The study reports the impact of relationship marketing on customer loyalty in the luxury and first-class hotel industry. A questionnaire derived from the literature review was completed by 300 customers of luxury and first-class hotels in Ghana. Descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, and multiple regression were used to test the impact of six key relationship marketing practices, namely competence, commitment, conflict handling, trust, communication, and relational bonds on customer loyalty. The findings suggest that all six relationship-marketing practices have a significant and positive effect on customer loyalty in the hotel industry in Ghana. Apart from extending knowledge on relationship marketing practices into a domain without much empirical work, the study also provides hotel managers with practical ways of implementing relationship-marketing strategies for achieving customer loyalty in Ghana.
Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to examine how corporate social responsibility is incorporated into marketing strategy for a leading telecommunications firm (MTN) in Ghana. The paper examines the corporate social responsibility practices of this firm by focussing on various dimensions of stakeholder interests, norms and values. Design/methodology/approach -A conceptual framework was adopted from the extant literature and used as the basis for the single case study analysis. The authors interviewed senior management of the company and also analysed corporate social responsibility (CSR) information posted on the company's website. Findings -MTN has a strong commitment to social responsibility programmes. A separate independent unit, dubbed, "MTN Foundation", has been established with its own Board of Directors and management team to manage CSR-related programmes. However, there seems to be lack of coordination of activities of other departments such as marketing and human resources which are of equal interest to major stakeholders. Again, in an effort to identify stakeholders' interests, there appears to be a lack of a proactive approach in examining the actual needs of prospective beneficiaries of CSR programmes of the company. Originality/value -The paper serves as a guide to managers in the planning and implementation of social responsibility programmes within the context of developing countries and also adds to the relatively parsimonious literature on CSR practices of firms operating in Africa.
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