Service quality, relationship benefit and experience value in the auto repair services sector

Hong, Jinpyo; Kim, Boyoung Article Service quality, relationship benefit and experience value in the auto repair services sector Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity Provided in Cooperation with: Society of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity (SOItmC) Suggested Citation: Hong, Jinpyo; Kim, Boyoung (2020) : Service quality, relationship benefit and experience value in the auto repair services sector, Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, ISSN 2199-8531, MDPI, Basel, Vol. 6, Iss. 2, pp. 1-15, https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc6020030 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/241422 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. Terms of use: Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your personal and scholarly purposes. You are not to copy documents for public or commercial purposes, to exhibit the documents publicly, to make them publicly available on the internet, or to distribute or otherwise use the documents in public. If the documents have been made available under an Open Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity Article Service Quality, Relationship Benefit and Experience Value in the Auto Repair Services Sector Jinpyo Hong and Boyoung Kim * Seoul Business School, Seoul School of Integrated Sciences and Technologies (aSSIST), Seoul 03767, Korea; [email protected] *Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +82-70-7012-2728 Received: 4 April 2020; Accepted: 24 April 2020; Published: 26 April 2020   Abstract: The purpose of this study was to analyze how service quality, relationship benefit, and experience value affect the customers’ intention to maintain a long-term relationship with auto repair centers through service quality and trust. To this end, a statistical analysis was performed, based on a total of 319 survey data from customers who possess experience in using auto repair services. It was found that all factors of service quality, relationship benefits, and experience values directly influence service satisfaction and affect long-term relationship through service satisfaction. In the case of relationship benefits and experience values, however, it did not affect service trust, and the relationship benefit factor did not affect the maintenance of a long-term relationship through service trust. Consequently, it was found that in the auto repair service sector, customers consider service satisfaction more important than service trust in maintaining the long-term use relationship with a service center or sales branch. This result confirms that auto repair service has a significant influence on customers through the quality of auto repair and customer satisfaction regarding the repair results through troubleshooting, unlike general services that are affected by psychological properties such as a products’ brand and attractiveness. Keywords: auto repair service; customer relationship; service quality; relationship benefit; experience value 1. Introduction Generally, the automotive industry has developed based on manufacturing-centered sales, and auto repair services as an after-sales service form have been recognized as playing a secondary role to resolving problems occurring within the warranty period after the sale of new cars. For this reason, auto repair service companies have focused on improving technical and repair process expertise, with the goal of providing after-sales service with high cost-effectiveness in terms of time. Along with these changes, the size of the auto repair service market is estimated to be Euro 800 billion in 2017, and is expected to grow by 3% annually over the next 10 or more years. In addition, it is estimated that it will show a 6.1–7.5% growth rate in the markets of China and Asia, rather than the United States and Europe, and that the continuous growth of the auto repair service market is predicted worldwide [1]. However, as advanced cars such as smart cars, unmanned cars, and electric cars continue to be commercialized, new systems and technologies for car repair and management are required, and expand customer services based on smartphones, so does their need for more information, and the DIY repair of their cars. Furthermore, new service models, such as on-site repair and total management services using various business platforms, rather than service centers run by car companies’ repair department and general individual entrepreneurs, are continuously activated. In addition, many global automakers continue exerting effort to maintain customer relationships by providing new service programs to enhance customer convenience and use, such as the ’Excessive Maintenance J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30; doi:10.3390/joitmc6020030 www.mdpi.com/journal/joitmc J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 2 of 15 Prevention Program’ and ’One-hour Repair Service Program’ to strengthen their brand maintenance service competitiveness [2]. In recent years, competition in the automobile market has been fierce. As the customer’s various needs increase, detailed service needs rise in the overall use and management of the car beyond the purchase of the car, emphasizing the importance of improving the quality of the auto repair service [ 3 ]. Particularly, the reason why global automakers strive to improve repair service quality as much as the quality of automobile products is that car maintenance and management, upon using an after-sales service, are as important to the customers using cars today as the quality of the automobile products. Moreover, attracting new customers is important in the auto repair service industry, but maintaining existing customers and strengthening relationships are emerging an important issue since reducing the existing customer churn rate by just 5 percent would result in profits of about 25 percent or more of a company’s financial income, as explained by preceding studies [ 4 , 5 ]. In the end, maintaining existing customers and strengthening long-term relationships can be an important marketing strategy for auto repair service companies, as much as steady profit generation and efficient management. Today, most auto repair service companies are exerting effort to provide new services and benefits not only to customize strategies according to customer needs, but also to maintain continuous relationships with customers. Therefore, many companies lead customer participation through relationship marketing, respond sensitively to customer reactions, and strive to improve relationship values [ 6 ]. Also, various relationship marketing activities, such as building differentiated service devices for customer satisfaction and interaction that appear at the customer contact point in the service process, expanding communication tools, and maximizing experience values to enlarge direct interaction with customers [ 7 ] are carried out. Auto repair services also need to consider securing a customer group that has formed long-term relationships, while forming and maintaining relationships between companies and customers in line with market growth and fierce competition. To date, however, studies in the field of auto repair services have been conducted in terms of technical management, such as on the level of technical maintenance and management system improvement, and those in terms of service quality or customer management are highly insufficient [ 8 ]. Hence, studies on customers’ behavior in auto repair services may be necessary, because it is important to consider the perspective of service management, in which interaction with customers and customer contact point process management for the service provided to customers should be considered beyond the perspective of production management addressing car repair. The purpose of this study is to verify the influence of factors, such as service quality, relationship benefits, and experience values, as perceived by customers using auto repair services, and carried out through service satisfaction, trust, and intention to create a long-term relationship. By analyzing which factors have the most important effect, and what results present when service satisfaction and service trust act as parameters, this study examined the relationship-oriented behavioral structure of consumers in auto repair services. The results of this study will serve as basic data on customer-oriented and service-oriented consumer behaviors for auto repair services, which have been lacking in prior studies, and will provide specific implications for establishing relationship marketing strategies of companies in the auto repair industry. 2. Literature Review and Hypothesis Development 2.1. Relationship Influence Factors on Service Satisfaction and Trust 2.1.1. Service Quality on Service Satisfaction and Trust Service quality is a consumer’s judgment on the overall excellence of perceived service and can be defined as a psychological evaluation rather than an objective quality, as well as a judgment made within the perception of the consumer [ 9 , 10 ]. SERVQUAL model, suggested by Parasuraman, Berry and Zeithaml [ 11 ] can be considered as the most typical model describing service quality. In SERVQUAL model, five levels, such as reliability, responsiveness, empathy, assurance, and tangibility J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 3 of 15 are suggested. Based on this, many previous studies suggested various models and factors [ 12 – 14 ]. In particular, service quality has been studied in relation to concepts such as customer satisfaction, customer retention, trust, and loyalty. Service companies must improve service quality and value in order to increase customer satisfaction [15–17]. However, the importance of subjective service quality has been emphasized in recent years, as customer needs and consumption patterns have rapidly changed due to the development of new distribution platforms and service technologies, following technological innovation. Olorulorun, Hsu, and Udo [ 18 ] divided service quality into objective quality and subjective quality. Objective quality is a concept for explaining the economic superiority of service, and previous studies have conducted service research based on objective quality. As Lamberton and Stephen [ 19 ] stated, service products, as well as customer-perceived service processes and service environments consisting of the subjective quality of service in the service delivery process, are important factors. Also, multidimensional factors such as interaction quality, result quality, and physical environment quality are emphasized [20,21]. The higher the service quality is, the higher the service satisfaction becomes. Service satisfaction is a key factor in forming the customer’s desire to purchase, influencing their purchase and emotional response, as generated in situations where service performance exceeds expectations. As many previous studies claimed, service quality has a positive impact on service satisfaction, as well as customer purchasing, and impacts factors such as trust, immersion, and loyalty. In the end, a higher service quality can create a positive influence on service purchase and repurchase intentions. In considerations based on these previous studies, the quality of auto repair service will also affect customer-perceived service satisfaction and trust. Therefore, the following hypotheses are suggested in this study. Hypothesis 1 (H1). The quality of auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on service satisfaction. Hypothesis 2 (H2). The quality of auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on service trust. 2.1.2. Relationship Benefit on Service Satisfaction and Trust Relationship benefit means all kinds of benefits provided to customers, and the benefits that companies provide to develop relationships with customers and keep them for a certain period of time [ 22 ]. In numerous studies, it has been argued that relationship benefits to service companies are directly related to the company’s profits, and are an important means to secure a competitive advantage. In particular, it has been explained that, as a customer-oriented management environment develops, the improvement of service companies’ understanding of customers and the maintenance of relationships with them becomes essential, so it is necessary to be able to handle relationship benefits strategically [23,24]. Relationship benefits are generally categorized into convincing benefits, social benefits, psychological benefits, informational benefits, and special treatment benefits [ 25 , 26 ]. In addition, Conze, Bieger, Laesser, et al. [ 27 ] defined relationship benefits that extend beyond psychological and social benefits to special handling and diversity seeking benefits. Eventually, these relationship benefits can lead to emotional trust and intimacy to benefits providers, and satisfaction increase due to convenience [ 28 – 30 ] and, consequently, through positive emotions about the provider at the service contact point, it can lead to active purchase and repurchase [ 31 ]. By connecting to the continuity of relationships, these relationship benefits can lead to an increase in economic profits through the reduction of customer churn [ 5 ], and can form word of mouth intention by the improvement of customers’ positive emotions and experiences [32,33]. Furthermore, through many previous studies [ 34 – 36 ], it has been proven that relationship benefits have positive effects on factors that improve relationship qualities, such as customers’ service satisfaction, trust, and immersion, among others. As claimed by Bai, Yao and Dou [ 33 ] relationship benefits produce a significant effect on customer satisfaction about relationships and, as a result, trust J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 4 of 15 can be created through satisfaction with services evaluated by customers. In this study, therefore, the hypothesis was established under the assumption that the relationship benefit factors that appear in these auto repair services will also affect customer satisfaction and trust in the services. Hypothesis 3 (H3). The relationship benefits of auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on service satisfaction. Hypothesis 4 (H4). The relationship benefits of auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on service trust. 2.1.3. Experience Value on Service Satisfaction and Trust The service must be provided directly to the consumer, and the consumers who receive it experience the service provided. Experience refers to knowledge or functions formed by direct or indirect practices [37]. In this process, the customers evaluate the service through a direct experience of it, repurchasing and performing word of mouth according to a favorable or unfavorable memory. Furthermore, the service customers experience is described not just as a consumption process, but also as a psychological and pleasure factor that occurs even after consumption. It is likewise defined as various reactions, such as emotions, fantasies, and pleasures that customers feel while experiencing the service [ 38 – 41 ]. Ultimately, the context of the experience values are the same as the research of the customer’s cognitive, behavioral, and emotional responses to the service, because the customers form the experience values through the relationship between experience and memory, and learn new things or respond to the intensity of the service experience [42,43]. In general, experience values are classified into functional values, emotional values, and social values [ 44 , 45 ]. Some argued that experience values according to environmental factors, such as the object, place, and distance from other customers, are important [ 46 ]. It is also claimed that practices in terms of interpersonal relations are important, since the essence of service is actions connected to people [ 47 ]. Furthermore, Kang [ 48 ] stated that the experience values depend on time, cost, customers’ preferences and characteristics, situations and background, symbolism, and perceived quality. Parvin [ 49 ] found that the physical environment, accessibility, and promotion of experience value have a significant effect on service satisfaction. Service experiences are personal experiences of specific processes at specific times [ 50 ], so they can affect satisfaction, which is a response to tangible and intangible services. Therefore, the effect came from various factors, such as service environment, human and physical service level, and service process through which consumers obtain their experiences, and stimuli [51]. After all, when the service provider creates a new and positive experience within the service provision environment, and then the customers experience it, the customers continue to purchase the service and maintain a continuous relationship through high service experience value as a result [ 52 , 53 ]. In addition, this experience value acts as an important factor in the aspect of customer management for service companies. Kos-Koklic, Kukar-Kinney, and Vegelj [ 54 ] empirically stated that service experience values affect customer satisfaction, and Qazi, Tamjidyamcholo, Raj, et al. [ 55 ] described that experience values have a significant effect on satisfaction and behavioral intention. Also, many previous studies have argued that the quality of service experiences has a significant effect on improving service satisfaction, trust in service, and building customer loyalty [ 56 – 59 ]. Based on these previous studies, it was possible to design the hypothesis under the assumption of “Also in the auto repair service, customers’ experience values significantly affect service satisfaction and trust”. Hypothesis 5 (H5). The customers’ experience values of auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on service satisfaction. Hypothesis 6 (H6). The customers’ experience values of auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on service trust. J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 5 of 15 2.2. Service Satisfaction, Service Tust and Long-Term Relationship The service must be provided directly to the consumer, and the consumers who receive it experience the service provided. Experience refers to knowledge or functions formed by direct or indirect practices [37]. In this process, the customers evaluate the service through a direct experience of it, repurchasing and performing word of mouth according to a favorable or unfavorable memory. Furthermore, the service customers experience is described not just as a consumption process, but also as a psychological and pleasure factor that occurs even after consumption. It is likewise defined as various reactions, such as emotions, fantasies, and pleasures that customers feel while experiencing the service [ 38 – 41 ]. Ultimately, the context of the experience values are the same as the research of the customer’s cognitive, behavioral, and emotional responses to the service because the customers form the experience values through the relationship between experience and memory, and learn new things, or respond to the intensity of the service experience [42,43]. Continuous relationship maintenance between companies and existing customers becomes companies’ important goal [ 60 ]. In the case of service companies, it is important to improve and maintain relational friendliness, because the mutually beneficial relationship between the company and the customer is formed through the formation of service experience beyond the purpose of sales [ 61 ]. Also, in a market environment in which the importance of word-of-mouth effects, such as viral marketing, is emphasized in recent years, maintaining a long-term relationship with customers can even play a role in maintaining the brand value and reputation of the company [ 62 ]. As claimed by Van Doorn [ 63 ], service providers can secure specific benefits, in terms of mutual benefits, by continuing long-term joint activities with customers, whereas customers can reduce uncertainty about transaction costs or future benefits. The long-term relationship orientation between the service company and the customers represents a transactional relationship based on a companionship-based way of thinking [ 64 ], and this includes an interdependent attitude and an intention of action [ 65 ], described as the depth of the relationship through the period in which the relationship has been established and through repeated purchases during that period. The long-term relationship orientation is also influenced by perceived psychological state factors, because it appears as a result of consumers’ conscious judgment or evaluation. Consequently, customer satisfaction over a service or an increase of trust in products or services, as mentioned in previous studies, is influenced [66,67]. Shang, Wu, and Sie [ 68 ] stated that trust and satisfaction with salespeople are the main factors that enable consumers to maintain a lasting relationship with sellers. To meet customer needs, Ganesan [ 64 ] argued that each party of the transactional relationship should act with a long-term outlook, recognize each other as a partner, and that factors such as trust, dependence, environmental uncertainty, reputation, and satisfaction affect long-term orientation. Gallagher, Ting, and Palmer [ 69 ] also argued that in the service sales and experience activities between companies and customers within various service industries, the improvement of relationship quality, such as satisfaction and trust between companies and customers, has a significant effect on long-term relationship orientation as a result [ 70 , 71 ]. Accordingly, the following hypothesis could be set in the auto repair service: that “The service satisfaction and trust factors felt by customers will significantly affect the long-term relationship orientation”. Hypothesis 7 (H7). The customers’ satisfaction with auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on the formation of the long-term relationship. Hypothesis 8 (H8). The customers’ trust with auto repair service will have a positive (+) effect on the formation of the long-term relationship. J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 6 of 15 3. Research Methods 3.1. Research Model As shown in Figure 1, the research model was constructed based on the derived research hypothesis from previous researches [17,18,30,33,54,56,64,72–75]. J.OpenInnov.Technol.Mark.Complex.2019,5,xFORPEERREVIEW6of16  Figure1.Researchmodel. 3.2.VariablesandAnalyticApproach Aquestionnairewasproducedtocollectdatafortheanalysisoftheresearchmodelandin constructionofthequestionnaireitems.Theywereformedforeachcompositionfactorbasedonthe previousstudie,sasshowninTable1below,andweresurveyedona5‐pointLikertscale.Inthecase ofthreeindependentvariables,for‘ServiceQuality,’basedonthestudiesofandOlorunniwo,Hsu, andUdo[18]andPhamandAhammad[56],thethreequestionnaireitemswerecomposedas ‘Physicalquality,’‘Interactionquality,’and‘Systemquality’fortheautorepairservicethatcustomers use.For‘RelationshipBenefit,’basedonthepreviousstudiesofKoritos,Koronios,and Stathakopoulos[30]andBai,YaoandDou[33]thethreequestionnaireitemswerecomposedof ‘Convincingbenefits,’‘Socialbenefits,’and‘Economicalbenefits’fortheautorepairservicethat customersperceived.For‘ExperienceValue,’basedonthestudiesofKos‐Koklic,Kukar‐Kinney,and Vegelj[54]andYuen[72],thefourquestionnaireitemswerecomposedas‘Expertise,’‘Technical skills,’‘Convenience,’and‘Levelofinterest’inautorepairservice,underthecriteriaof‘Functional values’and‘Emotionalvalues’. Theparameterswerecomposedofservicesatisfactionandtrust.‘Servicesatisfaction’meansthe levelofcustomers’satisfactioninusingautorepairservice.BasedonthestudiesofKranzbuhle, Kleijnen,Morgan,etal.[17]andBalaji[73]twoquestionnaireitemswerewritteninthisstudyas ‘Overallsatisfaction’and‘Satisfactionfortheworkmethodandrepairresults.’‘Servicetrust’means thelevelofcustomers’trustfortheserviceandservicecompanyand,basedonthestudyofMoreira andSilva[74],twoquestionnaireitemswerewritteninthisstudyas‘Trustvisit’and‘Servicetrust.’ Lastly,thedependentvariableis‘Long‐termRelationship,’whichistheintentionofrevisitinga centeroragencythatprovidesautorepairservices,andcontinuouslyestablishingrelationshipsand maintainingtransactions.BasedonthestudiesofSchmitt,JoškoBrakus,andZarantonello[64]and JohnsonandRapp[39],threequestionnaireitemswerecomposedas‘Continuousvisit,’‘Transaction maintenance,’and‘Long‐termrelationshippreference’. Table1.MeasurementVariableandQuestionItems. FactorsQuestionItemsNo.Reference Service Quality SQ1:Professionalrepairproceduresandspeedare important. 3 Olorunniwo,Hsu andDou[18],Pham, andAhammad[56] SQ2:Customerresponseandkindnessareimportant. SQ3:Mechanic’sexpertiseandrepairskillsare important. Relationshi pBenefit RB1:Ihaveafirmbeliefinservicequality.3Koritos,Koronios, andStathakopoulos RB2:Ifeelpleasurewhenusingservice. Figure 1. Research model. 3.2. Variables and Analytic Approach A questionnaire was produced to collect data for the analysis of the research model and in construction of the questionnaire items. They were formed for each composition factor based on the previous studies as shown in Table 1below, and were surveyed on a 5-point Likert scale. In the case of three independent variables, for ‘Service Quality,’ based on the studies of and Olorunniwo, Hsu, and Udo [ 18 ] and Pham and Ahammad [ 56 ], the three questionnaire items were composed as ‘Physical quality,’ ‘Interaction quality,’ and ‘System quality’ for the auto repair service that customers use. For ‘Relationship Benefit,’ based on the previous studies of Koritos, Koronios, and Stathakopoulos [ 30 ] and Bai, Yao and Dou [ 33 ] the three questionnaire items were composed of ‘Convincing benefits,’ ‘Social benefits,’ and ‘Economical benefits’ for the auto repair service that customers perceived. For ‘Experience Value,’ based on the studies of Kos-Koklic, Kukar-Kinney, and Vegelj [ 54 ] and Yuen [ 72 ], the four questionnaire items were composed as ‘Expertise,’ ‘Technical skills,’ ‘Convenience,’ and ‘Level of interest’ in auto repair service, under the criteria of ‘Functional values’ and ‘Emotional values’. The parameters were composed of service satisfaction and trust. ‘Service satisfaction’ means the level of customers’ satisfaction in using auto repair service. Based on the studies of Kranzbuhle, Kleijnen, Morgan, et al. [ 17 ] and Balaji [ 73 ] two questionnaire items were written in this study as ‘Overall satisfaction’ and ‘Satisfaction for the work method and repair results.’ ‘Service trust’ means the level of customers’ trust for the service and service company and, based on the study of Moreira and Silva [ 74 ], two questionnaire items were written in this study as ‘Trust visit’ and ‘Service trust.’ Lastly, the dependent variable is ‘Long-term Relationship,’ which is the intention of revisiting a center or agency that provides auto repair services, and continuously establishing relationships and maintaining transactions. Based on the studies of Schmitt, Joško Brakus, and Zarantonello [ 64 ] and Johnson and Rapp [ 39 ], three questionnaire items were composed as ‘Continuous visit,’ ‘Transaction maintenance,’ and ‘Long-term relationship preference’. J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 7 of 15 Table 1. Measurement Variable and Question Items. Factors Question Items No. Reference Service Quality SQ1: Professional repair procedures and speed are important. 3 Olorunniwo, Hsu and Dou [18], Pham, and Ahammad [56] SQ2: Customer response and kindness are important. SQ3: Mechanic’s expertise and repair skills are important. Relationship Benefit RB1: I have a firm belief in service quality. 3 Koritos, Koronios, and Stathakopoulos [30], Bai, Yao and Dou [33] RB2: I feel pleasure when using service. RB3: The price of the service is reasonable. Experience Value EV1: I feel professionalism when I experience the service. 4 Kos-Koklic, Kukar-Kinney, and Vegelj [54], Yuen [72] EV2: When I experience the service, I consider technical skills. EV3: I am not anxious when experiencing the service. EV4: When I experience the service, I am very much interested in the repair process. Service Satisfaction SS1: I am satisfied with the overall service. 2 Kranzbuhle, Kleijnen, Morgan, et al. [ 17 ], Balaji [73] SS2: I am satisfied with the way employees work and repair results. Service Trust ST1: I have trust in and visit the service center. 2Moreira and Silva [74] ST2: I believe that the service center will do their best for customers. Long-term Relationship LR: I will continue to visit the service center. 3 Schmitt, Joško Brakus, and Zarantonello [64], Johnson and Rapp [39] LR: I have no intention to change the service center. LR: I will maintain a long-term relationship with the service center. This survey was conducted on experienced customers who were using auto repair service centers in Korea. We used the customer database of auto repair service centers of Kia, Hyundai, GM, Ssanyong Motors in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do in Korea. Selecting the random sample is based on the customer who visited the center more than two times in a year between March 2017 and March 2019. The survey was performed in 30 days from 1 July to 30 July, 2019 and was conducted online with a question about the experienced center name and the mainly used auto repair service. A total of 464 questionnaires were collected, but a total of 319 questionnaires were analyzed, excluding those that were inappropriately answered, had unperfected question items, or checked only one scale. SPSS 24.0 was used for data analysis to determine basic data reliability and validity after the evaluation of demographic characteristics, descriptive statistics, and exploratory factor analysis. In the discriminant validity, the Pearson method was used as the correlation coefficient. In the case of confirmatory factor analysis and model verification for structural equation model analysis, and path analysis, AMOS 25.0 was used for analysis, and indirect effects were analyzed using the Sobel test. 4. Analysis Results 4.1. Demographic of Respondent As shown in Table 2, the demographic analysis results are as follows: First, the male ratio was 79.3% and the female ratio was 20.7%. This means that the male ratio was more than three times higher. In the case of the age groups, a similar pattern like 33.2% in the 40s, 29.2% in the 30s, and 26% in the 50s was shown, but the 40s bracket had the highest experience in patronizing repair centers. The occupational groups of the customers were the service industry (25.7%) and manufacturing/production (19.1%) groups, and it could be confirmed that customers belonging to various occupations were distributed according to the high-rate of others. It was found that 93.4% of customers visited auto repair centers for their own vehicles. J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 8 of 15 Table 2. Demographic of respondents. Item Frequency Percentage Gender Male 253 79.3 Female 66 20.7 Total 319 100 Age group Under 30-year-old 37 11.6 30s 93 29.2 40s 106 33.2 Over 50-year-old 83 26.0 Total 319 100 Occupational group Manufacturing/Production 61 19.1 Finance/Insurance 18 5.6 Distribution industry 20 6.3 Service industry 82 25.7 R&D industry 8 2.5 IT industry 17 5.3 Others 113 35.4 Total 319 100 Major types of car-owners Private vehicle 298 93.4 Company vehicle and other person’s vehicle 21 6.6 Total 319 100 Preference for the franchised car maintenance shops Preferring 217 68.0 Not preferring 20 6.3 No matter 82 25.7 Total 319 100 4.2. Analsis Results of Reliability and Validity A two-step approach was used to analyze the reliability and validity of the structural equation measurement model [ 76 ]. Composite reliability was 0.871 ~ 0.967, and this means 0.7 or more in Nguyen, Jeong, and Chung [ 77 ] criteria, while an internal consistency reliability was obtained. In the case of convergent validity, factor loading was 0.732–0.966, value of Cronbach α was 0.863–0.966, and AVE value was 0.694–0.906; thus, under the criteria of Lusch, Vargo, and Tanniru [ 78 ], all were significant in terms of statistical point of view, so that convergent validity was obtained. As a result of analyzing the goodness of fit of the measurement model, χ 2 (df) was 242.271 and χ 2/the degree of freedom was 3.948. Under the criteria of the previous study of Hong and Kim [ 79 ], the configuration values of the goodness of fit of the measurement model were statistically significant as follows: Goodness-of-Fit-Index (GFI) was 0.932, Adjusted Goodness-of-Fit-Index (AGFI) was 0.900, Normal Fit Index (NFI) was 0.968, and Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) was 0.053 (see Table 3). J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2020,6, 30 15 of 15 62. Ruiz D í az, G. The influence of satisfaction on customer retention in mobile phone market. J. Retail. Consum. Serv. 2017,36, 75–85. [CrossRef] 63. Van Doorn, J.; Mende, M.; Noble, S.M.; Hulland, J.; Ostrom, A.L.; Grewal, D.; Petersen, J.A. Domo Arigato Mr. Roboto: Emergence of automated social presence in organizational frontlines and customers’ service experiences. J. Serv. Res. 2017,20, 43–58. [CrossRef] 64. Schmitt, B.; Joško Brakus, J.; Zarantonello, L. From experiential psychology to consumer experience. J. Consum. Psychol. 2015,25, 166–171. [CrossRef] 65. Silva, G.M.; Gonçalves, H.M. Causal recipes for customer loyalty to travel agencies: Differences between online and offline customers. J. Bus. Res. 2016,69, 5512–5518. [CrossRef] 66. Deng, Z.; Lu, Y.; Wei, K.K.; Zhang, J. Understanding customer satisfaction and loyalty: An empirical study of mobile instant messages in China. Int. J. Inf. Manag. 2010,30, 289–300. [CrossRef] 67. Yi, Y.; Gong, T. Customer value co-creation behavior: Scale development and validation. J. Bus. Res. 2013 ,66, 1279–1284. [CrossRef] 68. Shang, S.S.C.; Wu, Y.L.; Sie, Y.J. Generating consumer resonance for purchase intention on social network sites. Comput. Hum. Behav. 2017,69, 18–28. [CrossRef] 69. Gallagher, D.; Ting, L.; Palmer, A. A journey into the unknown; taking the fear out of structural equation modeling with AMOS for the first-time user. Mark. Rev. 2008,8, 255–275. [CrossRef] 70. Harrign, P.; Evers, U.; Miles, M.P.; Daly, T. Consumer engagement and relationship between involvement, engagement, self-brand connection and brand usage intent. J. Bus. Res. 2018,88, 388–396. [CrossRef] 71. Giovanis, A.N.; Athanasopoulou, P. Consumer-brand relationships and brand loyalty in technology-mediated service. J. Retail. Consum. Serv. 2018,40, 287–294. [CrossRef] 72. Yuen, K.F.; Thai, V.V. Service quality and customer satisfaction in liner shipping. Int. J. Qual. Serv. Sci. 2015 , 7, 170–183. [CrossRef] 73. Balaji, M.S. Investing in customer loyalty: The moderating role of relational characteristics. Serv. Bus. 2013 , 9, 17–40. [CrossRef] 74. Moreira, A.; Silva, P. The trust-commitment challenge in service quality-loyalty relationships. Int. J. Health Care Qual. Assur. 2015,28, 253–266. [CrossRef] 75. Johnson, Z.; Massiah, C.; Allan, J. Community identification increases consumer-to-consumer helping, but not always. J. Consumer Marketing. 2013,30, 121–129. [CrossRef] 76. Jawahar, L.; Madhu, V.; Sonali, J. Do demographics influence customer service quality perceptions?: A comparative study of Indian and foreign banks. J. Serv. Res. 2014,14, 75–105. 77. Nguyen, D.H.; Jeong, E.H.; Chung, J.K. The potential impact of service quality uncertainty and retail pricing strategies on consumer purchase intention. J. Distrib. Sci. 2018,16, 13–21. [CrossRef] 78. Lusch, R.F.; Vargo, S.L.; Tanniru, M. Service, value networks and learning. J. Acad. Mark. Sci. 2010 ,38, 19–31. [CrossRef] 79. Hong, J.P.; Kim, B.Y. The perceived-experiential value service quality of auto maintenance and repair service. J. Distrib. Sci. 2010,18, 59–69. [CrossRef] 80. Gefen, D.; Straub, D.; Boudreau, M. Structural equation modeling and regression: Guidelines for research practice. Commun. Assoc. Inf. Syst. 2000,4, 7. [CrossRef] 81. Jeong, H.J.; Ko, Y. Configuring an alliance portfolio for eco-friendly innovation in the car industry: Hyundai and Toyota. J. Open Innov. Technol. Mark. Complex. 2016,2, 24. [CrossRef] 82. Daniela, M. Analysis of current state and future trends of auto parts manufacturing sector in Romania. Ann. Univ. Petrosani Econ. 2012,12, 167–178. 83. Acha, V. Open by design: The role of design in open innovation. Acad. Manag. Annu. Meet. Proc. 2008 ,1, 6–12. [CrossRef] 84. Chaston, I.; Scott, G. Entrepreneurship and open innovation in an emerging economy. Manag. Decis. 2012 , 50, 1161–1177. [CrossRef] 85. Yun, J.J.; Won, D.K.; Park, K.B. Entrepreneurial cyclical dynamics of open innovation. J. Evol. Econ. 2018 ,28, 1151–1174. [CrossRef] 86. Yun, J.J.; Won, D.; Park, K.; Jeong, E.S.; Zhao, X. The role of a business model in market growth: The difference between the converted industry and the emerging industry. Technol. Forecast. Soc. Chang. 2019,146, 534–562. [CrossRef] © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).