European Journal of Business and Management www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1905 (Paper) ISSN 2222-2839 (Online) Vol.6, No.35, 2014 19 Appraisal of Customer Satisfaction with GSM Services in Dutsin- Ma, Katsina State, Nigeria Jibrin Nuhu Shagari (corresponding) Assistant Lecturer,Department of Business Management, Federal University, Dutsin-ma P.M.B. 5001, Dutsin-ma, Katsina state, Nigeria E-mail: njibrin@fudutsinma.edu.ng, tawakaltu1428@yahoo.com Ahmadu Abubakar Assistant Lecturer,Department of Business Management, Federal University, Dutsin-ma P.M.B. 5001, Dutsin-ma, Katsina state, Nigeria E-mail: aabubakar@fudutsinma.edu.ng, ahmedabubakartamed@yahoo.com Abstract This study appraised customer satisfaction with General System Mobile Communication (GSM) services in Dutsin-ma, Katsina state, Nigeria. The study employed survey method and used questionnaire as the instrument for data collection. The analysis was done using inferential statistics. Specifically, regression statistic test was used and analyzed using (SPSS 19.0) .The study revealed that; customers were not satisfied with the customer care services provided by GSM operators in Dutsin-ma. The study recommends that operators should invest heavily in human capital development by way of hiring quality staff and organizing training programmes for their employees, and they should also purchase state of the art equipment (since most of their services are equipment based) to respond to and address customers complaints timely and accurately. It was also recommended that the regulatory bodies (Nigerian Communications Commission and others) should establish toll free hot lines through which subscribers can directly lodge their complaints promptly and can be addressed properly. Keywords: Customer Satisfaction, Service, Customer Care, Dutsin-ma. 1. Introduction Services are becoming increasingly more important in the competitive environment of both firms and countries. Globalised competition has the strategic importance of satisfaction, quality and consequently loyalty, in the battle for winning consumer preferences and maintaining sustainable competitive advantages. In the service economy especially, these prove to be key factors reciprocally interrelated in a causal, cyclical relationship. The higher the perceived service quality, the more satisfied and loyal the customers are (Petruzzellis, D’Uggento & Romanazzi, 2006). History was made in the socio-economic life of Nigeria in August 6 th , 2001 when Econet Wireless Nigeria, (now Airtel) became the first company to launch commercial General Service Mobile (GSM) services in Nigeria. Other GSM services providers such as MTN, Globacom and Etisalat subsequently followed suit respectively (Ndukwe, 2005). With the launch of their services, Nigerians were delighted and full of expectations of a break from the bitter past, to improved services, improved business transactions and, generally, expectations of improved socio-economic well-being. However, the extent to which these expectations have been met requires investigation. This study therefore, examined the level of customer satisfaction among GSM services provided by MTN, Globacom, Airtel, and Etisalat in Dutsin-ma, Katsina state. Experts observe that consumers of telecommunication product and services in Nigeria are quite varied in their attitudes, tastes, needs and expectations (Ndukwe, 2008). Arguably these differences explain, in part, the reasons why all of us do not subscribe to the same networks. In the past few years, consumers of telecommunication services in Nigeria as (Shehu, 2008) acknowledged were the privileged few endowed with the economic power to enjoy telecommunication services. This was the period characterized by few but highly expensive available lines so that the choice of a telephone service provider was apparently, a matter of having the money and choosing whichever operator was available. However, analysts and even the most casual observers agree that the situation is quite different from what it used to be (Ajayi, 2006). Currently, there are not less than five different GSM service providers in Nigeria, all of which are operating in Dutsin-ma, Katsina State. Consequently, apart from basic telecommunication services, these operators also offer varied services and enticements to attract and keep customers. So that unlike before, consumers now evaluate, sometimes critically, these varied offerings before selecting a provider (Ajayi, 2006). The introduction of GSM services and the resulting intense competition among the providers in Nigeria has brought several benefits to the populace. These benefits include improved business transactions, improved