EFFECTIVE APPLICATION OF MARKETING CONCEPT IN BANK SERVICE (A CASE STUDY OF COMMERCIAL BANK IN ENUGU)

CHAPTER ONEINTRODUCTION
1.1 GENERAL BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

As competition between businesses geared up, it become to turn attention to customers needs and wants which are naturally insatiable. The effectiveness-marketing concept arose to challenge all other previous concepts.

The marketing concept holds that the key to achieving organizations goals consists in determining needs and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfaction more effectively and efficiently than competitors. The marketing concept is a frame of mind the marketer works with. It is based on a market focus, customer orientation, coordinated marketing and profitability.

The marketing concept starts with a well defnd market. The organization determines who its market will be, who he hopes to satisfy, even after company can still fail at customers orientation. By customer’s orientation, the customer’s need is defined from the customer’s viewpoint and not from that of the company. Customer orientation seeks to crown the customer as king recognizing that he is the lifeblood of the organization, and aims at satisfying the desires of the consumers.

A Japanese’s business men once said that our aim goes beyond satisfying the customer, our aim is to delight the customer” in fact this is a higher standard and a deeper quest, and may be the secret of great marketers. Coordinated marketing answered that all the various marketing functions like advertising, marketing research sales force and so on are proper integrated and must be well coordinated with other departments in the company.

The major goal of most profit-oriented companies is to make profit. A company will make more money if it satisfies its customers need better than competitors. Therefore in applying effective marketing concept, companies would produce what they maximize profit.

Several authors have states the need for all business entities to adopt the marketing concept in their various activities. Most companies do not really grasp or embrace the drive to it by circumstances like sales dealing, slow growth, changing of buying patterns by customers, increasing competition and increase in market expenditure.

These companies have not arrived a full marketing maturity but think tha because they have a marketing concept from what is been seen and read today in the society, not all business organizations adopt the marketing concept for example, in the midst of scarcity, the customer is not the king rather it is the seller that is the king.

The emergence of banking service in Nigeria can be traced back to less than a 200 years ago. The activities of the transact corporation, the financial transaction of the colonial government, the declined of the batter system of trade and the increasing acceptance of British silver currency all these required an institution, in the form of a commercial bank for safety and transmission of funds, the importation and distrubution of British silver cons and trading compaiens who need them. These banks were out to make profit from interests got from the deposits made by customers, they never really thought of the customers as the lifeblood of the organization.

In the past, banks were operating in seller’s market, which made remarketing possible, but the environment is dynamic, such that if bank are to continue to prosper, they must adopt the change that are taking place in industry and commerce, so only the banks that are efficient and effective can satisfy customers. This in scarce and abundant economics alike, the real problem is not production, but marketing if only w accept the truth that mass marketing is a pre requisite for successful mass production. Marketing consideration than become the most critical factors in any business planning.

1.2 PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE STUDY.

In the past decades, the banking industry has witnessed many challenges with their numerous resultant problems, which included the structural adjustment programme (SAP) in 1985, the foreign exchange market (FEM) favoritism long delays in cashing cheques or making withdrawals, tardiness in granting loans and credits to unfriendly attitude of bank workers. Even government that own a sizable proportion of the shares in most banks is known to have constantly accused banks of not identifying enough with the nations aspirations. The chief of General Staff had cause to appeal to bankers to leave arm concept in carrying out banking activities. According to Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe, which said as early as 1943 that “ I was frustrated because of the shoddily of the way and manner the manager of the marina Brach of the bank of British West African Limited treated me with rebuff. Not only did he keep me standing in his office for some minutes, he was curt and condescending as if I was seeking for favour. Naturally, my pride was hurt and it downed on me that the struggle for Nigeria freedom had many fronts, and that political freedom must be won also “ most banks do not put customers in the prime place as they are supposed to be. There is now keen competition, and to complete means to apply effective marketing concept. Are these criticism justified, because they are making profit in an era of economic slump?

1.3 PROBLEM THAT THE STUDY WILL BE CONCERNED.

The problem that studies will be concerned with, based on the fact that there is lack of finance, time and material resources to see to the whole nation. This study is problem to Enugu State and the findings may not reflect the situation in the whole country. It is also problem to be educated customers of the commercial banks. These findings may not be valid for the whole banks in Nigeria but by and large, what happens in banks in Enugu State can be said to apply to other banks.

1.4 THE IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING THE AREA

It is hoped that the result of this would help to create and understand of the importance of marketing strategies to the successful operation of the banking industry, hence the complementing role of marketing and successful banking.

The result of the study would be useful in making bankers to understand that their customers are not interruptions to their work, rather, they are the purpose for it.

1.4 DEFINITION OF IMPORTANT TERMS

For the purpose of this study, the following terms used are defined and explained in order to lend clarity and to remove any ambiguity in the terms.

MARKETING

According to Mr. Adirkia E.O (1996 P3) Marketing as all-important set o creating human activity aided of identifying, anticipating and satisfying human need and want through exchange of efficiently and effectively and possible Kotler (1988,P.3) therefore define marketing as a social and managerial process by which individual and groups obtain what they want and need through creating and exchanging products and values with others.

BANKING

G.O Nwankow (1980, P.170) defines Banking, as dealing in debts and a banker is a dealer in debts.

BANKS

At one time, the simplest definition of commercial banks is a bank that accepts demand deposit in addition to time and savings depots and made all types of loans, business, commercial and mortgage loans to individuals.

BANKER

The stock in trade o any banker is money is debt therefore banks deal in debts.

MARKETING CONCEPT

According to Nwankwo G.O (1980 P 10) “ The marketing concept holds that the key to achieving organizational goals consists in determining the need and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfactions and effectively and effectively than competitors.

PRODUCT

A product is something that is viewed as being capable of satisfying needs or wants.

SERVICES

There are separately identifiable intangible activities, which provide want satisfaction when marketed to customers and industry users and which are not necessary tied to the sale of a product or another service.

It is becoming more difficult to separate products and services in our economy. Some people might even jump to an erroneous conclusion that there is no such thing as service marketing but only marketing which the service element is greater than the product element. It is true that we rarely find situations where services are whatsoever. According to J.M Raltmell, (1966, P.33) said “ most good require supporting service in order to be useful and most service require supporting good to be useful. But the practice of viewing the marketing of service using the frame work developed for goods has severally limited thinking concerning their make marketing.