The Indian cellular services market is growing at a rapid pace and the competition has also increased many folds. It has become imperative for the service providers to adopt such technologies and strategies which ensure their success in such a dynamic situation. As a result, the service providers are trying to develop an understanding about the customers in terms of enriching their experience by providing quality services resulting into a higher satisfaction and ultimately loyalty. With constantly decreasing Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) per month in a low tariff regime, the cellular operators in India are looking towards value added offerings for their customers in order to increase their ARPUs and survive in the coming tough times as they are unable to rely solely on the conventional voice services.
The fact that the majority of cell-phone users are prepaid customers indicates towards a tendency for higher customer churn rate and thin profit margins to the mobile service providers despite a phenomenal increase in subscriber base. However, the situation has further been complicated with the instigation of mobile number portability, as it is going to enhance the customer churn rate due to the intense competition being faced by the operators in this market on the one hand and on the other very demanding customers. In such a scenario, the challenge for Indian cellular operators is to understand the preferences of their customers better and then to successfully offer the services that foster greater customer retention, as the entry of new global players in telecom market has further resulted in mounting customer acquisition and retention costs.
Thus, all these facts highlight the relevance of value added services in an ever growing telecom market as a key strategic tool, not only for differentiation of services but also as a factor responsible for developing satisfaction and loyalty among the customers.
Therefore, the present research study attempts to study the effects of Value Added Services (VAS) on Service Quality vis-à-vis Customer Satisfaction and Customer Loyalty in wireless telecommunication market. The findings of the present study convey that the service providers must concentrate their efforts not only on improving the core services but also the quality of Value Added Service (VAS) offered, as they have a potential to act as a strategic tool in order to enhance the customers’ satisfaction which will ultimately result in higher customer loyalty.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1 Relevance of Services Sector in Economy
1.2 Telecommunication Services: Importance and Evolution
1.3 Evolution of Telecom Services in India
1.4 Value Added Services (VAS): Concept and Evolution
1.5 Categories of Mobile Value Added Services
1.5.1 Entertainment VAS
1.5.2 Information VAS
1.5.3 mCommerce VAS
1.5.4 Mobile Applications
1.6 Key Value Added Services
1.6.1 Short Message Service (SMS) or Text Messaging
1.6.2 Instant Messaging
1.6.3 Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)
1.6.4 Mobile E-mail
1.6.5 Video Service and Mobile TV
1.6.6 Caller Ring Back Tones (CRBT)
1.6.7 Wireless Internet
1.7 Market Size of Indian Mobile Value Added Services (VAS) Sector
1.8 Marketing of Telecom Services
1.8.1 Service Quality
1.8.2 Perceived Value
1.8.3 Customer Satisfaction
1.8.4 Customer Loyalty
1.9 Need For Study
1.10 Outline of the Study
Chapter 2: Review of Literature
2.1 Research Papers and Articles in Journals
2.2 Published Books
2.3 Industry Reports
2.4 Thesis and Dissertations
2.5 Other Miscellaneous Papers/Articles
2.6 Research Gap
Chapter 3: Profile of Companies
3.1 Introduction to Indian Cellular Market
3.2 Bharti Airtel Limited
3.2.1 Company Background
3.2.2 History
3.2.3 Recent Initiatives
3.2.4 Corporate Vision and Promise
3.2.5 Management Team
3.2.6 Milestones
3.3 Vodafone Essar Limited
3.3.1 Company Background
3.3.2 History
3.3.2.1 Vodafone Group Plc
3.3.2.2 Vodafone Essar Limited
3.3.3 Recent Developments
3.3.4 Corporate Vision and Strategy
3.3.5 Milestones
3.4 Reliance Communications Limited
3.4.1 Company Background
3.4.2 History
3.4.3 Recent Initiatives
3.4.4 Corporate Vision and Mission
3.4.5 Board of Directors
3.4.6 Milestones
3.5 Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL)
3.5.1 Company Background and History
3.5.2 Corporate Vision and Mission
3.5.3 Board of Directors
3.5.4 Milestones
Chapter 4: Research Methodology
4.1 Research Purpose
4.2 Research Hypotheses
4.3 Research Objectives
4.4 Questionnaire Design and Development
4.4.1 Quality of Value Added Services
4.4.2 Service Quality
4.4.3 Perceived Value of Services
4.4.4 Customer Satisfaction
4.4.5 Customer Loyalty
4.5 Pretesting and Final Instrument
4.5.1 Value Added Services
4.5.2 Perceived value of Services
4.5.3 Overall Service Quality
4.5.4 Customer Satisfaction
4.5.5 Customer Loyalty
4.6 Sampling
4.7 Data Tabulation, Statistical Tools and Techniques Used for Processing
4.7.1 Measure of Central Tendency (Mean)
4.7.2 Measure of Dispersion (Standard Deviation)
4.7.3 Regression Analysis
4.7.4 Percentage Analysis
4.7.5 Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
4.7.6 Factor Analysis
4.7.7 Reliability Analysis of Measurement Scales
Chapter 5: Data Analysis and Interpretations
5.1 Demographic Profile
5.2 Factor Analysis
5.3 Descriptive Statistics for Various Measurement Items
5.4 Regression Analysis
5.4.1 Impact of Value Added Services (VAS) offered on Perceived Service Quality
5.4.2 Relationship between Perceived Service Quality and Perceived Value of Services
5.4.3 Relationship between Perceived Value of Services and Customer Satisfaction
5.4.4 Relationship between Customer Satisfaction and Customer Loyalty
5.4.4.1 Relationship between Customer Satisfaction and Customers’ Intention to Use Services in Future
5.4.4.2 Relationship between Customer Satisfaction and Customers’ Intention to Recommend Services to Others
5.4.5 Relationship between Value Added Services (VAS) offered and Perceived Value of Services
5.4.6 Relationship between Value Added Services (VAS) offered and Customer Satisfaction
5.4.7 Relationship between Value Added Services (VAS) offered and Customers’ Intention to Use Services in Future
5.4.8 Relationship between Value Added Services (VAS) offered and Customers’ Intention to Recommend Services to Others
5.4.9 Relationship between Perceived Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction
5.4.10 Relationship between Perceived Service Quality and Customers’ Intention to Use Services in Future
5.4.11 Relationship between Perceived Service Quality and Customers’ Intention to Recommend Services to Others
5.4.12 Relationship between Perceived Value of Services and Customers’ Intention to Use Services in Future
5.4.13 Relationship between Perceived value of Services and Customers’ Intention to Recommend Services to Others
5.5 Hypotheses Testing
5.6 Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
5.6.1 ANOVA for Value Added Services
5.6.2 ANOVA for Perceived Service Quality, Perceived Value of Services and Customer Satisfaction
5.6.3 ANOVA for Customer Loyalty
Chapter 6: Summary, Conclusion and Suggestions
6.1 Synoptic View
6.2 Objectives of the Study and Their Achievement
6.3 Validity of Hypotheses Tested
6.4 Analysis of Variance of Means
6.5 Conclusions and Suggestions
6.6 Limitations of the Study
6.7 Research Contribution, Managerial Implications and Direction for Future Research
Objectives and Research Themes
The primary aim of this research is to investigate how mobile operators in India can strategically use Value Added Services (VAS) as a tool to enhance service quality, thereby boosting customer satisfaction and fostering long-term loyalty in an increasingly competitive telecommunications market characterized by high subscriber churn and declining average revenue per user (ARPU).
- The impact of Value Added Services on perceived service quality.
- The relationship between perceived service quality and the perceived value of services.
- The influence of perceived value on overall customer satisfaction.
- The role of customer satisfaction in driving loyalty, specifically measured through the intention to use services in the future and the willingness to recommend services to others.
- Strategic recommendations for mobile operators to leverage VAS for competitive differentiation and customer retention.
Excerpt from the Book
1.1 RELEVANCE OF SERVICES SECTOR IN ECONOMY
Services constitute the tertiary sector in an economy, including all activities that are neither related to agriculture nor manufacturing. The emergence of services sector can be traced back to post World War-II era, when it started assuming greater significance in rebuilding the world economies that were devastated due to the collapse of manufacturing sector. Eventually, this phenomenon led to a change in the basic structure of economies with services becoming the dominant component. However, with the passage of time, newer services were developed leading to their simultaneous commercialization and professionalization. As a result, the services sector became the back-bone of every economy. According to the Indian Economic Survey 2010-11, UN National Accounts Statistics in its report published on 4th February 2011, has also mentioned that the services sector with an overall share of 64.2 percent in world GDP in 2009 (Table 1.1), has been playing a dominant role in the world order, especially in high-income countries which have transited to services-led growth.
From education to entertainment, finance, fast-food, travel, telephone, advertisement to market research, maintenance services, retailing etc. services are widely used by people and organizations today. More so with the advancements in new technologies like telecommunication, information based technologies and continuous innovations in performing business functions; a radical change has taken place in the living-habits, tastes, preferences, needs and requirements of people.
Summary of Chapters
Chapter 1: Introduction: Provides an overview of the service sector's growth, the evolution of telecommunication services, and the strategic role of Value Added Services (VAS) in building customer loyalty.
Chapter 2: Review of Literature: Presents a comprehensive examination of prior academic studies, industry reports, and books related to service quality, perceived value, and customer loyalty constructs.
Chapter 3: Profile of Companies: Details the market positions, historical milestones, and corporate visions of the major Indian telecom operators included in the study: Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar, Reliance Communications, and BSNL.
Chapter 4: Research Methodology: Outlines the research design, including the purpose, hypotheses, sampling strategy across four northern Indian cities, and the development of the structured questionnaire used for primary data collection.
Chapter 5: Data Analysis and Interpretations: Discusses the statistical results derived from factor analysis, reliability testing, regression analysis, and ANOVA to validate the research objectives and hypotheses.
Chapter 6: Summary, Conclusion and Suggestions: Synthesizes the research findings, concludes on the strategic importance of VAS, and offers managerial implications for mobile operators to improve customer retention.
Keywords
Value Added Services, VAS, Customer Loyalty, Customer Satisfaction, Perceived Service Quality, Perceived Value, Telecommunication Industry, Mobile Networks, Customer Retention, India Telecom, Subscriber Behavior, Service Marketing, Regression Analysis, ANOVA, Network Quality
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The research investigates how mobile network operators in India utilize Value Added Services (VAS) as a strategic instrument to improve perceived service quality and foster stronger customer loyalty in a highly competitive telecom landscape.
What are the primary thematic areas covered in the work?
The work explores the service sector's economic relevance, the evolution of Indian telecommunications, customer satisfaction drivers, the role of perceived value, and strategies for reducing customer churn.
What is the central research question or goal?
The primary goal is to analyze the causal relationships between the quality of Value Added Services, perceived service quality, customer satisfaction, and the subsequent loyalty of subscribers, measured by future usage intent and recommendation behavior.
Which scientific methodology is employed?
The study employs a quantitative approach using structured questionnaires administered to mobile subscribers in four North Indian cities. It utilizes statistical techniques including factor analysis, reliability testing (Cronbach’s Alpha), regression analysis, and ANOVA.
What topics are discussed in the main body?
The main body covers the theoretical framework of service marketing, company profiles of major operators (Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Reliance, BSNL), detailed research methodology, data analysis results, and conclusive strategic suggestions for practitioners.
Which keywords best characterize the study?
The study is characterized by terms such as Value Added Services, Customer Loyalty, Perceived Service Quality, Customer Retention, Telecommunication Industry, and Mobile Data Services.
How do Value Added Services influence customer retention according to the study?
The study finds that high-quality, reliable, and relevant Value Added Services significantly influence the perceived service quality and customer satisfaction, which in turn acts as a crucial driver for retaining subscribers and reducing churn rates.
What specific role does 'Features of VAS' play in the findings?
The analysis reveals that 'Features of VAS' is a highly significant factor influencing the perceived value of services and subscriber loyalty, suggesting that offering attractive and updated content is essential for differentiating service providers.
- Quote paper
- Mandeep Singh (Author), 2011, Building Customer Loyalty through Value Added Services, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/179126
