Revisiting a model of customer engagement cycle: a systematic review

ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper is to consolidate published research on customer engagement (CE), and building on that, to further develop a set of integrated CE elements that fit the online context, based on Sashi’s [Customer engagement, buyer-seller relationships, and social media. Management Decision, 50(2), 253–272]. CE cycle model. Thus, we develop a systematic alignment of CE concepts and propose additional themes – including Experience, Organizational and Environmental Context, Customer Participation, Employee Participation, and Trust – and solidify the model with theoretical propositions for each theme. This paper’s originality comes from being the pioneer study to systematically examine each CE activity through the lens of an online-dominant context, while contributing to the CE literature. Recommendations for future research are provided for researchers of the CE field, calling for deeper investigation of existing theory, more attention to the areas in which e-commerce is developing rapidly, and additional prospective propositions for the CE cycle model to adapt to a post-pandemic world.