Customer Satisfaction and the Factors of Influence: Quantitative Marketing Research undertaken at the Main Banks in The Central Region of Romania

This article contributes to research on the satisfaction of consumers of banking services based in the Central Region of Romania. This article seeks to measure the general level of satisfaction through quantitative marketing research using a survey poll. The data is collected online from adults who live in this part of the country by using the Computer Assisted Web Interviewing (CAWI) methodology . Research focuses on five topics: the employees skills and how they contribute to the level of quality perceived by clients; how a banks’ image influences the level of the quality; how satisfied clients are with the way that their complaints have been solved; the influence of the prices; and the influence of digitalization on quality as perceived by customers. The results seek to identify the attributes with the most important role in customers’ satisfaction. The employees’ skills which received the highest scores are the following: paying attention to the customers; good knowledge of products and services; and professional competences. In addition, customers appreciate factors affecting a banks’ image such as being a secure bank, being accessible, having financial strength and adopting a friendly approach. By applying the Pearson’s methodology to determine the most significant correlations, it is highlighted that: prices; Contact Center services; and the level of satisfaction with the way complaints have been solved are strongly correlated with the level of quality services as perceived by clients. However, the most remarkable finding from the research is that customers place a particular emphasis on working with flexible and modern banks, but simultaneously these two attributes recorded the lowest quotes among clients' perceptions of their actual main bank. This is challenging the banks to set it as priority axis for improvements, in order to deliver better quality services.