is "satisfaction" really so vital in consumer decisions? More broadly, are the past attitudes of customers good predictors of their future actions?

"overall satisfaction" was not significant in determining whether the household kept or dropped the service. Rather, the expected future use by the household contributed to whether the cable service was kept or dropped. "High expectations" of future use overrode "low satisfaction" with the product, while "low expectations" of future use negated high levels of satisfaction.

How much a customer estimated he or she would use the service in the future is "a much better predictor of customer retention than traditional models that focus on overall evaluations of the service.

If a firm wants to retain current customers, customer expectations of future benefits should be a primary focus. Marketing managers need to consider how such expectations can be managed and how to measure a customer’s expected future benefits and current usage levels.