ABSTRACT
Transportation is popularly referred to as an engine to every nation’s economy. But, in spite of the importance of transportation, the request for a good transport system remains an illusion. This is as a result of ineffective promotional strategies that the transport operators adopt. Therefore, this research work “Analyzing promotional strategies for Road Transportation Services- a study of ABC Transport Services in Umuahia” aims at determining the impact of public relations strategy and other promotional strategies used by the company; The impact of quality of services offered by the company on customers’ patronage as well as the impact of fares charged by the company. Related literatures written by some authors who have gotten real-world experiences on the field such as Kotler, Olakunori and Ejionueme and many others were reviewed. The study was carried out using pilot survey. Out of 50 people randomly selected, 30 have patronized the company, while 20 have not patronized the company using Topman’s formula. The responses of the consumers were presented and analyzed using chi-square(x statistical) method. The findings show that customers are satisfied with the fares charged by the company. Public relations activities adopted by the company have impacted positively on its profitability. The study therefore recommends that more vehicles should be procured and spoilt ones be repaired to ensure the availability of the vehicles on a continuous basis. The company should maintain its pricing strategies to enable it keep and sustain its customers: The Company should as well employ other strategies such as: Sales promotion, advertising, personal selling and publicity not only to increase its customer’s patronage but also to effectively compete with other transport industries.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title
page……………………………………………………………………………………i
Certification………………………………………………………………………………...ii
Dedication………………………………………………………………………………….iii
Acknowledgement……………………………………………………………………........iv
Table of content
…………………………………………………………………………….v
List of
tables…..…………………………………………………………………………….vi
Abstract
….………………………………………………………………………………...vii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background of study1
1.2
Problem of the study
3
1.3
Objectives of the
study
4
1.4
Research question
4
1.5
Research hypothesis
4
1.6
Significance of
study
5
1.7
Scope of the study
6
1.8
Definition of terms
6
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELEVANT LITERATURE
2.1
The concept of promotion 8
2.2
Roles of promotion
8
2.3
Components of promotional strategies 8
2.3.1
Advertising
8
2.3.2
Sales promotion 10
2.3.3
Personal selling
11
2.3.4
Public relation
11
2.4
Types of promotional strategies
12
2.5
Impact of promotional strategies on customer’s patronage 15
2.6
Meaning of transportation
15
2.6.1
Various modes of transportation 16
2.6.2 Problems& Prospects of Road
Transportation Services
21
CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.0
Introduction 23
3.1
Research design
23
3.2
Sources of data 23
3.3
Population of the study
24
3.4
Determination of the sample size
24
3.5
Sampling procedure
26
3.6
Selection and construction of a research instrument
27
3.7
Method of data analysis
27
CHAPTER FOUR: DATA PRESENTATION. INTERPRETATION
AND ANALYSIS
4.0
Introduction
28
4.1
Data presentation
28
4.2
Test of Hypothesis
40
CHAPTERFIVE: SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Preamble
46
5.2
Summary of the findings
46
5.3
Conclusion
48
5.4
Recommendations
48
Reference
Appendix I
Appendix II
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study
Olakunori
(2006) defines transportation as a means by which goods and humans are moved
from one point to the other in order to create time utilities. It helps in
bridging the gap between producers or suppliers and consumers or industrial
users of products. It is as a result of this great importance attached to
transportation that human beings have over the years developed various modes of
transportation in order to facilitate the evacuation of people and materials.
In spite of the
importance of transportation, the request for a good transport system remains
an illusion. This is as a result of in
effective marketing
strategies, which the operators adopted.
Enedu,
(2006), defines strategy as a firm’s action plan, aimed at achieving its
objectives, satisfying the needs of the consumer and surviving the competition
in its environment. It is therefore, expected that a good transport system is
the one that has a defined objective tailored to the needs of the consumers.
Furthermore,
Kotler, (2007) states that firms must market themselves in a way that the
customers will not only be satisfied with their products or services but will
also, have a delight in their products and services.
It becomes necessary therefore that
transport operators especially in Abia State to understand consumers’ behaviour
and preferences in the transportation services that they operate must know why
they (consumers) choose a particular transport service since road
transportation services here in Abia state have made an impact in the social
and economic lives of its citizen and beyond.
It has left no one in doubt as to their
capacity and reliability to perform in the movement of people and goods within
and outside the state. The company (ABC) has transformed the transportation
sector, giving most people a choice between land and air modes of
transportation.
Necessity calls on the need to give a
brief history of ABC Nigeria Limited as it would help in understanding how the
company has metamorphosed into the company that it is at the moment.
ABC transport Plc also known as “Associated Bus Company” commenced
operation in road passage transportation on February 13th 1993 as an
off-shoot of Rapid ventures with a view to running a modern road transport
system in Nigeria with key focus in the operation of luxury bus services
according to international standard.
Its services are specially designed for
distinguished travelers who would otherwise use Air services as their operations
are carried out in Ultra-Modern Bus Terminals with comfortable lounges in
various cities in Nigeria and neighboring West African cities like Accra in
Ghana which began in 2004.
In March 2003, Capital Alliance Private
Equity (CAPE) acquired 30% shares of ABC transport and by this acquisition; the
partnership repositioned the company for greater performance.
In 2006, ABC transport became a public
liability company therefore becoming the first transport company to be listed
in the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
The company’s trade mark is dubbed with a
Reindeer; an animal known for its strength, speed and movement in herds.
Also the company’s mission statement shows
their futuristic view as encapsulated below;
”We will surpass the need of our customers
by providing services unrivaled in Nigeria road transport industry”.
1.1
Statement
of the problem
Road
transportation service is one of the leading modes of transportation in Abia
State; this does not stop it from encountering a lot of problems such as:
1.
Performing
below the expectations:
Sometimes, what the commuters really
expected from the road transport providers is not always given. This maybe in
the area of carelessness of some drivers while on the road or the top
management refusing to give heed to the complaints of the consumers about their
demand for the quality of service they needed.
2. Non-application
of effective marketing strategies:
Some
of the road transport service providers are earning below their expectations as
a result of their low knowledge on the analysis of marketing strategies needed
for an effective road transportation system. Their lack of knowledge on the
application of those promotional mixes has immensely contributed to the failure
in realizing their long-term organization goals. These promotional mixes are:
sales promotion, advertising, public relation, personal selling, publicity,
word-of-mouth. These promotional mixes are applied to increase rate of
customer’s patronage of offering good services, which will help to increase the
profit.
1.2
Objectives
of the study
The
main objective of the study is to analyze the promotional strategies for road
transportation services with ABC as a case study. The specific objectives are
to:
1. Determine
the effect of the quality of service offered by the ABC transport company on
customer patronage
2. Determine the impact of promotional strategies
on the ABC transport in Umuahia metropolis on customer’s patronage.
3. Determine
the effects of transport fares charged by the company on customer patronage.
1.3
Research
questions
1. How
does the quality of services offered by ABC transport appeal to the customers?
2. How does the fare charged by the company
affect customer’s patronage?
3. What promotional strategies can be
adopted?
1.4
Research
hypothesis
Research
hypothesis is the statement of relationship between variables. In view of this,
the following statements of hypothesis will be tested.
Ho1:
The quality of service offered by ABC transport in Umuahia metropolis does not
lead to increase in customer’s patronage.
Ho2: The fare charged by ABC transport in Umuahia
metropolis does not lead to increase in customer’s patronage.
Ho3:
The promotional strategies adopted by ABC transport in Umuahia metropolis does not lead to increase in customer’s
patronage.
1.5
Significance
of the study
No
company or other organization can thrive in the labour market without a
transportation system. Consequently, this study will yield the following
results;
The
managerial efficiency of ABC Transport will improve if the research recommendations
made are used cautiously.
The
Customers will be made aware and be educated on the various services made
available to them by the transport company.
The
Government will not be left out of these immense benefits, the Revenue
generated by the Government through tax paid by ABC transport will increase.
1.6
Scope
of the study
This study will be limited to ABC
transport in Umuahia metropolis Abia state.
1.7
Definition
of terms
Public Relation:
This is the way organization, companies
and individuals communicate with the public and media.
Public relations specialist communicates
with the target audience directly or indirectly through media with an aim to
create and maintain a positive image and create a strong relationship with the
audience.( Nweke O. F.F. 2012)
Promotion
This
refers to raising customer awareness of a product or brand, generating sales,
and creating brand loyalty. It is one of the four basic elements of the
marketing mix. (Zikmund et al 2003)
Strategy
The
term “strategy” implies a plan or programme of action aimed at meeting a
challenge or winning a war or a game (Vincent o. E. 2011)
Service
Orika
and Ujah (2006), state that services are object of transactions which do not
entail the transfer of ownership of tangible commodity.
Transportation
This can be define Olakunori (2006) defines transportation as a means by which goods and
humans are moved from one point to the other in order to create time utilities.
It helps in bridging the gap between producers or suppliers and consumers or
industrial users of products.
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