Understanding Customer Switching Behavior in a Liberalizing Service Market
研究了荷兰能源市场自由化背景下客户转换服务商的决定因素，发现关系质量、转换成本和当前需求是关键，并识别出71%的惯性客户和6%的不忠诚客户，对在位企业和政策制定者有参考价值。
In recent decades, many service markets have been liberalized, which means incumbent service firms face new competitors and must address customer switching—which from a public policy perspective, is necessary to ensure that liberalization succeeds. In this article, the authors conduct an exploratory study in which they investigate determinants of customer switching in the liberalizing Dutch energy market. Their results suggest that relationship quality, switching costs, and current demand for products and services from the energy supplier (e.g., usage rate, number of contracts) represent important determinants for all customers. In a subsequent analysis that accounts for customer heterogeneity, the results indicate a large inertia segment (71%) but a relatively small (6%) disloyal segment. The authors discuss implications for both incumbent service firms (former monopolists) and public policy officials.