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Role Of Service Orientation In Marketing Higher Education. An Exploratory

Analysis

Conference Paper · December 2022

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Surej John Rouxelle De Villiers

Eastern Institute of Technology Auckland University of Technology
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Short Abstract:
The purpose of this paper is to examine the service-oriented behaviours of higher education
providers and their impacts on student satisfaction and loyalty in a Covid-19 pandemic-driven
learning environment. Based on in-depth interviews conducted among 19 graduate and
postgraduate students of a business school in New Zealand, the current study identified four
service orientation dimensions critical to the success of marketing higher education. These
include engagement, interactivity, personalization, and collaboration of higher education
providers. The study also identified the importance of information technology infrastructure in
higher education marketing. Findings suggest that the relationship between service orientation
of higher education providers and learners’ satisfaction is moderated by the Information
Technology adoption among tertiary education providers. Study findings have valuable
implications for the marketing theory and practice.

Keywords: service orientation, marketing education, relationship marketing.

Introduction and Research Aim
The number of higher educational institutions around the world has increased dramatically over
the past few decades as a result of widespread globalization leading to higher competition
(Hemsley-Brown & Oplatka, 2006). As higher educational institutions are primarily engaged
in providing services, a better focus on the needs and requirements of their current customers
(students) is essential for effectively managing their intense competition. Extant literature has
discussed the role of service quality and student satisfaction and loyalty in the past, however,
none of these studies was conducted in a pandemic environment such as the Covid-19
pandemic of 2019. The Covid-19 pandemic has been a global issue that has impacted the
provision of higher education services globally. Since the spread of this global pandemic,
higher education institutions including universities and polytechnics have transformed their
delivery models to purely online or blended formats. These changes in the service delivery
model have impacted the service quality of their higher education institutions leading to various
levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty. The primary objective of this study is to examine
and identify the service orientation of higher educational institutions in a post-pandemic
environment and its impacts on overall customer satisfaction and loyalty.

We address two research questions in line with this aim:

RQ1: What are the key drivers of service orientation in higher educational institutions
during the Covid-19 pandemic?
RQ2: What impacts do they have on satisfying customer needs?

Background and/or Conceptual Model

Uses and gratification theory (Kaur et al., 2020; Menon, 2022) suggests that student satisfaction
in the online and blended learning environment may depend on how institutions have fulfilled
their innate needs and requirements. Signalling theory indicates the benefits of online service
providers in providing relevant and high-quality information and building relationships through
credibility (Rahman et al., 2018; Thaichon et al., 2020). Current literature about customer
equity theory and service-dominant logic suggests that business relationships built over
customer-centric decision-making processes where customers are regarded as co-producers in
the value creation may lead to higher customer satisfaction (Hilton & Hughes, 2013; Vargo &
Lusch, 2008; Vogel et al., 2008). These works lead to the proposition that higher educational
institutions’ customer-centric and service-oriented behaviours are critical to gaining student
satisfaction in a challenging learning environment. The current study proposed that the
following four dimensions of service orientation have a positive effect on customer satisfaction
and loyalty.
H1: Higher educational institutions’ engagement with students over online/blended platforms
affects students’ satisfaction and loyalty.
H2: Higher educational institutions’ interactivity with students over online /blended platforms
affects students’ satisfaction and loyalty.
H3: higher educational institutions’ personalisation efforts in delivering services over online
and blended platforms affect students’ satisfaction and loyalty.
H4: Higher educational institutions’ collaboration over online and blended platforms affects
students’ satisfaction and loyalty.
H5: The information technology adoption of higher educational institutions mediates the
relationship between service orientation and customer satisfaction in tertiary education.

Methodology
The current study conducted 19 semi-structured interviews among students of a leading tertiary
institution in New Zealand. The students were selected based on their enrolments to graduate
and postgraduate business degree programs there. Random sampling methods were employed.
Out of fifty email invitations sent, only 19 of them confirmed their willingness to participate
in the data collection process. Each interview approximately lasted 30-45 minutes. Recordings
were manually transcribed, and coded for further data analysis. Transcripts were analysed for
suitable themes using NVivo version 12. The interviews were informal and were conducted in
natural settings. These interviews helped to examine how students develop meaning,
knowledge and understanding of customer relationship management strategies in higher
education marketing. Participants were given opportunities to talk freely about various topics
including the selection of an educational provider, program selection, pre-enrolment
expectations, the brand reputation and image of the education institution, nature of interaction
and engagement, and overall learning experience(s).

Results and/or Discussion and Contributions

Education providers’ service orientation is found to be critical in influencing tertiary students’
satisfaction and loyalty. The results suggest that the depth of customer engagement,
interactivity, personalization, and collaboration indicate an educational provider’s service
orientation in the HE sectors. Most respondents opined that their engagement via online
learning management systems (e.g. Moodle), emails and social media helped them to prepare
for assessments in line with teachers’ expectations. For tertiary EPs, conversations facilitated
by online group/discussion forums, group chats, listservs, and other online document sharing
platforms, enhance student’s learning through interaction – often immediate and in real-time.
More than 50% of the respondents agreed that correspondence they have received through
emails, social media, and mobile apps (e.g. WhatsApp) was very helpful in meeting their needs
supporting the uses and gratification theory tenets. The current study finds that the available IT
infrastructure and support services offered by their respective EPs impact significantly on
students’ level of satisfaction with their EP. Nearly 33% of the students were concerned about
various IT issues such as Wi-Fi access in classrooms and campuses, access to various learning
software at home computers (e.g. MS OFFICE, IBM SPSS), adequate computer terminals at
the library and classrooms, and responses from the IT helpdesk in case of any technical issues.
The study identifies information technology infrastructure as a mandatory resource for
enhancing customer value and satisfaction in the higher education context. For example,
Improvements in the firm’s service orientation are highly dependent on its adoption of the
information technology infrastructure. State of the art internet access on campuses, reliable
computer-assisted learning systems, websites and other online learning management systems
etc. help students to develop confidence in the reliability and integrity of their higher education
providers. Our study identified high levels of student appreciation for those courses and
faculties that have used social media for student interactions and communication.

Implications for Theory and Practice

Study findings have valuable implications for higher education marketing practices in a
pandemic is driven consumer environment. The findings are expected to help higher education
marketers to reconnect with their key stakeholders, particularly their student communities in a
transformed teaching and learning environment. The current study finds that successful
relationships in higher education begin with implementing student-centric and service-oriented
strategies in their provision of services supporting the current service marketing literature
(Borishade et al., 2021; Thaichon et al., 2020; Verma et al., 2016). Student support services,
libraries, councillors and advisors may play big roles in understanding varying student needs
in their learning process. Service-oriented firms should provide their customers, a major role
in the design and delivery of the services. In the context of higher education, new courses and
programs are to be designed according to the changing student needs and demands.
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Considering the delivery of courses, students are more likely to enjoy and value collaborative
learning methods where they could contribute more towards overall classroom learning rather
than being passive recipients of knowledge (Beldarrain, 2006). The current study also
contributes to the service marketing literature by proposing a conceptual model of relationship
marketing in higher education services. The proposed model identifies a series of strategic
actions to enhance student satisfaction and loyalty toward their educational providers. Even
though prior research has pointed out the significance of service orientation in marketing, there
were few discussions regarding the roles of engagement, interactivity, personalization and
collaboration in enhancing student trust and commitment. The current study also evidences the
role played by information technology in fostering student interaction and collaboration in
learning environments. The current study examined the influence of these drivers on students’
formation of trust and commitment and ultimately their satisfaction with their respective
educational institutions. The current study addresses the call for synthesizing the diverging
business relationship practices by proposing a conceptual model identifying the critical success
factors of marketing higher education services.

References
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