Okan Veli afakli (Turkey)
A research on the basic motivational factors in consumer bank selection: evidence from Northern Cyprus
Abstract
Commercial banks need to identify the criteria on which potential customers determine their bank selection decision in order to plan an appropriate marketing strategy for keeping present customers and attracting new ones. The study focuses on examining bank selection criteria employed by customers residing in various cities of Northern Cyprus. The findings reveal that the chief factors determining customers’ bank selection are: “Service Quality and Efficiency”, “Bank Image”, “Convenient Location”, “Parking facilities”, “Financial factors” and “Affected opinion”. The findings also show that it may be necessary to deal with different demographic characteristics of respondents as distinctive segments with different priorities in their bank selection process.
Keywords: Northern Cyprus, bank selection, motivational factors. JEL Classification: G21.
Introduction Considerable amount of studies related to the factors effective in consumer bank selection is observed (Anderson et al., 1976; Evans, 1979; Kaynak and Yavas, 1985; Ross, 1989; Kazeh and Decker, 1993; Hegazi, 1995; Metawa and Almossawi, 1998). This information is essential for banks to identify the appropriate marketing strategies needed to attract new customers and retain existing ones (Kaynak and Kucukemiroglu, 1992). With growing competitiveness in the banking industry (Grady and Spencer, 1990), and similarity of services offered by banks (Holstius and Kaynak, 1995), it has become increasingly important that banks identify the factors that determine the basis upon which customers choose between providers of financial services. In this regard, the basic aim of the study is to research the basic motivational factors in consumer bank selection in Northern Cyprus. 1. Literature review The issue of bank selection
References: 1. Almossawi, M. (2001), “Bank Selection Criteria Employed by College Students in Bahrain: An Empirical Analysis”, International Journal of Bank Marketing, 19 (3), 115-125. 2. Anderson, W.T., Fox, E.P. and Fulcher, D.G. (1976), "Bank selection decision and market segmentation", Journal of Marketing, 40, 40-5. 3. Boyd, W.L., Leonard, M. and White, C. (1994), “Customer Preferences for Professional Services. An Analysis”, International Journal of Bank Marketing, 12 (1), 9-15. 4. Bowers, R. (1969), “Businesses, Households, and their banks”, Business Review, March, p. 18. 5. Coyle, T. (1999), “The bank of tomorrow”, Americans Community Banker, 8 (7), 16-18. 6. Driscoll, J. (1999), “Bank wars: episode 2. The branches strike back”, Bank Marketing, 8 (4), 25-35. 7. Dupuy, G.M. and Kehoe, W.S. (1976), “Comments on Bank Selection Decisions and Marketing Segmentation”, Journal of Marketing, 40 (4), 89-91. 8. Erol, C., Kaynak, E. and El-B dour Radi (1990), “Conventional and Islamic banks; patronage behavior of Jordanian customers”, International Journal of Banks Marketing, 8 (4), 25-35. 9. Evans, R.H. (1979), “Bank selection: it all depends on the situation”, Journal of Bank Research, 12, 243-9. 10. Fitts R.L. (1975), Predictors Of Usage Rates For Selected Commercial Bank Services: A Cross Sectional Approach Utilizing Socioeconomic, Demographic and Attitudinal Variables, unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Alabama. 11. George, D. and Mallery, P. (2001), SPSS For Windows, Third Edition, Allyn & Bacon/Pearson Education Company, USA. 12. Grady, B. and Spencer, H. (1990), Managing Commercial Banks, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliff, NJ. 13. Haron, S., Ahmed, N. and Plansiek, S. (1994). “Bank patronage factors of Muslim and non-Muslim customers”, International Journal of Bank Marketing, 12 (1), 32-40. 14. Hegazi, I.A. (1995). “An empirical comparative study between Islamic and conventional banks ' selection criteria in Egypt”, International Journal of Contemporary Management, 5 (3), 46-61. 15. Holstius, K. and Kaynak, E. (1995), “Retail banking in Nordic countries: the case of Finland”, International Journal of Bank Marketing, 13 (8), 10-20. 16. Javalgi, R.G., Armaco, R.L. and Hoseini, J.C. (1989), “Using the analytical hierarchy process for bank management: analysis of consumer selection decisions”, Journal of Business Research, 19, 33-49. 17. Jones, R., Nielsen, F.N. and Trayler, R.M. (2002), “The Bank Selection Process and Market Definition in Australia”, Journal of Financial Regulation and Compliance, 10 (1), 22-30. 18. Kaufman, G.G. (1967), A Survey of Business Firms and Households View of a Commercial Bank, Report to the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Appleton, University of Wisconsin, Madison,WI. 19. Kaynak, E. and Yavas, U. (1985), “Segmenting the banking market by account usage: an empirical investigation”. Journal of Professional Service Marketing, 1, 177-88. 20. Kaynak, E. and Kucukemiroglu, O. (1992), “Bank and product selection: Hong Kong”, International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. XIV, No. 4, Winter, pp. 92-3. 21. Khazeh, K. and Decker, D.H. (1992), “How Customers Choose Banks”, Journal of Retail Banking, 14 (14), 41-4. 22. Laroche, M., Resonblatt, J.A. and Managing, T. (1986), “Services used and factors considered important in selecting a bank: an investigation across diverse demographic segments”, International Journal of Bank Marketing, 4 (1), 35-55. 99 Banks and Bank Systems, Volume 2, Issue 4, 2007 23. Martenson, R. (1985), “Customer Choice Criteria in Retail Bank Selection”, International Journal of Bank Marketing, 3 (2), 64-75. 24. Sinkula, J.L. and Lawtor, L. (1988), “Bank Characteristics and Customer Bank Choice: How Important are Importance Measures”, Journal of Professional Services Marketing, 3 (3), 131-41. 25. Stafford, M.R. (1994), “How Customers Perceive Service Quality”, Journal of Retail Banking, 17 (2), Summer. 26. Tan, C.T. (1981), “A Study of Banking Selection Decisions in Singapore”, Unpublished Report, University of Singapore, p. 15. 27. Ying, L.C and Chua, A. (1989), “Customer Bank Selection: Bank Marketing Implication”, Malaysian Management Review, 24 (3), 55-67. 100