Experiential Marketing Through Service Quality Antecedents: Customer Experience as a Driver of Satisfaction and Revisit Intentions in South African Restaurants

In the highly competitive restaurant industry, prioritising customer satisfaction is crucial for establishments pursuing differentiation and repeat business. Within this context, creating unique and memorable experiences has evolved from a marketing trend into a strategic imperative, compelling restaurants to deliver encounters that transcend mere functional service and quality. However, prior research has primarily examined quality factors and satisfaction in isolation, overlooking the mediating role of experiential realms in this relationship. This study offers a novel contribution by integrating service quality and experiential marketing within a single empirical model, addressing a gap in the hospitality literature. Specifically, few studies have empirically examined how tangible and intangible quality cues translate into the four experiential realms of the Experience Economy—aesthetic, escapist, entertainment, and educational—and how these, in turn, influence satisfaction and revisit intentions. Drawing on the Experience Economy framework, this study develops and tests a conceptual model linking quality antecedents—physical environment, food quality, and customer service—to the four experiential realms (aesthetic, escapist, entertainment, and educational) and subsequent satisfaction and revisit intentions. Using data collected from 312 restaurant customers, the hypotheses were tested through Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The findings reveal that quality antecedents significantly influence experiential realms, which in turn enhance satisfaction and revisit intentions—offering a more nuanced mechanism than previously theorised. By being among the first to empirically test these relationships in the sit-down restaurant context, this study adds theoretical and practical insight into experience-based brand differentiation. Moreover, it provides actionable insights for restaurant managers seeking to transform quality delivery into memorable, loyalty-building experiences.