Post COVID-19 online shopping in South Africa: A mediation analysis of customer satisfaction on e-service quality and purchase intention

The study investigated the dynamics of online shopping focusing on mediation analysis of customer satisfaction on e-service quality and purchase intention. The study used a cross-sectional quantitative method where 324 responses were collected through a self-administered online survey questionnaire from South African consumers. The findings revealed that system availability, efficiency, responsiveness, fulfilment, privacy and compensation can be collectively used to measure electronic service dimensions in online shopping. These dimensions have a statistically significant relationship with purchase intention, while customer satisfaction has a mediation effect on the relationship. Customer satisfaction has a full mediation effect on the relationship between electronic service quality dimensions, compensation and privacy and trust with purchase intention and partial mediation between electronic service quality dimensions, responsiveness, efficiency and system availability with purchase intention. These findings inform businesses that are using online shopping platforms and assist them in prioritizing their resources. The contribution of the research is the use of the value-percept paradigm that is enhanced by importance-analysis within customer satisfaction as a mediator on e-service quality and purchase intention. This underpins the importance of customers' values and, more importantly, a 'customized' customer, where 'one size fit all' is diminishing during the time of technological advances.