Relationship Marketing: Application to Thermal Spas

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Methodology
Results
Conclusion

Article titled “The Determinants of Relationship Marketing: an Application to Thermal Spas” by Joaquim Antunes covers the study centered on the analysis of the different roles performed by the determinants of relationship marketing and the environmental factors in satisfaction and customer loyalty. The study was carried out with 346 people patronizing Portuguese thermal spas; therefore, the results of the study cannot be applied to other countries. The study is weak and poorly presented. The investigation does not contribute to the existing literature on relationship marketing.

Introduction

Introductory part is concise and clear. The definition of relationship marketing is provided. In addition, Antunes states the purpose of the study: to equate a set of constructs associated with relational marketing which responds to changes in attitudes and demands of consumers with a view to their loyalty. Antunes explains the choice of the thermal sector for investigation. In particular, it is stated that thermal sector offers promising tourism products and the results of the study can be useful for the business community. In overall, the language is simple and easy to understand. All necessary information is provided in this section.

Theoretical Model and Research Hypotheses

This part of the article starts with the analysis of the relationship marketing and its essence. However, the information presented does not fit this section because it is general and refers more to the introductory part. Antunes includes references to several studies relevant to the given research; however, no explanation is given. The studies are listed but the reader is not aware of their essence and relevance to this study. At the same time, Antunes succeeded in justifying the choice of customer loyalty as a dependent variable.

The theoretical model is based on the assumption that customer satisfaction and loyalty are reflected upon environmental and organizational/corporate factors. Antunes includes a figure illustrating the conceptual model of the study. The figure helps readers visualize the fundamental premises of the study. Hypotheses “are connected to the questions involved in this investigation and come from the revision of literature related to each construct of the model and exploratory interviews with those responsible for the main Portuguese thermal spas” (p. 156). This one sentence summarizes the methods employed by Antunes to investigate the research question. Section Theoretical Model and Research Hypotheses is rather short; however, it includes enough preparatory information.

Research Hypotheses

The section starts with the general information that could be excluded. For example, there is no need to provide another definition of the relationship marketing, customers’ expectations and needs. In addition, Antunes formulates twelve hypotheses and it is not clear which one is central to the study. At the same time, Antunes justifies and explains every hypothesis as well as supports the assumptions with the references to numerous studies, articles, and researches. However, the details are rather excessive and could be minimized. The majority of the discussed hypothesis could be combined into one: relationships with customers, internal marketing, quality of service, interactive marketing, and personalization positively relate to bather satisfaction.

However, some of the claims are not explained sufficiently and contribute to poor understanding of Antunes’ ideas. For example, the sentence “the main objective for a customer and an organization to collaborate in a relationship is that this will add value for both parts, thereby increasing the cost of changing suppliers of the product or service” (p. 159) lacks any sense. While this section is full of useless details and explanations, the essence of the study is lost. Thus, instead of stating the central hypothesis, Antunes focuses on the current literature relevant to the research.

Methodology

Methodology section is the shortest part of the article, however, it includes the fundamental details of the research. In particular, Antunes mentions year of research, the sample size, marginal error, confidence level, the sampling process, data collection, type of questionnaire, justification of scales’ choice, and type of interviews.

Measurement scales

The measurement scales include Likert 7-point scale and multi-item scales. These scales are chosen because they allow comprehensive and certain assessment of the reality under study. In addition, it is mentioned that scales were validated through their psychometric properties. Factorial analysis, internal consistency between the variables of the scale, and the validity of the scale are thoroughly discussed. However, the description is rather informative and burdened with definitions.

Results

The Results section starts with the general overview of the factors, scales, and variables. The information presented in the opening part of the section is excessive. For example, the verification of the convergent and discriminate validity of the scales should be included in the section Measurement scales. At the same time, the statistical results are highly structured. It enhances the analysis and contributes to better understanding. Antunes notes that the results of adjusting the initial model are not satisfactory. In order to improve the adjustment of the model, changes suggested by the software output were introduced. However, these changes were not covered in the Measurement scales section. The results are not convincing and the findings are not fully described.

Conclusion

Conclusion section is the only well-written part of the article. Antunes addresses the importance of the importance of relationship marketing and the approach adopted in the study. The results of this research are found to be consistent with the findings from previous studies. The role of the mediating variables is assessed. However, the conclusion does not address the specifics of the findings as well as there is no assessment of the study importance.

In overall, the article is informative and logically formatted. All sections are clearly separated and appropriately titled. In addition, the article includes all vital information starting with the definitions and ending with the full reference list and appendix. However, the validity of the results is questionable because the results are not tested. In addition, the limited specification of the research minimizes the importance and applicability of the findings to other countries and industries. Moreover, the excessive explanations and useless details decrease the scientific value of the article. On the other side, the detailed reference list can be used a foundation for further research on the topic.

However, there are no such vital sections as Literature Review, Discussion of the Results, and Limitations of the Study. It is not clear whether all hypotheses were proved in the result of the investigation. Antunes states that in the result of the study, an investigation model was created, tested, and validated. However, there is no evidence to support this conclusion. The practical contribution of the study is highlighted as deep knowledge of which areas of relationship marketing most influence bather satisfaction and loyalty with regards to their respective thermal spas.

Finally, the coverage of the study is rather weak, hypotheses are not proved, the arguments are not supported, the scope of the study is too limited, the evidence is not empirical, the vital sections are not included, and the practical as well as theoretical importance of the results is doubtful. The article is burdened with excessive definitions and general information. However, the presented study is a good source of references for further research on the topic. From informative standpoint, the study has failed to contribute to the given field of research.

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