Driving Customer Loyalty through Value Co-creation in the Nigerian Smartphone Market

Abstract

Facilitated by a wide array of technological advancements, interaction between customers and companies is taking new forms and shapes that go beyond traditional exchanges. This study is focused on driving customer loyalty through value co-creation in the Nigerian smartphone market. The cross-sectional survey research design method was employed. The geographical area for this study was the computer village, in Lagos State. The participants of the study were 292 customers of top smartphone brands, who were sampled through a convenience sampling strategy at different locations in the computer village based on the availability and willingness of the participants. The research instrument was a 30-item validated structured questionnaire, on a five-point Likert scale. Data obtained were analyzed using correlation and multiple regressions analytical tools. Findings revealed that dimensions of value co-creation; sponsored co-creation, user innovation and co-production exhibited positive effects on customer loyalty. On this basis, it was concluded that value jointly created by consumers has implications on what they consume and companies providing a platform for this interaction will achieve superior organizational performance. The study recommended that in implementing co-creation, companies should target the right co-creators, find what motivates them and focus on co-creative initiatives on activities that deliver sustainable competitive advantage.