Heterogeneity of Outcome in the Consumer Evaluation of the Retail Encounter: A Post-hoc Segmentation Analysis in Structural Equation Models

Resumen

Intense price competition, diminishing product differentiation and the difficulty of attracting new customers increase the relevance of research into consumer perception of the retail encounter as a key to profitability and firm survival. This paper focuses on satisfaction and loyalty as targets for the food retailer, taking into account the impact made by the behavioural diversity of different customer segments on the satisfaction-loyalty relation. The methodological proposal for this analysis is a structural equation model using post-hoc segmentation to allow for the incorpo- ration and control of customer heterogeneity.