ABSTRACT
The study examined the effect of customer orientation on the marketing performance among small and medium scale leather products manufacturers in Abia State Nigeria. The specific objectives were to determine the effect of customer orientation on customer loyalty among leather products manufacturers, to examine the effect of customer orientation on probability among leather products manufacturers in the study area, to evaluate the effect of customer orientation on market share of leather products manufacturers, to ascertain the effect of customer orientation on sales volume of leather products. The population of the study comprised of 4000 small and medium scale leather products manufacturers in Umuahia and Aba in Abia State (SME office, Abia State). The researcher adopted judgmental sampling technique to select 364 small and medium scale leather products manufacturer from 4000. The study were analyzed with descriptive statistics and multiple regression. The findings of the study revealed that closeness to customers, provision of timely information to customer , attention to customer complain have positive and significant effect on customer loyalty among leather products manufacturers in the study area while after sales services has positive and insignificant effect on loyalty among leather products manufacturers in the study area. Also, closeness to customers , attention to customer complain ,after sales services have positive and significant effect on profitability of leather products manufacturers in the study area while after sales services has positive and insignificant effect on market share among leather products manufacturers in the study area. Closeness to customers, attention to customer complain and after sales service have significant effect on profitability among leather products manufacturers while provision of timely information to customer has positive and insignificant effect on market share among leather products manufacturers in the study area and that closeness to customers, attention to customer complain and after sales service have significant effect on customer sale volume among leather products manufacturers in the study area while provision of timely information to customer has positive and insignificant effect on sale volume among leather products manufacturers in the study area. It was recommended that small and medium scale leather products manufacturers in Aba and Umuahia should continue with closeness to customers, provision of timely information to customer , given attention to customer complain and they should look into the issue of after sales services that h as not enhance loyalty among leather products manufacturers in the study area.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page i
Declaration ii
Certification iii
Dedication iv
Acknowledgements v
Table of Content vi
List of Tables ix
List of Figures x
Abstract xi
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study 1
1.2 Statement of the Problem 3
1.3 Objectives of the Study 5
1.4 Research Questions 5
1.5 Research Hypotheses 6
1.6. Significance of the Study 6
1.7 Scope of the Study 7
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Conceptual Framework 8
2.1.1 Concept of Customer Orientation 8
2.1.2 Other Predictable Variables of Customer Orientation and
their Effects on Organizational Performance 10
2.1.3 Customer Orientation 13
2.1.4 Entrepreneurship Creativity and Small and Medium Scale
Firm Performance 18
2.2 Theoretical Framework 19
2.2.1. Entrepreneurship Innovation Theory 19
2.2.2. Theory of Business Growth 21
2.3 Empirical Review 22
2.4 Summary of Review of Related Literature 34
2.5 Gaps in the Literature 35
CHAPTER THREE: METHODLOGY
3.1 Research Design 36
3.2 Area of the Study 36
3.3 Population of the Study 37
3.4 Sampling Size Determination 37
3.5 Sampling Technique 38
3.6 Method of Data Collection 38
3.7 Validity of the Research Instrument 38
3.8 Reliability of Instrument 38
3.9 Method of Data Analysis 39
3.10 Model specification 39
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Data Collection and Presentation 43
4.1.1. Returned of Distributed Questionnaire 43
4.1.2 Socioeconomic Characteristics of the Respondents 45
4.2 Data Presentation 45
CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Summary of the Findings 55
5.2. Conclusion 56
5.3. Recommendations 57
References
Appendix
LIST OF TABLES
Table 4.2: Socioeconomic Characteristics of Respondents 44
Table 4.3: To determine the effect of customer orientation on customer loyalty
among leather products manufacturers in the study area 46
Table 4.4: To determine the effect of customer orientation on profitability
among leather products manufacturers in the study area 47
Table 4.5: To determine the effect of customer orientation on market share
of leather products manufacturers in the study area 48
Table 4.6: To determine the effect of customer orientation on sales volume of
leather products manufacturers in the study area 49
Table 4.7: Regression Analysis (dependent variable, Y) 50
Table 4.8: Regression Analysis (dependent variable, Y) 51
Table 4.9: Regression Analysis (dependent variable, Y) 52
Table 4.10: Regression Analysis (dependent variable, Y) 53
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study
A new competitive environment is developing largely because of the current technological revolution and increasing globalization around the world today. Manufacturers particularly those in Nigeria are confronted with dynamic market environment, where consumers and producers simultaneously face a high uncertainty because of the dynamic nature of consumer needs and wants which constantly change on a day to day basis (Martin and Bush, 2017). The emergence of a more sophisticated customer and therefore a more distinctive and intense competitive environment highlight the extent which leather businesses in the country have grown and also the extent which customers’ knowledge in terms of experience have improve respectively. To successfully develop and manage small and medium scale leather products; manufacturer have to analyze customers’ needs and wants in order to satisfy their market adequately (Kotler and Keller, 2019).
Today’s business environment has become filled with service and manufacturing firms in search of excellent practices to achieve competitive advantage, which must be seen by their customers as benefit by d elivering superior value, products and services, which enhances repeat patronage, sales and organizational growth (Hooley et al., 2015). Consequently, McEachern and Warnaby (2015) define customer orientation as a component of market orientation that focuses on putting the customers at the centre of strategic focus. Kotler (2019) further asserted that for organizations to move from the level of studying customer segments to shaping separate offers, services and messages to individual customers such a firm may need to collect market information on each customer’s past transactions, demographics, psychographics, media and distribution preferences hoping to achieve profitable growth through expenditures by building high customer lifetime value (Fangher, 2012). Fangher also asserted that the ability of a company to deal with customers, one at a time has become practical as a result of advances in factory customization, computerization, the use of internet and database marketing software (Nakata and Zhu, 2015).
Consequently, customer orientation encompasses the analysis of customers’ needs, and responsiveness of organization to such needs. But some salient questions have been raised concerning whether customer orientation actually translates to better performance according to Buttle et al., (2015) also says that customer orientation to translate into profitable performance there is need for efficient marketing information system that keeps track of all customers, their purchases, number of patronages, needs, complaints etc (Kohli and Jaworski, 2010). Furthermore, it is a clear fact that for a firm to be customer-oriented it must possess a working marketing information system, managerial attitude and manager’s competency and such organizations must embrace the culture and belief of the host community making it possible to understand its customer, value their needs and wants and interpret their desire at all cost (Hill and Jones, 2016). Moreover, with customer orientation the organization either small, medium or large firm, foreign, or domestic outlet will stand at advantage over its competitors, possessing greater market share and customer base and in turn making profit at all cost within the short and long run (Adekunle, 2017).
In recent times, the usefulness of SMEs in developing countries such as Nigeria, Ghana, Togo and Ivory Coast etc is gaining a greater economic importance and a more significant presence in the enterprise landscape today because it has been able to add significantly to the economic providing for most unemployed in the society, the placement they need to become useful and productive to the society at large. Considerable research over the years is evidence of the interest in innovativeness and customer orientation to enhance business performance. More specifically, the constant changes and increasing competitive pressures in today’s small and medium scale business have made entrepreneurial to strive in maximizing business growth and increasing their profit margins in the long run. Hence, they facing a more demanding customers, new regulations, globalization, and the destabilizing effects of technological advancement. All of these critical factors are changing the SMEs significantly, introducing new challenges and generating new requirements for the entrepreneurial. This however forms what entrepreneurial experience on a day to day basis in providing quality and admirable goods or service to its customers in the long run (Esteban, 2016).
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The twenty first century business environment is covered with large competitions and increasing demands to meet with customers’ needs and expectations particularly to small and medium scale enterprise (SMEs). This is because human needs and wants change overtime due to the rising demands in the society (Dele, 2018).
Organizations today are striving to capture the minds of customers by providing quality products, rendering quality service and building a long lasting relationship with both prospective and loyal customers in the long and short runs. Nevertheless, as important as entrepreneurship is to the economy in general without adequate and proper understanding of what customers’ orientation entails, newly established businesses will grow and suffer within the first five years if they even survive liquidation.
However, most of the problems experienced by the twenty first century entrepreneurs is the inability to acquire adequate marketing information system; experience has shown that a good number of entrepreneurial today finds it hard to possess the right market information before start-up and as a result often last within the first five (5) years; this might be liking to the fact that majority do not consider to a large extent the importance of viable and reliable information but are rather keen on profit maximization only. This in the long run might affects the growth of the businesses, making it prone to threat within a short period of time.
Also, it is a known fact today that owners of SMEs in the state do not understand the importance and need for marketing competence; it might be due to the fact that since customer’s demands and expectation are meat such a customer tends to exhibit repeated purchase and customer loyalty in the long run, making it practically impossible to no longer see the need for marketing competency before making adequate decision. This might be yet another reason while entrepreneurial particularly those manufacturing leather products in Abia State still believe that marketing competency does not determine business growth.
Subsequently, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, SMEDAN (2008) reported that most small and medium scale businesses in Nigeria die before their fifth anniversary, while Ashibogwu (2018) notes that one of the reasons for this high failure is lack of the use of market research to confirm demand and assess suitability of proposed offering as well as maintaining high level of customer patronage. To worsen this situation sparse amount of literature exist on how small and medium scale businesses could survive through the adoption of customer orientation in a turbulent economy like Nigeria. It is therefore imperative to state that the study tries to see reasons customer orientation affect firm performance particularly small and medium scale leather products manufacturer in Abia State Nigeria.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The broad objective of the study is to determine the effect of customer orientation on the marketing performance among small and medium scale leather products manufacturers in Abia State Nigeria. The specific objectives are to;
i. determine the effect of customer orientation on customer loyalty among leather products manufacturers in the study area.
ii. examine the effect of customer orientation on profitability of leather products manufacturers in the study area.
iii. evaluate the effect of customer orientation on market share of leather products manufacturers in the study area.
iv. ascertain the effect of customer orientation on sales volume of leather products manufacturers in the study area.
1.4 Research Questions
1. What are the effects of customer orientation on customer loyalty among leather products manufacturers in the study area?
2. What are the effect of customer’s orientation on profitability among leather products manufacturers in the study area?
3. What are the effect of customer’s orientation on market share of leather products manufacturers in the study area?
4. What are the effect of customer orientation on sale volume of leather products manufacturers in the study area?
1.5 Research Hypotheses
H01: Closeness to customers, provision of timely information to customer , attention to customer complain and after sales services have no significant effect on customer loyalty among leather products manufacturers in the study area.
H02: Closeness to customers, provision of timely information to customer, attention to customer complain and after sales services have no significant effect on profitability of leather products manufacturers in the study area.
H03: Closeness to customers, provision of timely information to customer attention to customer complain and after sales services on market share has no significant effect on market share of among leather products manufacturers in the study area.
H04: Closeness to customers, provision of timely information to customer attention to customer complain and after sales services have no significant effect on sale volume among leather products manufacturers in the study area.
1.6. Significance of the Study
The study focuses on the effect of customer orientation on marketing performance among small and medium scale leather products manufacturer in Abia State Nigeria. The study will be of great importance to the following group; to entrepreneurial who are SMEs owners, to the economic planners, policy maker and fellow researcher
To SMEs owners; the study will serve as a great boost to individuals who wants to carry on their own businesses, who strive to provide service to the people through the manufacturing of leather products as their wealth of experience and vast knowledge will go a long way towards the contributing to the growth of the nation providing quality goods and meeting customer’s needs at all cost. Also vast knowledge in customer orientation will guarantee prospective customer and manufacturers of leather products to better understanding and interpret customers’ needs and want and serve them as at when due.
To economic planners; the study will provide a better platform and enable economic planners make out strategy on how new and existing business will be established so as not alter government policies and formulation in the long run.
To policy makers; the study will guild policy makers and economic planners towards formulation of policies that will stand the taste of time and encourages SMEs holders to be highly productive so as to reduce the rate of economic hardship an unemployment in the country.
To fellow researcher; the study will serve as a good conceptual guild for researcher undertaking similar course of study particularly those in marketing department. This will make them make adequate and productive contribution and also understand the importance of customer orientation and performance of small and medium scale entrepreneurial.
1.7. Scope of the Study
The study focuses on the effect of customer orientation on marketing performance among small and medium scale leather products manufacturer in Abia State Nigeria. The study specifically choose Aba and Umuahia because Aba and Umuahia are industrious in nature, comprising of talented entrepreneurial of small and medium scale businesses whose interest is a function of their passion and drive for production
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