Sri Lanka Journal of Marketing

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A Review of Challenges to Attract Public Private Partnership (PPP) Investments to Power Generation Infrastructure In Sri Lanka (SL)
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2019) Fernando, S. N.
Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) is a State Owned Enterprise (SOE) operating in power industry of Sri Lanka being a monopolistic. Long Term Generation Expansion Plan (LTGEP) that prepared by CEB and approved by Public Utility Commission and the Cabinet of Ministers. As per LTGEP capital investments for Generation Infrastructure from 2018 to 2037 had been projected around USD 14,568 million. As per Electricity Act 2009, CEB was vested with responsibility to implement LTGEP to satisfy power requirement of the country. The Government policy decision of sourcing of funds by CEB its own has been implemented from year 2015 and CEB is operating for last several years with negative cash flow mainly due to subsidized tariff structure. The funding agencies have imposed stringent financial covenants into loan agreements .CEB has been challenged to adhere with those financial covenants due to existing mal financial position of CEB. Electricity Act 2009 states any person to generate capacity above and over of 25 MW, shall Government hold 51% of ownership. Sri Lanka by law any investment in power generation above and over 25 MW shall be a Public Private Partnership (PPP). Non implementation of above projects on time will lead to power shortage in the country and accelerates cost of unit of electricity immensely to pay by the public. In this circumstance PPP model has proven that mostly applicable for development of public infrastructure in developed and developing countries. CEB being a monopolistic player in the power industry, is required to pursue PPP for development of power generation infrastructure to assist growth momentum of the country. The challenges pertaining to institution could be addressed within the organization such as effective leadership for trust building and coordination, modification of bureaucratic structure of organization with changing environment to attract private investment. The main challenges have been identified such as state credibility and inconsistent policies .The challenge of social support could be harnessed by CEB with Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers Union (CEBEU) which has become integral arm in collaboration for policy formulation in power sector of Sri Lanka. With the reviewed literature could conclude that state credibility, inconsistent policies and lack of public support had hindered the private investor confidence in power sector in SL.
A Review on E-Banking Adoption in the Context of E-Service Quality
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2019) Gayan Nayanajith, D. A.; Weerasiri, R. A. S.; Damunupola, K. A.
Fast-paced expansion of information and communication technology (ICT) revolutionizes different facets of contemporary human life and global economic landscape to a greater extent. Within technological transformation arena, retail financial services which includes retail banking activities performs a pivotal role. Technological advancement and internet facilities have demanded rapid changes radically in the financial services sector service delivery. E-banking facilitates bank customers to engage in an array of banking services via banks’ official websites. Amidst these changes e-banking adoption has gained limelight as a researchable notion owing to challenges attributed in different markets and country contexts. This article review founded on the concept of e-banking adaption in line with theoretic and empirical discussions. Hence, literature review was exploited as the main research tool. Research paper attempted to introduce practice related insights by discussing cases that were found within the domain of e-banking adoption. Article is organized as a concept paper to emphasize some of the case evidences with special reference to consumer electronic banking whilst arguments have been supported empirically. Importance of customer awareness, innovativeness, service quality, trust and security aspects related to e-services and prioritizing of marketing to motivate adoption of e-banking solutions has been unveiled by the discussions. In conclusion, paper postulates directions for the future researches in line with empirical justifications.
A Review paper on the Impact of Social Influence on Event Attendees of Entertainment Events: with special reference to Face Book
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2018) Chamikara, D. M.; Gunawardane, N.
The Social Influence is an influential mode that used by the society surround us to influence for what they have already influenced by others. . In recent years this has been a popular concept which does grab the attention of the practitioners within the corporate world. Given this interest, the current researcher underlining the Face book Influence model intends to assess the relationship between Social Influence via the Face book and the Intention to participate in the context of the Entertainment Events in Sri-Lanka. Further, the literature evidence identified that dimensions of Social Influence namely Like, Comments, Shares, Ease of Use and Usability should be more focused when building a strong Social Influence as they do indicate a high relationship on Intention to participate. Hence, the current research identified that Social Influence is a significant predictor which does affect in manipulating the Intention to participate for Entertainment events in Sri-Lanka.
Avoidance of Eco-Tourism Labelled Hotels by the Domestic Tourists of Sri Lanka
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2019) Gayathree, P. K.; Perera, N. R.; Medis, A. P.
Modern consumers are living a consumerist lifestyle, which negatively impacts on the natural and the built environment. However, there is a trend towards environmental protection within society. It is clearly observed that green labels are everywhere and has become a marketing tool for companies, and this is common for tourist hotels as well. Ecotourism which is one form of ethical goods and services has been increasing worldwide. These tourists especially concern about natural and the built world. Therefore, they will neglect the products and services which harm the environment. Identifying that there is a gap in the literature about the consumer's avoidance of products and services which claims the “green”, the study aims at, exploring the avoidance behavior of eco-labeled hotel brands by the eco-tourists”.
Comparison between Attributes related to Celebrity Endorsement and Social Media Influencer Marketing: A Conceptual Review
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2018) Guruge, M. C. B.
Influencer marketing is one of the emerging tools in the field of marketing and it is an area that has gained the attention of the researchers. The concept of social influencers has evolved with the rapid popularity of using peer reviews, comments and tweets on products and services when making the purchasing decisions. Subsequently the marketers have identified the vitality of user-generated content and leveraging the power of social influencers in order to promote their brands. However, there is always a grey area about the return on investment of this tool from the client’s perspective. In contrary, the customer also have a doubt on whether the information provided by influencers are credible and unbiased. Most of the previous studies were conducted to investigate the impact of social influencers on purchasing intention, attitudes and public perception on social influencers and different attributes related to social influencers. Thus, limited number of researches have provided constructive models to analyze the attributes related to influencer marketing which affects the purchasing intention. In line with this concept, this paper reveals whether the models that are associated with celebrity endorsement such as source credibility model and attractiveness model can be adapted in order to identify the attributes related to social influencers. Furthermore, some of the new attributes were incorporated to the existing models as well. A deductive method was employed and extensive literature review was carried out as the main research tool in order to highlight the contextual explanations about the concept and finally, the paper presents future research directions in the field of social influencers.
Conceptual Review of Social Influencer Marketing on Purchase Intention; Dynamics in Fashion Retail Industry
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2021) Thilina, D. K.
The competition in the fashion retail industry is reaching new heights due to various demands of the fashion consumers. As per the significant growth in the fashion retailing sector, the marketers need to define the strategies to address their customer intentions. With the increase of ad blocking, shift from traditional media to online platforms and especially the rapid growth of the social networking sites (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter), fashion retailers have to align their social media strategies with the online and offline behavior of the consumers. This researcher study mainly focuses upon understanding the impact of social media influencers and the purchase intention among the consumers. Objectives of this study were to understand the effectiveness of social influence on consumer purchase intention for fashion related products, therefore this study has investigated main construct of Influencer Credibility and Information Quality of the content shared by these social influencers and their relationship with both Attitude towards reviews and Purchase Intention respectively. Finally, the researcher further investigates whether there is a mediating effect of Attitude towards reviews on the relationship between effectiveness of social influence and Purchase Intention. The study commences with a general overview into the subject of focus, followed by an in depth review of the literature on the main concepts Influencer Marketing, Purchase Intention and Attitude towards reviews. Based on the understanding of the literature and concepts with regard to the area of study, the conceptual frame work was derived.
Conceptual Review on Apparel Disposal Behaviour of Consumers
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2019) Nanayakkara, N. W. O. K. D. S. P.
Conserving resources for future generations through sustainable consumption presents both a unique challenge and an opportunity for individuals in contemporary society. Sustainable consumption which is becoming a growing trend in the society advocates encourage individuals in affluent, developed countries to shift toward consumption that is more socially and ecologically sustainable. These advocates suggest educating consumers on environmental, social, and economic preservation as a means to influence consumption behaviors. As a subsection of general consumption, sustainable consumption also includes acquisition, use, and disposal behaviors. Investigation into disposal is necessary because it provides additional insight into the behaviors of consumers. The study of disposal is of particular importance in the context of apparel because the very nature of the product differs from typical durable and non-durable goods. In apparel consumption, the term disposal refers to whether a garment is simply thrown away, resold, reused, or recycled. Alongside, this study attempts to identify the different types of consumer apparel disposal behaviors and the underlying factors that affect clothing disposal behaviors. Paper followed an extensive literature review to build a discussion on theoretical and empirical contents related to consumer apparel disposal behaviors. Paper attempts to appreciate the application of different types of disposal behaviors with particular reasons. The literature review was executed addressing to key sub contents related to apparel disposal behaviors. It reviewed journal articles as the main source of information to organize the contents with empirical justifications. Finally, paper discusses the concepts of environmental knowledge, motivation, subjective norms in apparel disposal and how these factors affect different types of disposal behavior.
Conceptual Review: Research Epistemologies for Business Research
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2018) Jinadasa, M.; Priyankara, R.
This paper attempts to elaborate some aspects and specificities of different epistemologies in order to facilitate the researcher in determining which epistemology can be effectively applied for their research projects. First, this paper involves with discussing what epistemology contrary to the ontology is. Second this paper describes positivism, post- positivism, realism, critical realism and empirical realism, and interpretivism as some of the key epistemologies that are used in the research projects.
Consumer Satisfaction towards Smart Ration Cards: A Study on Tirupur District, India
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2021) Sumathy, M.
Public distribution system has been implementing various initiatives to ensure the proper supply of ration items to the consumers. There have been complaints towards the lack of transparency in the supply of ration items. The stocks are not properly showed and unauthenticated billing of goods is made by the employees and at the same time, consumers are also misusing the ration cards. The paper ration cards already issued have their own challenges. Introduction of smart ration cards has been the only solution for all these challenges. The government has introduced the smart ration cards in the year 2017. Since then, there have been a lot of changes made in the public distribution system. The present study has analyzed the satisfaction of consumers in Tirupur District towards the smart ration cards. The factors influencing satisfaction of consumers towards smart ration cards have been analyzed and the relationship between demographic variables and the factors influencing satisfaction has been discussed in this paper. It was found that the consumers were satisfied with the selected factors influencing satisfaction except the confidentiality of financial transaction of the consumers. Suggestions have been offered for the effective use of smart ration cards as a part of the initiatives of e-governance practices.
CSR Practices in the Maldives: A Post-Baseline Study
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2020) Abdulla, M.
A baseline study on CSR was conducted in the Maldives in 2010 to understand the level of CSR engagement among the business community and non-corporate stakeholders of CSR promotion in the Maldives and develop recommendations for a CSR policy framework for the Maldives. The study revealed that CSR was understood in the Maldives in its surface level only. Philanthropic activities were the main CSR consideration and were not widely practiced. Only large public limited companies and the resorts maintain some mainstream CSR practices. This report highlights the progress made in CSR in the decade that followed the baseline study. The report was written based on the analysis of a three recent sustainability reports of the Maldivian resorts. A remarkable progress on ethical dimension and a minimal progress on philanthropic dimension were evident.
Customer Self Oriented and Other Oriented Intrinsic Values, Brand Trust and Consumer-Brand Relationship: A Conceptual Review with Reference to Life Insurance Sector Research Proposition
(Department of Marketing Management, Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2020) Pushpakumara, B. M. A.
The purpose of this paper is to explore the intrinsic value and brand trust on Consumer-Brand Relationship. Particular attention is focused on concerning literature and using the result of literature review providing research proposition leading to theoretical and managerial implication. Building and continuously maintaining close brand relationship with customers has become regular necessary for current business. The consumer brand relationship is still very rarely applied in the life insurance context. The author highlighted Proposition of intrinsic self-oriented value (Hedonic Value), Proposition of intrinsic other oriented value (Altruistic value) and Proposition of Brand Trust on consumer brand relationship. New research proposition presented in this paper enhance the literature on recent development in consumer brand relationship. This study was made to build argument supporting to suggested proposition. Findings of this study can be used by brand marketer to identify their strength and weakness. Finally, researcher does propose to expand the future studies on different context.
Customers’ Role in Co-Creating Value at Self-Service Technologies: From Role Theory Perspective
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2021) Galdolage, B. S.
Technological maturity brings both the organizations and customers into a digital era where organizations provide its service fully or partly through technological platforms, letting customers to perform by themselves without having direct interaction with the organization’s employees. This transforms customers’ role into more ‘active’ to be a collaborative value creator than be a passive recipient of the value produced by the organization. Organizations’ role also converts from ‘provider’ of the value to the ‘value facilitator’, who offer value prepositions for customers’ co-creation process. Though both the customers’ and business organizations’ roles have been changed in the current business context, the scholarly attention given to understand this transformation is very rare. In such a backdrop, this study aims at understanding customers’ role in co-creating value at SSTs using the foundations of the Role Theory. Centered on the positivistic approach, this research carried out a quantitative survey distributing self-administered questionnaires among 600 customers chosen based on non-probabilistic convenience sampling method. The study found significant positive impacts of ‘role script’, ‘role performance’ and ‘role set’, and insignificant effect of ‘role congruence’ on customer value co-creation in SSTs. The study theoretically contributes to enhancing the knowledge on customer value co-creation in self-service technologies from role theory perspective, while practically helps business organizations to understand customers’ role well and design SSTs which match with the customers’ expectations.
DCD Turns Milk Powder Industry Inside Out
(Department of Marketing Management, Faculty of Commerce & Management Studies,University of Kelaniya, 2015) Anuranga, B.K.H.D.
Decision Making Styles of Sri Lankan Millennial: Are They Different?.
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2021) Lakshika, V. G. P.; Ahzan, M. J. M. F.
At present consumer decision making is more complex and difficult but far more vitally in it is important than the past as the consumers today are thorough consumers. Therefore, consumer decision-making styles have become one of the most popular and interesting areas of research in the marketing and behavioral sciences of academia. Besides, in the modern marketing era, Millennial has become one of the major interesting research subject due to their unique characteristics. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop a more rigorous understanding of the Sri Lankan millennial decision-making styles. The research philosophy of the current study is a positivist research paradigm and follows a deductive approach and survey strategy. Convenience sampling technique was used to draw the sample and the sample size was 385. The study extracted seven factors from the original Consumer Styles Inventory (CSI) scale through an exploratory factor analysis and found that Sri Lankan millennial has seven decision making styles namely Perfectionist Conscious, Habitual & Brand Loyal Conscious, Novelty Fashion Conscious, Brand Conscious, Hedonistic & Recreational Conscious, Confused by over choice and Impulsive Consumer. Further it revealed Price - conscious decision - making style did not appear among the Sri Lankan Millennial where Sri Lankan millennial are highly perfectionist conscious consumers. Based on the findings, study proposes several theoretical and practical implications along with direction for the future research.
Determinants of Financial Literacy: with Special Reference to Consumers in Financial Service Industry
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2020) Kumari, D. A. T.
The financial literacy is a key dimension which determines the demand of the financial services in the economy. However, most of the previous studies and financial decision makers believe financial literacy in different perspectives. Therefore, it is timely important to identify the main determinants of the financial literacy among potential customers in financial service industry. Accordingly, present study is mainly focused on identifying and verifying the key determinants of the financial literacy in the customer’s point of view in the financial service sector. The study adopted the positivism epistemology and quantitative approach. At the initial phase of the study, the extensive literature review was carried out with the purpose of identifying the determinants of financial literacy. In the second phase, a survey was conducted among 500 potential financial services customers representing nine provinces in Sri Lanka, with the assistance of a researcher administrated questionnaire. The sample was selected based on the multilevel mixed sampling method and the unit of analysis was the head of households in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, a partial least squares structural equation model (PLS-SEM) was employed as the principle data analysis approach, and Smart PLS 3 was employed as the main analytical software. Degree of financial literacy was tested based on 22 items identified by previous researchers and Principle Component Analysis was employed to determine the key factors of financial literacy. The reliability of scales was measured by Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients. The findings revealed that in general, all financial literacy dimensions have significant impact to determine the level of financial literacy. However, when it considers under separate dimensions, financial knowledge is the most significant determinant among the other determinants to determine the level of financial literacy. Therefore, researcher concluded that financial knowledge can be considered as a main determinant of financial literacy among potential customers of financial services in Sri Lanka. And the financial awareness is identified as the least significant determinant. Finally, the researcher provides some suggestions for marketing practitioners of financial service industry and government policy decision makers to develop financial literacy level by promoting financial knowledge for absorbing more consumers towards formal financial system and products of financial services.
Effect of The Leader – Member Relationship on the Organizational Commitment towards Sales Force Turnover Intention of Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) Sector of Sri Lanka: A Conceptual Review
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2018) Wimalana, N.; Dhammika, K.A.S.; Fernando, W.R.P.K.
Leader –Member relationship (LMX) has been identified by many scholars as an antecedent towards the Organizational Commitment (OC) of the employees. Many academics have concluded that OC is the strongest predictor towards employee turnover. This theory has been tested in the Western world but unfortunately very little literature is found in the Asian Context. When you look at more specifically in the Sri Lankan context with a focus on the sales force in the FMCG industry, the theoretical support on the relationships amongst these variables is almost zero. Few research conducted in this arena has identified that the sales force turnover is a critical issue faced by the FMCG industry during the post- war era in Sri Lanka. Therefore, this study intended to enlighten the knowledge on the antecedents towards the sales force turnover in the FMCG industry in Sri Lanka with a clear focus on the organizational commitment of the members in the sales force influenced by the leader member relationship. The discussion of empirical thoughts supports the managers in the industry to consider sale force motivation strategies holistically rather limiting to financial perspectives. Paper concluded the future research directions addressing to the key empirical contents discussed.
Employee’s Job Satisfaction with Computer Mediated Communication System
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2021) Gunawardana, T. S. L. W.; Sirimanna, U. I.
To fill the gaps in the computer mediated communication literature and provide useful information on interpersonal relationships within an organization, this study aims to investigate how computer mediated communication (CMC) system have impacted on employee’s job satisfaction of Ceylon Electricity Board, Sri Lanka. An empirical research was conducted to test the hypothesized relationships based on a conceptual framework developed through a comprehensive literature review on CMC and job satisfaction. Through a literature support this model consisted of three independent variables (i.e., electronic mails, instant messaging and computerized maintenance management) in computer mediated communication system and a dependent variable which is job satisfaction. The sample of the study consisted of 100 respondents representing executive and medium level technical service (MLTS) staff of the transmission division of Ceylon Electricity Board in Sri Lanka. Self-administered questionnaire and the web-based questionnaire was used to collect primary data. The data were analyzed with Partial Least Squares path modeling (PLS) to test the hypotheses of the study. The research findings indicated that computerized maintenance management is the most significant factor impacting on the employees’ job satisfaction. Moreover, it also identified that there is a positive and statistically significant impact of instant messaging and electronic mails on employees’ job satisfaction. The results provide valuable input regarding the instant messaging and job satisfaction. Therefore, managers should have to pay their more and more attention in order to improve instant messaging as one of the communication media in an organization. In this research considered only three CMC dimensions which influence the job satisfaction. But there are more CMC dimensions used as organizational communication in future studies.
Evaluation of Solid Food Waste Management Strategies in Estate Schools in Sri Lanka and Its Environmental Impact
(Department of Marketing Management, Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2020) Kandegama, W. M. W. W.; Kumara, I. P. W. A. V.; Karunarathne, K. H. M. I.
Food wastes (FW) has become a crucial global issues. Food production should be increased substantially to meet the need of growing population, high tendency of spoilage and consumer preference are some of the main reasons for food waste. FW predominantly happen in public places such as hotels, hospitals and industrial parks. FW in Sri Lanka, several institutes can be highlighted including schools. 10194 government schools and 80 registered private school chains are functioning throughout the country. In which, total population including both students and teachers are over 4.5 million. Thus, handling large quantity of food in schools, leads to generate huge quantities of FW and it directly affect to the national economy. Therefore, this qualitative research was designed and implemented to determine reasons for FW and evaluate the efficiency of existing FW handling strategies in schools. The data were collected from 12 schools in each educational zone at Kegalle and Kurunegala, through a survey from teachers and students. Majority of students were provided homemade breakfast in both zones, further 20.92% of students in Kegalle and 37.21% of students in Kurunegala have wasted food with some percentage of breakfast daily. In addition, plate waste of free breakfast provided by school was identified as 20.31% of students and 24.62% of students in Kegalle and Kurunegala areas respectively. Free lunch was provided schools only in Kegalle educational zone and among those who was fed from school meal; 37.5% of students have wasted food in various percentages. Majority of students have brought lunch from home and 26.51% of students in Kegalle and 26.12% of students in Kurunegala thrown some amount of lunch daily. FW was comparatively high, when meals provided from school. Further, study revealed that most of school have not established an effective FW handling system within the premises. Therefore, a systematic programs should be implemented to control food wastes. In addition, awareness programs should be carried out to educate students to minimize FW. It is necessary to investigate the reasons for wasting large quantities from school meal. Finally, a national campaign on “Stop Food Waste” should be launched for school community to create a sustainable environmental development with appropriate mechanisms of school and family education.
Factors Affecting Brand Loyalty of Professional Customers in Online Banking
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka., 2018) Wijesundara, B.; Thilakarathne, B. L. S.
This paper concentrate on how far commercial banks in Sri Lanka have been adapted to online banking facilities and its impact on brand loyalty among professional customers. The main research objective of the study is to identify the level of influence made by online banking facilities on brand loyalty of the professional customers in commercial banking sector. The findings revealed that perceived value and trustworthiness influence the brand loyalty among professional customers than the customer satisfaction on brand loyalty. This is in line with an empirical study supporting the notion that trust and other security beliefs influence consumers’ intent to purchase goods over the internet and that perception of internet security influence potential purchasing behavior. Bank management can transform their branches with technology to serve their customers better. This could strengthen the bond with customers and make them more committed to continuing to use the online banking services.
Factors Affecting on Customer Retention in Mobile Telecommunication Industry in Sri Lanka
(Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, 2017) Dassanayake, D. K. N. P.; Herath, H. M. R. P.
It is obvious that customers are important stakeholders in organizations and their retention is a priority to the business. From the years, mobile telecommunications industry is evolving drastically by creating utmost competition resulting an increased level of customer penetration throughout years. Maintaining existing customers are less costly than acquiring new customers, thus this study is focused to identify factors affecting on customer retention and measure the impact of each identified factor on customer retention. Based on the literature, network quality, customer experience and perceived price are important factors that decides the level customer retention. Primary data were collected through survey method and sample techniques applied was convenience sampling and sample size is 384. The developed hypotheses were tested using Multiple Regression analysis in SPSS. All the hypotheses were accepted proving that network quality, customer experience and perceived price have a significant impact on the level of customer retention.