Factors influencing the people's choice of mobile telecommunication network: a case of Buru Buru shopping center, Nairobi County

Abstract

Mobile phone penetration in the developing world shows remarkable growth patterns, which triggers competition among mobile operators and service providers. As a consequence, mobile providers are working work extra hard in a bid to come up with innovations that will help them soar high and earn customer loyalty. Mobile telecommunication companies in Kenya are experiencing high chum rates; this clearly shows that these companies have not yet identified what mobile subscribers look for in a network provider thus unable to keep them in their network.

This study therefore sought to investigate the factors influencing the people's choice of telecommunication network in Kenya. The purpose of the study was to find out the influence of price, network coverage, customer awareness and quality of service on people's choice of telecommunication network in Kenya. The researcher applied descriptive research design for this study.

The target population was .mobile subscribers at Buru Buru shopping center. The researcher used the stratified random sampling and applied questionnaire for collecting the data. Construct validity and test retest reliability technique was applied to ensure the data collected is reliable and valid. Both content and descriptive statistics methods were use to analyze the data and presented in form of tabular summaries.

From the findings, the study concludes that price influences the choice of telecommunication network in Kenya. The study also concludes that network coverage influences the choice of telecommunication network in Kenya. The study further revealed that customer awareness affects the choice of telecommunication network in Kenya. The study also deduced that quality of service affect the choice of telecommunication network in Kenya. Since price promotions have been shown to be effective in customer attraction and retention, the study recommends that the companies should give the various offers and bonus more frequently to achieve a competitive edge.

Companies having the problems of clarity and congestion should address them in order to retain and attract more customers through word of mouth advertising. The players in the telecommunication industry should put more effort in educating the public about their products and services. Further, mobile operators should work to realize customer value, raise customer satisfaction, and consolidate customer loyalty to improve their business performance effectively.