Article

An Assessment of Millennial Generation Customer Satisfaction in the Industrial Business-to-Business Market Sector

---

Abstract

Existing research on customer satisfaction is often positioned within the consumer goods market segment. Customer satisfaction in the industrial products, business-to-business (B2B) market is much less researched and understood. As the millennial generation continues to enter the workplace, an entirely new level of B2B customer expectations should be considered, examined, and met. Using qualitative research methodology, this study examines the perceptions of industrial product distributors, as well as their B2B millennial customers, as they relate to customer satisfaction. The results of the study revealed that millennial customers want to work with industrial distribution companies that are easy to do business with. The notion of “ease of doing business” is more than just having good product quality or good service; it reaches across all boundaries of B2B customer interaction. As the millennial generation continues to enter the workforce, expectations change. Millennials expect a “digital” kind of performance in the workplace. Antecedents to customer satisfaction for the millennial generation include real-time information for everything from product pricing, delivery, inventory, product specifications, and problem solving. Failure to recognize these B2B, millennial generation customer expectations may result in lower customer satisfaction and may ultimately impact customer loyalty. This study helps to further understand B2B, millennial generation customer expectations of the industrial distribution market.

Keywords: customer satisfaction|industrial markets|industrial distribution|business-to-business sales

How to Cite:

Flanigan, R., Benson, G. & Porter, D., (2017) “An Assessment of Millennial Generation Customer Satisfaction in the Industrial Business-to-Business Market Sector”, The Journal of Technology, Management, and Applied Engineering 33(2).