Influence of pricing strategies on consumer purchase decision: a case of supermarkets in Nairobi County

Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment for the requirements for the Degree of Master of Commerce (MCOM) at Strathmore UniversityThis study sought to address the gap in the literature concerning how pricing strategies influence consumer purchase decisions. The first objective of the study was to find out the extent to which Everyday Low Pricing Strategy and High-Low pricing strategy have been adopted in the supermarkets in Nairobi County. The second objective was to establish the extent to which Everyday low pricing strategy influences consumer purchase decisions in Nairobi County. Finally, the third objective was to determine the extent to which High-Low pricing strategies influences consumer purchase decisions in Nairobi County. Data was collected using questionnaires. The target population of this study was customers of four major supermarkets in Nairobi County. Random sampling technique was used to obtain representative sample. The study aimed at getting 315 respondents. Descriptive statistical methods were used to analyze the data. To establish if a relationship exists between pricing strategies and consumer purchase decision regression and correlation analysis was used. Results showed that pricing strategies were significant in explaining product choice, store choice, purchase amount, and purchase timing. The findings generated from the study should provide marketing managers with an understanding of the relationship between pricing strategies and consumer purchase decision in the Kenyan context and give them insights on which pricing strategies they should concentrate on in order to gain competitive advantage. Since this study only looks at two pricing strategies and their influence on consumer purchase decision, future research should examine different types of pricing strategies for example rapid skimming strategy, slow skimming strategy, rapid penetration strategy, slow skimming strategy and their impact on consumer purchase decision and also explore alternative methods of analyzing the data