Perception of Internet Service Users on Service Quality Towards Internet Service Providers in Lalitpur

Abstract

The study was conducted to find out the service performance standard of Internet Service Providers (ISP) in Lalitpur and its impact on customer satisfaction. The objective of this research was to find out user perception of Internet service quality which influences the satisfaction level of customers. The service standard is also an essential part of after-sales service determining the performance level of ISP. As a result, the satisfaction level of customers can be linked with the success of service providers, which are usually business-oriented with the main aim of expanding the market share and maximizing the profit. The data collection for this research was done with the help of structured survey questionnaires conducted with 120 respondents by using the convenience sampling. The research questionnaire gathered demographic attributes like age, academic background, income and occupation of the respondents, as well as their perception of different service quality factors and analyzed it to derive their perception and satisfaction level. The collected was coded and recorded in SPSS software to generate results. The statistical method used for this research implemented various methods of analysis including percentage, accumulation, cross tabulation, Chi-square, ANOVA and correlation for testing the validity and reliability of the formulated hypotheses. The result showed no significant relationship between demographic factors like age, academic background, income level, occupation and gender with service quality dimensions. Similarly, there was no significant relationship between gender, age, academic background and occupation with the satisfaction level of customers. However, there was significant relationship between service quality dimensions like reliability, empathy, assurance, responsiveness and tangibility. Similarly, the before mentioned service quality dimensions had significant impact on users’ perception of service performance and their satisfaction level. So, the key finding of this research study for the ISP companies was to keep the service quality up to the standard which would be very beneficial in getting positive response from customers, thus helping in expanding the service and meeting business goals as well. xii The age group of 20-30 years representing almost 80 % of the respondents were well satisfied with their ISP. The service quality dimensions like reliability, empathy, assurance, responsiveness and tangibility were big factors for measuring the perception of customers and thus, their satisfaction level to the service quality of ISP. The better service quality dimensions lead to the better customer satisfaction. The significant relationship between service quality dimensions and customer satisfaction is another aspect of better-quality service for ISP. Almost 40% of total respondents were not satisfied on issues like disturbance in connection, Internet speed and poor maintenance. There was the need for improvement from the side of ISP companies to satisfy those 40%, so that they would be able to retain those customers for longer period. Any improvement in the service quality dimensions for unsatisfied customers would be very beneficial, as they may likely recommend their ISP to those in need of new service provider, especially to their friends and families. ISP identifying and addressing those issues relating to poor Internet services can ultimately grab those unsatisfied customers in near future from their existing ISP, thus expanding their business services. Furthermore, the research showed that there is significant relationship among service quality dimensions like reliability, empathy, assurance, responsiveness and tangibility. It showed that ISP should focus more on retaining the customers for longer period of time instead of getting larger number of customers and neglecting the quality aspect of their services.