Impact Of Perceived Service Quality On Customer Satisfaction And Brand Loyalty
[A CASE STUDY OF HONEYWELL FLOUR MILLS PLC]

1.2     Statement of the Problem
The Flour Milling Industry is vibrant and with a huge production capacity. Olaniyonu, (1998)gathered that there are about 22 mills around the country. Any mill that seeks to justify its existence and effectiveness needs to have its marketing and production skills to its front burner. In this regard, below are some of the problems identified in the study.
The Nigerian customers had changed over the years. They are more educated and exposed than in the past. The fact that virtually all the mills in the country sell to the same customers and outlets makes the matter worse so what are the problems consumers face in their choice of brands? How has perceived service quality influenced the decisions of consumers in their choice of flour? How has quality packaging been effective in marketing of flour and resulting in brand loyalty from customers?
Finally customer service quality is a major tool while customer satisfaction and brand loyalty are major results to achieve. It is imperative therefore, for the organization to initiate/adopt processes, skill/technologies that have been found effective in the area of perceived service quality, customer satisfaction and brand loyalty to meet up with the current business challenges. Therefore how does a flour mill position its product vis-a-vis competitors' products because most consumers acquire goods that are tailored to their individualized need rather than the generalized need of the market?
1.3     Research Questions
In line with our statement of problem and research objectives, the researcher would try to find answers to the following questions in the course of the research.
-    Are customers pleased and happy with the service quality offerings of both Honeywell     and Lister brands?
-    At what level can customer perceived quality on choice of products¬?
-    Can perceived quality service enhanced customers patronage and satisfaction?
-    Does customer satisfaction have a relationship with service quality perception?
 
1.4.     Objectives of the Study
The primary objective of the study is to examine the influence of perceived service quality on customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
The other specific objective of this study includes:
i.    to examine the relationship between perceived service quality and customer satisfaction;
ii.    to ascertain the relationship between  customer satisfaction and brand loyalty; and
iii.    to determine the relationship between customer service and customer satisfaction.
1.5    Significance of the Study
Gathering of this data has lead to a better understanding of the influencing level of the attributes on customer satisfaction. The results of this study did not only contribute to the awareness of the relationship between the variables but it also direct managers in the flour industry for quality improvement to increase customer satisfaction. Through the statistical analysis a conclusion on the existence of a relationship between qualities attributes of flour service provider and customer satisfaction will be more obvious.
1.6     Scope of the Study
An attempt is made to limit this research to the flour industry with particular reference to Honeywell flour mill and Lister flour mill because the study cannot cover all service companies. The study based on the two mills of flour in Ilorin and Ibadan in order to achieve effective means of perceived service quality influence on customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. This study will cover the time frame of year 2000-2014.