Customer Bank Switching Behaviour in Zimbabwe’s Retail Banking Sector of Zimbabwe

Abstract

Retail banks are able to generate profitable returns when they manage their customer base to identify, satisfy, acquire, and retain profitable customers. Whilst the switching of brands by consumers is a common feature in today’s highly competitive retail banking sector of Zimbabwe, however, it poses serious challenges to both banks and consumers. The development and maintenance of a long-term relationship with customers are essential for retail banks to boost their profits and thrive in a competitive banking landscape. The major problem facing the retail banking sector is the high switching behaviour of their customers, eroding shareholder value. The main purpose of the study was to understand consumers switching behaviours in the retail banking sector, yet most of these banks have similar offerings. The study used a cross-sectional research design to collect quantitative data from 376 consumers who were chosen using systematic sampling. Our findings show that consumers in the retail sector switch banks due to various factors, chiefly price, brand image, service quality, product availability, trust, and firm strategy. We recommend that banks optimize customer relationship strategies and quality service delivery to leverage customer brand equity.  Our study contributes to literature on the banking sector that focuses on customer switching behaviour.