The Impact of Ethical Marketing Dimensions (Descriptive, Normative, and Analytical) on Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty: A Case Study of Bank Mellat Customers in Tehran
Keywords:
Bank Mellat, banking services, customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, analytical dimension, normative dimension, descriptive dimension, Ethical marketingAbstract
Objective: The objective of this study is to examine the impact of three dimensions of ethical marketing on customer satisfaction and loyalty in Bank Mellat branches in Tehran.
Methodology: This applied study employed a descriptive–survey design. The statistical population consisted of all customers of Bank Mellat in Tehran. Using Cochran’s formula, a sample of 360 participants was selected through simple random sampling across 36 branches. Data were collected using a researcher-made questionnaire measuring ethical marketing (descriptive, normative, and analytical dimensions) and customer behavior (satisfaction and loyalty). Validity and reliability were confirmed. Descriptive statistics were used, and due to non-normal data distribution, the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test and Spearman’s correlation coefficient were applied for inferential analysis.
Findings: Results revealed significant positive correlations between all three dimensions of ethical marketing and both customer satisfaction and loyalty. Spearman coefficients indicated strong associations: descriptive ethics with satisfaction (r=0.638) and loyalty (r=0.546); normative ethics with satisfaction (r=0.600) and loyalty (r=0.558); analytical ethics with satisfaction (r=0.562) and loyalty (r=0.415) (p<0.01). Additionally, satisfaction and loyalty showed positive correlations with age and negative correlations with educational level. Gender had only a very weak association with both variables.
Conclusion: The study concludes that strengthening ethical marketing across descriptive, normative, and analytical dimensions significantly enhances customer satisfaction and loyalty. The descriptive dimension exerts the strongest influence on satisfaction, while the normative dimension plays a key role in shaping loyalty. The findings emphasize that transparency, honesty, fairness, and avoidance of deceptive practices are central to customer perceptions in the Iranian banking context.
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