Digital Payment Ease and Service Quality in MSMEs: Trust as a Mediator of Customer Satisfaction

This study examined how service quality and digital payment ease affect customer satisfaction in micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Simalungun Regency, Indonesia, with customer trust as a mediating variable. A quantitative explanatory design was applied, involving 319 digitally active MSME customers. Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results showed that both service quality and digital payment ease had significant positive effects on customer satisfaction. However, these effects were largely indirect through customer trust. Digital payment ease had the strongest influence on trust ( $$\beta = 0.601$$ β = 0.601 ), while service quality moderately impacted trust ( $$\beta = 0.317$$ β = 0.317 ). Customer trust itself was a robust predictor of satisfaction ( $$\beta = 0.412$$ β = 0.412 ). The model explained 68.0% of the variance in customer trust and 59.7% in customer satisfaction, indicating high explanatory power. This study highlights the critical role of trust as a psychological enabler in digitally transforming MSMEs. Practical implications suggest that MSMEs should prioritize user-friendly digital payment systems and consistent service delivery to strengthen customer relationships. The main limitation lies in the cross-sectional, non-probability sampling design, which restricts causal inference and generalizability. Future research should employ longitudinal designs and compare rural and urban contexts to explore behavioral differences over time.