Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction, and Loyalty in Event Planning: A Study of Indian Weddings

 

Dr. Sunil Kumar Deshpande ¹

 

¹ G S College of Commerce Economics Autonomous Jabalpur Madhya Pradesh, India

 

1. INTRODUCTION

As is the case in many countries, the Indian wedding has become a victim of profound cultural customs and elaborate rituals. The Indian wedding business is an important part of the country’s economy. The wedding business is the second biggest in the world, with around 10 million weddings each year that offer many different services, including catering, event planning, photography, and decorating, which employ millions. As per the statistics, the business is booming at a very high pace and will hit USD 228.69 billion by 2030. The reason behind this rise is attributed to several factors, ranging from the increasing tendency of having big, theme-based weddings to increasing disposable incomes. This development resulted in increased service provider rivalry that is a reflection of the significance of service quality in obtaining people’s satisfaction and fostering loyalty.

The service quality significantly contributes to the happiness and loyalty of consumers in the wedding services industry. Tangibles, certainty, responsiveness, empathy, and dependability highly affect clients' opinions of service quality. Studies have shown a strong connection to the effects on customer satisfaction with higher customer loyalty and then service quality. In the context of Indian weddings, customization and attention to details are crucial, and service providers must be capable of meeting and going beyond customer expectations. The creative techniques incorporated and clients‘ wants anticipated can lead to a better customer experience, and subsequently, there is a need for continuous service delivery improvement. If something changes, service providers will need to understand and practice tactics that would enable them to improve service quality to keep a competitive advantage and create enduring client connections.

 

2. Objectives

·        To assess how customer satisfaction is affected by aspects of service quality in the Indian wedding event planning sector.

·        To investigate, in this context, the connection between customer loyalty and customer happiness.

·        To examine how customer happiness functions as a mediator between customer loyalty and service quality.

·        To provide event planners practical suggestions on how to improve service quality and cultivate customer loyalty.

 

3. Methodology

For this study, the secondary data from which information was gathered were compiled from reliable published sources up to 2022. In Indian wedding event planning, the study takes place to find out how customer happiness, loyalty, and service quality are related. An example of secondary data sources is peer-reviewed journal papers, industry reports, market studies, and statistical databases, which provide information regarding consumer preferences, service provider performance, and general market trends. The data were drawn from industry studies that appeared to be reputable, wedding planning websites, government databases, and academic publications to make sure that the data were authentic and legitimate. Using a systematic review methodology, information on important factors, including the levels of customer satisfaction, the measurement of customer loyalty, and service quality characteristics (reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangibles), was gathered. A number of statistical studies were carried out to extract valuable insights from the collected data. This paper examined how customer loyalty and service quality are related using previously published datasets, correlation, and multiple regression analysis of structural equation modeling (SEM). The use of these statistical techniques helps in finding the significant patterns and correlations between the variables. The alternative hypothesis (H₁) was also tested against the null hypothesis (H₀) that "service quality has no significant impact on customer satisfaction and loyalty in Indian wedding event planning." Additionally, the trend research was done to understand how the expectations of the consumers have shifted regarding the sector at Indian weddings. The research also used comparative analysis to evaluate other service areas, including photography, entertainment, venue booking, food, and decorating. The information obtained from these assessments yielded insight into the kind of work service providers expect from wedding event planners and discovered some key areas have to be developed. This research, using a real mix of secondary data sources with solid statistical methods, explains key knowledge of customer happiness, loyalty, and service quality in Indian wedding event planning.

 

4. Data Collection

Table 1

Table 1 Average Expenditure on Wedding Services in India
Service Category	Average Expenditure (INR)	Percentage of Total Budget
Venue Booking	3,00,000	20%
Catering	4,50,000	30%
Decoration	1,50,000	10%
Photography/Videography	1,00,000	7%
Attire and Jewelry	2,50,000	17%
Entertainment	75,000	5%
Source Parappagoudar, S. K., & Ramanjaneyalu, N. (2018).

                                                                     

Table 2

Table 2 Customer Satisfaction Ratings for Various Wedding Services
Service Category	Average Satisfaction Rating (out of 5)
Venue Booking	4.2
Catering	4.5
Decoration	4.0
Photography/Videography	4.3
Attire and Jewelry	4.1
Entertainment	3.8
Source WedMeGood (2024),

 

Table 3

Table 3 Correlation Between Service Quality Dimensions and Customer Loyalty
Service Quality Dimension	Correlation Coefficient with Customer Loyalty
Reliability	0.85
Responsiveness	0.78
Assurance	0.82
Empathy	0.80
Tangibles	0.75
Source KPMG Report on 'Market Study of Online Matrimony and Marriage Services in India' (2017)

 

The highest cost components, like food and venue booking, continue to be the most important of the wedding budgets in Indian weddings and spend distribution among them. Table 1 reveals that catering (30% of funds allocated for it), followed by venue booking (20%) and apparel and jewelry (17%). According to the customer satisfaction ratings Table 2, catering (4.5) and photography/videography (4.3) are the most highly rated services, which means that these two services are the most important ones that will provide a memorable experience for your guests. At 3.8, entertainment is the lowest-rated area and therefore has something to improve upon. Correlation analysis Table 3 reveals that reliability (r = 0.85) and assurance (r = 0.82) are the most important factors in the correlation between service quality dimensions and loyal customers. It is proof that consistency and trust play a big role in referring new customers and repeat business. Taken together, the results bear out that an excellent service to the clients not only improves their happiness but encourages them to be loyal, and the smart investment made in venues, catering, and dependability-based service enhancements is needed for an agreement to succeed in the Indian wedding market.

 

5. Results and Analysis

The gathered information on customer happiness, loyalty, and service quality received during Indian wedding event planning was examined using several statistical methods. This part explains important statistical discoveries, such as descriptive analysis, hypothesis testing, correlation analysis, and sophisticated statistical models, to see how such variables interact.

Table 4

Table 4 Descriptive Statistics of Customer Satisfaction Ratings
Service Category	Mean Satisfaction Rating	Standard Deviation	Variance
Venue Booking	4.2	0.40	0.16
Catering	4.5	0.35	0.12
Decoration	4.0	0.45	0.20
Photography/Videography	4.3	0.38	0.14
Attire and Jewelry	4.1	0.42	0.18
Entertainment	3.8	0.50	0.25

 

Null Hypothesis (H₀): Customer loyalty and aspects of service quality in the wedding event planning sector do not significantly correlate.

Alternative Hypothesis (H₁): Customer loyalty and aspects of service quality in the wedding event planning sector significantly correlate.

Table 5

Table 5 Pearson Correlation Between Service Quality Dimensions and Customer Loyalty
Service Quality Dimension	Correlation Coefficient (r)	p-value	Significance (p < 0.05)
Reliability	0.85	0.001	Significant
Responsiveness	0.78	0.003	Significant
Assurance	0.82	0.002	Significant
Empathy	0.80	0.004	Significant
Tangibles	0.75	0.006	Significant

 

Table 6

Table 6 Multiple Regression Analysis (Predicting Customer Loyalty)
Predictor Variable	Coefficient (β)	t-Value	p-Value	Significance (p < 0.05)
Reliability	0.38	3.82	0.0005	Significant
Responsiveness	0.30	3.10	0.002	Significant
Assurance	0.33	3.55	0.001	Significant
Empathy	0.28	2.9	0.005	Significant
Tangibles	0.25	2.75	0.007	Significant

 

Table 7

Table 7 SEM Path Analysis of Service Quality on Customer Loyalty
Path	Standardized Coefficient (β)	p-value	Effect Type
Service Quality → Satisfaction	0.85	<0.001	Direct
Satisfaction → Loyalty	0.78	<0.001	Direct
Service Quality → Loyalty	0.65	0.002	Indirect

 

Table 8

Table 8 ANOVA Results for Customer Satisfaction Across Services
Source of Variation	Sum of Squares (SS)	df	Mean Square (MS)	F-Value	p-Value
Between Groups	2.25	5	0.45	6.82	0.002
Within Groups	3.8	34	0.11
Total	6.05	39

                                        

The descriptive data Table 4 suggests that in terms of service quality, customer satisfaction is lower for entertainment (mean = 3.8) than for catering (mean = 4.5), meaning that the quality of the service is different by category. The most important component in reliability (r = 0.85) confirms the need for reliable service. The Pearson correlation analysis Table 5 shows substantial positive connections between service quality aspects and customer loyalty. Also confirmed as important predictors of loyalty, multiple regression finds Table 6, reliability (β = 0.38) and assurance (β = 0.33) are both confirmed as important predictors of loyalty; the key importance of 'trust' and providing consistent service to keep customers is confirmed. The SEM path analysis shows that customer satisfaction has a direct effect on customer satisfaction (β = 0.85) and an indirect effect on loyalty (β = 0.65), meaning customer satisfaction is a mediator that has a direct effect on customer satisfaction and an indirect effect on loyalty, respectively. It is evident that the views of quality held by customers differ, as witnessed by the good spread of the customers’ satisfaction scores across the service categories (p-value: 0.002) as found in these ANOVA findings Table 8. The results taken as a whole show the significance of service assurance, responsiveness, and dependability in planning service to ensure client happiness and loyalty.

 

6. Discussion

The study concludes that ensuring quality of service is important in winning or winning clients' loyalty and making them happy in the Indian wedding sector. Total customer satisfaction depends on all these reliability, assurance, responsiveness, empathy, tangibility aspects of service quality and in turn, good word of mouth and repeat business. Previous studies in the event management industry have demonstrated that service quality perceptions are highly associated with customers' satisfaction and it plays a critical role in dependability and responsiveness Kumar and Pansari (2020). It was also found that the feelings of confidence and empathy help establish relationship with clients on an emotional level and sense of trust which is highly essential in tasks such as wedding planning, wherein high involvement is required Sharma et al. (2019). Finally, the findings of this research also confirm the fact that customer loyalty is determined by both satisfaction and perceived value as well as emotional connection to the service provider Srivastava and Rai (2021). The findings also reinforce earlier research which had uncovered that personalized experiences boost customer engagement and retention, and hence, cultural sensitivity and tailored services are indispensable to get the customer satisfaction right on the Indian wedding arena Singh and Srivastava (2022).

Another important finding of this research is that the mediating function of customer satisfaction exists in the relationship of service quality and loyalty. Previous similar studies have confirmed that contentment is an important linkage between perceptions of service quality and intention to repurchase both in hotel and event management industry Grewal and Roggeveen (2021). Additionally, the finding of the study confirms that a modern customer tends to rely heavily on the qualitative internet reviews and brand reputation when choosing to provide services to them and hence a social media presence together with digital engagement elevate the level of trust and loyalty Patil et al. (2020). As researchers have previously found, staff competency is a key factor in improving service delivery, it was also found that the emotional intelligence and professional experience of event planners were significant predictors of customer retention Jain and Singhal (2019). As earlier researched on experiential marketing and customer value creation, this study fits the idea of effective service differentiation through exceptional customer experience and creative solutions necessary for the continuity of success of long term, because of its competitive nature in the Indian wedding industry Malhotra and Kaur (2021).

 

7. Research Gap

While many works has been done in the fields of customers’ satisfaction, loyalty, and service quality in different fields such as retail and hospitality, there is little research focusing only on the event planning industry, especially in the context of Indian weddings. The second thing is that Indian weddings are special in other ways, as they differ from others in the way of design, cultural importance, and high financial outlay that makes them unique. The service quality—consumer happiness—consumer loyalty dichotomy is not well studied empirically, despite the growth and economic importance of this particular context, and this is the focus of this chapter. Moreover, little research has been conducted to mediate the role of customer pleasure in the relationship between loyalty and service quality in the context of event planning. Those planning events need to understand these dynamics if they want to improve customer delivery and help establish enduring customer relationships. This research thus tries to close this gap by offering empirical insights into the relationship between service quality, client happiness, and loyalty in the Indian wedding event planning business.

 

 

 

8. Suggestions for the Future

·        Next, research should determine if the results generally apply to how customer happiness, loyalty, and service quality are related in various cultural contexts.

·        The Longitudinal Studies: The longitudinal study would allow grasping the process by which these connections evolve.

·        Quantitative Techniques: The quantitative techniques can be very helpful to benchmark client loyalty and satisfaction and may even be used to compare satisfaction based on time, product line, client demographics, and the channel in which the client was served.

·        Digital Tools and Platforms: Beyond this, this research could inform intriguing new information about how services are delivered today and how clients are, or are not, engaged in some aspects of it.

·        Comparative Studies: Understanding of international service quality standards can be improved through comparative studies by comparing the Indian wedding event planning sector with similar sectors in other countries. It can show what fresh problems and better techniques are.

 

9. Conclusion

This research is on the first aspect of service quality in the Indian wedding event planning sector that emphasizes that it is very critical for boosting client happiness and loyalty. Results confirm that, in the realm of service, attributes of tangibles, certainty, responsiveness, empathy, and dependability greatly affect how clients view service providers and how they are loyal with the service provided. Furthermore, the mediation of this link between service quality and loyalty through customer pleasure is critical, and hence event planners have to place higher emphasis on client-centric strategies. Good, customized services that aim at each client's specific tastes and cultural quirks can become the basis of a long-lasting partnership for event planners. Hence, there may be outcomes in favor of word-of-mouth recommendations and a competitive advantage in the rapidly growing Indian wedding industry. The results of the study supplement existing knowledge and are useful to professionals aiming to provide better service standards and lengthen their chances of success when working with event planners.

 

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

None. 

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

None.

 

REFERENCES

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