Role of Bonding in Relationship Marketing - A Study on Laptop Users

Information Technology (IT) Industry in India poised for innovation led manufacturing and technology evolutions resulting in rapid convergence, giving rise to products that have a host of technologies – computing, video, audio, communications and others (Vinie Mehta- 2003). Building and properly managing relationship with customers has become essential for any business organization and bonding being one of the essential elements in IT companies today. These organizations are facing a fundamental challenge of building strong relationships with customers to win over the competition. In today's competitive global market place, customer loyalty has become a major challenge faced by marketers. Research revealed that Relationship Marketing is an important strategic tool resulting in customer loyalty (Alrubaiee et al, 2010) which in turn facilitates survival in the competitive era and enhances customer satisfaction through bonding. Any complacency on the part of a business enterprise in establishing a sustainable relationship results in losing a customer to the competitor, in an environment where customer has ample choice which will have detrimental impact on survival of the organization.

Purpose of this study is to investigate the role of bonding in Relationship Marketing orientation which is one of the essential elements of RM. Study has been carried out to find the components of bonding and their effect on retention of customers with reference to laptop users (a sample size of 100 users). The data was analysed by using factor analysis to find out the key dimensions of bonding resulting into Relationship Marketing.