The Effects of Stating Expectations on Customer Satisfaction and Shopping Experience

We examine alternative predictions regarding the impact of stating expectations before purchase on subsequent perceptions of the shopping experience and the firm. In particular, the present research suggests that asking customers to articulate their expectations can backfire and lead to more negative evaluations of the shopping and consumption experience. A series of field experiments support this predictions and show that, compared to a control group, stating pre-purchase expectations leads customers to focus on negative aspects of the shopping experience and perceive the same performance more negatively. The last study demonstrated that, although (pre-purchase) expectations were indistinguishable from evaluations of the store’s past performance, the former led to more negative post-purchase evaluations whereas the latter tended to generate more positive post-purchase evaluations.

Citation:

Chezy Ofir and Itamar Simonson (2007) ,"The Effects of Stating Expectations on Customer Satisfaction and Shopping Experience", in NA - Advances in Consumer Research Volume 34, eds. Gavan Fitzsimons and Vicki Morwitz, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 430-450.