Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
First time customers got their knowledge about
the restaurants through commercial promotion
programs (such as television, radio, food sam-
ples and pamphlet distributions). Demographics,
traffic patterns and first-hand knowledge of the
restaurant and the surroundings were achieved
through convenient accessibility to the restaurant
such as being located at a strategic location (for
example close to private and government offices
that were visible from the roadside, or close to
many land-marks, or situated in a residential area
for the transportation links such as roads to access
the restaurants).
For repeat customers, they developed their loy-
alty towards the restaurant, and as a result revis-
ited the restaurants because of their experience in
the restaurant were better than their expectation
and/or the products offered by the restaurants con-
firmed their expectations. For instance, satisfaction
with the dining experience was achieved when the
product performance of the restaurants confirmed
the customers' expectation through providing
them with the opportunity to choose from a varied
menu (traditional menus, international menus and
customers' common favorite menus), confirmed
customers' needs through providing fresh food
ingredients that gave the authentic food flavor; and
an attractive and stylish restaurant interior.
In addition, during the dining experience, sat-
isfaction was achieved when the restaurants man-
aged to deliver products and services that fulfilled
customers' hopes and expectations through an
attractive restaurant appearance, air-conditioning,
having a presentable buffet table, a unique eating
space and delicious food alongside a variety of
menus. This finding is consistent with Pliner and
Hobden (1994) who viewed individuals as being
more likely to try new foods if they first see others
eating and enjoying them. Bashir et al., (2013) also
found that food taste was greatest contribution
in satisfying customers in Malay restaurants. For
repeat customers, these satisfaction factors then
influenced them to develop loyalty to come back to
the restaurants. A study by Nazri and Zainal (2013)
also found that Malay restaurants used quality of
ingredients and pay more attention on the dishes
to fulfil customer expectation.
Those customers (first visit and repeat custom-
ers) then shared their satisfaction with the pre-
meal experience with others by conveying positive
word-of-mouth communication. Those (potential
customers) who received the information started
to develop hopes and expectations of receiving the
same dining experience. The factors influencing
customer satisfaction with a previous dining expe-
rience influenced the customers' level of satisfac-
tion with the dining experience based on whether
what the customers' experienced in the restaurant
was better than their expectation and/or whether
the products offered by the restaurant confirmed
their expectation.
In the antecedent dining experience, those cus-
tomer satisfaction factors were consistently avail-
able over time, and later these developed first visit
customers' expectations that they would get a
similar experience in future visits. After consum-
ing the dining experience, many customers showed
positive behavioural changes through repeat visits
to the restaurants, repurchase of restaurants' prod-
ucts and/or services, and they conveyed positive
word-of-mouth recommendations about the res-
taurants to others.
The customers chose the restaurants as their first
preference, or had it in mind as their first choice
for the place of their next dining out activity, and
they revisited the restaurants with the intention to
repurchase a similar memorable (customers' unex-
pected experience that emerged prior to visiting the
restaurant) dining experience. The customers also
conveyed positive word-of-mouth recommendations
about their memorable experience to others. Those
who had been influenced by the dining experience of
others would also pass through similar stages of the
dining experience process. If they were satisfied with
the dining experience offered by the restaurants, they
then might show similar loyalty to the restaurants by
conveying positive word-of-mouth recommenda-
tions, choosing the restaurant as their first choice,
repeat the purchase and repeat the visit. The satis-
fied customer was usually is influenced to repeat the
dining experience satisfaction. The previous dining
experience is an antecedent for their future visits to
the similar restaurants or to repurchase the restau-
rant's products and or service, or for price tolerance,
or to choose the restaurant as the first choice for din-
ing out, or to convey positive word-of-mouth recom-
mendations to others. Finding of this study is in line
with the study of Bradya and Robertson (1998), who
aimed to test the relationship between service qual-
ity and satisfaction in or-der to determine whether
service quality should universally be considered as
an antecedent of satisfaction. The results of these
authors' study confirmed that the effect of service
quality on behavioral intentions is mediated by con-
sumer previous dining experience and the customers'
level of dining experience satisfaction.
Yuksel et al., (2006) focused on the evaluation
of consumers' continuous attitude at the post-pur-
chasing point. These authors suggested that the
customers' over-all attitude towards a restaurant
can be developed before or after purchasing and
satisfaction mediates the relationships between its
antecedents and consequences. The antecedents
of dining experience can be in a form of self-con-
gruence (intention to return) and service quality
(physical quality and staff behavior).
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