Exhibitors' perceptions of trade shows : a study of the Mauritian textile industry

"Although trade shows constitute a major portion of the marketing mix in the industrial market place, very little has been researched on their function In Industrial marketing. This study assessed the role of trade shows in the communication mix of textile companies, the extent to which firms engaged in pre-show, show and post-show activities, and exhibitors opinions on the organisation of trade shows. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire using face-to-face interviews. Exhibitors listed several advantages for trade show participation including the identification of new customers and the enhancement of company image and goodwill. Disadvantages included the high costs and the difficulty of quantifying results from trade shows that made executives uneasy about the large expenditures. Findings also revealed that the size of the firm did not influence objective-setting and the extent to which firms engaged in trade show activities. Overall, exhibitors need to take a market-orientated approach to their exhibition activities."--Cover

A study of service quality of stockbrokers in Mauritius : a multi-expectations framework

The stockbroking industry is a service-oriented industry where brokers act as agents for investors when a security is bought or sold and are compensated with a commission. Stockbrokerage houses have much to gain if they can understand investors' expectations since this would assist them in serving their clients better and build long-term relationships with them. This study aimed to develop a measure of service quality for the stockbrokerage industry. Data were collected from investors in Mauritius and findings revealed that the SERVQUAL scale needs to be modified for the stockbroking industry. The relationship between antecedents such as locus of control and investors' expertise, and desired and adequate service expectations were generally very strong. This study also ascertained the relationship between MSS, MSA and satisfaction

The implications of Facebook marketing for organizations

With the explosive popularity of Facebook as a social media, there has not been much research that examines Facebook marketing and its implications for businesses. This paper represents an exploratory effort into this direction and analyzed existing Facebook marketing practices and tools, their benefits, and concerns associated with this type of social media marketing. Practical implications were suggested for organizations using Facebook as a social marketing tool and areas for future research were identified

Understanding consumer behaviour : an evaluation of the degree of consumer ethnocentrism in Mauritius

"Mauritian consumers are being exposed more and more to foreign products and are now faced with a variety of buying choices. With the advent of globalisation, domestic and foreign firms need to investigate consumer behaviour in cross cultural/national settings. This study aimed at evaluating the degree of consumer ethnocentrism among Mauritian consumers and at understanding their perceptions towards imported products and domestic products. The CETSCALE instrument used to measure consumer ethnocentrism in the USA was examined in the Mauritian context to assess its validity. The study also investigated the influence of demographic and lifestyle variables on the level of consumer ethnocentrism and the impact of country of origin on several dimensions of the product, such as quality value for money, status and esteem among others. Data were collected through personal and telephone interviews. Findings revealed that the CETSCALE was applicable to Mauritius and that Mauritians were not highly ethnocentric."--cover

Country of origin attitudes in a developing country and implications for investment and trade

As a consequence of globalization and free trade, the Mauritian market is now flooded with foreign products. The purpose of this paper is to investigate consumer attitudes in Mauritius towards local and foreign products against a background of increasing prevalence of foreign products with different countries of origin. Two hundred and four consumers were interviewed over a two-month period through a structured questionnaire administered through personal and telephone interviews. Attitudes towards products categorised as domestically produced and foreign produced, which was further divided into developed and developing countries foreign products were measured by seven-point Likert scales. The findings revealed that the quality, design, branding, packaging, status and esteem, and value for money associated with developed countries foreign products and price and value for money associated with developing countries foreign products were perceived to be superior to local brands. These findings have serious implications for importers of foreign products, local manufacturers and potential investors in the Mauritian market

The implications of Facebook marketing for organisations

With the explosive popularity of Facebook as a social media, there has not been much research that examines Facebook marketing and its implications for businesses. This paper represents an exploratory effort into this direction and analyzes existing Facebook marketing practices and tools, their benefits, and concerns associated with this type of social media marketing. Practical implications are suggested for organizations using Facebook as a social marketing tool and areas for future research are identified

Assessing the service quality of banking technologies in Mauritius

In this era of intense competitive pressures, the banking sector has often been the subject of service quality assessment. However, service quality assessment of banking technologies in emerging economies is rare. Hence, the main aim of this study is to measure and analyse the service quality of banking technologies in Mauritius. The SERVQUAL instrument with five dimensions, namely tangibility, reliability, assurance, empathy and responsiveness, was used. The study reveals customers' expectations of service from banks across most of the dimensions, in particular, aspects relating to responsiveness and reliability dimensions

An overview of Australian green energy policies, barrier and strategic decisions for green energy marketing

Green Energy (GE) or Renewable Electricity (RE) generally means electricity generated from renewable sources such as wind, hydropower; bioenergy, solar, geothermal and biomass. This paper discusses the scenario of Australia’s RE sector, policies, barriers and marketing implications. The paper provides some background information about the Green Energy (GE) of Australia, which could potentially be useful for regulators, investors, academics, electricity companies, and Australian Government’s “Clean Energy Program”. This paper also describes a conceptual model for “Green Consumer Behaviour” and seeks to investigate these questions: what are the barriers of GE, and how government policy and marketing programs can promote the RE of Australia. The research methodology of this paper involves an analytical literature review and statistical information where data has been collected from secondary sources of Australian government energy reports and relevant departments. The barriers in production of RE consists of perceived technology; market operating mechanism, legal framework and the consumer market. Australian RE sector has contributed only to 8.9% of Australia’s electricity generation.The research states that electricity industry of Australia is the largest contributor of carbon emission, producing 38% of the total emission. The Australian Government has taken significant initiatives to confront environmental challenges of climate change, greenhouse gas emission and global warming by introducing two major schemes in the RE sector, the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) and the Renewable Energy Target (RET) scheme. GPE as an intangible product needs more marketing attention; it needs a social marketing approach focusing on consumer value creation, providing both monetary and non-monetary benefits to the potential green consumers

A critical analysis of e-assessment with particular emphasis on the use of different types of online quizzes

Assessment plays an important role in the learning process. The advent of information technology has considerably changed the education sector. This paper aims to evaluate online quizzes as an assessment tool in higher education by focusing on different modes of assessment. The evaluation is practice-focused: two courses with different modes of online quizzes were considered. One of the main arguments of the paper was that regular online assessed quizzes motivated students to study regularly although over-assessment could increase the stress level of students. Further research needs to be carried out to determine the degree of learning taking place with online quizzes as opposed to traditional methods