From customer experience to customer loyalty: the role of touchpoints in retailing

Customer experience management is concerned with the design of touchpoint journeys with the aim of achieving customer loyalty. Most studies focus on the role of a single touchpoint or set of touchpoints in influencing brand attitudes. No studies question the contribution of touchpoints to customer loyalty. The present paper provides an examination of the relative importance of customer exposure to 23 touchpoints, in terms of frequency and positivity, in contributing to loyalty to the retailer. An online survey of 2057 consumers shows that only 10 out of the 23 considered touchpoints are significantly related to customer loyalty. Both touchpoint positivity and frequency are related to customer loyalty, but the former displays a greater role. Companies should be more concerned with the valence of their customers’ experience with their touchpoints, rather than with the frequency of exposure. Efforts are best concentrated on a selected set of touchpoints in order to achieve long-term customer loyalty