The Moderating Influence of Competitive Environment on the Relationship between Marketing Mix Strategies and Performance of Tour Firms in Kenya

Prof James M Njihia,Prof Francis N Kibera,Prof Justus M Munyoki,Muriithi R Ndegwa

doi:10.22158/ibes.v2n4p15

Abstract

This study examined the competitive environment’s moderating effect on the relationship between marketing mix strategies and tour firms’ performance in Kenya. The researcher adopted a descriptive research design and used a survey approach to collect pertinent data for analysis. The study population comprised all tour firms, both locally and foreign-registered, operating under the Kenya Association of Tour Operators (KATO) as of September 2019. Two hundred thirty-four tour firms were surveyed out of a population of 260 registered firms. Descriptive statistical and inferential analyses were conducted and regression analysis results were used to test the hypothesis. The study established a positive and significant moderating effect of Competitive Environment (CE) on the relationship between Marketing Mix Strategies (MMS) and the Organizational Performance (OP) of tour firms in Kenya. The study’s findings are significant to policymakers and stakeholders operating in the tourism industry.They accentuate the significance to tour firms in implementing the right kind of marketing mix strategies to maximize their organizational performance. The study recommends future studies in the same area be expanded to include other travel trade areas such as hoteliers and travel agencies. Such a study would increase the empirical knowledge in the subject matter while also extending the generalizability of the results.

Highlights

A competitive environment is an essential determinant of the marketing decision strategy to implement or standardize goods and services in global markets in attaining customer satisfaction
It was anchored on the Service Marketing Theory (SMT) supported by Marketing Mix Strategy Theory (MMST) and Competitive Environment Theory (CET)
The results further show that marketing mix strategies and competitive environment individually are significant in explaining organizational performance (t=12.443, p

Summary

Introduction

A competitive environment is an essential determinant of the marketing decision strategy to implement or standardize goods and services in global markets in attaining customer satisfaction. The current study examined the competitive environment’s moderating effect on the relationship between marketing mix strategies and organizational performance. Several empirical studies exist that focus on the moderating impact of the competitive environment on the relationship between marketing mix strategies and organizational performance. The study’s findings add to the extant literature on the competitive environment as an essential determinant of the marketing decision strategy to implement or standardize goods and services in global markets in attaining customer satisfaction. 51.7% of the collected and complete responses formed the surveyed firms’ representative sample size for further analysis The researcher used both inferential research and descriptive cross-sectional research designs at the data analysis stage, with hypothesis testing being done using regression analysis

Result

Findings

Discussion