How should companies respond to complaints? Measuring satisfaction among Generation Z online shoppers

Young Joon Lim and Jennifer Lemanski
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Young Joon Lim: Associate Professor, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, USA
Jennifer Lemanski: Professor, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, USA

Journal of Cultural Marketing Strategy, 2022, vol. 7, issue 1, 49-62

Abstract: When responding to a customer complaint, companies can choose between five response strategies, namely: apology, excuse, justification, denial and no response. This study proposes a conceptual model for measuring a customer’s satisfaction with how their complaint is handled. Based on a survey of over 300 college students, the study finds that following a service failure, Generation Z consumers value apologies over any other response strategy. These findings serve as a reminder to external communication managers and strategic communicators not to ignore the traditional crisis communication strategy of apology when communicating with Generation Z consumers.

Keywords: Generation Z; apology; corporate response; digital age; online review; angry customers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J7 M3 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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