| dc.description.abstract | The general objective of this study was to determine the influence of marketing mix practices,
consumer demographics and attitudes on credit card usage of commercial bank customers in
Nairobi, Kenya. The study had four objectives namely; to determine the effect of marketing mix
practices on credit card usage, establish the extent to which consumer demographics influence the
relationship between marketing mix practices and credit card usage, assess the extent to which
consumer attitudes influence the relationship between marketing mix practices and credit card
usage and to establish the joint effect of marketing mix practices, consumer demographics and
attitudes on credit card usage. The study was a descriptive cross-sectional survey and the
population comprised all persons in Nairobi who own at least one credit card. The sample size was
384 and stratified random sampling was used to pick respondents with a response rate of
361(94%).A structured questionnaire was used to get primary data and the unit of analysis was
individual bank customers. To test reliability Cronbach’s alpha was used and all the constructs had
an alpha coefficient above 0.7. A pilot study was done to determine content validity and thereafter
necessary adjustments were made on the instrument. Descriptive and inferential statistics were
used to analyze the data through various measures and tests. Simple and multiple linear regression
and correlation analyses were used to test the hypotheses. The relationships between and the
influences of the variables were determined, inferences made and conclusions drawn. The results
indicated that marketing mix practices had a significant positive influence on credit card usage. It
was also established that the relationship between marketing mix practices and credit card usage
was significantly moderated by consumer demographics. However, the tests revealed that the
relationship between marketing mix practices and credit card usage was not statistically mediated
by consumer attitudes. Finally, it was established that the joint effect of marketing mix practices,
consumer demographics and attitudes on credit card usage was statistically significant. The study
has contributed to theory development and marketing practice by building on service marketing
knowledge. This is by confirming that banks can apply the marketing mix elements to increase
usage of their products and hence financial performance. The contribution to policy development
is that the study may guide regulators of financial institutions to develop policies that encourage
good marketing practice. It was recommended that banks should identify the elements in the
marketing mix that are important to their customers and focus attention on them. The evidence
that marketing has an effect on business performance can be used by practitioners to seek top
management support. The results of the study imply that policy makers regulating the financial
sector should develop policies that encourage and support appropriate marketing practice. The
study had some limitations caused mainly by its scope. The focus was only on credit cards issued
by banks, leaving out charge cards. While only credit card holders were sampled, involving also
non credit card holders would have been more inclusive. However, the limitations did not have an
adverse effect on the results. Future studies should address these limitations by adapting the
sample to include non-credit card holders and credit card usage to capture all categories of credit
cards. | en_US |
