Page 182 - ASBIRES-2017_Preceedings

Weweliyadda & Deegahawature
According to the results of the
regression analysis, for the whole banking
sector, ambient and social cues have a
significant positive effect towards customer
loyalty while social cues have a positive
effect for customer word of mouth (Table
1). For the public banking sector, social cues
have a positive effect towards both loyalty
and word of mouth and ambient cues have a
negative effect towards loyalty (Table 2). In
private banking sector social cues are
positively affect both loyalty and word of
mouth (Table 3). Since the p-values of each
relationship between the dependent and the
independent variables which is shown under
Table 4, are less than 0.5, there is enough
evidence to conclude that there is no
moderating effect from Ethnicity to the
relationship between servicescape and
customer behavioral outcomes in banking
industry.
5 CONCLUSION
This research investigates the impact of
servicescape on customer behavioral
outcomes in Sri Lankan banking sector in
diversified ethnic environment. According
to the analysis carried out, social cues
identifies to be the factor affecting the
customer behavioral outcomes in banking
industry. Also it significantly affects both
public and private banking sectors.
Therefore, managers should highly pay their
attention on the enhancement of social cues.
Further, considering the sub factors that are
considered under the social cues, the bank
staff always should try to be helpful in
solving customers’ problems and they
should have the affability when dealing with
the customers. The employees in the bank
should never be too busy to respond the
customers’ request, otherwise it will have an
adverse impact on the organization’s image.
Confidence on the transactions is a major
factor in the banking industry. Therefore,
from the behavior of the banking staff, the
customers should feel confidence and safe in
their transactions. Most of the customers in
the banking sector look for individual
attention from the staff. Hence, employees
should give individual attention to all the
customers without any differentiation. In
addition to that, the banking staff should
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concern about their physical appearance.
Wakefield & Blodgett (1996) also has found
that when the customer recognizes that
service employees are particularly helpful
and friendly and provide faster service, it
induces greater levels of stimulation and
pleasure resulting in positive effect towards
the organization. Therefore, it is evident
that, social cues are greatly affecting
customer loyalty and their word of
mouth.Another factor identified in this
research is design cues which represent the
physical appearance of the organization, and
it was applicable to the whole banking
sector. In this research also majority of the
banks have considered design cues as a
significant factor for positive customer word
of mouth. Therefore, banks, which concern
to develop customer loyalty and positive
word of mouth, should pay attention to
develop the organization’s physical
appearance such as the ways in which
machinery, equipment, and furnishings are
arranged, the size and shape of those items
and the spatial relationships among them.
According to the analysis results ambient
cues are mostly affecting increase the
customer loyalty. Several authors have
identified ambient conditions as a factor that
affects perceptions of and human responses
to the environment (Baker, 1987; Leonard,
L., Parasuraman, A., Berry, & Baker, 1988).
Therefore, management should pay attention
to develop facilities of the service
environment pertaining to man’s five senses
such as temperature, lighting, noise, and
scent.
In this study there is no evidence to
prove the moderating effect of ethnicity to
the relationship between servicescape and
customer behavioral outcomes in banking
industry. Therefore, the decision about
improving the service environment should
not depend on the ethnic composition of the
geographical area. Although Sri Lanka is a
country with diversified ethnicity, the
people in Sri Lanka might have same
attitudes towards servicescape because they
are living together in corporation for a long
time. Also, there may be several other
reason for the absence of moderating effect
from ethnicity.