Exploring the conditions under which salesperson work satisfaction can lead to customer satisfaction

A number of recent research studies have demonstrated the presence of a positive link between customer-contact employees' work satisfaction and customer satisfaction. However, existing studies have largely neglected describing conditions under which the link between these two constructs is stronger or weaker. The authors of this study argue that certain customer characteristics (such as customer trust, customer price consciousness, and the importance of product/service to the customer) and salesperson characteristics (such as empathy, expertise, and reliability) moderate the relationship between salespeople's work satisfaction and customer satisfaction. Balance theory is used to justify the hypotheses of the study. Tests of the hypotheses are based on a dyadic data set collected across manufacturing and services industries in a business-to-business context. Results reveal that the link between work satisfaction and customer satisfaction is systematically moderated by the salesperson and customer characteristics under consideration. (c) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.