Customer Retention Strategies of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in a Developing Country (Pakistan)

Abstract: Background: Statistics say that Pakistan is the third largest user of compressed natural gas, its increased demand has encouraged investment in this sector. Number of stations has doubled in less than four years, this has increased the ratio of competition and low amounts of profit. Cut throat competition forces retailers to work on quality for customers’ retention and for this retailers are expected to understand the needs and requirements of their customers. This understanding is the only key to customer retention. Research undertaken focus on the key issues faced by CNG stations for customers’ retention. The study will focus on retailer’s strategies for customer retention in a competitive environment. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is study customer retention strategies adopted by compressed natural gas (CNG) retailing stations, in a developing country (Pakistan). Research Question: How do CNG retailing stations satisfy, make loyal, and retain their customers in a competitive environment? Methodology: Deductive approach has been adopted for this research to investigate the behaviour of customers through telephone interviews, as it is a distant research. Convenience sample has been selected for this research and ten semi-structured telephonic interviews have been conducted to get the empirical data from the CNG retailers of Lahore, stations from ten different stations have been selected on the basis of prestige, repute and amount of publicity in print and electronic media. Semi structured interviews will be based on primary and secondary data together. Primary data is in the form of interviews, secondary in the form of reports and published journals. Telephonic interview was based on open-ended questions to judge the views, knowledge and utility of customers experience and close-ended questions that have provided the direct and accurate answers. Telephonic interviews have advantages and disadvantages but for a distant research like this, it is the only best possible methodology to get first-hand knowledge quickly, interview was based on ten questions to get a complete picture of customers’ retention. Operationalization was based on 14 questions question 1 to 6 are about customers’ satisfaction, 7 to 11 customer loyalty and 12 to 14 customer retention. Validity and reliability is the key to success for any research. Same question were asked in different ways to check the reliability of the answers, target oriented questions were asked to validate the objective of the research and to make research credible. Conclusion and Results: The research establishes that most companies do not have specific plans for the customer retention in a cut-throat competitive environment. Customers’ service and technical issues were the targeted areas to understand the customers’ retention. Customers’ retention means profit, low retention means low profits. Result in a nutshell is an increased focus on imperial investigation, which is inevitable to study strategies for customer retention for the survival in the competitive world.