The Customers’ Role in Service Recruitment and Retention in the Sharing Economy: An Abstract

Peer-to-peer (P2P) ride sharing companies actively contribute to economic activity in developing economies with low-income levels, where many citizens may not own motor vehicles. However, more guidance is needed on the recruitment and retention of service providers (drivers) and customers (riders). Extant research is silent on the extent to which customers may assist when engaging with fellow consumers on the service. Considering customer citizenship behaviour, it is plausible that customers appreciating the benefits of the P2P sharing riding service may want to reciprocate and voluntary advocate its advantageous to fellow customers, help them to use the service and provide feedback for improvement. In doing this, the P2P ridesharing company may be in a better position to recruit, retain and win back customers and service providers, as customers are more likely to listen to communication from fellow consumers than that from the service company and customer feedback may assist in service enhancement. Hence, the study focussed on obtaining further insight into customer interventions for service recruitment and retention in a sharing economy, as denoted by customer citizenship behaviours and the factors that may motivate them to perform these behaviours. A total of 611 self-administered questionnaires from P2P share riding customers in South Africa were analysed, using structural equation modelling. Theoretically, the findings advance knowledge of C2C helping behaviours, as applied to the sharing economy context. Insight is also provided into customers’ contributions to the successful management of relationships between future service businesses and their stakeholders that are more complex in nature, involving a service enabler, service providers and customers. Practically, the findings assist service enablers like P2P ridesharing companies with a cost-effective, hands-on approach to recruit, retain and win back service providers and customers, which may result in a sustainable competitive advantage in the long term from which emerging market countries may also profit.