CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study Sales promotion became an essential motivating factor in the area of marketing in an organization. Modern marketing is more than just producing goods, products, suitable pricing and easy access to them. Today, attracting new customers has become so important in modern marketing. All business need to communicate to the customer what they have to offer. Promotion refers to the motivational methods of getting the customers to purchase the product. According to Schultz et al (2012), promotion is referred to as “any communication used to inform, persuade and/or remind people about an organization” or individual’s goods service, image, ideas. Sales promotion consist of a variety of incentive tools, mostly short term, that are used to stimulate customer patronage. Schultz et al (2012) says that sales promotion generally works on a direct behavioural basis rather than affecting awareness or attitude. A sales promotion stimulates customer purchase. In order words, a sales promotion provide incentive or customers to purchase some specific products of Kilimanjaro. The purpose of a sales promotion is to attract new customers, maintain existing customer who are contemplating switching brands sales promotion vary, depending in the situation and need, and they have an immediate effect on product purchases.

Kilimanjaro’s restaurant is one of the leading restaurants in Uyo. It has many customers within the city of Uyo and visitors who use its products (food). Apart from the food service, it also offers conference rooms for meetings, meeting joints to watch DSTV channels, especially football and recreation for customers’ children, especially during public holidays. Sales promotion is used in a way that it matches those of the competitors (other fast food restaurants) or better still, a little bit higher than that of the competitors. Sales promotion is one of the most important ingredients of the marketing mix that any fast food organization should concentrate on to ensure it attracts more customers. Promotion activities plays a major role in determining the consumption of the product of Kilimanjaro since it determines customer patronage. This study therefore seeks to evaluate the effects of sales promotion of Kilimanjaro fast food restaurant, a broad company of De-United Ltd on consumer behaviour. The brand with its varieties of products such as chicken, suya, beef, has become a household name since the late 90s that even a child of 2 years of age could pronounce it so fluent amidst other competing brands like Mr. Biggs, Apples, Food Affairs and now the latest of them all, the Tantalizer. With these range of competing restaurants, massive advertising budget comes necessary for the brand, which the researcher tends to evaluate its effects on the behaviour and/or perception of the consumers.

1.2 Statement of the Problem It is true that consumers exhibit various attitudes and behaviour towards the patronage of product and services offered to them. Most fast food outlets are faced with the problem of customer patronage and competition. Consequently, many fast food outlets now attempt to stimulate customer’s patronage (sales, profit and customer traffic) by using sales promotional tools. According to Ansari (2011), organizations usually encounter problems such as low sales, low profit and low customer traffic. This has been attributed to the poor organization of sales promotional activities by Kilimanjaro fast food. This problem of low sales, low profit and low customer traffic has prompted most fast food outlets to use sales promotion. However, it has been observed over the years that Kilimanjaro does not employ the use of appropriate sales promotional tools and methods. To this end, there is need to investigate the effect of sales promotion on customer patronage.

1.3 Objectives of the Study The main objective of the study is to determine the effect of sales promotion on customer patronage of fast food outlets. Specifically, the study is designed to: Determine the effect of sales promotion on customer traffic. Determine the effect of sales promotion on profit. Determine the extent to which sales promotion influences sales volume.

1. 1. This material content is developed to serve as a GUIDE for students to conduct academic research work
2. 2. As a source for additional understanding of the subject.
3. 3. As a source for ideas for your own research work (if properly referenced).
4. 4. For PROPER paraphrasing (see your university definition of plagiarism and acceptable paraphrase)
5. 5. Direct citing (if referenced properly)
Thank you so much for your respect to the authors copyright.