Applying the EEE customer mindset in luxury: reevaluating customer experience research and practice during and after corona

Abstract

Purpose

This paper’s objective is to raise awareness of how customer experience (CX) research, a key construct of modern-day service research, needs to be revisited in view of the pandemic. Particularly, we examine whether CX-related service research constructs, models and frameworks need to be reevaluated during and after the Corona crisis and if so, how and why? Moreover, this paper contributes to CX research by analyzing the customer mindset from three perspectives: emotions, employment and expectations (EEE).

Design/methodology/approach

We critically review current CX practices and investigate the impact on how customers perceive services in this time of crisis.

Findings

Based on this critical analysis, we discuss implications for research and practice with reference to the example of the luxury industry with its historical emphasis on the CX. This discussion leads to related propositions and research directions through Corona and beyond.

Originality/value

We investigate the current customer mindset in more detail, which we divide into three main themes: emotions, employment and expectations (EEE).

Citation

Klaus, P.‘. and Manthiou, A. (2020), "Applying the EEE customer mindset in luxury: reevaluating customer experience research and practice during and after corona", Journal of Service Management, Vol. 31 No. 6, pp. 1175-1183. https://doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-05-2020-0159