Abstract

The Study of Customer Loyalty Factors in the Mobile Telecommunications Industry in China

This article is a study of Chinese telecommunications service customer loyalty factors and the impact of the internal mechanism. The industry empirical study reveals the communications services industry, the impact factors of customer loyalty, and the interaction between these factors mechanism. With the increasingly fierce market competition and increase costs for customers, cultivate and maintain long-term customer loyalty is a business enterprise can be an important factor. On the one hand, enterprises have to get a good income, in addition to the core technology and improving product quality, but customer satisfaction, service quality and Enterprise Image will to some extent affect on customer loyalty, loyal customers are the main profit source. On the other hand, when supply exceeds demand in the market environment, the cost to acquire new customers than to maintain existing customer costs, but the profit contribution of new customers is far less than the original customer. Finally, the loyalty of customers through word of mouth to bring new business customers. Therefore, the development of customer loyalty strategies, research customer needs and maintain long-term two-way interaction with the customer relationship business and academia has been the focus of attention. Customer loyalty in the communications industry, more and more attention, is the communications business focus of attention and contention. The domestic mobile communications market has emerged Mobile, Unicorn, Telecom tripod trends, how to build and maintain customer loyalty, an enterprise in the fierce competition to get the key to success.

The formation of the paper is divided into four parts:①In reviewing the results of previous studies based on research to tease out the context, to further clarify factors affecting customer loyalty research, the establishment of research model, hypotheses;②by Changchun City mobile communications service provider interviews and block access to the service users to understand the actual impact of those factors is customer loyalty and its underlying mechanism, the theoretical model;③to Mobile, Unicom and Telecom users specific survey, a total of 350 questionnaires were returned data 312, of which 296 were valid data, the total number of valid questionnaires returned questionnaires accounted for 84%;④by SPSS 15.0 analysis of the data, verify assumptions, conclusions.

Existing literature examined the impact of customer loyalty factors, but few scholars study the mechanisms of these factors inherent in the Chinese communications market research on the impact of customer loyalty and even less. This paper analyzes the characteristics of the Chinese communications industry and their environment, the innovation is made on the corporate image, service quality, customer satisfaction and switching costs will impact on customer loyalty, establish communications services market, customer loyalty model, an empirical analysis of this model.

Customer loyalty is an included customer satisfaction, service switching Enterprises costs, and corporate image, including multi-factor-driven quality, model. Can improve service quality and improve the corporate image of the two companies work together to upgrade the status of the customer's perception and enhance customer loyalty. Should pay attention to physical facilities, construction and building corporate image recognition system to enhance the service quality of service, accurate, and efficient and effective completion of the promised services. Meanwhile, the service personnel who have the good manners to enhance the customer's trust, so as to enhance customer loyalty.

However, due to limited resources for research of this article, mainly for the Changchun area communications service users survey, such as the market does not take into account environmental, cultural and environmental regulation of regulating factors, therefore, service communications industry factors that need to be Geng Customer Loyalty more empirical research.

Keywords:
Customer Satisfaction Technology Leader Image Service Quality Mobile

Content

Chapter One: Introduction……………………………...……………………………..6
1.1 Research Background and Starting Point………………………………………….6
1.2 Research Contents and Purposes…………………………………………………6

Chapter Two: Literature Review………………………………………………………8
2.1 Importance of Customer Loyalty………………………………………………….8
2.2 Factors Influencing Customer Loyalty…………………………………………….8
2.3 Researches on Customer Loyalty of
Existing Mobile Communication Services……………………………………….12

Chapter Three: Theory Framework and Hypotheses………….……..………………15
3.1 Concept Model and Research Hypotheses……………………………………….15

Chapter Four: Research Methods…………………………………………………….18
4.1 Variables Design in the Model…………………………………………………...18
4.2 Data collection method…………………………………………………………...22
4.3 Data Analysis Methods………………………...………………………………...25

Chapter Five: Data Analysis and Discussion………...………………...…………….27
5.1 Analysis of Sample Data…………………………...…………………………….27
5.2 Hypothesis Testing……………………………………………………………….32

Chapter 6 Conclusions and Limitations………...……...………………….…………39
6.1 Conclusions………………………………………………………………………39
6.2 Management Meaning……………………………………………………………40
6.3 Research Inadequacy and Recommendations for Future Research……………....41

Reference……………………………………………………………………………..43
Appendix……………………………………………………………………………..46

List of Figures

Figure 3.1 Theory Model…………………………………………………………… 15

List of tables

Table 4.1 Measurement table of customer loyalty ………………….………………19
Table 4.2 Measurement table of customer satisfaction ……………………………..20
Table 4.3 Measurement table of switching cost …………………………………….20
Table 4.4 Measurement table of service quality……………………………………..21
Table 4.5 Measurement table of enterprise image…………………………………...22
Table 4.6 Measurement questionnaire for customer loyalty…………………………23
Table 4.7 Table of variables measurement in questionnaire…………………………24

Table 5.1 Gender analysis of the interviewees……………………………………….27
Table 5.2 Analysis of the interviewees’using time of communication service………28
Table 5.3 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing customer loyalty……………………………………………….28
Table 5.4 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing customer satisfaction………………………………………………………………………….. 29
Table 5.5 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing switching cost…………………………………………………30
Table 5.6 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing service quality…………………………………….…………….31
Table 5.7 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing enterprise image………………………………………………..32
Table 5.8 Reliability and validity analysis of customer loyalty…………………….33
Table 5.9 Reliability and validity analysis of customer satisfaction………………..34
Table 5.10 Reliability and validity analysis of switching cost………………………35
Table 5.11 Reliability and validity analysis of service quality ……………………..36
Table 5.12 Reliability and validity analysis of enterprise image……………………37
Table 5.13 Analysis results of gradual regression model …………………………..37
Table 5.14 The independent variables corresponding to the predicted variables …...38

Chapter One: Introduction

1.1 Research Background and Starting Point
With rapid progress of science and technology and fast development of market economy, the domestic product market has been transformed from seller’s market into buyer's market, which makes the customer occupy the dominant position. Loyal customers can not only provide enterprises with continuing profits, but will form a virtuous business cycle to attract more customers by publicizing company's products and services through pubilc praise. As for enterprises that providing products of invisible service, they need to carry out experience marketing in the early stage due to the invisible property of products. But the process for customers to perceive the quality of services will take some time, and enterprises need to spend lots of human, financial and material resources with high cost to persuade customers to buy services during this period. Therefore, fostering and maintaining customer loyalty has become the key for enterprises to survive and develop in service sector. In order to create a sound enterprise image and excellent product image, more and more enterprises have developed and implemented customer loyalty management strategy to offer customers with comprehensive and differentiated services, to enhance customers’ delivered value and to fulfill their high promise to customers. Therefore, the starting point and main points are to research that through which channels can enterprises attract customers and form customer loyalty, which factors can affect customer loyalty and how they work, as well as how to manage these factors systematically.

1.2 Research Contents and Purposes
Research on customer loyalty is a common concern of domestic and foreign experts and entrepreneurs. Mainly based on previous researches, this paper studies the formation mechanism of customer loyalty and primary influence mechanism of various factors, raising some suggestions about operational management for domestic telecommunication service providers. Combining relative results of domestic and foreign researches, this paper sets up a customer loyalty theory model about fours factors’ influence on customer loyalty, which are customer satisfaction, service quality, enterprise image and switching cost. Through returning to analysis, the influence of customer loyalty, enterprise image, switching cost, customer satisfaction, and service quality on customer loyalty has been analyzed. The purposes of this research are as following:

First, combining the basic situation of China’s mobile communication market with international literature reviews of customer loyalty management theories, this paper is to build an influencing factors model for customer loyalty of China’s mobile communication service sector. Second, through data this paper is to examine and analyze the influence of enterprise image, customer satisfaction, switching cost, and service quality on customer loyalty. Third, this paper is to offer enlightenment for communication operators to establish and maintain customer loyalty in operating process.

Chapter Two: Literature Review

2.1 Importance of Customer Loyalty
The concept of customer loyalty has aroused widespread concern in academic circle since Kaplan put it forward in 1923. Gradually, to improve customer loyalty becomes a priority management factor considered by enterprises especially from 90s of the 20th century. More and more scholars’ research findings and enterprises’ successful business experiences also confirm that effective customer share is better than blind market share, and customer loyalty can gain advantage in competition for enterprises by bringing significant value.

In short, the academic circle has generally accepted the point of view that customer loyalty can create significant value for enterprises. So, to establish and maintain customer loyalty has become a major way for enterprises to win superiority in competition.

2.2 Factors Influencing Customer Loyalty
Customer loyalty is an integrating process of customer’s internal psychology cognition and external behaviors. Therefore, customer loyalty is influenced by a number of factors. The factors influencing customer loyalty refers to the factors which influence customers to continue to choose or not to choose an enterprises’ products or service. Now the factors influencing customer loyalty generally accepted in academic and business circles are as following:

2.2.1 Customer Satisfaction and Customer Loyalty
The research on the factors influencing customer loyalty was started from customer satisfaction, meaning that customer satisfaction is the earliest factor influencing customer loyalty put forward by scholars. It also has been the studying focus in these two decades. Kolter believed that customer satisfaction is the ratio between the use effect and the customer’s perceived effect of products or services. If customers’ perceived effect fails to attain their expected effect, they will be dissatisfied; if perceived effect matches the expected one, they will not be dissatisfied; if perceived effect exceeds the excepted one, they will be satisfied.

According to the traditional management theory, there is fixed model and way to form customer loyalty. That is to build customer loyalty through customer satisfaction, and to obtain profits and to realize long-term development for enterprises through customer loyalty. Customer satisfaction theory believes that customer satisfaction is the major factor to predict customer loyalty. The higher customer satisfaction customers get, the more loyalty they will show to the enterprises’ products or services. With increasing purchase and spreading praise, the purchase amount will grow constantly, bringing more profits for enterprises. In 1989 Ohver and Swan discovered in their study that customer satisfaction affected customers’ purchase intention, and thus affected their buying behaviors. Through research on banks and fast food industry, Cronin and Taylor found that customer satisfaction could significantly affect customer loyalty. By proposing a structure of chain for satisfaction and profit, Anderson and Mittal (2000) thought that there were two critical range values between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. The relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty was nonlinear and asymmetrical. They believed that the influence of dissatisfaction on customers’’ re-purchase intention was higher than that of satisfaction. What’s more, satisfaction’s influence on customer loyalty got intense when the satisfaction degree was higher or lower than expected service perception. Additionally, market condition, competitors and cultural environment would also adjust the influence of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty.

2.2.2 Switching Cost and Customer Loyalty
Porter argued that switching cost meant the one-time cost paid by the buyer when he changed supplier. Its manifestations were re-training business staff, adding new equipment, adjustment of the test tools and so on. Therefore, switching cost would cause buyers to resist changing suppliers, and it would take a lot of time special services for new entrants to eliminate the resistance.

The influence of switching cost on customer loyalty became a main research topic after customer satisfaction. Switching cost includes economic cost and psychological cost which are caused by customers’ action of changing suppliers. Therefore, from this perspective, switching cost can be regarded as psychological or economic cost that customers should pay for changing customer relationship, and it will prevent customers to change customer relationship to some extent. So, the study on switching cost can not only help to predict and manage customer loyalty, but also provide a better way for enterprises to build long-term relationship with customers.

2.2.3 Service Quality and Customer Loyalty
In consumer world where products and services tend to be personalized, the service sector should rely on suppliers to provide differentiated products or services in order to have sustainable development and be different with competitors. Therefore, service quality becomes the main instrument for enterprises to develop differentiation in service section (Parasuraman, Zeitham and Berry, 1988).

In order to better understand service quality, the meaning quality should first be defined for further discussion on service quality. Garvin (1983) divided the methods to define quality as the following five categories: high-quality approach, product attributes’ basic approach, user indentifying approach, manufacturing guiding approach and value basic approach. From the definition of high-quality, quality means characteristics and advantages of the product itself which can only be perceived by the customers who experience it by themselves. From the definition of product’s attributes, quality can be measured for it can displays on its own characteristics and attributes, and thus product quality also depends on the comparison of product’s characteristics and attributes. From users’ point of view, the quality of product or service is judged and identified by users. The criterion of quality relies on the ability to meet expectation of customers. Those that meet and exceed the expected demand are considered as high quality, and the contrary are viewed as low quality. From the value basic, quality means the function acceptance showed by customers at an acceptable price range, which is the standard reached by suppliers at an acceptable cost range.

Integrating the views of above scholars, the definition of service quality given by this paper is: the ratio between a customer’s expectation for service quality and their perception after consuming during service process. The higher this ratio is, the lower the service quality is; conversely, the higher the service quality is. High service quality will bring customer loyalty.

2.2.4 Enterprise Image and Customer Loyalty
As for the relationship between enterprise image and customer loyalty, scholars have made a lot of researches. Combining these researches, there are mainly two representative views about the influence of enterprise image on customer loyalty.

First, through customer satisfaction, enterprise image can indirectly influence customer loyalty. Fomell (1992) discovered that if a customer felt satisfied with the product or service after purchasing it, he would have a good impression on the enterprise. Then, he would re-purchase with increasing satisfaction, leading to gradually raising impression on the enterprise and eventually customer loyalty with the move of time.

Second, enterprise image can directly influence customer loyalty. A good enterprise image will help customers to accept enterprises’ products or services, reduce a variety of costs for customers in the purchasing-decision-making process by simplify purchasing decisions, form a good reputation and psychological expectation, and increase repeated purchase behaviors of customers. Especially for purchasing some complex products or services, the influence of enterprise image on customer loyalty becomes more significant than that of enterprise image through customer satisfaction.

The above research results shows that enterprise image is an important factor influencing customer loyalty whether it impact customer loyalty directly or indirectly through customer satisfaction.

2.3 Researches on Customer Loyalty of Existing Mobile Communication Services
In current customer-centric marketing environment, customer loyalty is more important for mobile communication service enterprises as they do not provide physical products. Mobile operators are now facing the main task about how to promote customer satisfaction, improve product quality and cultivate customer loyalty in the premise of maintaining the existing client relationships. On the other hand, communication service providers are actively developing new products, lifting customer switching costs and keeping branding and differentiation of the service system.

Since 2003, service providers at all levels in all regions have raised the slogan that customers are first of all, and launched surveys on the degree of customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. They have carried out customer relationship management as enterprises’ important task and established customer relationship management system and service quality management system to meet customers’ needs.

While enterprises begun to attach importance to customer relationship management, some domestic scholars also started to set up customer loyalty indicator system for mobile communication service section, pointing out some problems.

The quality indicator of Australia's telecom service is divided into two major categories: value indicator and cost indicator. Value indicator includes three types: formal value, core value and service value, which can also be divided into technology quality, business image, staff image, extended service, additional service and other aspects. Cost indicator includes two aspects: monetary cost indicator and non-monetary cost indicator, which can be subdivided into five aspects such as accounting standard, time consumption and energy consumption.

However, there are some problems in these indicators in practical application process. Lv Yanben, Chen Yue (2003) and other scholars believe that there are the following manifestations of the imperfect indicator system in mobile communication service section.

First, these indicators are not designed from the point of view of customers, but designed on the basic of enterprises’ business process. Many enterprises set the first-level indicator from products’ sale cycle, forming service quality indicator pre-sale, during sale and after sale. This ignores the real needs of customers

Secondly, the indicator evaluation system lacks dimension and is complex with too many indicators. Customer satisfaction is customers’ overall assessment of service quality, which includes the service assessment perceived by customers in touch with enterprises’ staff during buying process, as well as the assessment of the quality of specific products. As this system involves a wide range, many enterprises usually seek for more and entire indicators and neglect the indicators’ scientificity when using these indicators, resulting in great bias between research results and actual situations and non-persuasiveness.

Most of the current researches on these indicators are commercial, and the study on the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in mobile communication industry mainly stays at qualitative analysis. In China’s mobile communication service market, the form with three pillars appears during the domestic mobile operating especially after the telecom operators got the mobile communication operating license, which brings this study with more actual meanings.

Chapter 3 Theory Framework and Hypotheses

This chapter mainly introduces the concept model used in this study, outlines the argument foundations of this model and proposes assumptions. At last, it displays the source of the tables, the designing process of questionnaire and the statistical analysis methods.

3.1 Concept Model and Research Hypotheses
On the basic of analyzing previous research results, the theory model showed in Figure 3.1 Theory Model is put forward.

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Figure 3.1 Theory Model

During the study process, this paper abandons the regulatory role of the objective market and cultural environment in customer satisfaction and customer loyalty, in order to grasp the main aspects of the problem. Meanwhile, as most of the products in mobile communication service industry are intangible, the service quality can neither be measured by objective standards nor be identified with eyes. It can only be indentified by subjective experience after using the service, which means that whether a customer is satisfied with a service after using it can only be perceived by his personal experience. Therefore, the influence of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty is rather crucial and the Hypothesis One (H1) is consequently proposed.

H1: Customer satisfaction has a direct and positive impact on customer loyalty

Switching cost includes time, economic, psychological and learning cost, and switching cost of service section is higher than that of physical products. Currently, mobile communication service industry forms an oligopolistic competition pattern, resulting in high cost for customers who change suppliers. The switching cost in mobile communication service consists of sunk cost, organizational cost, risk cost, emotional costs, and number changing cost and opportunity cost and so on. If a customer terminates contact with the current provider, he needs to bear a great loss. In other words, high switching cost is an important factor for customers to maintain relationship with the current providers. Therefore, the Hypothesis Two (H2) is put forward in this paper.

H2: Switching cost has a direct and positive impact on customer loyalty.

Ruyterd (1999) found the positive correlation between service quality and customer loyalty in his research on service section. But in different sectors, the influences of service quality on customer loyalty are different. In mobile communication service industry, customers’ feeling about service quality mainly comes from the recognition of voice quality, subjective perception of service level of enterprises’ staff and so on. Sound service quality will make customers further accept enterprises’ products or services. Therefore, service quality will impact customer loyalty to some extent, and the Hypothesis Three (H3) is raised in this paper.

H3: Service quality has a direct and positive impact on customer loyalty.

Customers’ assessment of enterprise image is primarily made from three aspects: mental perception, service experience and product evaluation after service. A good enterprise helps to shape customer satisfaction and therefore affects customer loyalty. In this research, enterprise image is studied as the direct factor influencing customer loyalty. As a result, the Hypothesis Four (H4) is proposed.

H4: Enterprise image has a direct and positive impact on customer loyalty.

Chapter Four: Research Methods

4.1 Variables Design in the Model
There are five variables in this study, which are customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, switching cost, service quality and enterprise image. The variables design in the model has been discussed in detail in the study.

4.1.1 Variable Design of Customer Loyalty
Customer loyalty is a high-degree commitment of customers not only to repeat and continuing purchase a product or service in the next period of time, but also will not perform switching behavior because of the change in market conditions. It is a high-quality psychology tendency and an internal integration of psychological commitment and repeated purchase. From this definition we can see that customer loyalty is the unity of internal psychological loyalty and external behavior loyalty.

WangenLheim Bayon (2004) thought that the measurement of customer loyalty could be divided as: do not prepare to change service provider in recent period, recommend to friends and relatives, repeat purchase, will not change service provider if the current provider raises prices, will change provider if the competitor offer better prices and so on. He was the first one to put customer’s price tolerance ability into the measurement programs of customer loyalty.

According to the research of WangenLheim Bayon, we believe that customer loyalty can be measured by these four aspects: recommendation intention, repeated purchase, price tolerance and cross buying, as shown in Table 4.1.

Table 4.1 Measurement table of customer loyalty
Measurement item Contents
Recommendation intention Customers’ intention to recommend the product or service to the people around
Repeated purchase Customers’ willing to re-purchase the product or service
Price tolerance Customers’ tolerance degree for price increasing of the product or service
Cross buying Customers’ willing to purchase other products or services provided by the enterprise

4.1.2 Variable Design of Customer Satisfaction
The products and services provided for customers by enterprises are always in an integrated state, while customers are mostly in a discrete state in consumption process. In other words, each aspect of product or service will influence customer satisfaction. In consumption process, customers always decompose the product or service into a number of factors that affect customer satisfaction and make assessment one by one. With regard to mobile communication service, Woo and Fock (1999) used exploratory factor analysis and reached the conclusion that price, staff quality, network quality and transmission quality were the four service items that valued by Hongkong mobile communication users. When Lee and Feick (2001) studied the impact of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty, they viewed voice clarity, network coverage, and accuracy of pricing and billing as the service attributes of customer satisfaction. According to the analysis of scholars, this paper will measure customer satisfaction from network quality, service price, staff quality and bulling accuracy, as shown in Table 4.2.

Table 4.2 Measurement table of customer satisfaction
Measurement item Contents
Network quality Network transmission quality, coverage and maintenance
Service price Call price and additional service price
Staff quality Care for customers, be dedicated to solving problems and provide information for customers
Billing accuracy The accuracy and explicitness of billing

4.1.3 Variable Design of Switching Cost
Zeuthanl believed that in the service sector, customers would face obstacle brought by perceiving switching cost due to the features of geographical spread, personalization and customization of services. Perceiving switching cost means perceiving time, money and efforts when customers change service provider. The costs have been discussed above. From the perspectives of economic, psychology and marketing, Gguuktinan (1989) and Klemperer (1987) divided switching cost into risk cost, learning cost and sunk cost, which are therefore become the measurement method in this paper, as shown in Table 4.3.

Table 4.3 Measurement table of switching cost
Measurement item Contents
Risk cost The perception for lower service quality caused by changing provider of product or service
Learning cost The search and evaluation cost before changing and the cost of learning new service rules after changing
Sunk cost The cost occurs in establishing and maintaining the relationship with the original mobile communication operator

4.1.4 Variable Design of Service Quality
After extensive researches, American marketing experts Parasuraman, Zeithmal and Berry (1985) thought customers’ assessment of the service quality was mainly based on about ten attributes: reliable, safe, convenient, credible, sensitive, communication, competence, courtesy, understanding customers and tangible evidence. In 1988, these ten attributes were summarized as five dimensions: Reliability, Empathy, Assurance, Responsiveness, and Tangibles; and a SERVQUAL scale consisting of 22 items was proposed. On the basic of studying comprehensively the Five-element Theory and Model of service quality, according to the main points and focusing on combing the empirical object-- the specific characteristics of communication service industry, this paper abridges, improves and add the traditional question items and contents of the SERVQUAL scale, in order to design a suitable service quality structure scale for empirical object, as shown in Table 4.4.

Table 4.4 Measurement table of service quality
Measurement item Contents
Tangibles The tangible part of the product or service, such as service facility and equipment, the appearance of service personal and so on
Reliability The service company can accurately complete the promised service
Responsiveness The enterprise is ready to provide customers with fast and efficient service
Assurance Staff’ friendly attitude and competency can enhance customers’ confidence and security in the enterprise’s service quality
Empathy The ability to genuinely care about customers, understand their needs and feelings

4.1.5 Variable Design of Enterprise Image
Enterprise image is the main factor that affects customer loyalty, and domestic and foreign scholars have done lots of researches on the elements of enterprise image. After empirical study on communication service industry, Tang Shoulian (2002) found that enterprise image could be measured from civilization degree, popularity degree and praise degree of the enterprise which reflect customers’ overall awareness of enterprises from different perspectives.

Therefore, this paper also measures enterprise image from these three aspects by drawing on the view of Tang Shoulian, as shown in Table 4.5. Table 4.5 Measurement table of enterprise image
Measurement item Contents
Popularity degree Enterprise’s popularity degree in outside world Enterprise’s investment in marketing advertising Whether the Customer Service Centre number is agreed Customer’ knowledge about the enterprise
Civilization degree Business environment Convenience amenities External signs Interior decoration Counter set Query devices
Praise degree Customer’s good impression of the enterprise

4.2 Data collection method
The scale of this research is designed by standardized psychometric procedures (Anderson, Gerbing, 1988). It uses Ritcher’s five-level scale to measure and divides rating levels of questionnaires into five aspects: extraordinary good, very good, good, ordinary, and poor (or strongly agree, agree, generally agree, disagree and strongly disagree) which are given the scores of 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 according to their order. The research result is obtained by analyzing these five cases.

4.2.1 Questionnaire Design for Variables Measurement
The research methods consist of qualitative and quantitative research. Qualitative research is to get sensitive insight through exploring problems, understanding the phenomenon of events, analyzing human’s behaviors and views, and answering questions. Quantitative research is mainly to collect quantifiable data or information and obtain significant results in research process by quantification, testing and analysis of data. Quantitative research focuses on scientificity, while qualitative research reflects the human spirit. As quantitative research is based on positivism, it attaches great importance to the scientificity and normalization of operating tools. But qualitative research needs a long-term experiencing activity under natural situations to operate overall, dynamic and situational inquiry on social phenomenon, only then can the phenomenon and its meaning be truly understood and comprehended. From the perspective of methodology, these two methods are completely different, but they are complementary in practical use. The combination of them will help to have a whole and accuracy master about matters. Therefore, quantitative and qualitative methods are combined in this paper. When designing the initial questionnaire, we integrated brainstorming and experts meeting to initially set the basic questionnaire items. This questionnaire uses equal-degree questions, and there are five answers of different degrees listed to questions: extraordinary good, very good, good, ordinary, and poor (or strongly agree, agree, generally agree, disagree and strongly disagree). And different scores are set for interviewees to rate.

Table 4.6 Measurement questionnaire for customer loyalty
Measurement questionnaire for customer loyalty Strongly agree
5 Agree

4 Generally agree 3 Do not agree 2 Strongly disagree
Comparing the overall charge and the overall quality of service and product of this company’s mobile communication, will you lastingly use this network?
Will you be a loyal customer of this service provider?
Do you seldom consider switching to other communication operators?
According to the scale in literature review and the specific situation in domestic mobile communication industry, we subdivided the measurement items, obtaining the questionnaire with 23 questions about customer satisfaction, 6 questions about switching cost, 15 questions about service quality, 4 questions about enterprise image and 3 questions about customer loyalty, as shown in Table 4.7.

Table 4.7 Table of variables measurement in questionnaire
Variable Question number Total Measurement mode
Customer satisfaction 8-30 23 Ritcher’s five-level scale
Switching cost 31-36 6 Ritcher’s five-level scale
Service quality 37-51 15 Ritcher’s five-level scale
Enterprise image 52-55 4 Ritcher’s five-level scale
Customer loyalty 56-58 3 Ritcher’s five-level scale

4.2.2 Examination of the questionnaire
After finishing the preliminary questionnaire design, we made examination on the questionnaire in two steps. First, we invited experts and classmates to read, check and fill it. Then we let them point out the unreasonable questions and offer suggestions for amendment. Then, we tested the questionnaire within a small range. At the hall door of China Telecom, China Unicom and China Mobile on Comrade Street, we intercepted and interviewed customers randomly. We distributed 10 copies of the questionnaire at the door of China Telecom, 20 at the door of China Unicom and 30 at the door of China Mobile. The total amount of questionnaires distributed was 60, and the valid ones retrieved were 49 copies. On the basic of concluding experts’ advices and understanding in communicating with interviewees, we adjusted asking way of some questions and ambiguous questions to minimize the unreasonable degree of the questionnaire to the utmost. After getting back these questionnaires, we conducted a reliability analysis with the result that the Cronbach一a coefficient of the questionnaire is 0.8001, indicating good reliability of this questionnaire.

4.3 Data Analysis Methods
4.3.1 Reliability and Validity Analysis
Reliability, also known as credibility, means the stability and consistency of results measured by measurement tools. Validity refers to the accuracy degree of matter’s characteristics and attributes measured by measurement tools. Specially speaking, reliability means the reliability of measurement results rather than the reliability of the tool itself. Validity is based on measurement goal to examine the effectiveness functioned by tools. Reliability is a necessary condition for validity and there is no validity without reliability in the scale. However, a scale with reliability may not have validity. Therefore, the measurement tools that have both reliability and validity are really good.

4.3.2 Regression Analysis
The so-called regression analysis is based on extensive observation of data and use statistical methods to set up a function expression of regression relationship between dependent variables and independent variables. The aim of regression analysis is to predict a single dependent variable through one or more independent variables. When the research question contains only one independent variable, it is called simple regression analysis; when the research contains two or more independent variables, it is known as multiple regression analysis; when the equation of the relationship between independent variables and dependent variable is linear, it is called linear regression analysis; and when relationship equation of the two is non-linear, it is called nonlinear regression analysis. Regression analysis method is now one of the most powerful analytical techniques to research dependence relationship (Hair JR, Blaek, Banbin and Anderson, 2008).

After collecting all questionnaires, this study would use SPSS for windows 16.0 software to sort out and compile data, and use multiple regression method to test the hypotheses one by one. Guo Zhigang （2003） once pointed out that multiple regression analysis was the most simple and straight statistical method to predict and explain dependence relationship between one random variable and a number of non-random variables.

Chapter Five: Data Analysis and Discussion

5.1 Analysis of Sample Data
5.1.1 Market Research
Our main survey objects were China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom in Changchun and we used intercept approach to collect data. In the practical survey, a total of 350 questionnaires were distributed with 312 copied returned, of which 296 were valid data and valid questionnaires accounted for 84% of the returned questionnaires.

5.1.2 Characteristics of the Sample Data
In order to test representativeness of the sample data, we analyzed on the data characteristics of the interviewee, discovering that the issues involved in the questionnaires basically reflected public’s expectations for communication service provider in current society, as shown in Table 5.1.

Table 5.1 Gender analysis of the interviewees
Gender Male Female Total
Amount 153 143 296
Proportion 51.69% 48.31% 100.00%

This survey was targeted on mobile communication users in Changchun. From the results of gender analysis, we found there were ten more males than females, which met the requirement logically and practically. And this narrow gap showed that the deviation of the proportion of male and female was small, which could represent the perception of all male and female on mobile communication providers.

Table 5.2 Analysis of the interviewees’using time of communication service
Using time Less than 1 year 1-2 years 3-4 years 5-6 years More than 7 years Reject Unknow Total
Amount 75 83 68 36 27 2 6 296
Proportion 25.34% 28.04% 22.97% 11.82% 9.12% 0.68% 2.03% 100.00%
Mobile’s real stepping into average consumers began at 2005, 6 years ago. From the survey results, we found users’ holding time of mobile phones concentrated in 3-6 years, showing that the using time of the interviewees accorded with that of overall mobile phone users now, what’s more, most of the using time was more than two years, which implied that our interviewees had deep understanding of the communication service providers and certain knowledge about the product’s performance and the staff’s attitude, and formed evaluation of the service or product afer a long period of accumulation.

5.1.3 Analysis of Model Variables
After finishing collecting questionnaires and analyzing their basic characteristics, we consequently used SPSS to conduct a descriptive statistical analysis on variables in the model. The survey results of the factors influencing customer loyalty were shown in Table 5.3.

Table 5.3 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing customer loyalty N Min Max mean Sd
Lastingly use this network 297 1 5 3.52 1.010
Always be a loyal customer of this service provider 297 1 5 4.34 4.34
Seldom consider switching to other operators 297 1 5 3.41 1.100
The analysis results of basic data shows that loyal customers will always using the current services. From the results, we can perceive that the average of “always be a loyal customer of this service provider” is the highest, and its variance is the lowest. This result is related to the monopoly of communication service providers. The domestic communication industry is highly monopolized, and China Mobile and China Unicom have their own stable customer base through several years of operating, so customers are loyal to their current service supplier. The survey results of the factors influencing customer satisfaction is show in Table 5.4. Table 5.4 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing customer satisfaction N Min Max mean Sd
Overall fee 297 1 5 2.97 0.96
Monthly service fee 297 1 5 2.88 0.89
Package price 297 1 5 2.75 1.141
Local calls fee 297 1 5 3.00 2.33
Value-added service fee 297 1 5 2.67 0.78
Domestic roaming charge 297 1 5 3.21 0.84
Long-distance calls fee 297 1 5 2.60 0.78
Overall network quality 297 1 5 2.88 1.04
Network quality on moving objects 297 1 5 3.01 1.34
Network quality in shopping center basements 297 1 5 1.57 1.22
Network quality on streets or roads 297 1 5 3.00 1.68
Phone calls will not interrupt 297 1 5 2.90 0.23
Convenient payment location 297 1 5 2.8 0.88
Convenient business hours 297 1 5 2.3 0.95
Clear introduction of new products 297 1 5 2.6 0.73
Politeness of salesperson 297 1 5 2.48 0.96
Concise and accurate business of salesperson 297 1 5 2.11 0.37
Try to deal with everything 297 1 5 1.8 0.89
Initiative 297 1 5 1.6 0.69
Call billing quality 297 1 5 2.9 0.94
Clear and understandable call information 297 1 5 200 0.94
Accurate call fee 297 1 5 2.70 0.91
Initiative to provide you with call fee 297 1 5 3.7 0.78

The analysis results tell that the overall satisfaction degree of customers at communication service providers is still low, especially about the staff’s attitudes and care degree customers show the lowest satisfaction. The result implies that the communication operators need to concern more about the customers’ need on the service respect. The survey results of the factors influencing switching cost is show in Table 5.5. Table 5.5 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing switching cost N Min Max mean Sd
Spend lots of energy to fix new operator 297 1 5 4.19 0.787
It is hard to find better operator 297 1 5 4.35 0.712
Will not maintain the interest provided by current operator 297 1 5 3.98 0.834
Need to learn new operation mode 297 1 5 4.18 0.786
Pay a lot of costs 297 1 5 3.91 0.942
Explain some things to the new operator 297 1 5 4.22 0.804
From the descriptive statistical analysis on switching cost, it can be seen that switching costs of current customers are all high, especially sunk cost and learning cost. The averages of “It is hard to find new operator” and “explain some things to the new operator” are the highest. Therefore, enterprises should pay attention to invest on these two aspects to retain more users. The survey results of the factors influencing switching cost is show in Table 5.6.

Table 5.6 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing service quality N Min Max mean Sd
Communication begins in heart 297 1 5 4.01 0.864
Leading technology 297 1 5 4.05 0.876
Huge users group 297 1 5 3.89 0.888
Aim to improve the quality of customers’ life 297 1 5 4.15 0.800
Continuous innovation 297 1 5 3.71 0.984
Leader of mobile communication service 297 1 5 3.97 0.866
Reliable 297 1 5 4.22 0.804
Has a comprehensive marketing and service network 297 1 5 4.01 0.864
Leading service 297 1 5 4.05 0.876
Experts focusing on mobile communication 297 1 5 3.89 0.888
Leading business 297 1 5 4.15 0.800
Higher grade customers 297 1 5 3.71 0.984
Seek increasing perfection 297 1 5 3.97 0.866
Create a reassuring environment 297 1 5 3.94 0.891
Response to customer’s need 297 1 5 3.95 0.832
Customers show high evaluation on the overall service quality of communication enterprises. The survey results of the factors influencing enterprise image is show in Table 5.7.

Table 5.7 Descriptive statistical analysis on the factors influencing enterprise image N Min Max mean Sd
High popularity 297 1 5 4.43 0.894
Sound operating room environment 297 1 5 3.79 0.980
Good overall performance of salesperson 297 1 5 4.05 0.832
Excellent overall image 297 1 5 2.82 0.865
From the data analysis, we can see a big gap between the averages. The averages of service provider’ popularity and salesperson’ overall performance are higher, but the average of enterprise’ overall image is low, which is related to the oligopoly of domestic communication service providers. Maybe some operators only focus on building of some aspects and neglect some other factors.

5.2 Hypothesis Testing
5.2.1 Factor Analysis and Reliability Test
In order to test the reliability and credibility of variables designed in the model, we conducted analysis and test on reliability, validity, and factors for the questionnaire.

In order to understand the various components of customer loyalty and their affection on customer loyalty, this paper firstly used factor analysis to analyze the measurement items in the questionnaire related to customer loyalty. The test on the sample’s adequacy showed the KMO coefficient of its adequacy was 0.801, with its globular Bartlett chi-square test value 1900.34 and significance 0.000. The above data indicated the data could use factor analysis. While doing factor analysis, this paper also carried out reliability test on each measurement item. The results are shown in Table 5.8.

Table 5.8 Reliability and validity analysis of customer loyalty
No. Item Component “a” coefficient
ZC01 Lastingly use this network 0.553
0.891
ZC02 Always be a loyal customer of this service provider 0.778
ZC03 Seldom consider switching to other operators 0.719
Table 5.8 shows that three measurement items of customer loyalty can reflect customer loyalty, and their overall interpretation degree is 84.12%. The “a” coefficient is higher than 0.7, so it passes the reliability test.

While analyzing the driving factor structure of customer satisfaction, we conducted factor analysis on the relative questionnaire items. Before extracting factors, we used KMO test and Bartlett globular test to examine the sample, in order to verify the adequacy to do factor analysis on the sample. The results showed that the KMO value was 0.730, the globular Bartlett chi-square value was 2010.59 and the significance level was 0.000, which meant we could do factor analysis on the data. We used principal component analysis to extract common factors, employed maximum variance method to rotate factors, and conducted reliability test on measurement items, as shown in Table 5.9.

Table 5.9 Reliability and validity analysis of customer satisfaction
No. Item Component “a” coefficient
MY01 Overall fee 0.832

0.924
MY02 Monthly service fee 0.875
MY03 Package price 0.679
MY04 Local calls fee 0.911
MY05 Value-added service fee 0.878
MY06 Domestic roaming charge 0.778
MY07 Long-distance calls fee 0.879
MY08 Overall network quality 0.768
MY09 Network quality on moving objects 0.897
MY10 Network quality in shopping center basements 0.790
MY11 Network quality on streets or roads 0.876
MY12 Phone calls will not interrupt 0.891
MY13 Convenient payment location 0.786
MY14 Convenient business hours 0.910
MY15 Clear introduction of new products 0.899
MY16 Politeness of salesperson 0.799
MY17 Concise and accurate business of salesperson 0.847
MY18 Try to deal with everything 0.853
MY19 Initiative 0.912
MY20 Call billing quality 0.865
MY21 Clear and understandable call information 0.578
MY22 Accurate call fee 0.833
MY23 Initiative to provide you with call fee 0.699
Table 5.9 points out that the 23 measurement items of customer satisfaction can reflect customer satisfaction, and their overall interpretation degree is 90.12%. The “a” coefficient is higher than 0.7, so it also passes the reliability test.

While analyzing the driving factor structure of switching cost, we conducted factor analysis on the relative questionnaire items about switching cost. The adequacy test before extracting factors showed the KMO value of the sample was 0.788, the globular Bartlett chi-square value was 2500.73 and the significance level was 0.000, which meant the data was suitable for factor analysis. We used principal component analysis to extract factors and conducted reliability and validity test on measurement items, as shown in Table 5.10.

Table 5.10 Reliability and validity analysis of switching cost
No. Item Component “a” coefficient
CB01 Spend lots of energy to fix new operator 0.891

0.910
CB02 It is hard to find better operator 0.784
CB03 Will not maintain the interest provided by current operator 0.783
CB04 Need to learn new operation mode 0.801
CB05 Pay a lot of costs 0.709
CB06 Explain some things to the new operator 0.890
Table 5.10 shows that three measurement items of switching cost can reflect switching cost, and their overall interpretation degree is 86.99%. The “a” coefficient is higher than 0.7, so it also passes the reliability test.

In the factor analysis of the driving factor structure of service quality, the adequacy KMO value of the sample was 0.71, the Bartlett chi-square value was 3100.73 and the significance level was 0.000, which meant the data be used for factor analysis. We used principal component analysis of maximum variance method to rotate factors, and conducted reliability test on measurement items, as shown in Table 5.11.
Table 5.11 Reliability and validity analysis of service quality
No. Item Component “a” coefficient
ZL01 Communication begins in heart 0.788

0.874
ZL02 Leading technology 0.812
ZL03 Huge users group 0.910
ZL04 Aim to improve the quality of customers’ life 0.820
ZL05 Continuous innovation 0.791
ZL06 Leader of mobile communication service 0.878
ZL07 Reliable 0.844
ZL08 Has a comprehensive marketing and service network 0.790
ZL09 Leading service 0.910
ZL10 Experts focusing on mobile communication 0.861
ZL11 Leading business 0.892
ZL12 Higher grade customers 0.798
ZL13 Seek increasing perfection 0.777
ZL14 Create a reassuring environment 0.891
ZL15 Response to customer’s need 0.710

Table 5.11 shows that three measurement items of service quality can reflect service quality, and their overall interpretation degree is 86.99%. The “a” coefficient is higher than 0.7, so it also passes the reliability test.

In the factor analysis of the driving factor structure of enterprise image, the adequacy KMO value was 0.741, the globular Bartlett chi-square value was 2425.73 and the significance level was 0.000. We used factor analysis of maximum variance method to rotate factors, and conducted reliability test on measurement items, as shown in Table 5.12.

Table 5.12 Reliability and validity analysis of enterprise image
No. Item Component “a” coefficient
XX01 High popularity 0.819
0.851
XX02 Sound operating room environment 0.791
XX03 Good overall performance of salesperson 0.788
Table 5.12 shows that three measurement items of enterprise image can reflect enterprise image, and their overall interpretation degree is 86.99%. The “a” coefficient is higher than 0.7, so it also passes the reliability test.

5.2.2 Regression Analysis
From the above literature review, it can be seen that customer loyalty is a result affected jointly by a series of driving factors, but there is few researches on the function mechanisms of these factors. This study builds an influencing mechanism model of customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, switching cost, service quality and enterprise image, puts forward and test hypotheses, and analyze their causal relationships. According to the relationships in the model, we view customer loyalty as dependent variable and customer satisfaction, switching cost, service quality and enterprise image as independent variables. Using SPSS 15.0 as an analytical tool, we employ linear regression equation to analysis, as shown in Table 5.13.

Table 5.13 Analysis results of gradual regression model
Model The overall effect parameters Significance test of R² Multiple correlated coefficient R Fixed coefficient R² Adjusted and fixed coefficient R2adj Regression of standard deviation F Sig
1 0.611 0.6213 2.601 500.431
2 0.623 0.625 2.660 401.433
3 0.599 0.601 2.313 300.344
4 0.616 0.618 2.421 210.877
The independent variables corresponding to the predicted variables in the above table are shown in Table 5.14.
Table 5.14 The independent variables corresponding to the predicted variables a predicted variable Customer satisfaction b predicted variable Customer satisfaction, switching cost c predicted variable Customer satisfaction, switching cost, service quality d predicted variable Customer satisfaction, switching cost, service quality, enterprise image

Through the above data, we get the conclusion that in the regression analysis of variance, the fourth step regression F = 210.877 has reached a very significant level. Therefore, we believe that the hypotheses set above are true. In other words, customer satisfaction, switching costs, service quality, and corporate image have positive affect on customer loyalty. The order when they enter the regression model is: customer satisfaction, switching costs, service quality, and corporate image. It shows that customer satisfaction has the great impact on customer loyalty and enterprise the lowest.

Chapter 6 : Conclusions and Limitations

6.1 Conclusions
Based on previous researches, this paper has a comprehensive analysis of the factors that influence customer loyalty in communication service market and their mechanism. Through empirical researches on communication service industry, combining regression analysis, this paper reaches some important conclusions, which are as following:

First, customer loyalty is resulted and driven jointly by multi-variables. Since the appearance of customer loyalty, researches on customer loyalty have stayed in a single variable. In early study of customer loyalty, customer satisfaction was studied as a single factor to reveal its impact on customer loyalty no matter in academic or business circle. But later research literature suggested that not all of the satisfied customers were willing to maintain long-term contact with the company, that is, this loyalty was emerged under a limited objective condition which is switching cost. In practice, dissatisfied customers will still keep in touch with the company, which indicates that customer satisfaction is not the only driving factor of customer loyalty.

Secondly, customer loyalty is jointly affected by customer satisfaction, switching cost, service quality and enterprise image. In concluding and summarizing previous researches on customer loyalty, this study sorts out, analyzes, and discards the results to build a driving model of factors influencing customer loyalty, follows empirical analysis on Chinese mobile communication industry and reaches the conclusion that the factors that affect customer loyalty are: customer satisfaction, customer complaint, enterprise image and switching cost.

Finally, among these factors, customer satisfaction has the greatest impact on customer loyalty. Through analyzing the data obtained by gradual regression approach, this study get results showing that customer satisfaction, switching cost, service quality and enterprise image have positive impact on customer loyalty. The order when they enter the regression model is: customer satisfaction, switching costs, service quality, and corporate image. It shows that customer satisfaction has the great impact on customer loyalty and enterprise the lowest. Therefore, enterprises should pay attention to cultivate customer satisfaction in business to obtain higher customer loyalty.

6.2 Management Meaning
Domestic telecommunication service providers have emerged the trend of tripartite confrontation, and how to establish and maintain customer loyalty becomes the key for enterprises to continue good business. With the condition that this research is combined with domestic communication service market, the management meanings of this paper are as following:

First, the communication service providers should improve customer satisfaction to drive customer loyalty.
In the business process, enterprises should minimize customer dissatisfaction factors, improve products’ essential quality from the aspects of network transmission quality, network coverage, network maintenance, and enhance the core competitiveness of enterprises to satisfy customers and bring customer loyalty. On this basis, enterprises need to care more about customers, dedicate to solve their problems and provide customers with attentive service to further improve service quality. It also requires telecommunication operator to improve product quality and constantly enhance the staff’s professional service skills.

Second, enterprise should develop customer loyalty management strategy based on switching costs.
Switching cost has played a pivotal role in the maintaining customer loyalty; therefore, it can be used as an important customer loyalty management strategy. First, to some extent switching cost can resist against the risk that customers change supplier because of dissatisfaction, providing a protection for customer loyalty. If the satisfaction degree is low, mobile operators can use a variety of switching cost to prevent customer from switching to other provider. Of course, this prevention is only temporary and enterprises should improve product quality and service quality to maintain long-term customer loyalty.

Third, enterprises can upgrade customers’ perceptive status of the enterprise and lift customer loyalty with the unified help of improving service quality and perfect enterprise image. Enterprises should value the construction of physical facilities and enterprise image recognition system, enhance staff’s service quality, and complete committed service in an accurate and effective manner. At the same time, the service personnel should have good service attitude to enhance customer's trust and therefore improve customer loyalty.

In short, improving customer loyalty is system engineering, and enterprises should provide sound customer service both form software and hardware facilities and improve product quality to form stable and permanent customer loyalty.

6.3 Research Inadequacy and Recommendations for Future Research
This research puts forward the customer loyalty model in communication service market which is analyzed both in theory and practice, but due to the limitation of research resource and knowledge base of this paper, there are some inadequacies, mainly: first, there is no further research on the theoretical framework of customer loyalty and various affecting factors, such as how these control variables (market environment, cultural factors, etc) impact this relationship; second, the mobile industry may not represent other industries’ customer loyalty, and the research model of this paper can be studied in other service industries; third, this study only surveyed in Changchun City, which brings some limitation, and therefore the conclusion can not represent that of other areas.

Although many researchers studied domestic communication service industry, there are still lots of factor need to be considered due to the complexity of this research. Through this study, the author still has many issues to offer for reference.

First, while studying customer loyalty, this paper does not distinguish behavior loyalty and attitude loyalty which are different and can stimulate diverse suggestions for enterprise’s management. Therefore, the follow-up researchers can divide the dependent variable customer loyalty into attitude loyalty and behavior loyalty to study, and further discuss the formation mechanism of customer loyalty.

Second, the research model of this paper can be applied to other service industries

Third, researchers can add adjustive variables such as market environment and competitive environment to study the regulation of the variables in follow-up researches.

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Appendix

Questionnaire
Dear Ms. (Mr.), the following is a survey about customer loyalty of mobile communication service and related issues. We are eager to know your real situation during using mobile communication service, so we will take you a minute. We promise that the data will not be used for commercial purposes and your case will not be opened to public. Sincerely thank you for your support and cooperation. Please tick "√" in the selected option □ according to your situation.

Part One: Personal Information
1 Gender: Male Female
2. Marital status: Single Married Other Refuse to answer
3. Educational status:
Primary school or below Junior middle school High or technical school Polytechnic school or junior college Undergraduate or above Refuse to answer
4. The proportion of your mobile phone used for work:
Work ＿＿% Private ＿＿%
5. Which of the following categories can best represent your personal monthly income?
Less than 300 yuan 300-499 yuan 500-799 yuan 800-1199 yuan 1200-1799 yuan 1800-2499 yuan 2500-3499 yuan 3500-4999 yuan 5,000 yuan or more refuse to answer
6. Your average monthly calls expenditure: ＿＿yuan
7. How long have you used the mobile communication service?
Less than 1 year 1-2 years 3-4 years 5-6 years more than 7 years refuse to answer do not know Part Two: Which communication company’s business do you mainly use? □China Mobile □China Unicom □China Telecom

Customer satisfaction: The following is a survey about customer loyalty in consumption process; please tick "√" in □.
8. Please consider the overall charge of services and products of communication service provider which you use, including tariff package fee, monthly rental fee, call fee, value-added service fee and other fee. On the whole, how do you think of the overall price?
□very low □low □general □high □very high
9. How do you think of its monthly rental fee?
□very low □low □general □high □very high
10. How do you think of its package fee?
□very low □low □general □high □very high
11. How do you think of its local call fee?
□very low □low □general □high □very high
12. How do you think of its value-added service fee (SMS, mobile secretary, CRBT, mobile phone newspaper, 12580 and so on)?
□very low □low □general □high □very high
13. How do you think of its domestic roaming fee?
□very low □low □general □high □very high
14. How do you think of its long-term call fee?
□very low □low □general □high □very high
15. What’s your assessment of its overall network quality?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
16. How do you think of its network quality on road and train or in moving cars?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
17. How is the network quality in multi-storey buildings, hotels, shopping malls, elevators, basements and house?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
18. How is the network quality on street or road?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
19. During phone conversation the call will not break.
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
20. Are the payment locations convenient?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
21. Are the business hours of the payment locations convenient?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
22. Does the salesperson have clear and understandable introduction to new products?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
23. How is the salesperson’s politeness (including attitude and smile)?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
24. Does the salesperson deal with business in accurate and refined manner?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
25. Does the salesperson have the ability to answer your questions and consult and dedicate to help you?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
26. Initiativeness of the salesperson (initiative to keep contact with through various ways)?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
27. On the whole, how do you assess the overall quality of the billing details information provided by this company?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
28. Is the billing clear and easy to understand?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
29. The accuracy of the billing?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor
30. Is it initiative to provide you with the billing information?
□extraordinary good □very good □good □ordinary □poor

Switching cost: if now you want to change communication operator, how will you make choice? Please tick "√" in □.
31. To fix a new communication operator needs lots of time and energy?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
32. It is hard to find a better communication operator?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
33. You will not maintain the interest provided by current operator?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
34. Need to learn new operation mode?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
35. You have spent a lot of costs on current operator?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
36. You explain some things to the new operator if you change operator?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree

Service quality: how do you assess the communication quality of the current communication service provider in consumption process? Please tick "√" in □.

37. Combine with the service concept that “communication begins at heart”?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
38. Leading technology?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
39. Huge users group?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
40. Aim to improve the quality of customers’ life?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
41. Continuous innovation?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
42. Leader of mobile communication service?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
43. Reliable?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
44. Has a comprehensive marketing and service network?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
45. Leading service?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
46. Experts focusing on mobile communication?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
47. Leading business?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
48. Higher grade customers?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
49. Seek increasing perfection?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
50. Create a reassuring environment?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
51. Response to customer’s need?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree

Enterprise image: how do you assess the enterprise image of this company? Please tick "√" in □.

52. Do you think this company has high popularity?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
53. Do you think it has sound operating room environment?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
54. It has good overall performance of salesperson?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
55. Do you think it has a good overall image?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
Customer loyalty: Please tick "√" in □ to choose your measures to your current communication service provider.

56. Comparing the overall charge and the overall quality of service and product of this company’s mobile communication, will you lastingly use this network?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
57. Will you be a loyal customer of this service provider?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree
58. Do you seldom consider switching to other communication operators?
□strongly agree □agree □general □disagree □strongly disagree