functional areas?

Abstract

PurposeThe aim of this study is to identify the drivers that influence customer satisfaction in a business‐to‐business context.Design/methodology/approachA survey‐based field study was conducted in which 1,068 business customers of a manufacturer of hydraulic and pneumatic equipment participated. Buyers/users reported their perceptions about and satisfaction with a supplier's product‐related services.FindingsThree drivers of customer satisfaction, reliability, product‐related information, and commercial aspects, were identified. The importance of the last two drivers differed depending on the buyer's/user's primary functional area. For respondents from purchasing and management, commercial aspects were found to be more important than product‐related information. For participants from engineering, maintenance, and production, product‐related information was found to be more important than commercial aspects. The reliability driver emerged as the most important regardless of the functional association of respondents.Originality/valueThe study results elucidate the differences between drivers of customer satisfaction for the buyers/users from different functional areas of an organization.