| Popis: |
Many scholars and managers have raised concerns that customers' personal loyalty to a salesperson may be a risk to their loyalty to the firm. We tested our theoretical model, which was based on the theories of psychology and organizational behavior, in the context of the direct selling industry, using a sample of 900 salesperson–customer dyads from Amway in China. It was found that customers' personal loyalty toward individuals can work positively and cooperatively toward loyalty to the firm. Specifically, we identified and examined 4 concurrent underlying mechanisms: affect transfer, social influence, behavioral sensemaking, and perceived entitativity. Our findings enrich the marketing literature on customer loyalty and we offer suggestions for managerial strategies and practice. |
