Customer satisfaction and consumer expenditure in selected European countries

• Presents a cross-country macroeconomic analysis of customer satisfaction.
• Analyzes data from nine European countries covering the period from 1999 to 2011.
• Emphasizes the importance of satisfied consumers for the economy as a whole.
• Highlights some moderating factors of the customer satisfaction - expenditure link.

The relationship between customer satisfaction and company performance has been extensively researched at both the consumer and firm levels. However, little is known about the impact of customer satisfaction at the economy-wide level, especially in Europe. This study aims to link customer satisfaction to personal consumption expenditure using panel data collected from 1999 to 2011 and covering nine European countries. Our findings suggest a significant relationship between customer satisfaction and consumer expenditure in these countries. In addition, economic structure, culture, political economy and socio-economic factors have been examined to understand the impact of cross-country differences on this relationship. The results reflect the importance of satisfied consumers on the economy as a whole; thus, efforts at boosting customer satisfaction should become a national agenda.