Abstract

This study assesses the Effect of Marketing Mix on Consumer Purchase Behaviour  Case Study; Musango Bus Service Buea, the main objective of the study is to investigate the effect of marketing strategies on consumer purchase intention and the specific objectives is to examine the effect of price on consumer purchase behaviour, to determine the effect people on consumer purchase behaviour and to assess the effect of location of the bus station on consumer purchase behaviour. Data used for the study were collected through 46 questionnaires from staff and customers of musango Bus Services mile 17 Buea.

The study used both descriptive and inferential statistics through simple regression analysis. The findings of the study showed that marketing mix (price, people and physical evidence) has a significant positive effect on consumer purchase behaviour in the musnago bus service. Based on the findings, the study recommends Musango should maintain affordable and competitive pricing strategies.

Consideration should be given to offering discounts, promotional fares, or loyalty programs for regular or bulk-ticket customers to further incentivize frequent use of the service. Also, they should Invest in on-going training for frontline staff to enhance their interpersonal skills, professionalism, and responsiveness. Well-trained staff members can build stronger customer relationships and improve overall service experience.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

As time changes, companies marketing strategies also evolve, every company is trying as much as possible to change brand so as to stand market pressure. In order to survive this market pressure, companies see to it that they create strong bond to attract and hold customers (Hess, Story and Danes, 2011).

The marketing mix (Product, Price, Promotion, and Place) was introduced to marketing education by E. Jerome McCarthy in 1960. Kotler and Keller (2006) noted that the market place isn’t what it used to be, that is it is different as a result of major interlinking societal forces that have created new behaviors, opportunities and new challenges. They pointed out the following forces to the changing environment: Changing Technology, Globalization, Deregulation, Privatization, and Customer Empowerment. Need for greater profitability and heightened Competition Through the 1960s, McCarthy’s four Ps provided a suitable and effective designation for the study and analysis of marketing.

According to Rafiq & Ahmed (1995), Borden in 1965 claimed to be the first to have used the term “Marketing Mix” but to him it simply consisted of important ingredients or elements making up a marketing program. As time went on, New Ps, were introduced into the marketing scene in order to face up into a highly competitively charged environment. Especially in 1980s onward, number of researchers proposed new ‘P’ into the marketing mix. Judd (1987), proposed a fifth P (people). Booms and Bitner (1980), added 3 Ps (participants, physical evidence and process) to the original 4 Ps to apply the marketing mix concept to service. Rafiq & Ahmed (1995), stated that, Booms and Bitner’s 7Ps model is the most influential mix where they suggest that the traditional 4Ps need to be modified for services but also need to be extended to include participants, physical evidence and process

According to Julian Yudelson (1999), The adoption of the marketing concept put the consumer at the center of the marketing management paradigm as the focus of all marketing activities. In terms of the four P’s, this meant that marketers sought to produce products that were desired by consumers at a price that would be attractive, using promotion to indicate the advantages they offered over the competition, and making them available at a place of the customers’ choosing. Leadley and Forsyth (2004) in light of McCarthy theory, see marketing mix is a combination of all components to fulfil the target market. Marketing mix model was finally defined by Kotler (2004).

According to Kotler, marketing mix is the mixture of controllable marketing factors that the organization uses to pursue the sought level of sales in the target market. It is helpful method for managers to comprehend concept about the right product, right price and right place. In the event that product, price, place and promotion are not served to address the needs of consumers by the company, it bombs in the market. If any product satisfies the needs and wants of target consumers, they will have favourable attitude towards these products. Goi (2009), reveals that, the main reasons that the marketing mix is a powerful concept are: It makes marketing seem easy to handle, allows the separation of marketing from other activities of the firm and the delegation of marketing tasks to specialists; and – The components of the marketing mix can change a firm’s competitive position. The marketing mix concept also has two important benefits. First, it is an important tool used to enable one to see that the marketing manager’s job is, in a large part, a matter of trading off the benefits of one’s competitive strengths in the marketing mix against the benefits of others. The second benefit of the marketing mix is that it helps to reveal another dimension of the marketing manager’s job .

Consumer purchase intention refers to a series of activities directed toward the acquisition, use and disposal of goods and services occurs (Salomon, 2004). It is a decision making process of an individual physically by engaging in assessing, buying and using or disposing the goods and services. Consumer purchase behavior is to understand how a consumer makes decision to buy a good using the available resources such as time, money, and effort for buying, using, and disposing goods and services. It facilitates a better understanding and forecasting not only of the subject of purchases but also of purchasing motives and purchasing frequency (Schiffman, 2004).

Consumers purchase intentions are one of the essential information sources that marketing managers use to forecast future sales and to determine how the actions they make and will affect consumers’ purchasing behavior. Between the range of 70 and 90 percent of market research suppliers indicated in a research that they consistently measure and use purchase intentions (Jamieson and Bass, 1989).Customer satisfaction is widely recognized as a key pressure in the formation of consumers’ future purchase intentions (Taylor and Baker,1994). Satisfied customers are also likely to tell others of their favourable experiences and thus engage in positive word of mouth advertising (File and Prince, 1992; Richens, 1983). This positive word of mouth advertising is particularly useful in collectivist African cultures like that of Ethiopia where social life is structured in a way to improve social relationships with others in the society (Hofstede, 1980; Hall and Hall, 1987). Dissatisfied customers, on the other hand, are expected to switch brands and engage in negative word of mouth advertising.

1.2 Statement of Problem

The preferences, choices and tastes of individual determine their purchasing behavior. There are other different factors that determine the consumer behaviors some of which marketers cannot control, such as cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors.

Challenges exist amongst transport operators to seek and improve other dimension pertaining to quality of the transport service they provide in order to win customers. Moreover, there have been an increase in the level of competition between transport service operators and hence reduced earnings (Mporogomi ,2001). On the other side, there is an increase in transport fares for interurban transportation of passengers (Apitac, 2024), Also the location of transit station serves as a huge barrier to customers in terms of convenience; social ills also exist in some of these bus station which is problematic to customer. Thus, this research work seeks to investigate the effect of marketing mix on consumer purchase behaviour.

1.3 Research Questions

1.3.1 Main research question

What are the effects of marketing mix on consumers purchase behavior?

1.3.2 Specific research questions

1. What is the effect of price on consumer purchase behavior in Musango Bus station?
2. To what extend does people affect the consumer purchase behavior in Musango Bus services?
3. How does physical evidence influence consumer purchase behavior in Musango bus services?

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