The Role of Positioning in The Retail Banking Industry of Sub-Saharan Africa

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The role of positioning in the retail banking industry of Sub-Saharan Africa
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DOI: 10.1108/IJBM-04-2016-0055
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The role of positioning in the retail banking industry of Sub-Saharan Africa
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Retail banking
The role of positioning in industry of
the retail banking industry Sub-Saharan
Africa
of Sub-Saharan Africa
Charles Blankson and Seth Ketron 685
Department of Marketing and Logistics, University of North Texas,
Received 25 April 2016
Denton, Texas, USA, and Revised 13 August 2016

Joseph Darmoe 3 October 2016
22 October 2016
GIMPA Business School, Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, Accepted 28 November 2016
Achimota, Ghana
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate employment of positioning strategies in the
retail bank sector of Sub-Saharan Africa, specifically using Ghana as the study context. In addition,
it explores the applicability of western-based typology of positioning strategies in the Sub-Saharan
African environment.
Design/methodology/approach – Six retail banks – three national and three foreign – are studied,
each through an in-depth case study method: covert and participant observation techniques; and face-to-face
interviews of chief executive officers, marketing managers, and bank branch managers provided data for
the study.
Findings – The results show that the “service” positioning strategy is the most popular strategy employed
by retail banks. “Value for money,” “attractiveness,” “brand name,” and “country of origin” positioning
strategies are also dominant. “Top of the range” and “selectivity” strategies are minimally pursued by the
sample of banks studied. The results reveal that both foreign and national retail banks employ multiple
positioning strategies in the face of competition. However, foreign retail banks consistently employ a;
large number of strategies relative to national retail banks. This paper supports the applicability of a
western-derived set of positioning strategies in the Sub-Saharan African marketplace.
Research limitations/implications – This study closes a gap in the understanding of positioning, as well
as filling the empirical gap in the application of positioning. In addition, it helps resolve a contextual gap of
knowledge in Sub-Saharan Africa’s retail banking sector.
Originality/value – This study responds to Porter (1996), Clancy and Trout (2002), and Knox (2004) for
continued empirical research in positioning in service industries and specifically in Sub-Saharan African
economies (Coffie, 2014, 2016; Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014). Moreover, this research adds value to the
banking and marketing literatures through a qualitative case study method, which is an important yet
overlooked research method (Yin, 2009).
Keywords Ghana, Retail banking, Sub-Saharan Africa, Positioning strategies, Qualitative case study research
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
The emerging Sub-Saharan African business environment is different from 20 years ago, as
several countries, specifically Ghana, have liberalized their markets. Furthermore, open
economies are paving the way for unprecedented competition among banks, especially retail
banks of both foreign and national origins. The result of Ghana’s market liberalization has
also brought a buyer’s economy, wherein banks and companies compete for customers’
patronage, loyalty, preferences, conception of value, and positive perceptions of offerings
(Owusu-Frimpong, 2008; Narteh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2011; Coffie, 2016; Coffie and
Owusu-Frimpong, 2014). Increasingly, competitive advantage lies in the ability of
International Journal of Bank
companies to provide offerings that are competitively positioned in the marketplace. To that Marketing
end, managerial efforts aimed at establishing, maintaining, or reframing market “positions” Vol. 35 No. 4, 2017
pp. 685-713
for offerings form the most critical strategic marketing actions performed in modern © Emerald Publishing Limited
0265-2323
marketing management (Coffie, 2016). DOI 10.1108/IJBM-04-2016-0055
IJBM Retail banks’ marketing practices continue to draw interest from both marketing scholars
35,4 and practitioners. Several recent works have investigated retail banks’ marketing activities
with a focus on Sub-Saharan African markets, specifically the Ghanaian retail bank
environment (Narteh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2011; Hinson et al., 2009, 2010; Lensink and
Hermes, 2004; Fung et al., 2002; Mmieh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2004; Biekpe, 2011; Baba, 2012).
In the growing climate of globalization (increased competition, growing customer
686 sophistication and demands, and deregulation in the banking industry) in Sub-Saharan
African countries, both national and foreign retail banks coexist.
Positioning provides a unique competitive edge for a company, while making it
difficult for competitors to copy a company’s offerings positioning strategy (Ries and
Trout, 1986; Porter, 1996; Knox, 2004; Fuchs and Diamantopoulos, 2010). In addition, a
unique position in the marketplace reduces customers’ switching habits. Hence, to be
successful in business regardless of the regional or national market in which a positioning
strategy is formulated or executed, the fundamentals of positioning remain relevant
(McGoldrick and Ho, 1992; Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014). In other words, firms must
be skilled in positioning their offerings.
First, the main aim of this exploratory study is to investigate the employment of
positioning strategies in the retail bank sector in Sub-Saharan Africa using Ghana as the
study context. Second, the aim of this paper is to explore the applicability of a western-
developed typology of positioning strategy in the Sub-Saharan African environment. This
paper contributes to the marketing literature by studying an untapped, yet potentially
viable context for testing the concept of positioning. The scant knowledge on positioning
activities of retail banks in Ghana is particularly critical for international marketing
research (Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014).
While several marketing scholars have investigated retail banks in Sub-Saharan Africa
and Ghana in particular (Narteh and Kuada, 2014; Narteh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2011;
Baba, 2012; Hinson et al., 2010, 2012), marketing scholars have overlooked the role of
positioning among retail banks’ deliberations in the Ghanaian retail bank domain. These
gaps in literature have given the impetus for this study.
A review of the literature on banking in Ghana and other emerging countries reveals a
few key themes (see Table I). Table I shows that several works examined the role of
customers’ bank selection criteria and satisfaction (Abor, 2014; Hinson et al., 2009, 2013;
Blankson et al., 2009; Narteh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2011; Saunders et al., 2007). Another set
of works investigated international expansion, including foreign bank entry and
multinational strategies (Mmieh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2004; Vu et al., 2015; Focarelli and
Pozzolo, 2001; Lensink and Hermes, 2004; Claessens et al., 2001; Venzin et al., 2008; Fung
et al., 2002; Guillen and Tschoegl, 2000; Acheampong, 2013). Other research has focused on
competition, strategy, and performance (Biekpe, 2011; Leon, 2016; Rambo, 2013; Berrios,
2013; Baba, 2012; Hinson et al., 2012) without exploring positioning strategy. Additionally, a
few papers have examined governance and organization (Cerutti et al., 2007; Rambo, 2013;
Mordi et al., 2013) as well as economic influences (Alhassan et al., 2014). These works have
spanned a variety of research methods, from qualitative interviews and case studies, to
surveys and secondary data. Samples among both consumers and managers constitute the
data sets across this array of research.
Despite the multiplicity of domains represented in the literature, prior works have
overlooked the role of positioning strategies of banks. Positioning is vital against successful
competition (Porter, 1996; Hooley et al., 2001; Coffie, 2016), and should be studied in
emerging economies to understand how positioning strategies are contributing to bank
performance and image. Moreover, positioning research has not sufficiently documented
observable evidence comparing positioning strategies of national and foreign retail banks in
Sub-Saharan African environment. This leaves both scholars and practitioners with
Method of Method and

study/Study tool of
Author(s) Objective/Research question setting Sample/Variables analysis Findings/Conclusions
Abor (2014) To evaluate the perceptions of banking Interviews; Ghanaian banks with at Descriptive New electronic delivery channels have
unpublished customers regarding the effect of surveys; Ghana least one form of IT channel analysis facilitated banking growth in Ghana.
paper technological innovations on banking (1,210 returned, 60.5% ATMs and branch networks are the most
services in Ghana response rate) popular electronic delivery channel for
banking in Ghana, followed by PC banking,
EFTPOS and telephone banking. Most
Ghanaian consumers visit physical branch
locations and highly value interaction with
human tellers
Hinson et al. To understand the key motivations for Surveys; 22 retail banks; 2,000 Logistic Proximity and accessibility are most
(2009), IJBM maintaining accounts with banks in respect Ghana respondents; random regression important to Ghanaian banking consumers,
of Ghanaian bank customers sampling modeling while recommendations from friends are least
important. The findings do not support the
importance of WOM in a banking context
Biekpe (2011), To investigate the degree of bank Secondary Commercial banks; 119 Modeling; Findings suggest a non-competitive market
ADR competition and intermediation efficiency data; Ghana observations regression structure in the Ghanaian banking system,
in Ghana which hampers financial intermediation;
Ghanaian banks are monopolistically
competitive; the structure of the market along
with other characteristics arguably hamper
increased profitability in Ghanaian banking;
greater consolidation would improve
efficiency, competition, and profitability
Blankson To establish if there are any significant Focus group; Students (40 in focus group, Structural Four key factors emerged: convenience,
et al. (2009), differences and/or similarities in students’ survey; USA all USA; 99 in survey, 54 equation competence, recommendation by parents,
TIBR selection of retail banks in developed and and Ghana from USA and 45 from modeling and free banking/no bank charges; these
developing economies Ghana); convenience are consistent across both countries.
sampling These findings suggest that
retail bank strategies should be
standardized across all economic
development stages
(continued )
Sub-Saharan
Retail banking
687
Africa
industry of
dealing with
Table I.
international banking
A sample of studies
35,4
688
IJBM
Table I.
study/Study tool of
Mmieh and To examine Ghana’s experience in Secondary Reports from World Bank Descriptive The Structural Adjustment Program (SAP)
Owusu- attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) data; Ghana and Ghana Investment analysis; has had some degree of success in Ghana as
Frimpong Promotion Centre qualitative evidenced by several factors, including
(2004), TIBR review lower inflation, promotion of financial
stability, elimination of licensing
requirement, opening of previously closed
sectors, etc. Several challenges still remain
that are hampering FDI in Ghana, so these
challenges should be addressed
Alhassan To examine the factors that account for the Secondary 25 Ghanaian banks Generalized Persistence of non-performing loans, loan
et al. (2014), deterioration in the asset quality of data; Ghana method of growth, bank market structure, bank size,
RDF Ghanaian banks during a period of moments inflation, real exchange
financial crises estimations rate, and GDP growth are the significant
(modeling) determinants of banks asset quality in
Ghana
Vu et al. To investigate the contract terms of local vs Secondary Two databases (Dealscan Modeling; Findings support the home market
(2015), IRFA foreign bank lead loan syndications to test data; Australia and Dealogic), 1992-2010; t-tests; OLS advantage, with domestic banks as
two opposing theories: home market final sample ¼ 305 informationally superior to foreign rivals.
advantage and the hold-up problem Further, loans from domestic banks have
lower interest rates, longer maturities, and
lower likelihood of requiring collateral
Leon (2016), To investigate how bank competition has Secondary Banking Commission Modeling Competition has intensified since the mid-
RIBF evolved in Africa following the recent data; 7 African reports; 92 banks/610 2000s, corresponding to rapid expansion of
penetration and expansion of regional countries observations African banking organizations and relative
cross-border banks over the past decade decline of European bank organizations in
Africa. Overall, regional bank expansion is
deemed beneficial for the economies of
African countries
(continued )

study/Study tool of
Focarelli and To study the pattern of cross-border M&As Secondary 2,500 banks from 29 OECD Modeling Banks with cross-border shareholdings
Pozzolo in the banking industry relative to the non- data; OECD countries are on average larger, more profitable, and
(2001), JBF financial sector of the economy; to investigate countries based in countries with a more highly
which factors make a bank more likely to developed banking market; bank size
expand its activities abroad is a key determinant of the decision to
expand abroad
Cerutti et al. To examine the factors influencing Secondary Top 100 banking Modeling Organizational form is influenced by
(2007), JBF international banks’ organizational form in data; Latin institutions by size taxes, regulations, and market strategy.
Latin America and Eastern Europe. America and Specifically, branches are more likely to
Eastern appear in higher tax, lower bank-related
Europe regulation countries, while subsidiaries
are favored when banks seek market
penetration. Additionally, risk
(economic and political) influences
organizational form
Lensink and To investigate the short-term effects of Secondary Domestic and foreign banks Modeling At lower levels of economic development,
Hermes foreign bank entry on the behavior of the data; 48 foreign bank entry is generally associated
(2004), JBF domestic banking sector countries with higher costs and margins for domestic
banks. At higher levels of economic
development, the effects are less clear:
foreign bank entry is either associated with
a fall of costs, profits, and margins of
domestic banks or is not associated with
changes in these variables
Claessens To examine the extent and effect of foreign Secondary 7,900 observations from Modeling Foreign banks have higher profits than
et al. (2001), presence in domestic banking markets, data; 80 domestic and foreign banks domestic banks in developing countries; the
JBF with specific focus on how net interest countries opposite is the case for developed countries.
margins, overhead, taxes paid, and Higher numbers of foreign banks appear to
profitability differ between foreign and lower profitability and margins for
domestic banks domestic banks
(continued )
Sub-Saharan
Retail banking
689
Africa
industry of
Table I.
35,4
690
IJBM
Table I.
study/Study tool of
Venzin et al. To explore and discuss the underlying Qualitative; Five banks Qualitative The multinationality-performance (M-P)
(2008), MIR reasons that variant nature of the secondary analysis; relationship varies significantly depending
relationship between multinationality and data; Europe descriptive on banks’ strategic decisions regarding
firm performance in the context of service analysis branch network configurations, product
firms. portfolios, branding strategies,
organizational architecture, and social
networks. This means that generalization
of the M-P relationship across multiple
firms is difficult and prone to error
Fung et al. To examine the internationalization of the Case study National Australia Bank Conceptual NAB pursues a unique strategy compared
(2002), National Australia Bank (NAB); to discuss (NAB) discussion; to other MNBs. Namely, NAB focuses on
JIFMIM NAB’s motives and strategies in the context literature retail (vs wholesale) banking and shares the
of the competitive environment and in review lessons it has learned across its
conjunction with those that the literature on international operations
multinational banking identifies and that
other multinational banks evince
Guillen and To describe the aggressive pursuit of Case study Santander, Banco Bilbao Conceptual The examined banks are exhibiting asset-
Tschoegl acquisition strategies of major Spanish Vizcaya, and Banco Central discussion seeking, asset-exploiting, and oligopolistic
(2000), TC banks in Latin America and to see if foreign Hispano behaviors, thus posing no serious challenge
direct investment (FDI) theory predicts to established theories of foreign direct
these behaviors investment
Rambo (2013), To empirically link the Capital Markets Secondary 16 commercial banks One-way Listed and unlisted commercial banks were
IJBFR Authority’s (CMA) Guidelines to reduction data; Kenya ANOVA significantly different in terms of board
of the proportion of non-performing loans size, proportion of executive and non-
executive directors, gender composition,
cost of board maintenance, composition of
audit committees, frequency of financial
disclosures, and financial performance
(continued )

study/Study tool of
Acheampong To empirically examine the effects of Secondary Two commercial banks Modeling Foreign bank entry bolstered domestic banks’
(2013), IJBFR foreign bank entry on the financial data; Ghana (MBG and GCB) ROA; liquidity amplified domestic bank ROA.
performance of Merchant Bank Ghana Overall, foreign banks have no detrimental
Limited (MBG) and Ghana Commercial effect on Ghanaian domestic banks
Bank Limited (GCB) in Ghana from 1975
to 2008
Berrios To study the relationship between bank Secondary 40 banks Modeling Less prudent lending and net interest
(2013), IJBFR credit risk and financial performance and data; USA margin are negatively related. Additionally,
the contribution of risky lending to lower insider holdings and longer CEO tenure are
bank profitability and liquidity negatively related to bank performance
Baba (2012), To distinguish three innovation types Survey; Ghana Single bank, 51 managers Regression Focus on adopting a specific innovation type
IJBM (services, technological process, and seems to contribute more to performance
administrative process) and make than adopting bundles of different types of
suggestions for banks on whether to focus innovation. Focus on administrative process
innovation efforts on a specific type of innovation tends to lead to higher growth in
composition of different types in order to market share compared to combining
optimize returns to innovation administrative with services or technological
process innovation
Narteh and To offer deeper insight into bank selection Mixed methods 223 students Mean ranking; Students consider image, attitude, and
Owusu- of Ghanaian students in order to offer bank (qualitative/ factor behavior of staff, core service delivery, and
Frimpong managers the opportunity to tailor-measure quantitative analysis technology-related factors as the major
(2011), IJBM programs aimed at attracting and retaining surveys); issues that influence consumers’ decision to
customers Ghana open and maintain an account
Hinson et al. To examine the dialogic communications Qualitative Websites of 27 banks Content Banks in Ghana have been fairly successful
(2012), IJBM potential of bank websites in Ghana (Ghana) analysis in creating websites with high dialogic
value, with over half the banks sampled
scoring on more than half of all the dialogic
principles (dialogic loop, ease of use,
usefulness, and conservation of visitors).
Most banks scored poorly on the principle of
return visit
(continued )
Sub-Saharan
Retail banking
691
Africa
industry of
Table I.
35,4
692
IJBM
Table I.
study/Study tool of
Hinson et al. To investigate bank selection criteria Qualitative 12 University of Ghana Qualitative Convenience, bank staff-customer relations,
(2013), JSSM among undergraduate students in the group undergraduates analysis and banking services/financial benefits are
University of Ghana and to relate the study interviews the first three most important determining
with previous findings on the same (Ghana) factors. Happiness, joyfulness,
phenomenon cheerfulness, and delight are feelings
derived after a banking service, while
sadness, anger, and deceit are avoided
Mordi et al. To present exploratory research of Qualitative 102 middle-line managers Content There is diversity in terms of how middle-
(2013), TIBR managers’ perspective of the concept of interviews from 20 banks analysis line managers understand and experience
work-life balance policies and practices in (Nigeria) WLB initiatives in Nigeria. Favoritism does
Nigeria exist in WLB initiatives in most banks.
Culture sensitivity influences perceptions
and utilization of WLB
Saunders To provide an understanding of the Mixed methods Pilot study in informal Mean The majority of consumers did have a bank
et al. (2007), banking needs of urban informal poor (qualitative settlement outside ranking/ account, and there was a significant
JSM consumers in South Africa interviews/ Johannesburg; survey rating, factor association between having an account and
quantitative among 200 households with analysis, various demographics such as income level,
survey) 188 responses cluster employment status, and level of education
analysis
insufficient evidence of positioning and its influence. For foreign banks and national banks Retail banking
seeking to start or expand operations in these markets, information on positioning industry of
strategies of current banks’ positioning activities would assist managers in implementing Sub-Saharan
positioning strategies within their own banks. Further, with an investigation into banking
in a Sub-Saharan African country, scholars would have greater insight into how banks in Africa
Sub-Saharan African countries position themselves in the marketplace. These gaps in the
literature constitute the motivation and contributions of the present study. 693
Positioning activities are implicitly or explicitly concerned with managers’ attempts to
modify the tangible characteristics, and the intangible perceptions, associated with a
marketable offering in relation to the competition (Arnott, 1992). Successful positioning

requires managers to understand their target customers’ preferences and their perceptions
of competitors’ offerings in order to make decisions on attributes important to customers
(Coffie, 2016). In their seminal writing, Ries and Trout (1986, p. 2) concluded that
“positioning starts with the product. A piece of merchandize, a service, a company, an
institution, or even a person.” The authors argue that positioning is not what is done to
the product/service, but rather what is done to the mind of the customer. They emphasize
the communication/advertising elements of positioning. However, a single, universally
accepted definition of positioning has yet to emerge.
The lack of clear definition has allowed various terms to be associated with the concept.
However, Arnott (1992) suggests that the various terminologies are merely “several sides of
the same coin” and complement each other. Arnott (1992, pp. 111-114) formally defines
positioning as “the deliberate, proactive, iterative process of defining, modifying and
monitoring consumer perceptions of a marketable offering.” Arnott’s definition is adopted
for this study because it is conceptual, strategic, and operational in nature. Further, Arnott
posits that the application of positioning involves certain related activities – namely,
defining the dimensions of a particular perceptual space that adequately represents the
target market’s perceptions, measuring offerings’ locations within that space, and
modifying actual characteristics of the offering and perceptions of the target market via a
marketing communications strategy. Hence, the positioning process can be described as an
iterative strategy that requires deliberate and proactive involvement of the marketer. These
activities are relevant regardless of the national or international market for which or within
which a positioning strategy is formulated or executed (Ries and Trout, 1986). Despite the
importance that positioning plays in international marketing practice and research
(McGoldrick and Ho, 1992; Coffie, 2016), retail banks’ positioning activities in the
Sub-Saharan African region remains under-researched (see Yang et al., 2006, p. 609). This is
unfortunate as this circumstance, especially in the case of Ghana, is likely exacerbated by
the lack of insight into the actual day-to-day positioning deliberations of retail banks when
they attempt to position themselves or their offerings in the marketplace. Indeed, in the
prevailing Ghanaian deregulated and competitive retail bank environment where foreign
banks are competing with national banks and rural populations now have access to rural
retail bank products, a greater understanding of how positioning strategies are pursued by
retail banks should prove useful for bank managers and marketing researchers.
While positioning research is rather extensive (e.g. Bingne et al., 2000; Suzuki, 2000;
Miles and Mangold, 2005; Fuchs and Diamantopoulos, 2012), unfortunately, the easily
overlooked innate views of managers’ deliberations in the course of their application of their
companies’ positioning strategies and actual companies’ day-to-day positioning activities in
the marketplace appear to be missing in the literature despite the call for such studies
(Hooley et al., 2004; Fuchs and Diamantopoulos, 2012).
Four major contributions to the retail bank and positioning literatures are established
in this study. First, although exploratory in nature, this is the first documented
examination of the role of positioning in the retail bank industry in Ghana. To that extent,
IJBM the concomitant examination of managerial views and their purported positioning
35,4 deliberations and authors’ observation of banks’ day-to-day positioning activities should
generate theoretical and practical value for researchers and practitioners currently
engaged (or considering engagement) in assessing the role of positioning in Ghana
(Coffie, 2016; Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014). Second, this research is an attempt to
enhance the generalizability of a western-derived set of positioning strategies in a Sub-
694 Saharan African marketplace. The latter is in response to calls for more empirical research
in positioning by firms operating in Ghana’s post-Structural Adjustment Program (SAP)
market environment (Kuada and Buatsi, 2005; Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014).
The results of this research add to ongoing discussion related to the efficacy of western-
derived marketing strategy and business practices of firms in Sub-Saharan African
economies (Dadzie et al., 1988; Kuada and Buatsi, 2005). Moreover, this study is the first to
document the application of positioning strategies in the banking sector in Ghana, one of
the fastest developing open-market economies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Third, this paper
reports the differential operationalization of positioning strategies by various retail banks
in Ghana. This is important in that the complex and dysfunctional environment
characterizing marketing practices in Sub-Saharan African countries and Ghana in
particular is best understood by evaluating bank-specific positioning strategies
(Coffie, 2014, 2016; Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014). Fourth, this paper responds to
researchers calling for the use of case study approaches in positioning research
(Lewin and Johnston, 1997; Miles and Mangold, 2005; Yin, 2009).
The Ghanaian banking sector

Since 1983, the banking sector in Ghana has been witnessing significant reforms following
the IMF and World Bank sponsored SAP. To that end, in 1988, the Bank of Ghana (Central
Bank of Ghana) embarked on the Financial Sector Structural Adjustment Program (FSSAP)
policy to improve the performance of the banking sector. Owusu-Frimpong (2008) writes
that the FSSAP policy has contributed to the survival of the banking sector, providing
regulatory framework and restructuring financially distressed banks through diffusion of
capital and management expertise. In 2006, the Bank of Ghana de-regularized the banking
system by abolishing its three-tiered structure of commercial, development, and merchant
banks and replaced it with a universal banking system, allowing banks to operate in all
sectors of the economy. In addition, the Bank of Ghana set the end of 2012 as the cut-off
period for all banks to have the minimum capital requirements of $60 million. In the same
year, in 2012, the Bank of Ghana abolished the secondary reserves requirement of 15 percent
for all banks, leading to the release of resources for lending to individuals and businesses
(Narteh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2011). Retail banks in Ghana continue to witness impressive
growth in assets, liabilities, and returns on investment relative to other countries in
Sub-Saharan Africa (Hinson et al., 2009; Baba, 2012).
Following the establishment of Ghana’s stock market in 1989 and deregulation of the
banking sector, there has been an influx of foreign banks from the Sub-Saharan African region
and Asia, increasing capital injection into the sector. As a result, the Bank of Ghana has
recently embarked upon measures aimed at minimizing risk exposure and enhancing efficiency
of banks. Some of these measures include creating a credit reference bureau, introducing a
check codeline clearing system, and raising the minimum capital base (Baba, 2012).
Ghana’s financial industry is one of the most developed in Sub-Saharan Africa and is
composed of banks and non-bank financial institutions, or NBFIs (Nair and Fissha, 2010).
The banking sector has grown significantly, accounting for 27 banks with 656 bank
branches (Ghana Banking Survey, 2009). Despite the increasing growth of the sector
between 2008 and 2012, the year 2013 was characterized as one of Ghana’s banking
industry’s difficult years compared to the past decade due to slowdown in deposit
mobilization, threats posed by government, and non-traditional banking sources such as Retail banking
savings and loans companies and other finance houses (Ghana Banking Survey, 2014). industry of
The NBFIs include 17 savings companies, 13 savings and loans companies, 4 leasing Sub-Saharan
companies, 1 discount house, and 1 mortgage company. Many of these institutions provide
services in urban and peri-urban areas and are concentrated in the Greater Accra, Ashanti, Africa
and Eastern regions (Nair and Fissha, 2010).
The growth in national and foreign-owned banks alike has obviously augmented 695
competition in the banking sector, where banks’ competitive positioning activities are now
pivotal to survival in the marketplace (Coffie, 2016; Mmieh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2004;
Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014). Retail bank positioning activities include development
of innovative banking products to attract the growing Ghanaian middle class, expatriate,
and Ghanaian overseas residents. Some of these innovative products include introduction
of cashless and zero-balance accounts, higher education accounts, funeral support
accounts, foreign accounts, overdraft, and savings accounts. The Standard Chartered
Bank, for example, has recently been positioning itself as a leader in the marketplace by
tailoring innovative products geared toward the general population, middle class,
expatriate, and overseas resident Ghanaians. These products include the “dream account,”
“my dream account,” “money builder account,” “premium current account,” “fixed deposit
account,” and the “diva” account which is targeted to female customers (see Standard
Chartered Bank, 2016). The “diva” account provides discounts from selected partner
locations including grocery stores, furniture stores, health spas, hospitals, jewelry shops,
laundry services, and automobile companies. The “diva” account is characterized by a free
first check book, free quarterly statements, high interest rates on deposits, and no
minimum account operating balance. Likewise, Barclays Bank offers “prestige banking,”
while Ghana Commercial Bank offers “royal banking” accounts (Narteh and
Owusu-Frimpong, 2011). Notwithstanding the innovations in the marketplace,
the prevailing high lending rates and unfavorable macro-economic environment
continue to limit expansion and growth of the sector (Ghana Banking Survey, 2014)
to the extent that only two million (10 percent) of bankable customers actually operate
in the banking sector (Narteh and Owusu-Frimpong, 2011). The latter highlights
the potential role that positioning may play in not only achieving competitive advantages
in the marketplace but also increasing market share and customer loyalty (Coffie and
Owusu-Frimpong, 2014; Coffie, 2016).
Research background
The growing competitive nature of retail banks, deregulation, and customer sophistication
around the world have resulted in companies’ pursuit of strategies not solely based on
operational efficiencies and on stable and predictable customer markets (Porter, 1996,
2001; Zahay and Griffin, 2010). Rather, even companies with the strongest of brands
are challenged to generate sufficient competitive advantages in order to remain
competitive and superior among their rivals (Clancy and Trout, 2002; Porter, 2008).
To achieve such competitive superiority, Matthyssens et al. (2009) suggest that in
addition to a company’s appealing offering(s), the company must possess a distinct
and difficult-to-imitate position in the minds of consumers/customers (i.e. reflecting
favorable perceptions) which complements its offering(s) (i.e. product(s), service(s),
or brand(s)). Using strategies and tactics to affect the mind of the customer in favor of a
company’s offering is the core of the domain of positioning – the act of designing the
company’s offering(s) and brand image to occupy a distinct place in the minds of
the target market (Kotler, 2000).
A review of the literature reveals concern and apprehension among managers due to
not only the absence of empirically based positioning strategies capable of serving as
IJBM benchmarks in the positioning of offerings but also the lack of research emanating
35,4 from in-depth examination of managerial positioning practices (Hooley et al., 2004).
For retail bank marketers, intangibility of products creates difficulties in customers’
minds (de Chernatony and Segal-Horn, 2001). Retail bank marketers must therefore rely
on emotional cues in advertising, “higher end” ambience on their banks’ premises, loyalty
programs, or personalized customer attention in their attempts to create unique offerings.
696 Zimmerman (2007) writes that upscale retailers Barneys New York and Nordstrom now
employ concierges at their highest profile branches to address their more sophisticated
customers’ needs. Reserving seats at the best restaurants or arranging admission to the
“hottest” clubs is now regarded as an accepted customer service by these retailers

(Zimmerman, 2007). In this respect, these service companies are following the lead of the
fashionable Harrods store in London, where retailing is considered “theater” and where
customers are accustomed to not only top quality merchandize but also memorable
shopping experiences. Thus, as competition in the services domain (e.g. the retail bank
sector) increases, coupled with challenges in the positioning of bank products
(Coffie, 2014; Hinson et al., 2010), the subject of positioning in the retail bank sector
presents an important and timely research task consistent with the call for such research
by Hinson (2011), Narteh and Owusu-Frimpong (2011), and Narteh and Kuada (2014).
These are important gaps in the literature that further underline the inspiration for this
paper. To that end, adding to the meager research stream documenting the positioning
strategies pursued by actual retail banks in Sub-Saharan African countries
and specifically, in Ghana (see Coffie, 2014, 2016), this study responds to Coffie and
Owusu-Frimpong (2014) and Coffie (2016), who suggest that future researchers should
examine positioning strategies of firms in Ghana.
Fuchs and Diamantopoulos (2010, 2012) note that the capability of building a
defensible market position is a key element of a firm’s marketing activities (see also Porter,
1996). Kirca et al. (2005) address this, writing that market orientation enhances customer
satisfaction and loyalty because of the fact that market-oriented firms are well positioned
to anticipate customer needs and consequently are able to offer competitive offerings.
While the role of market orientation in firm deliberations is now well documented, the
same cannot be said about firms’ positioning strategies and firms’ positioning activities
(Fuchs and Diamantopoulos, 2012). The latter is important because competitive
positioning advantages are often derived from a company’s day-to-day activities and
the employment of positioning strategies (Coffie, 2014; Suzuki, 2000).
Hooley et al. (2001) found that superior performance is associated with more distinctive,
generally high-quality positioning activities. Hooley et al. (1999) also found that product
positioning and company brand reputation are associated with firm performance and that
clear competitive positioning also contributes to explaining firm performance, albeit, in the
case of the latter, “the contribution is not strong” (p. 274). Moreover, Suzuki (2000) found that
positioning has a significant effect on airline profit and that the effect is characterized by
high-quality, high-price positioning strategy rather than a low-quality, low-price strategy.
In support of Suzuki’s findings, Miles and Mangold (2005) concluded that there is an
association between positioning and firm success in the marketplace through an “employee
branding” positioning strategy. Despite the assertions about the role of positioning
strategies in firms’ marketing activities and performance, as mentioned earlier, surprisingly,
not many empirical studies in positioning in Sub-Saharan Africa exist (Coffie, 2014, 2016).
This is unfortunate in an age of a rapidly growing Ghanaian marketplace that is
characterized by competition between national and foreign companies; the exposure of
customers to the influx of foreign offerings; growing advertising activities and marketing
appeals of both national and foreign companies; an expanding expatriate community; a
growing middle class; and frequent visits by overseas resident Ghanaians.
Research questions Retail banking
On the basis of the gaps in the literature and using the Ghanaian retail bank domain as the industry of
context, we seek to address three research questions: Sub-Saharan
RQ1. What positioning strategies do retail banks employ? Africa
RQ2. What are the differences between national and foreign retail banks’ positioning
strategies? 697
RQ3. Are western-derived typologies of positioning strategies applicable in a
Sub-Saharan African context?
For the purposes of this paper, “retail banks” denotes commercial banks within the banking
sector. Retail banks, banks, and firms are used interchangeably throughout the paper.
Methodology
Sample background
Although the remit of this paper is centered on six case studies, there is no ideal number of cases
for research. In fact, any number between four and ten cases is acceptable (see Perry, 1998).
Both national and foreign banks were selected based on a convenience sampling approach and
were specifically used to illustrate the pursuit of positioning strategies. In order to protect the
anonymity of the banks studied, we assign “L” to represent local banks (i.e. national bank) and
“F” for foreign banks. The six banks include three local and three foreign origins. Hence, L1, L2,
and L3 represent the local banks while F1, F2, and F3 are the foreign banks. All six banks
had branches in all ten regions of Ghana. In line with Suzuki (2000) and de Chernatony and
Cottam (2009), the assumption was that bank branch offices’ overall positioning activities
emanated from directions and guidelines from corporate headquarters (see also Coffie, 2016;
Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong, 2014).
Pilot study. Prior to the main study, a pilot study was conducted with a Local Insurance
Company (hereafter LIC), to test the typology of positioning strategies adopted for the
study. LIC was incorporated about 15 years ago under the Companies Code of 1963 (Act 179)
and licensed by the National Insurance Commission to provide composite insurance
services. LIC has over ten branches and several agencies across the country.
Main study. L1 Bank is a wholly owned Ghanaian bank authorized to undertake a broad
range of banking services. L1 Bank now operates close to 20 branches across Ghana.
The bank’s primary focus is to provide a comprehensive range of banking and financial
products and service to personal customers, small and medium enterprises, and corporate
clients. The bank has received several banking awards for its continued quality service to
its clients.
L2 Bank is one of Ghana’s premier banking and financial institutions serving
individual consumers, small and medium size businesses, and large corporations with a
full range of banking, investment, asset management, and other risk management
products and services. L2 Bank conducts its business based on five uncompromising
positioning principles: integrity, excellence, service with a passion, exceeding client
expectations, and community service.
L3 Bank is a mini central bank in Ghana for rural and community banks. L3 Bank is
financed mainly through the Rural Financial Services Project (RFSP). The RFSP is a
Government of Ghana policy project aimed at holistically addressing the operational
bottlenecks of the rural financial sector with the aim of broadening and deepening financial
intermediation in rural areas.
F1 Bank is one of the oldest banks in Ghana and a wholly owned subsidiary of a
European bank. F1 Bank has an extensive retail and corporate banking network in Ghana,
IJBM composed of over 50 branches, several agencies, and local business centers. Additionally,
35,4 F1 Bank has more than 100 ATMs spread across 90 locations in Ghana. F1 Bank also offers
local business banking products and services to small- and medium-scale enterprises
(SMEs) and national businesses.
F2 Bank has been operating in Ghana well before the independence of Ghana in 1956.
The bank is 70 percent owned by its European bank and the remainder of the stock is
698 owned locally and traded on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The bank has more than
20 branches and located in the ten regions of the country.
F3 Bank was incorporated recently as a privately owned foreign bank. The bank is
licensed to carry out universal banking services.
Data collection
In order to appreciate banks’ positioning strategies as depicted in their marketing and
business practices (Coffie, 2016; Fuchs and Diamantopoulos, 2012), for each bank, we
embarked upon covert and participant observation techniques (Dubois and Gadde, 2002)
and face-to-face interviews. Specifically, we actively (yet incognito) observed positioning
activities encompassing customer service, bank premises ambience, promotional materials,
windows, target audience(s) served, and brand names as depicted in banks’ websites (see also
Brady and Cronin, 2001). We observed mannerisms and interactions of bank employees
and managers with customers and also spent time with customer service staff in participant
observations fashion. We also examined the layout, attractiveness, and cleanliness of the
premises, including the façade of the building, window displays, and overall ambience.
Additionally, we examined the external environment immediately surrounding the firms.
The covert observation and participant observations took place among banks that
were situated on the University of Ghana, Legon campus; the Ghana Institute of Management
and Public Administration (GIMPA) campus; and the surrounding areas around President
John Evans Atta Mills High Street and Accra Central Business District. This multiphase
qualitative design (face-to-face interviews and covert and participant observations) method
permitted a better understanding of day-to-day positioning activities ( Jarratt and Fayed, 2001;
Dubois and Gadde, 2002).
Additionally, for each bank, at least one senior manager was interviewed (see also Lewin
and Johnston, 1997; de Chernatony and Cottam, 2009). The managers were approached after
personal introduction by the interview teams through foot-in-the-door technique
and snowball approach. An incentive in the form of copies of the final manuscript was
promised the managers. The face-to-face interviews lasted between 40 and 45 minutes for all
firms and took place in natural, non-contrived settings. Following the approach of Blankson
and Omar (2002), the interviews were based on an open-ended question format where the
discussion was allowed to develop naturally with the interviewer ensuring that the areas
under discussion (i.e. positioning practices) were covered. Specifically, managers discussed
their positioning activities and marketing practices (i.e. product, price, promotion, place/
distribution, people, process, and physical evidence, product development, customer service,
customer perceptions, ambience of the premises, attractiveness of website, professionalism
of staff, advertisements, and promotions). In the case of bank branches, managers discussed
positioning activities in light of and consistent with instructions from corporate
headquarters (Suzuki, 2000; Miles and Mangold, 2005; Juga et al., 2008; Coffie, 2014).
Managers also gave their opinions about how their banks fared in terms of market share
and profitability compared to their competitors.
In line with de Chernatony and Cottam (2009) and Brady and Cronin (2001), the
managers’ responses were juxtaposed, inductively, with Blankson and Kalafatis’s (2004)
typology of positioning strategies to determine the specific strategy employed by a
firm. The typology was adapted for its popularity and replications in extant literature
(see Diwan, 2016; Blankson and Strutton, 2011). The interviews were all recorded with Retail banking
permission. Interview notes and recordings helped in the use of inductive reasoning industry of
during the decision on which strategies were actually pursued by the banks (see also Sub-Saharan
Jarratt and Fayed, 2001; Dubois and Gadde, 2002).
Consistent with Wang and Wallendorf (2006), for credit in end-of-semester class projects, Africa
trained MBA students at the GIMPA undertook the face-to-face interviews while the first
author accompanied the students during the observation tours. The first author is a faculty 699
member at a university in the USA who spent his sabbatical leave at GIMPA between
July 2012 and January 2013.
Measurement construct
Review of the literature reveals that some of the earliest and most cited typologies of
positioning (e.g. Aaker and Shansby, 1982; Wind, 1982) are conceptual. This is also the
case with some of the typologies proposed in the literature (e.g. Hooley et al., 1998).
Meanwhile, empirically based typologies (e.g. Crawford, 1985) reflect mainly
organizational practices as exhibited in advertisements. Due to the criticisms leveled
against extant typologies because of the absence of empirically derived, consumer-
generated positioning strategies (Kalafatis et al., 2000; Aaker and Shansby, 1982;
Crawford, 1985; Ries and Trout, 1986), this study borrowed an a priori empirically based
generic (i.e. appropriate for services and goods) typology of positioning strategies
(see Table AI) as backdrop for the interview questions (see also Eisenhardt, 1989).
Thus, this typology served as the measurement instrument for the determination of
positioning strategies in this study.
The rationale for adopting this generic typology of positioning strategies stems from the
fact that the typology has been successfully applied in corporate environments
(i.e. positioning purported to be pursued by managers). As noted earlier, in line with
Jarratt and Fayed (2001) and de Chernatony and Cottam (2009), we relied on inductive
reasoning to decipher the positioning strategies used, guided by Blankson and Kalafatis’s
(2004) typology of positioning strategies. Our approach has precedence as evidenced in
Arnott’s (1992) and Coffie’s (2014, 2016) research into employment of positioning strategies
in the services industry.
Validity and reliability

Bearing in mind the suggestions offered by Douglas and Craig (2006), we adopted
the typology developed in the UK after validation tests in Ghana and prior to the present
research. Specifically, the validation tests involved assessment of the properties
and meaning underpinning the typology in all sectors of industries in Ghana (i.e. services,
manufacturing, and not-for-profit). The latter was carried out through face-to-face
long interviews with a convenience sample of 45 executives who were undertaking
MBA marketing classes at two business schools in Accra, Ghana. We offered extra
credit as an incentive for participating in the face-to-face interviews to all participating
students. The latter approach is consistent with Si and Bruton (2005), who conducted
50 face-to-face interviews in China with foreign and local international joint ventures in a
pilot study prior to adopting an extant framework for their main research.
Additionally, in view of the subjective nature of the study, three experts (i.e. academics
with expertise in qualitative research and the subject area) were given copies of the
draft version of the findings of the paper for their critical review and comments.
Their suggestions were subsequently incorporated into the construct. In addition, per
Sweeney and Chew’s (2002) method and Dubois and Gadde’s (2002) suggestions, three types
of tests (see Table II) were conducted to establish reliability and validity.
IJBM Test Case study tactic How the tactic was fulfilled
35,4
Construct Use extant typology of Combined appreciation of literature review on the concept of
validity positioning strategy positioning and positioning strategies with validation tests in all
industry sectors in Ghana
Systematic combining Continuously assessed the interface between the concept of
positioning (theory) and the empirical findings from interviews
700 and observation. This was achieved by having three academic
experts review drafts of the paper
Internal Pattern matching Checked to see if inferences made by researchers are airtight, via
validity member check

Reliability Use case study protocol Documented procedures including on the steps and measures
Table II. taken throughout the data collection and analysis. In addition, all
Reliability and ideas and thoughts pertinent to the study were noted for review
validity of case and revision if necessary
study approach Sources: Adapted from Sweeney and Chew (2002, p. 30) and Dubois and Gadde (2002, pp. 555-559)
Results
Consistent with practices established in the literature ( Jarratt and Fayed, 2001; Liu et al.,
2004; de Chernatony and Cottam, 2009) and suggestions put forward by Dubois and
Gadde (2002), this section discusses the results of the face-to-face interviews and then
indicates the pertinent positioning strategies pursued by the sampled banks. In addition,
managers’ comments regarding their views about their banks’ performance following
the pursuit of the positioning strategies are identified using inductive reasoning
(de Chernatony and Cottam, 2009). The research showed that managers offered several
indicators of employment of positioning strategies and gave impressions about their
actions and the role of positioning in their day-to-day business activities. Similar to
Goodwin et al. (1997) and de Chernatony and Cottam (2009), the managers discussed these
activities in pragmatic ways. To reiterate, local firms are assigned with “L” while foreign
firms are denoted with “F” in order to ensure anonymity.
Pilot study
Positioning strategies used by LIC. Until recently, the LIC underwrote insurance policies for
general clientele but has changed this approach to provide comprehensive insurance to
clients within the middle- and high-income brackets in order to service customers who are
more likely than lower-income consumers to understand and appreciate LIC’s offerings.
This indicates a “top of the range” strategy. Further, the firm also has a strategy of focusing
on businesses with high-class risk, because many insurance companies do not venture into
high-risk ventures.
Additionally, LIC positions itself as providing “convenience to people,” which is the core
of the positioning strategy. The motivation for pursuing this strategy is that the firm works
with both staff and customers who, when given the necessary convenience, will in turn
respond well to the firm’s offerings. Through this convenience strategy, the firm has
extended working hours from the standard to 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Mondays through
Fridays and 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturdays. This permits customers to visit the firm
across a wider range of time and reduces unnecessary urgency. As part of this convenience
strategy, the firm also provides walk-in service for clients, who only need to call for a
designated staff to attend to their needs. Overall, these findings indicate a “service” strategy.
Customer focus is also a positioning strategy of LIC. The firm has set up its business
satisfaction and client retention unit with the responsibility of satisfying the needs of
customers. Further, LIC cuts down processing times of customer claims, offers tailored
services to satisfy the needs of customers, and increases limits of authorization for branches Retail banking
to pay higher-valued claims to avoid waiting for a central office. LIC has a database and industry of
networking systems to contact customers and invite them to special events, such as dinners Sub-Saharan
for networking and socialization. Through this system, LIC keeps customers updated on
premium payments, new service offers, birthdays, etc. These deliberations reveal “service” Africa
and “reliability” positioning strategies intended to strengthen relationships with customers.
The positioning strategies are not achieved without challenges, which include increased 701
debtor ratio, lack of logistical support to run systems, and staff stress. However, the
implemented strategies have led to positive outcomes, such as reduced claims risk and
minimum client complaints.
Main study
The pilot study allowed for appreciating the typology of positioning strategies in a financial
services environment and was successful in revealing evidence of positioning strategies
within that environment. Thus, the pilot study paved the way for the main study, which
utilized the same method as that applied in the pilot study. The six retail banks’ positioning
activities are discussed in turn.
Case 1: positioning strategies pursued at L1 Bank. L1 (i.e. local retail bank number one)
pursues a mission to provide the best value for customers; to create an excellent working
environment for their employees’ development and growth; to enhance shareholder
“value for money;” and to be socially responsive to the communities in which the firm
operates. Aside from the mission, L1 Bank’s shared values include flexibility (minimal
bureaucracy to allow for adaptation to changing needs), caring (customer delight and
“personalized service”), vibrancy (energetic and ingenuous), team orientation (the will to win
and oneness of purpose), and “value for money.”
An interview with a branch manager revealed that the marketing strategies adopted by
the bank are in line with its marketing mantra, “caring for you.” The bank has positioned
itself to gain customers through differentiated, tailored customer products and services.
Sponsorship of and donations to events and programs such as the Joy FM Easter
Soup Kitchen, the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, the Ghana Football Association, and
underprivileged community members through interpersonal relationship management and
mass media communications all lead to the firm’s brand positioning by strategically
positioning themselves in both consumer and corporate markets.
Customer perception of the “brand” is of much importance to the entire staff of the bank
as stated by the marketing manager. This brings out the best in the staff to present the
bank as caring. This is achieved through the bank’s corporate social responsibility as well
as the personalized style of customer service. The delivery of “customer service” is
measured through mystery shopping and the use of cameras. Suggestion boxes are also
placed at every L1 Bank branch to generate feedback from customers, enabling
measurement of customer perceptions. The bank has won several “customer service”
awards over the years.
L1 Bank believes that the customer is the reason why organizations thrive; therefore, the
bank is centered on the customer. Although the customer service department exists to
coordinate customer activities, in general, every staff member is a customer service person
because the bank is a customer service-oriented bank, according to the marketing manager.
The bank strives to reinforce its customer-oriented strategy by attracting and retaining
employees who are among the best in customer service.
The bank believes that competition is important for organizations to thrive and that the
competitor is important as a benchmark for improving firm offerings. Thus, even though
the customer is a priority, competitors are also their concern. This indicates that both the
IJBM competitor and the customer aid the company in its strategic positioning to increase
35,4 market share and maximize profitability. L1 Bank’s ultimate aim is to move from its current
second-tier ranking to a first tier bank.
Another strategy used by the bank is the provision of “advisory services” to their
customers. This is an uncommon area in the banking industry because customers are
assumed to know their needs when patronizing banks. The reason for this advisory strategy
702 is due to one of the target markets, which, as stated previously is SMEs, which often need a
lot of financial advice. This strategy has resonated strongly with customers and is helping
the firm gain more market share in this segment.
Case 2: positioning strategies employed by L2 Bank. The interviews reveal that L2 Bank
strives for customer satisfaction and brand name recognition, with positioning strategies
based upon these two objectives. The firm focuses on quality to address the needs of
various customer groups and seeks to expand its customer base. From the marketing
manager’s point of view, the firm leans toward “service.” Therefore, many of the service
sub-positioning strategies involving impressive service, personal attention, and friendly
service are cardinal in the firm’s primary positioning activities. This is consistent with the
banking domain (Coffie, 2014). In addition, the manager emphasized personal attention
and friendly service.
The bank’s offerings are reasonably priced compared to competitors in the industry; this
is intended as a strategy to meet the needs of customers across the market (“value for
money”). A majority of the bank’s customers are quite satisfied with current service
offerings as noted by a branch manager. However, the manger revealed that some
customers in the lower-income bracket are not satisfied with the firm’s offerings.
All managers interviewed stated that the marketplace is challenging in expanding services
to the lower-income target audiences due to the recent bank’s repositioning of services to
appeal to higher income groups. Managers acknowledged the need to continue to remedy
this incongruent positioning perception to prevent customer dissatisfaction and switching
to competitors. As narrated by the CEO, over time, the firm may decide to remedy this issue
by focusing solely on the high end of the market (“top of the range” strategy) or pursuing an
exclusive strategy steering away from lower-income target markets (i.e. “selectivity”).
Our observation showed the environment of the bank to be elegant and attractive.
According to the managers, the “attractiveness” strategy is one reason why customers
patronize the bank. The bank is local in origin and owned by local shareholders. This gives
the customers a sense of belongingness as customers of a locally owned bank. That sense of
nationalism highlights the bank’s “country of origin” strategy and gives the bank a
competitive advantage in the industry (see also D’Astous and Boujbel, 2007) especially for
the high-income target audiences. L2 uses its strong sense of customer care, branding, and
excellent service as core elements of its positioning strategy. In summary, the interviews
with the managers at L2 Bank revealed the employment of the following positioning
strategies: “service,” “value for money,” “attractiveness,” “the brand name,” “country of
origin,” “selectivity,” and “top of the range.”
Case 3: positioning strategies used at L3 Bank. The interviews with managers of L3 Bank
revealed that the firm uses a mass market positioning approach to deliver quality and
effective services to clients in rural communities. The firm’s main reason for this is its goal
which is to expand the customer base to include high-end customers, and this will lead to
increased profitability for the firm, as well as lower-end customers. Civil servants compose
the high-end customer group. In accordance with an “attractiveness” positioning strategy,
the offices are elegantly designed to attract businesses from the community. The bank also
adopts a “value for money” strategy in doing business as offerings are moderately priced
and geared for the mass market.
Case 4: positioning strategies undertaken at F1 Bank. The parent of F1 Bank (i.e. foreign Retail banking
retail bank number one) is a major European multinational bank, a major global financial industry of
services provider engaged in retail banking, credit cards, corporate banking, investment
banking, wealth management, and investment management services, with an extensive
Sub-Saharan
international presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia. With over 300 years of Africa
experience and expertise in banking, the parent bank of F1 Bank operates in over
50 countries and employs approximately 144,000 people. The parent bank moves, lends, 703
invests, and protects money for over 48 million customers and clients worldwide.
The interview was held with the head of marketing at the bank’s headquarters.
He claimed that F1 Bank derives its positioning strategies from the objectives of the bank.
The bank’s objectives are to help individuals, companies, and national economies in
achieving their purposes, and to achieve this end the bank adopts positioning strategies that
correlate with these objectives. The bank is rated among the top-tier banks in Ghana.
F1 Bank positions itself as a large bank with European origin and global status.
F1 Bank’s approach to positioning has shifted over the last four years and is now positioned
more toward the middle to high-income and high net worth customers in the retail banking
division. F1 Bank offers a wide range of corporate, retail, and treasury products and services
targeted particularly at businesses and corporate clients while extending personal products
and services to individual customers. F1 Bank also offers local business banking products
and services to SMEs.
F1 Bank communicates directly with individuals and companies in their target markets
(i.e. direct customer communication and convenience banking). The bank is innovative in
communicating through channels that are now easy and accessible to customers, using
more fluid methods of interacting with customers through certain channels. The difference
between F1 Bank and its competitors is that it does not use mass advertising; rather, the
bank is more tactical in marketing communications by using modern technology such as
SMS alerts, e-banking, mobile banking, and internet banking.
Another strategy employed by the bank is offering products and services which are
relevant, flexible, and acceptable while treating each customer as an individual, thereby
giving services a personal touch. The widespread network of Visa ATMs across the country
serves customers, and as such, customers do not necessarily have to enter bank offices to be
served, minimizing queuing times and pressure on bank staff. This makes the bank unique
and positions the firm as convenient to customers. The queues characteristic of traditional
bank lobbies in Ghana have been reduced drastically, allowing staff to serve customers
more efficiently.
Because of the need to position the bank as the “go to bank” in the minds of customers,
one important strategy F1 Bank has adopted is embedding the marketing concept in the
entire company. Both the front line staff as well as the support staff (operations) understand
the strategies outlined above, and their activities are aligned with the overall positioning
strategy encompassing “country of origin,” “service,” “top of the range,” “reliability,” and
“selectivity.” No one department is therefore responsible for satisfying the customer – that is
a company-wide responsibility.
F1 Bank gathers information monthly from competitors to stay informed regarding what
the competition is doing differently, especially in terms of pricing, product delivery, and
offerings; this intelligence is gained mainly through product teams. These data help the
bank to be alert and emerge with innovative ideas to keep them ahead of the competition.
Case 5: positioning strategies employed by F2 Bank. The interviews revealed that F2 Bank
is motivated toward profit and brand name recognition, and their positioning strategies
are based upon these two objectives. F2 Bank’s positioning strategies, from the CEO’s
point of view, lean toward “service” and “brand name.” To that end, many of the service
IJBM sub-positioning strategies outlined in Table I (impressive service, personal attention,
35,4 friendly service, considering people/customers as important) underpin the bank’s primary
positioning activities. Obviously, the “service” positioning strategy is important in the
service industry (de Chernatony and Cottam, 2009).
During our interviews, the CEO and the marketing manager mentioned the
“attractiveness” positioning strategy emphasizing the ambience of their branches.
704 The company also pursues the “country of origin” positioning strategy. F2 Bank wants
its staff and stakeholders to feel an international connection and as a result, through its
diversity and inclusion policy, trains most of its staff abroad with the view of importing
international standards and international products to the Ghanaian market. This was
evidenced in the marketing manager’s comment that “I am an international graduate with
rich international experience in product management.”
F2 Bank also employs the “value for money” and “reliability” positioning strategies as
discussed by the CEO who said that “our services are reasonably priced, and our systems
are reliable, making our customers satisfied with our services.” The bank’s “reliability”
positioning strategy through its rigorous Operational Risk Management and Assurance
Framework manages all risk issues in the bank.
Overall, the statements from the managers underline F2 Bank’s positioning strategies of
“service,” “attractiveness,” “value for money,” “branding,” “country of origin,” and
“reliability.” The managers agree that customer experience and affordability are what
brings customers back to the branches and that, over time, this has helped to improve
customer perceptions and increase profitability over the past decade.
Case 6: positioning strategies pursued at F3 Bank. According to a branch manager
interviewed, positioning is not done to the product; rather, positioning is done to the
consumer’s mind through various communications. He mentioned that “because of
the intangibility of services rendered in the banking industry, perceptions play a greater role
in assessing quality.” That said, the analysis of the interviews revealed that F3 Bank uses
multiple positioning strategies to maximize profit and market share and also to gain
competitive advantage in the industry. F3 Bank employs “service,” “value for money,”
“country of origin,” and “attractiveness” positioning strategies to gain competitive
advantage in the banking industry.
Dominant in F3 Bank’s strategies is the focus on maximizing profit through excellent,
high-quality service. An interview with a marketing manager indicated that the bank is
looking for improvement in customer relationships and loyalty. The key to this approach
is to determine satisfaction levels. This allows a stronger targeted approach to investing in
service quality, because the firm is able to invest in areas that can deliver the greatest return
on investment. According to the marketing manager and the branch manager, this can only
be achieved when particular attention is paid to the customer.
Another strategy F3 Bank uses is to target the upper class target market, suggesting
“top of the range” and “selectivity” strategies. However, as indicated in the responses of the
bank’s managers, the bank’s services are reasonably priced, which is characteristic of a
“value for money” strategy. Considering the bank’s target market, the firm also focuses on
the ambience of the bank at its branches, ensuring an atmosphere of elegance, beauty, and
serenity (i.e. an “attractiveness” strategy). F3 Bank also uses a “country of origin”
positioning strategy, as evidenced by the marketing manager’s statement: “F3 Bank is
foreign with local employees, thus helping to reduce the unemployment rate in the country.”
Despite the bank’s pursuit of these positioning activities, the managers revealed that F3
Bank has low performance relative to competing banks. The managers attribute the low
performance to the firm’s recent entry to the Ghanaian marketplace and the lack of secured
position in the Ghanaian marketplace over time. However, our observation showed that on
the basis of financial indicators, the bank is steadily rising in rank, and as the managers Retail banking
concluded, there is much room for improvement since the bank intends to move from a industry of
challenger to a leader. Sub-Saharan
Africa
Discussion of results
Table III summarizes the results of the pilot study and the main study. Responses and
observations indicate that provision of quality customer service (in short, “service”) is a core 705
strategy of all sampled firms. Each firm pursues a strategy that focuses on customer-
centeredness, and all branches of banks focus on meeting the needs of customers by
working toward satisfying customer needs. As evident in our observations, the practice of
customer relationships is another strategy that has helped to serve customers more
effectively and efficiently in the Ghanaian retail banking domain.
Given the vagueness of services, parts of the strategies for all sampled banks and the
insurance firm are devoted to creating tangibility of offered services in the minds of
customers. This result is in sync with Coffie’s (2016) study in the Ghanaian service industry.
For example, LIC uses the Church to add a dimension of tangibility to the firm’s offerings
and positioning. Surprisingly, LIC and F1 Bank pursue “top of the range” strategies but do
not seemingly pursue an “attractiveness” strategy. Since services are intangible,
“attractiveness” is an appealing and effective strategy to bring tangibility to firm
offerings. Interestingly, three of the five firms pursuing a “brand name” strategy (namely,
LIC, L1 Bank, and F1 Bank) do not pursue “attractiveness.” This may be due to the reliance
on the strength of the brand name to override the perceived need to pursue “attractiveness.”
This finding is borne out by a number of studies in positioning, including Aaker and
Shansby (1982), Clancy and Trout (2002), and Miles and Mangold (2005).
Five of the firms surveyed pursue “value for money” strategies. Interestingly, two of the
four firms using a “top of the range” strategy do not pursue “value for money.” Intuitively,
this makes sense, given the tendency for “value for money” strategies to appeal to those on
budgets (i.e. lower-end consumers). Additionally, four of the five firms pursuing “value for
money” are the same firms pursuing “attractiveness” (Table III). Does this apparent
relationship explain the reason why some of the firms pursuing “top of the range” fail to
employ “attractiveness?” Do firms with strong, appealing ambience attract lower-end
consumers but not higher-end consumers? These questions warrant future research.
Positioning strategies
Top of the Value for Brand Country of
Bank name range Service money Reliability Attractiveness name Selectivity origin
Pilot study
LIC * * * *
Main study
F1 Bank * * * * * *
F2 Bank * * * * * *
F3 Bank * * * * * *
L1 Bank * * *
L2 Bank * * * * * * *
L3 Bank * * *
Notes: LIC refers to local Insurance Company; F indicates foreign, while L denotes national (i.e. local). We Table III.
used inductive reasoning to determine the strategy following suggestions and practices of de Chernatony and Positioning strategies
Cottam (2009), Dubois and Gadde (2002), and Brady and Cronin (2001). *Denotes the employment of a certain of retail banks
positioning strategy in Ghana
IJBM Only three firms pursue “reliability” strategies. This is an interesting finding, especially in
35,4 light of the nature of financial services. Customers storing and maintaining their financial
accounts would presumably expect reliability from the host firms of these accounts.
After all, security is a vital function of financial services, and one would expect to receive
consistency in access to account services. Why do the other firms fail to pursue “reliability?”
This should be explored further.
706 Four banks (F1 Bank, F2 Bank, F3 Bank, and L2 Bank) pursue a “country of origin”
strategy, a finding consistent with the writing of Ries and Trout (1986). This finding is
interesting in that while the foreign banks (F1 and F2 Banks) justifiably capitalize on their
advanced-country origin and their colonial power country (the UK), one national bank
(L2 Bank) and a foreign bank (F3 Bank) use local nationalism and subtle promotion of
nationalism as the basis of “country of origin” positioning strategy. Ghanaians are fond of
the historical ties with the UK, including its brands and culture, and until recently utilized
the British education system. Ghanaians are also very fond of friendly countries that invest
in their country including the USA and other western countries as well as Nigeria,
South Africa and Sao Tome and Principe from the Sub-Saharan African region.
These countries have for years successfully promoted their brands in the Ghanaian
marketplace (Blankson and Strutton, 2011). The country of origin of a bank is important in
retail bank internationalization.
With regard to the main study, “reliability” is the only strategy unattractive to the
majority of the firms in this study. While a few banks seek to address high-end customer
needs (i.e. “top of the range”), the majority of the firms surveyed seem to want to keep the
doors open to the mass market (“service” and “value for money”). As expected, the most
popular positioning strategy is “service.” The latter finding is in line with Coffie’s (2016)
research that found that “service quality,” “customer relationship,” “availability of service,”
“community support,” among others as pivotal in the positioning of service firms in Ghana.
In terms of ranking of most dominant strategy, this paper also found that “service”
positioning strategy is followed by “value for money” and “brand name” and to a degree
“top of the range,” “attractiveness,” and “country of origin” positioning strategies.
Worthy of note is that all sampled banks seek to maximize profitability and increase
shareholders’ earnings, and as contended by the majority of the managers interviewed, one
cannot be in business to achieve losses. Given the qualitative nature of this study and the
fact that business outcome determination was not an objective of this paper, these activities
cannot be assuredly and empirically tied to the present study; hence, no discussion is offered
on this topic.
Conclusion and implications

This research examined the role of positioning in retail banking industry in Sub-Saharan
Africa, by revealing the positioning practices of national and foreign retail banks in Ghana
using a qualitative case study approach (Yin, 2009; Eisenhardt, 1989; Suzuki, 2000).
Additionally, this paper examined the applicability of a western-developed typology of
positioning strategies in a Sub-Saharan African environment. As the results show, retail
banks in Ghana utilize several positioning strategies to market their offerings to both high-
income and low-income target audiences – albeit their deployment differs from bank to bank.
The most popular strategy used by all retail banks is the “service” positioning strategy.
This is followed by “value for money,” “attractiveness,” “brand name,” and “country of origin”
positioning strategies. “Top of the range” and “selectivity” strategies are minimally
pursued by the sample of banks studied. The results show that both foreign and national
retail banks employ multiple positioning strategies in the face of growing competition.
However, foreign retail banks consistently employ a large number of strategies concurrently
relative to national retail banks. The findings contrast from Blankson and Strutton’s (2011)
study that found “brand name” and “value for money” as key strategies popular among all Retail banking
types of industries (manufacturing, goods, and services) in Ghana. industry of
On the basis of the interviews and observations, we conclude that the banking domain in Sub-Saharan
Ghana employs multiple positioning strategies concurrently but with a “service” positioning
strategy as the main anchor for competitive positioning – a finding commensurate with de Africa
Chernatony and Cottam’s (2009) research. Moreover, while a “country of origin” strategy is
appealing to foreign banks, only one national bank, L2 Bank, uses a “country of origin” 707
strategy. This is undertaken within the context of patriotism and love for country.
This finding is evidenced in D’Astous and Boujbel’s (2007) extensive study into countries’
positioning and personality characteristics. The results reveal that retail banks
and insurance domains employ multiple positioning strategies in the face of competition,
further attesting to the applicability of the adapted typology of positioning
strategies. Taken together and consistent with the conclusions of Coffie (2014) and
Coffie and Owusu-Frimpong (2014), this paper supports the applicability of a
western-derived set of positioning strategies in a Sub-Saharan African marketplace.
Theoretical and managerial implications

This research contributes to the literature by successfully utilizing a western-based typology
of positioning to identify the positioning strategies pursued in a Sub-Saharan African country.
Furthermore, this paper closes a gap in our appreciation of the concept of positioning
(Ries and Trout, 1986; Porter, 1996; Knox, 2004) and fills the empirical gap in the application of
the concept of positioning (i.e. lack of qualitative case studies; see Lewin and Johnston, 1997;
Beverland and Lindgreen, 2008). Moreover, a contextual gap that existed in our knowledge of
positioning in a Sub-Saharan African economy’s retail banking sector is solved, to an extent,
by this exploratory research (see Narteh and Kuada, 2014; Hinson et al., 2010).
Further, this study answers calls made by Porter (1996), Arnott and Easingwood (1994),
and Rigger (1995) concerning the need for continued empirical research in the field of strategic
positioning in services industries, due to the difficulties surrounding services positioning
and the dynamic nature of the industry. Consistent with Coffie (2014, 2016), the evidence
of positioning in a Sub-Saharan African marketplace demonstrates that the concept of
positioning is capable of generalization to other Sub-Saharan African marketplaces.
Concerning managerial implications, the findings of this study provide insight into banks’
positioning strategies and can serve as a benchmark for banks and other financial services
firms. Banks looking to enter Sub-Saharan African marketplaces (especially the Ghanaian
marketplace) can adapt the findings put forward in this paper as the basis of their positioning
deliberations (Ries and Trout, 1986). Bank managers may deliberately and proactively pursue
the following tactics: attitude change (i.e. altering or repositioning consumer beliefs about or
perceptions of firms and their offerings by using the strategies put forward in this research in
day-to-day as well as long-term marketing practices) and brand change (i.e. symbolically or
actually modifying the offerings to reflect the positioning strategies identified in this study).
These two tactics are aligned with the extant literature’s recommendations concerning the
operationalization of the concept of positioning (see Ries and Trout, 1986; Suzuki, 2000;
Miles and Mangold, 2005; Coffie, 2016). In addition, managers may pursue strategies pursued
by banks collectively or individually, depending on a firm’s positioning aims and objectives.
These strategies should be proactively emphasized in marketing communications while
ensuring that efforts are consistent with perceptions of intended target markets.
In sum, our paper has put forward the following key contributions to the banking and
marketing literature:
• first documented examination of the role of positioning in the retail banking sector
in Ghana;
IJBM • enhancement of the generalizability of a western-derived set of positioning strategies
35,4 in a Sub-Saharan African marketplace;
• first to report the differential employment of positioning strategy by various banks –
foreign and national in Ghana; and
• response to researchers calling for the use of case study approaches in positioning
research.
708
Limitations and future research

This study has some of the same limitations associated with most qualitative and cross-
sectional researches. While the result of the research may be reflective of observations of
positioning strategies of retail banks, the results represent a small subset of retail banks in
Sub-Saharan Africa and specifically, Ghana. Thus, the findings should be used as a basis for
a more robust triangulated research study encompassing qualitative and quantitative
methods. Rigorous, quantitative analysis will extend the findings of this exploratory study
and provide further insight. Since positioning strategies as well as positioning and
marketing activities tend to be temporal in nature, it would be ideal to embark upon a
longitudinal research design. In addition, future research should expand the sample size to
include ample representation of national and foreign banks. Future researchers need to
compare the findings in this paper with those undertaken in developing countries in Asia,
South America, and the Caribbean. To enhance robustness of the findings, future
researchers may replicate this study in the goods and manufacturing sector in Ghana and in
other Sub-Saharan African countries. Finally, future research would benefit by studying
additional service contexts, such as home repair, restaurants, hotels, airlines, and education,
to add generalizability to the findings.
Acknowledgment
The authors are very indebted to the editor of IJBM for his patience, suggestions, encour-
agement, and guidance throughout the review process. The authors want to express
the sincere thanks and appreciation to the reviewers for their thorough review of the
manuscript; for their constructive criticisms, comments, and suggestions on earlier versions
of the manuscript. Finally, the authors must thank all the Ghana Institute of Management
and Public Administration (GIMPA) MBA students in marketing who helped in the data
collection and for the presentations and discussion in class. The authors sincerely thank
GIMPA business school for all the support. The first author acknowledges with gratitude all
the support the author received during the tenure as an Associate Professor of Marketing
(on sabbatical) at GIMPA between August 2012 and January 2013. Data for this
study originate from the first author’s MBA marketing research and MBA marketing
management classes that the author taught during the stay at GIMPA. The author
expresses the particular thanks to Professor Frank Manu and Professor Samuel Bonsu and
all the colleagues of the author at GIMPA.
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Appendix Retail banking
industry of
Sub-Saharan
Strategy 1 Top of the range: upper class, top of the Strategy 5 Attractiveness: good aesthetics, attractive, Africa
range, status, prestigious, posh cool, elegant
Strategy 2 Service: impressive service, personal Strategy 6 Country of origin: patriotism, country of
attention, consider people as important, origin, youth market 713
friendly service
Strategy 3 Value for money: reasonable price, Strategy 7 Branding: the brand name, leaders in the
value for money, affordability market, extra features, choice, wide range,
expensive
Strategy 4 Reliability: durability, warranty, safety, Strategy 8 Selectivity: discriminatory in selection of
reliability customers, Selective in choice of customers, Table AI.
high principles Typology of
Source: Blankson and Kalafatis (2004) positioning strategies
About the authors

Charles Blankson (PhD Kingston University, UK) is an Associate Professor of Marketing in the
Department of Marketing, College of Business, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, USA.
Dr Blankson’s research interests include strategic marketing – positioning and brand management,
advertising, small business marketing, and international/multicultural marketing. He has published in
the Journal of Advertising Research, European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Business Research,
Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, International Journal of
Advertising, Psychology & Marketing, International Journal of Bank Marketing, International Small
Business Journal, Journal of Services Marketing, and others. Charles Blankson is the corresponding
author and can be contacted at: Charles.Blankson@unt.edu
Seth Ketron is a Doctoral Candidate of Marketing in the Department of Marketing & Logistics,
College of Business, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, USA. His research interests include
retailing and consumer behavior/psychology, and his works have been featured in publications such as
Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Journal of Brand Management, and Journal of Consumer
Behaviour. In Fall 2017, Dr Ketron will become an assistant professor of marketing in the Department
of Marketing and Supply Chain Management, College of Business, East Carolina University,
Greenville, NC 27858.
Joseph Darmoe earned his Undergraduate Degree from the University of Ghana, MSc Degree from
Oklahoma State University and a PhD from The University of Texas at Dallas, USA. Dr Darmoe is
currently a lecturer at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Accra,
Ghana. He has publications and general research interest in strategic policy, organizational change
management and business environment analysis.
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The role of positioning in the retail banking industry of Sub-Saharan Africa

Article in International Journal of Bank Marketing · June 2017

Charles Blankson Seth Ketron

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Denton, Texas, USA, and Revised 13 August 2016

Method of Method and

Method of Method and

Method of Method and

marketable offering in relation to the competition (Arnott, 1992). Successful positioning

The Ghanaian banking sector

“hottest” clubs is now regarded as an accepted customer service by these retailers

licensed to carry out universal banking services.

Validity and reliability

validity member check

minimum client complaints.

Conclusion and implications

Theoretical and managerial implications

Limitations and future research

to brand success”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 62 No. 3, pp. 297-304.

About the authors

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