Influence of e-marketing on the operational performance of food and beverage service. a case study of the Kumasi Metropolis

Abstract

Despite the importance of E-marketing in the modern business world, many food and beverage industry in Ghana has ignore the use of E-marketing in their operations. Based on this, the study aimed at assessing the influence of E-marketing on the performance of food and beverage service industry in the Kumasi Metropolis. The study used a descriptive survey design. A total of six(6) food and beverage firms were selected from the twenty eight (28) food and beverage firms. The study sampled 54 managers and IT specialist from the 6 food and beverage firm using simple random and purposive sampling technique. Questionnaire was designed to gather information from the respondents. The finding showed that the food and beverage service industry have adopted E-marketing strategies. It appeared from the study that security concerns, uncertainty of payment methods through internet, limited and ICT infrastructure available are the main challenges to the adoption of E-marketing. The finding showed that adoption of e-marketing strategy helps to build and maintain the food and beverage industry reputation, and creates convenience for customers/guests. The study found a positive and significant (p=0.016<0.05) relationship between E-marketing strategy and operational performance of food and beverage service industry. It was concluded that adoption of e-marketing strategy influences the operational performance of food and beverage service industry by 11.8%. It was therefore recommended that policy makers in the hospitality industry encourage the use of e-Marketing strategies since its impact and importance for food and beverage industry is really encouraging as using the Internet marketing as prime tool for marketing