Impact Of Self Service On The Performance Of Supermarkets
Impact Of Self Service On The Performance Of Supermarkets
Abstract
The purpose of this project is to examine the impacts of self service on the performance of supermarkets.
The study is divided into five chapters:
In chapter one the impacts was introduced and a narrative meaning of self service and other key elements included in the topic were discussed. It went further to state the problem to be studies and why this study was being carried out, that is the purpose, the significance of the study, scope of the study, the hypothesis to be tested and the Definition of terms.
Chapter two examined all other studies carried out on similar topic and their relevance to this study. There were mostly references, quotes adequate statements made by other authors who had handled similar topics.
Chapter three dealt with the major part of the project which involves the method used in collecting relevant data, research instrument used, the population and the sample size. It also dealt on how the questionnaire were distributed and treatment of data.
Chapter four dealt with the presentation, analysis and interpretation of data collected in chapter three, it also went further to test the hypothesis in chapter one.
Finally, in chapter five, a conclusion of the whole findings was drawn and appropriate recommendations made for possible implementation. However, this study was not done without lapses and on this very platform, suggestions and further studies were sort.
It as found that consumer have positive perception of self service; many of them prefer it because they use it as opportunity to select goods without interference. The study revealed that supermarkets that adopt self-services strategy perform better than their counterparts that do not adopt self service strategy.
I also made some recommendations in chapter five. Such recommendations. Were that supermarket operators should train their employees on areas like customer service and public relations. Supermarket operations should also improve on the ways they display their goods since attractive display attract consumers to make purchase.
Finally, I recommend that supermarket should be mare self service orientated since the advantages of this strategy has been shown.
Chapter One
Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
Before the contact with the colonial master, marketing especially in the Nigeria region was based on barter system. But today as society and business have become more dynamic and complex, the need for advanced marketing procedure has developed, supermarket inclusive.
The most popular orientation or philosophy that has pervaded thought and motivated decision and action among marketing people is the marketing concepts, simply put, according to the concept, the satisfaction of the consumer is the overriding goal of business. This put the consumer on a new pedestal that of a king, the center piece of all marketing activities. Most supermarkets use this concept in carrying out a research their supermarkets.
This project will look at how self service/consumer satisfaction affect the purchase of product in Cyril supermarket.
I will also examine whether the constant failure/closure of many supermarket in Nigeria has anything to do with lack of consumer satisfaction.
Another point of review is supermarket man in relation to economic factors such as high inflation, changing customer testes and preferences, buyer behaviour, server competition and hyper economic change in Nigeria.
In conjection with the above, those engaged in supermarket business have a lot of decisions to take in order to make a success in their business. They have to make sure that there is no gap left in the implementation of decision taken. Such decision include the type of product to stock, why they should be stocked and where should the store be located. Such decisions need general analysis of the stocks to be carried. This is why supermarket are not only a challenging business but also risky.
A supermarket that lacks behind the façade of these facts has itself to blame of eventually, a catastrophe emerges.
Thus, following the competitive nature of the supermarkets various marketing strategies are adopted to win the attention of customer self services inclusive.
Hence, the primary aim of this study is to look into the impacts of self service on the performance of supermarket.
1.2 Statement of Problem
Presently, the number of corporate supermarkets operating in Abakaliki metropolis has increased tremendously, but has it resulted to a more effective and efficient rendering of service to customers?
The underlying problem here is not just rendering of service but rendering them to make customers feel they are recognized.
Traditional, customers are known to shop in the supermarket where they are most convenient. The convenient is derived from wide range of goods displayed in the shop, which make it possible for the customer to have easy access to the goods he wants to buy.
A lot of challenges now face the corporate supermarkets to improve on their sales performance. One of such challenges is how well customers are being treated.
The problems encountered from self service include shrinkage and deterioration of product because of customers handling.
Survival of the fittest is now going on in corporate supermarket especially in Abakaliki urban. Were more supermarkets are spreading up and old ones expanding. For the fittest to survive they must employ those managements skill responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customers which are at the fore-front of the corporate thinking while the techniques permit the concept to be successfully implemented.
Recognizing the above attributes there exist some unsalted issues about self service in supermarkets.
These are:
- That self service is not only a determinant factor in attracting customer to a particular supermarket.
- That other marketing activities or services like low prices, discounts, delivery, guarantees, credit, display contribute more to sales volume than self service operations.
- That the general arrangement of supermarket scare some customers who prefer to shops in the local markets. The consistence of customers handling of product deteriorate the quality of such products.
Hence, it is very pertinent to carryout a research to verify how far the variables mentioned above affect self service strategy in supermarkets.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The objectives of this study are as follows:
- To find out whether customers actually prefer self service strategy to the traditional haggling system.
- To determine whether self service strategy leads to increase in sales volume.
- To determine whether supermarket perform better than shops that do not adopt self service strategy.
- To determine whether supermarket in Abakaliki offer the same dynamic service as the foreign ones.
1.4 Hypothesis
The following hypothesis will be tested.
- Ho: Consumers have no positive perception of self service offered by Cyril supermarket.
Hi: Consumers have positive perception of self service offered by Cyril supermarket. - Ho: Self service strategy adopted by Cyril supermarket does not impact positively on the sales volume of the shop.
Hi: Self service strategy adopted by Cyril supermarket impact positively on the sales volume of the shop.
1.5 Significance of the Study
It is a truism that in any field of human endeavour, improvement are achieved by learning about what people do, why they do them, with what impacts (negatively or positively) and if there is need for adjustment. The impact of self service on the sales performance of Cyril supermarket is no exception.
The findings of this study shall be useful in the successful marketing of goods and services by supermarkets that are involved.
The finding will also be of immense beneficial as a sources of knowledge to proprietors of supermarkets since not much work has been done in equating the amount of self service done in supermarket and the financial seduces achieve.
Usage of self service as a sales strategy has helped Cyril supermarket proprietors know to a certain extent the reasons behinds the rejection or acceptance of self service offered to their customers which ginger them towards satisfied or unsatisfied financial needs.
The benefit also extend to academicians and customers. The academicians will benefit because it will widen their horizon of knowledge regarding the motivating factors behind self service as the sales strategy of some particular supermarkets.
This study is a complex, multidimensional one. It will add to the existing stock of knowledge in administrative science and literature as regards self service in supermarkets to meet up with the trend of changes in marketing society.
The researcher reason for embarking on this study is to help managers to know areas where there is need for improvement on the performance of supermarket in Ebonyi state and equally suggest ways for improvement. It shall also spot high the benefit of self service in the performance of supermarket.
Moreover, the researcher will benefit immensely from embarking on the study due to the knowledge he will acquire from embarking in the project work.
1.6 Scope of the Study
The scope of this study is in all supermarket in Nigeria with Cyril supermarket as a case study.
1.7 Definition of Terms
The following terms used in this study should be taken to mean the following.
Marketing
Marketing is a societal process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating, offering and freely exchanging, products and service of value with others. (Kotler 2002: 9).
Product
A product is something that is viewed a being capable of satisfying needs and wants.
Services
Services is any act or performance that one party can offer to another that is essentially intangible and does not result in the ownership of anything. (Kotler 2002: 444).
Chapter Five
Summary of Findings, Recommendations and Conclusion
5.1 Summary of Findings
Through a careful systematic collection, recording analysis and reporting of data, contained in the various response of the consumers to whom the instrument applied on. Important revelation and observation has been made regarding the impact of self service on the sales performance of supermarket.
It has been reveal through analyzing questions in the questionnaire that consumers have positive perception of self service, the researcher found out that many customers prefer self service, because it enables them to examine merchandize before selection. More so, delay of customer at traffic are eliminated where there is self service oriented supermarket.
Through the analysis of question 4, 7 and 12 the researcher was able to determine the relationship between self service and sales volume. This relationship is positive because self service stores sell their products at special prices, which increased customers patronage resulting in increase in sales volume. The ability of self service stores to sell at special price is due to the fact that cost of employing workers to do the service for the customers are eliminated.
The relationship between self service and sales volume is most note from impulse buying, also the order and ease of purchase all add up to customers patronage.
Above all, the researcher could also maintain that it was due to these considerations that supermarket operating the self service strategy do better than those that do not. The finding was revealed through the very high percentage of supermarket operators who attested to this, the freedom to select goods from the store without interference, availability of variety goods, special prices and impulse buying all account for customer patronage. The result is high turnover and increase profitability which enhance the growth and survival of the supermarkets. Thus, customers self service has a relationship to the growth and survival of corporate supermarkets.
5.2 Recommendation
Since this study would be of immense benefit to marketing firms, supermarket operators, policy makers and other who might like to make use of this work for better formulation of policies in their organisation.
The writer wishes to make the following recommendations.
- Supermarket operators should identify the potential needs and wants of the buying, public and be able to use it as basic for formulating their merchandising strategies, like self service method, quality of commodities etc.
- Supermarket manager should recognizes the fact that consumers are kings and can buy from the supermarket or store, they feel they have met the conditions they want. So their policies should be flexible as to suit customers wants.
- Supermarket managers must develop comprehensive plan which would enable the store to complete and operate effectively in its environment.
- Supermarket managers should strive to portray a favourable image of their supermarkets and make it a point of duty to provide unique and qualitative service to suit customers purchasing habits.
- Corporate supermarket managers should train their employees on such areas as customers services, and also good public relation that will attract customers.
- Corporate supermarket managers should adopts proper display of their product on sale. This helps their customers to have easy access to the goods they want to buy
- Finally, I strongly recommend that all supermarket should be self service oriented because evidence has shown that supermarket operating self service are far better than those who do not.
5.3 Conclusion
What brings customers to supermarkets is actually to make purchase. Apart from other factors like high quality of goods, variety of items guarantees which are common to the consumers, self service strategy is still fairly now. Even where it is partially practiced, customers complain that they are still influence or not allowed to do their purchases by store operators.
From the finding made, it is obvious that no matter how illiterate the consumer may be in respect of purchase situation, he or she still want not to be influence in the buying process. Hence, customers want free choice of picking items from the variety goods displayed, moreover, the less they influenced the less consumer dissonance and the more satisfaction gained. But certainly, supermarket operators/employee believe that influencing the customers will make them buy more items or picking other items, if wanted items are not in the store.
Many store owners tend to forget the fact, that consumers dissonance is not good attribute to a particular shop or supermarket. Customers keep away from stores where such dissatisfaction arose from.
Thus, store keeper should keep away from customers when picking their items especially where self service strategy is practiced. They can only assist the customers only when they are needed.
This conclusion was drawn from the review of all the investigations and evidence collected through questionnaire and personal interview held.
5.4 Suggestion for Further Study
Due to the limitation listed in chapter one of this study the researcher could not conduct a more detailed and comprehensive study on this topic. Self service concept just like any other business concept adopted in Nigeria, still required buying system. Therefore, the researcher recommends a more detailed study. Therefore, the researcher recommends that a more detailed and comprehensive study be conducted on this topic.
How To Get The Complete Material For “Impact Of Self Service On The Performance Of Supermarkets“
The Complete Material Will Be Sent to Your Email Address After Payment
( Quick & Simple)
| FOR CLIENTS IN NIGERIA: |
| CLICK HERE TO MAKE PURCHASE (₦3,000) |
| FOR CLIENTS OUTSIDE NIGERIA: |
| CLICK HERE TO MAKE PURCHASE ($15) |
