تعیین شاخص های انتخاب بانک: مطالعه موردی بر روی دانشجویان دانشگاه غنا Determinants of Bank Selection: A Study of Undergraduate Students in the University of Ghana

Many companies in real business currently conform to service trends by shifting their business from goods to services [1]. With growing competitiveness in the banking industry [2,3], and similarity of services offered by banks [4], it has become increasingly important that banks identify the factors that determine the basis upon which customers choose between providers of financial services. Against this background, extant literature has addressed the issue of how customers select banks [3-8]. Exploring such information will help banks to identify the appropriate marketing strategies needed to attract new customers and retain existing ones [9]. Consequently, the relevant literature indicates that a great deal of research effort has been expended to investigate bank selection criteria for broad categories of customers [10]. Competition in the Banking industry has become fierce [2]. In Ghana this competition has intensified due to a number of factors. Chief among them is the passage of the universal banking law as reported by [11]. They observe that all types of banking can be conducted under a single corporate banking entity and this has greatly reorganized the competitive scopes of several banking products in Ghana. Prior to the 1990’s however, banks operated in a highly regulated and a non competitive environment in Ghana [12]. Also the influx of international banks (especially Nigerian Banks) onto the Ghanaian Banking scene over the last decade implies that the boundary of competition among banks in Ghana has further been extended. The number of commercial banks licensed to operate in Ghana increased from 16 with 277 branches (Ghana Review International report, 1999) in 1998 to 27 by June 2009 [4]. Hinson et al. note that an ever increasing branch network of over 600 branches for the 25 banks, the Ghanaian banking sector is a very competitive sector within which to operate [13]. The emergence of technology (telecommunications, ATM, mobile banking, electronic banking, credit cards, home banking) is another factor that is quickly changing the face of competition in the banking industry in the world [14,15]. Some scholars are of the view that the future determinant of competition in the banking industry in the world would be technology. Consumers have become more sophisticated in their demand for financial services [14]. How students choose banks they patronize has been given considerable attention in scholarly litera ture [13,16-23]. This has become necessary because students are seen as a large segment that meets the requirements for a successful implementation of market segmentation strategies. Lewis, in his work entitled “Student accounts—a profitable segment notes how profitable the student market segment has become [22]. Banks which are planning to cultivate this vibrant market segment must understand how individuals belonging to such a segment select their banks. The empirical data collection for this study draws on a case encompassing one empirical context—undergraduate students. We choose the undergraduate students because of the following reasons: The general student population in Ghana has constantly been growing for the last decade. This is evidence by the upsurge in the number of private universities throughout Ghana. There has been an expansion in the program offerings of some of these universities. Institute of Professional Studies (IPS) for instance is now offering degree courses in addition to the professional courses they are noted for. The current student population of University of Ghana is 29,754. www.ug.edu.gh. The sheer size of the student population on the University of Ghana Campus makes it ideal for segmentation. Secondly Students who do not have bank accounts would need one because students’ loans and bursaries are disbursed directly through student’s bank accounts [24]. Remittances from guardians can conveniently be received through one’s bank account also. Finally, those who are still studying and do not have bank accounts, will have one when they complete their education and start to work because almost all companies in Ghana pay salaries directly through employees bank accounts. In the wake of the intense competition in the Ghanaian Banking industry, banks in Ghana are beginning to see the student market as a huge prospect. A casual observation on the university of Ghana campus reveals a rise in the number of bank branches. HFC Bank, Ecobank and Cal Bank have joined the three existing banks (Barclays Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Ghana Commercial Bank). ATM services have also been provided by Cal Bank Limited, Ecobank, International Bank Limited; and several others. Despite the importance of student bank market segment, literature on which factors students consider in selecting a bank in West Africa in general and Ghana in particular is very scanty. As revealed by the literature, bulk of the studies on the criteria that students use in selecting a bank has North America, Europe and Asia origins. Out of the few scholars, Owusu-Frimpong, Hinson et al. and Blankson et al. appear to be the only researched work on the factors that determined bank selection among undergraduates in Ghana [12,13,16]. Even in the case of Blankson et al., their work was cross-national [16]. This paper aims to investigate bank selection criteria among undergraduate students in the University of Ghana. This study differs from previous studies because it will investigate how undergraduate students in the University of Ghana select a bank. We will find out to what extent our findings are in agreement with other studies.