PRICING STRATEGIES AND MARKETING PERFORMANCE OF THREE STAR HOTELS IN PORT HARCOURT

Abstract

This study investigated pricing strategies and marketing performance of three star hotels in Port Harcourt. The study adopted descriptive survey research design. The population of the study comprised entire 19 registered three star hotels in Port Harcourt, and census study carried out. Three research questions and three hypotheses guided the study. Questionnaire was the major instrument in data collection validated by two marketing experts, with reliability index of 0.89. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the hypotheses tested using Karl Pearson product moment correlation statistics with the aid of SPSS version 21.In course of the study, it was found and held that there is significant relationship between skimming price and customer retention of three star hotels in Port Harcourt. There is significant relationship between penetration pricing and market share of three star hotels in Port Harcourt. There is significant relationship between parity pricing and sales volume of three star hotels in Port Harcourt. Consequently, the study recommended among others that  business organizations, irrespective of it0.s category, should seek for the expertise of notable marketers or marketing firms when trying to determine the price or value of products, this is important as the marketers has better understanding of the nature of the market or consumers of such product. It takes expertise to know when to apply skimming or penetration pricing as the case may be. It is strongly recommended that business owners, hoteliers in particular with marketing skills should periodically review their pricing strategy, and most importantly considers the nature of the products, its target market and the competitors when determining price.