Critical review of the e-loyalty literature: a purchase-centred framework

Abstract

Over the last few years, the concept of online loyalty has been examined extensively in the literature, and it remains a topic of constant inquiry for both academics and marketing managers. The tremendous development of the Internet for both marketing and e-commerce settings, in conjunction with the growing desire of consumers to purchase online, has promoted two main outcomes: (a) increasing numbers of Business-to-Customer companies running businesses online and (b) the development of a variety of different e-loyalty research models. However, current research lacks a systematic review of the literature that provides a general conceptual framework on eloyalty, which would help managers to understand their customers better, to take advantage of industry-related factors, and to improve their service quality. The present study is an attempt to critically synthesize results from multiple empirical studies on e-loyalty. Our findings illustrate that 62 instruments for measuring eloyalty are currently in use, influenced predominantly by Zeithaml et al. (J Marketing. 1996;60(2):31-46) and Oliver (1997; Satisfaction: a behavioral perspective on the consumer. New York: McGraw Hill). Additionally, we propose a new general conceptual framework, which leads to antecedents dividing e-loyalty on the basis of the action of purchase into pre-purchase, during-purchase and after-purchase factors. To conclude, a number of managerial implementations are suggested in order to help marketing managers increase their customers' e-loyalty by making crucial changes in each purchase stage.Keywords: e-loyalty, e-satisfaction, e-trust, customer behaviour, e-commerce, critical review, framework The penetration of the Internet in marketing and e-commerce settings has influenced, to a great extent, the entire business world. From the customer's viewpoint, it has created new and possibly less costly ways of participating in commercial activities [182]. From the business perspective, market globalization, along with the decreasing effectiveness of offline marketing, has motivated organizations to shift their plans to include Internet marketing [120]. Hence, consumers have increasingly favoured online shopping [166], gradually leading more Business-to-Customer (B2C) companies to establish an Internet presence in an effort to attract new and maintain existing customers for long-term profitability [203]. Building and maintaining brand loyalty has been a central theme of marketing theory and practice in traditional consumer marketing [71]. For this reason, businesses should be more interested in keeping long-lasting relationships with their customers than in accumulating occasional exchanges [17]. Presently, the notion of brand loyalty has been expanded to include online loyalty (also known as e-loyalty or website loyalty). The online shopping world has completely changed the relationship between customers and retailers. The minimal cost to a customer to switch brands (compared to the high costs for companies to acquire new e-customers) just...

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