Enhancing customer satisfaction in fast food: A novel approach integrating SEM and ANN for relationship marketing analysis

The current study presents the integrated model that explores how the relationship marketing tool constructed on the bases of trust, commitment, and communication helps achieving customer satisfaction in fast food industry. The underpinning theories of this study are relationship marketing theories, trust-commitment theory on key mediating variables and confirmation/ disconfirmation theory for satisfaction. A Two Staged Structural Equation Modelling - Artificial Neural Network Approach is used to validate the findings of the research. The findings reveal that Trust has the highest impact on customer satisfaction, followed by Commitment and Communication. Both the Smart PLS and ANN analyses support this result, validating its significance. The finding highlights the importance for the fast-food industry to prioritize quality, service, and relationship marketing strategies as key factors for long-term success and sustained customer engagement.