The determinants of customer satisfaction and possible moderating effects in the telecom sector – an empirical study

Customer satisfaction has a strong positive effect on firm performance which makes it very relevant to know which factors influence customer satisfaction. This paper studies the effect of several determinants on customer satisfaction in the telecom industry, while taking possible moderating effects into account. To do so, this study analyses 314,472 customer satisfaction surveys collected from a Dutch telecom provider between January 2015 and May 2018, combined with additional information about the (region of the) stores. Using a multiple linear regression model, this study finds significant effects of the solution, different employee characteristics and the physical environment on customer satisfaction. In addition, significant evidence is found that the observed effects are moderated by the product type, the income level of the store region and urbanity of the area of the store.