engleski

Measuring customers' expectations: Gaining competitive advantages in restaurant industry

The growing competition and highly stressed profits have brought new challenges to restaurant managers. In order to meet these challenges and gain competitive advantages in restaurant marketplace, managers should know and understand customers’ expectations. The purpose of this study is to investigate the expected service quality in Croatian restaurant settings. The main goals are to empirically assess restaurant customers’ expectations and to determine main factors that best explain customers’ expectations regarding restaurant service quality. The paper aims to compare customers’ expectations in 2007 and 2010. An adopted version of the DINESERV model was developed. The questionnaire was designed in accordance with Stevens et al. (1995) and Andaleeb and Conway's (2006) research. The empirical research was conducted in two stages, first in 2007 and second in 2010. Questionnaires were distributed in 32 restaurant settings in Opatija Riviera and in 31 restaurant settings in city of Rijeka. In order to meet study goals, descriptive, bivariate (t-test) and multivariate (exploratory factor analysis and reliability analysis) statistical analyses were conducted. The findings suggest rather high level of customers’ expectations. There were identified seven factors in first study and five factors in second study that best explain expected service quality in restaurants. The factor structure in both studies is similar. The study results can help restaurant managers to better understand customers’ needs and meet their expectations in order to successfully manage resources, provide high service quality, gain profit and ensure sustainable business performance.

Service quality expectations ; SERVQUAL ; DINESERV ; statistical analysis ; restaurant industry

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