ZIMBABWE OPEN UNIVERSITY

THE IMPACT OF THE MARKETING MIX ON STUDENT ENROLMENT: THE CASE OF ZIMBABWE OPEN UNIVERSITY, MANICALAND REGION FROM 2008 TO 2012

BY

WELLINGTON MARUMBI

SUBMITTED TO THE ZIMBABWE OPEN UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE BACHELOR OF COMMERCE DEGREE IN MARKETING

MUTARE, ZIMBABWE

YEAR: 2013

ZIMBABWE OPEN UNIVERSITY RELEASE FORM NAME OF AUTHOR PROJECT TITLE : : Wellington Marumbi The impact of the Marketing Mix on student enrolment: The case of ZOU Manicaland Region 2008 to 2012 Bachelor Of Commerce Degree in Marketing 2013 Permission is here by granted to the Zimbabwe Open University Library to produce single copies of this project and to lend or sell such copies for private, scholarly or scientific research purposes only. The author reserves other publication rights and neither the project nor extensive extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the authors written permission.

PROGRAMME FOR WHICH PROJECT WAS PRESENTED YEAR PREMISSION GRANTED

: :

SIGNED

PERMANENT ADDRESS

25 Bunting Street Greenside Mutare

DATE

May 2013

ZIMBABWE OPEN UNIVERSITY APPROVAL FORM

The undersigned certify that they have read and recommended to the Zimbabwe Open University for acceptance, a project entitled: The impact of the Marketing Mix on student enrolment: the case of Zimbabwe Open University Manicaland region 2008 to 2012. Submitted by Wellington Marumbi in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Marketing.

.. SUPERVISOR

. PROGRAMME CO-ORDINATOR

EXTERNAL EXAMINER

DATE:

..

DEDICATIONS I want to dedicate this project to my loving and supportive wife Memory T Marumbi, my adorable son Tinovimba Patrick Jnr Marumbi and sweet daughter Makanaka Kayla Marumbi, my inspirational father and mother and lastly my three sisters who have been a pillar of strength through it all.

ABSTRACT The purpose of marketing is customer satisfaction in return for profit and satisfying customer needs. The study sought to investigate the impact of the Marketing Mix on student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region from the period of 2008 to 2012. The purpose of the study was to find out the causes of student enrolment decline at ZOU Manicaland Region in relation to the marketing mix elements so that student enrolment can be increased. It focused on the Marketing Mix elements which are Product, Price, Place, Promotion, Physical evidence, Process and People. The researcher chose the pragmatic approach to research, the research subjects were ZOU students, potential students, staff members, security guards and grounds men. The data collection techniques which were used were Questionnaires and Interviews, both primary data and secondary data was used. The data collected was explained, organised, analysed and presented on tables, graphs and pie charts. The major finding of the study was that the marketing mix employed by ZOU Manicaland Region was not being fully utilised. The research found out that the majority of ZOU students were civil servants who were struggling to make ends meet and could hardly afford tuition fees charged by ZOU especially with its new policy. The research recommended that payment plans should be reinstated in order to increase student enrolment. It also recommended that a stop order facility through the Salary Service Bureau should be introduced since the majority of students were civil servants. ZOU should vigorously market its degrees through local media, road shows, outreach programs and notice boards. In this research the researcher considered the impact of the marketing mix elements on student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region. The research can be done in more depth by considering a wider marketing mix with more than the popular 7Ps i.e. the 11Ps or 17Ps of Marketing. Further research can be done which will take note of the Macro Economic factors for example Political factors, Economic factors, Social factors, Technological factors.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Researcher would like to thank all those who contributed to make this research project a success, it is greatly appreciated. I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to my Supervisor Mr. Chakauya for the tireless guidance and assistance from the start to the end of this research project. I would also like to thank my father Mr. P.D Marumbi for his undivided support and guidance, his effort is beyond measure and I owe all my success to him. I would also like to thank my family and colleagues for their moral support and patience to put up with the difficulties and frustrations faced in conducting and compiling this research project. I would also like to express my gratitude to personnel at Zimbabwe Open University and Student Body with specific reference to Mr Mapara, your input was crucial. Thank you very much, I am truly indebted to you all and may God bless you abundantly.

TABLE OF CONTENTS CONTENTS Title Page Release Form Approval Form Dedication Abstract Acknowledgements Table of Contents List of Tables List of Appendices PAGE i ii iii iv v vi vii viii x

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.10 Background to the Study Statement of the problem Objectives of the study Research questions/Sub questions Significance/Importance of study Assumptions Definition of Terms Delimitations Limitations Summary

CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.1 Introduction

2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6

What is Literature Review Importance of Literature Review Purpose of Literature Review History of the marketing Mix What is Marketing Mix

CHAPTER III:RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 Introduction Research Design Research Subjects Sampling Techniques Sources of Information Data Collection Instruments Interviews Pilot Study Data Collection Procedures Administration of Questionnaires Personal Interviews Data Presentation and Analysis Procedures Summary

CHAPTER IV: DATA PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Introduction Overall Response Rate Distribution by Age Group Rate of Employment of the Respondents Results from Research Instruments

4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9

Enrolment for MBA with ZOU Qualification of ZOU tutors Availability and helpfulness of ZOU staff ZOU library stocking and accessibility

CHAPTER V: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Introduction Summary Conclusions Recommendations Recommendations for further Research

References Appendices

LIST OF TABLES

Table

Description

Page

1.1 Total Student Enrolment for the past Five Years: Manicaland Region 3.1 Sample Breakdown 4.1 Overall Response Rate of Questionnaires 4.2 Overall Response Rate of Interviews 4.3 Type of Response by each sample group 4.4 Rate of Employment of the Respondents 4.5 Results from the research instruments

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure

Description

Page

1.1 Student Enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region 2.1 Marketing Mix Elements of a given Target Market 4.1 Percentage Response of each Sample Group 4.2 Showing Distributions by Gender 4.3 Showing Distribution by Age Group 4.4 Distribution of those who would enroll for MBA with ZOU 4.5 Whether ZOU Tutors are Qualified 4.6 Availability and Helpfulness of ZOU Modules 4.7 Library Stocking and Accessibility'

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendi x

Description

Page

1 Questionnaire for ZOU Employees 2 Questionnaire for other Respondents 3 Interview Guide 4 ZOU qualifications dishonoured 5 ZOU students in quandary over new fees regulations 6 ZOU Programmes Suspension: Students in Quandary 7 All not well at ZOU 8 President capes 1568 ZOU Graduates 9 ZOU signs MOUs

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the Study The Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) is a unique institution of higher learning offering open and distance learning which started off in 1993 as the Centre for Distance Education under the University Of Zimbabwe (UZ). It has since (1999), grown into a fully fledged university with regional centres in all provinces of the country. ZOUs mission is to empower people through lifelong learning, thereby enabling them to realise their full potential in an affordable and flexible manner. ZOU has graduated 39000 students nationwide and 3000 students in

Manicaland region. To date, ZOU offers more than 30 degree programmes. Below is a table showing student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region from 2008 to 2012.

Table 1.1 Showing Total Student Enrolment For The past Five Years: Manicaland Region YEAR Total Student Enrolment The figures in the above table have been illustrated in the below line graph to show the general trend of student enrolment at Manicaland region. 2008 1254 2009 785 2010 769 2011 1042 2012 884

Figure 1.1 Line Graph showing student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland region

The year 2008 marked the increase of the enrolment figures to 1254 because it was the era of burning so some would burn their foreign currency and use the Zimbabwe dollar proceeds to pay tuition fees. However, there was a decline in 2009 and 2010 due to economic difficulties and some students found independent learning difficult. In 2011 there was a significant increase in enrolment which is greatly attributed to the introduction of flexible payment plans. However 2012 student enrolment decreased and this research will show what probably caused the decline and probably the findings can help increase student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region. Student enrolment at ZOU had been growing steadily from the time of its formation, thus, today in terms of enrolment it is the largest University in Zimbabwe. It is a multi-disciplinary interfaculty institution offering degree and non-degree courses to youth and adult learners. With a combination of cutting edge technology, print materials and face-to-face tuition, the Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) provides knowledge, competencies and dispositions necessary for the development of competitive human resources. In a dynamic and fast changing global village, a philosophy of lifelong learning for social inclusion is the guiding beacon. It started off in 1993 as

the Centre for distance Education under the University of Zimbabwe and has since grown into a fully fledged university. ZOU's mission is to empower people through lifelong learning thereby enabling them to realise their full potential in an affordable and flexible manner while executing their endeavours. In order to sufficiently cater for students throughout Zimbabwe, ZOU has a highly decentralised structure with 10 Regional Centres in all the provinces of Zimbabwe. ZOU has graduated nearly 39 000 students in the past and the graduates are found in every sector of the economy. The History of ZOU The Zimbabwe Open University evolved out of the University of Zimbabwe after it had been realized by the Government that there was need to develop distance education and open learning. This development was necessitated by the fact that many people in Zimbabwe wanted to gain education at tertiary level, but the colonial restrictions had denied them the chance. After Independence, the ZANU-PF Government whose 1980 Election Manifesto made education a human right facilitated the development of distance education to accommodate all the people who would not have been in a position to go to conventional, residential, tertiary institutions for an education because of lack of sufficient funding and other commitments. ZOU started off as the Centre for Distance Education established in 1993 by the University of Zimbabwe, in the Department of Education Administration. In 1996, the Centre became the University College Distance Education headed by Professor Graham Hill. In 1999, through an Act of Parliament, the University College became a fully fledged university headed by Professor Peter Dzvimbo. Dr Primrose Kurasha made history by becoming the first female Vice Chancellor in Zimbabwe, heading the Zimbabwe Open University. In 1993, the University was only offering one

programme, the Bachelor of Education for 652 students. Today ZOU has more than 30 degree programmes. Vision To become a World Class Open and Distance Learning University. Mission The Zimbabwe Open University exists to empower people through life-long learning thereby enabling them to realise their full potential in an affordable and flexible manner while executing their various endeavours. Core Values Dedication to the highest levels of excellence Creation of an innovative culture Promotion of integrity Adherence to highest levels of ethical standards Delighting of stakeholders

1.2 Statement of the Problem High numbers of student enrolment make universities sustainable. Government funding to universities is being reduced year after year, thus universities are expected to raise their own funds to meet operating expenses. Student enrolment figures have been declining at ZOU Manicaland region during the years 2008 to 2012. This has been characterised by unsustainable

student numbers for most programs, stiff competition for students from both State and Private Universities offering block release distance education has made the situation worse. Enrolment numbers at ZOU Manicaland have gone down seriously with some programmes attracting less than five students. The decline sends wrong signals to prospective students and the employers as well. This research sought to investigate the effect of the marketing mix elements on the declining student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland region.

1.3 Objectives of the Study The objectives of the study were as follows: a) To find out what marketing mix elements are currently being used by ZOU. b) To determine what challenges ZOU is facing in its quest to implement the marketing mix elements. c) To explore the effectiveness of ZOUs student enrolment marketing mix efforts. d) To suggest effective marketing efforts which ZOU could use to increase its student enrolment.

1.4 Research Questions/Sub-questions In order to address the main problem, the following research questions had to be answered first: 1.4.1 What does ZOU understand by marketing mix? 1.4.2 What marketing mix elements are currently being used by ZOU? 1.4.3 What challenges does ZOU encounter in its efforts to implement the marketing mix? 1.4.4 How effective is ZOUs student enrolment marketing mix efforts?

1.4.5 What effective marketing mix strategies could ZOU use to increase its student enrolment figures?

1.5 Significance/Importance of the Study The following stakeholders would benefit from results of this research:

To the researcher It also gives the researcher an opportunity to apply his knowledge to solve problems affecting organisations and fulfil his professional career.

To the organisation/other universities The research may give a practical solution to ZOU student enrolment decline. This research may help to identify problem areas and how best to improve service delivery to attract more students. It also may help improve long-lasting relationships with all stakeholders. The research may help other universities change marketing strategies to maintain and improve their student enrolment figures.

To the students/prospective students The research will help bring out aspects that will increase service delivery to the students. The students will get better value education for their money.

To the public/prospective employers

The research may give a true picture to the pupils on what they can benefit by enrolling with ZOU. Employers may also change their perception of ZOU graduates.

1.6 Assumptions The research was based on the following assumptions: a) ZOU Manicaland is the only open and distance learning centre offering degrees b) The used sample is representative of the entire population c) Success of the ZOU is largely dependent on improving stakeholder relations. d) ZOU Manicaland Region can be given flexibility to operate with relaxed monitoring from ZOU National Centre. e) The Government does not set fees to be charged by universities.

1.7 Definition of Terms In this research the following terms mean what the researcher has defined them below: ZOU Zimbabwe Open University is a distance teaching and open learning institution which provides educational programmes in educational and other study disciplines. Distance Learning: - a way of providing high education that involves the transfer of that learning that forms the main basis of study to the students location rather than the student moving to the location of the resource provider APL Accreditation of Prior Learning is awarding credit for learning which has taken place outside the university, provided that the learning achievements are relevant to the programme to be taken.

External students are Zimbabwean citizens resident in foreign countries or on tour of duty in a foreign country for a period of not less than six months. Tutorials face-to-face interaction with tutors to assist students to focus their studies and find solution to problems students may meet as they study on their own. Tutor part-time university lecturers who guide students. NB. They do not teach! Module is a document that spells out aims, objectives, content, methodology and assessment procedures of a particular course of study. It replaces the need for a teacher. Staff Members those formally employed by ZOU which includes administration staff, tutors, supervisors but excluding security guards and grounds men. Marketing Mix these are the strategies which an organisations uses to pursue its marketing activities. Impact the effect it has. Semester is an academic term or a portion of an academic year, a system that divides the academic year into two terms.

1.8 Delimitations This study covered Manicaland Region, one of the eleven regional centres. Stakeholders in Mozambique have been included in Manicaland because of its proximity to Mutare. Period covered by the study is January 2008 to December 2012.

1.9 Limitations The limitations of the study were as follows: i) Suspicion by respondents

The respondents may not reveal accurate information on suspicion that the research may not only be for study purposes, despite the fact that the questionnaires did not require respondents identity. However I assured the research subjects that confidentiality and anonymity was a very high priority.

ii) Tired respondents Most ZOU students are tired of being asked to fill in questionnaires; periodically, they are compelled to give feedback on ZOU activities through a suggestion box which is by the gate. The security guard ensures students and visitors comply.

iii) Constraints a) Questionnaire responses can be delayed, thus, affect the research progress. Telephone and personal reminders had to be used to minimize delays. b) Time available could not allow for a larger sample size and a more descriptive survey design which is suitable for making inferences on large groups of people from small samples.

1.10 Summary This chapter dwelt with what enticed the need for the research, clarifying the research objectives and the significance of the study. It also focused on the benefits derived, to the researcher, organization and other institutions. It also spelt out the limitations of the study and boundaries. The following chapter focuses on literature review on what other authors and researchers have said on marketing mix elements.

CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.1 Introduction This chapter will look at literature that was written by various accredited researchers and authors on the subject of Marketing Mix and try to link this literature to the situation at Zimbabwe Open University Manicaland. Review of the related literature was done to give the researcher an insight into the problem under research and meant to find out how much other researchers have written on the subject so as to avoid repetition of what has been done already by other researchers. The chapter will deal with variables of quality service and stakeholder participation. The information was gathered from various sources such as textbooks, newspapers, research journals, ZOU graduation booklets, student orientation booklets and the internet. It was carried out to assess and address how the elements impact on the student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland.

2.2 What Is Literature Review A literature review is a survey and discussion of the literature in a given area of study. It is a concise overview of what has been studied, argued, and established about a topic, and it is usually organized chronologically or thematically. A literature review is a compilation of the

research that has been done on a particular topic. Its serves to identify what is and is not known, identify gaps or areas of controversy and to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the currently published works, adapted from: http://www.google.co.zw/url?

url=http://library.hsc.unt.edu/content/library-glossary. WIKIPEDIA defines literature review as a text written by someone to consider the critical points of current knowledge including substantive findings as well as theoretical and methodological contributions to a particular topic. Literature reviews are secondary sources, and as such, do not report any new or original experimental work. Also, a literature review can be interpreted as a review of an abstract accomplishment. Most often associated with academic-oriented literature, such as a thesis, a literature review usually precedes a research proposal and results section. Its main goals are to situate the current study within the body of literature and to provide context for the particular reader. A comprehensive survey of publications in a specific field of study or related to a particular line of research, usually in the form of a list of references or an in-depth review of the most important works adapted from : www.communityservices.qld.gov.au/youth/glossary.html

2.3 Importance of Literature Review Research is made in order to inform people with new knowledge or discovery. Literature review involves scanning the pages of any published literature like books, newspaper, magazine, website, webpage, collection, paper, pamphlet, and the like where you may be able to find any reference to the same topic that you are researching on. This time, literature does not exclusively refer to the poetic rendition of words, like that of Shakespeare alone. There are many reasons why literature review is rendered as a significant part of any research or dissertation paper. Literature review is the part of the paper where the researcher will be given the

opportunity to strengthen his or her research paper for you will be citing what other accredited authors have said about your topic. This will prove that you are not just writing about any random subject but that many others have also poured their thoughts on the topic. You may also ask what makes literature review a necessary part of the paper. This question can be answered by trying not to include the review in your paper. Obviously, it affects the length of your paper but this is not the noticeable part. What would most certainly be lacking is the fact that your paper, without the literature review, only contains all of your opinions about the facts that you have discovered through your research. Thus, how can you further convince the readers, in this case, the committee who will scrutinize your dissertation? This is the need that is answered only by the literature review. By the mere fact that you are using referencing by citing what more credible people had said about the topic will build a stronger foundation for your paper. With a literature review, you need to establish a clear tie between the works that you have cited and the topic that you are writing about. You should be able to justify the inclusion of a certain work in your review so as to make everything that you have written useful.

Why is a Literature Review Important?

To build knowledge and identify research methodologies and the seminal works in your field.

To help focus and refine your research question by articulating the knowledge gap. Provide the intellectual context for your work and situate it within the field. Ensure you will not be replicating existing knowledge or reproducing technical errors. Identify other researchers in your field (a researcher network is a valuable resource).

Identify the distinctive contribution your research will make and to produce a rationale and justification for your study.

Learn how research findings are discussed and presented in your discipline area.

In addition to expanding your knowledge about a research area, undertaking a literature review is useful for:

Information seeking, as it hones your ability to locate and peruse the relevant literature efficiently and effectively.

Critical analysis, as it enhances your ability to apply analytical principles in identifying unbiased and valid research in your area.

A literature review Provides an overview and a critical evaluation of a body of literature relating to a

research topic or a research problem. Analyzes a body of literature in order to classify it by themes or categories, rather than

simply discussing individual works one after another. itself. Presents the research and ideas of the field rather than each individual work or author by

A literature review often forms part of a larger research project, such as within a thesis (or major research paper), or it may be an independent written work, such as a synthesis paper.

2.4 Purpose of Literature Review The purposes of literature review are as follows: Boote, D.N. & Beile.P. (2005) a literature review situates the topic in relation to previous research and illuminates a spot for the research. It accomplishes several goals: provides background for your topic using previous research. shows you are familiar with previous, relevant research. evaluates the depth and breadth of the research in regards to your topic. determines remaining questions or aspects of your topic in need of research.

Relationship between a literature review and a research project, Academic research at the graduate level is always part of a dialogue among researchers. As a graduate student, you must therefore indicate that you know where your topic is positioned within your field of study.

According to www.library.arizona.edu/helptutorials/litreviews/whatis.html. Therefore, a literature review is a key part of most research projects at the graduate level. There is often a reciprocal relationship between a literature review and the research project for which it is written:

A research project is often undertaken in response to a literature review. Doing the

literature review for a topic often reveals areas requiring further research. In this way, writing the literature review helps to formulate the research question. A literature review helps to establish the validity of a research project by revealing gaps

in the existing literature on a topic that offer opportunities for new research. A literature review is more than the search for information, and goes beyond being a descriptive annotated bibliography. All works included in the review must be read, evaluated and analysed (which you would do for an annotated bibliography), but relationships between the literature must also be identified and articulated, in relation to your field of research. "In writing the literature review, the purpose is to convey to the reader what knowledge and ideas have been established on a topic, and what their strengths and weaknesses are. The literature review must be defined by a guiding concept (e.g. your research objective, the problem or issue you are discussing, or your argumentative thesis). It is not just a descriptive list of the material available, or a set of summaries. (http://www.utoronto.ca/writing/litrev.html)

2.5 History of the Marketing Mix The term marketing mix was coined in an article written by Neil Borden called The Concept of the Marketing Mix. He started teaching the term after he learned about it from an associate, James Culliton, who in 1948 described the role of the marketing manager as a " mixer of ingredients"; one who sometimes follows recipes prepared by others, sometimes prepares his own recipe as he goes along, sometimes adapts a recipe from immediately available ingredients, and at other times invents new ingredients no one else has tried. However, Borden did not

formally define the marketing mix; to him it simply consisted of important elements or ingredients that make up a marketing programme (Borden, 1965:389). McCarthy (1964:35) refined this further and defined the marketing mix as a combination of all of the factors at a marketing managers command to satisfy the target market. More recently McCarthy and Perreault (1987) defined the marketing mix as the controllable variables that an organization can co-ordinate to satisfy its target market. This definition (with minor changes) is widely accepted as can be seen from Kotler and Armstrongs definition of the marketing mix: as the set of controllable marketing variables that the firm blends to produce the response it wants in the target market (1989, pg 45). The essence of the marketing mix concept is, therefore, the idea of a set of controllable variables or a tool kit (Shapiro, 1985) at the disposal of marketing management which can be used to influence customers. Other suggested frameworks include Freys (1961) suggestion that marketing variables should be divided into two parts: the offering (product, packaging, brand, price, service) and the methods and tools (distribution channels, personal selling, advertising, sales promotion and publicity). Lazer and Kelly (1962) and Lazer et al, (1973), on the other hand, suggest three elements: the goods and services mix, the distribution mix and the communication mix. The marketing mix concept is one of the core concepts of marketing theory. However, in recent years, the popular version of this concept McCarthys (1964) 4Ps (product, price, promotion and place) has increasingly come under attack with the result that different marketing mixes have been put forward for different marketing contexts. While numerous modifications to the 4Ps framework have been proposed (see for example Kotler, 1986: Mindak and Fine, 1981: Nickels and Jolson, 1976: Waterschoot and Bulte, 1992). The most concerted criticism has come from the services marketing area. The proliferation of numerous ad hoc conceptualizations has undermined the concept of the

marketing mix and what is required is a more coherent approach. In order to place the research in context the researcher began by outlining the theoretical framework underpinning this research.

2.6.1 What is Marketing Mix? The Chartered Institute of Marketing offers the following definition for marketing: Marketing is the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably. American Marketing Association, defined marketing mix as a systematic function and as a sequence of processes for originating, conveying and transporting importance to the clients and for taking care of customer associations with means which help the company and its stockholders. . CIM (2004) also defined marketing mix as a combination of tactics used by a business to achieve its objectives by marketing its products or services effectively to a particular target customer group. When a store markets its products, it needs to create a successful mix of the right product, sold at the right price, in the right place and using the most suitable promotion (Mohammad et al, 2012). This research seeks to identify the requirements or expectations of ZOU students. It highlights that the customer is at the heart of marketing. In essence, the marketing function is the study of market forces and factors and the development of a companys position to optimise its benefit for them. It is all about getting the right product or service to the customer at the right time. Both business history and current practice remind us that without proper marketing, companies cannot get close to customers and satisfy their needs. Marketing is a key management discipline. Marketing mix is not a scientific theory, but merely a conceptual framework that identifies the principal decision making, managers make in configuring their offerings to suit consumers needs (Goi, 2009:p.2). It enables the producers of goods and services to interpret customer wants, needs and desires-and

match, or exceed them, in delivery to their target consumers. The marketing process is central to the business performance of companies, large and small, because it addresses the most important aspects of the competitive marketplace. Today, as competitive pressures increase, marketing skills have never been more highly valued by organisations in both the public and private sectors. What was once seen as a departmental activity within companies is now regarded as a frontline business attitude of mind for all employees. In the millennium edition (10 th) of Marketing Management Philip Kotler defined Marketing as a societal process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating, offering and freely exchanging products and services of value with others (Pg 8). Kotler also goes on to define Marketing Mix as the set of tools that the firm uses to pursue its marketing objectives in the target market (Pg 15). The original marketing mix defined by McCarthy included the now well known 4Ps which are product, promotion, price and place (distribution/channels). Booms and Bitner (1981) differentiated the service marketing or 7p that is related to different services rather than the goods. In their mix, 3p includes personnel, physical assets and processes in 4Ps. Most authors now mention additional ingredients of the marketing mix that is process, physical evidence (ambience) and people, thereby creating the 7Ps of what is termed the extended marketing mix for services. ZOU is concerned with Service Marketing since it offers identifiable and intangible product that is education to its clients which are the students. This research is going to find out the impact of the marketing mix elements on student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region i.e. to find out if the 7Ps of marketing are being implemented by ZOU Manicaland and to what extend are they being implemented such that it can be assessed its impact on student enrolment.

2.6.2 The Marketing Mix Elements

Fig 2.1 Showing the Marketing Mix Elements of a given Target Market

Adapted from genzmarketing.blogspot.com

2.6.2.1 Product Kotler et al, 2005 defined Product as anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use or consumption that might satisfy a want or need. According to Ferrell (2005), the product is the core of the marketing mix strategy in which retailers can offer consumers symbolic and experiential attributes to differentiate products from competitors In marketing, a product is anything that can be offered to a market that might satisfy a want or need. A product is also known as a good, idea, method, information, object or service created as a result of a process and serves a need or satisfies a want. A product can be classified as tangible or intangible. A tangible product is a physical object that can be perceived by touch such as a building, vehicle, gadget, or clothing. An intangible product is a product that can only be perceived indirectly such as an insurance policy and in this case the education offered by ZOU (degrees or diplomas). The product is of course very important and the success of the business will depend largely on how good or bad it is and in this case it is the quality of ZOU education. The decision as to the nature of the product also has to depend on its customer base as also their buying habits, geographical locations, purchasing power and other factors. Sometimes a business may want to come out with the best there is, and sometimes the same business might market a product that is for the budget customer. An example is Tata Motors that owns the Jaguar (which is a premium brand) and also the Nano (which is the cheapest automobile in the world). The ZOU modules rarely get updated yet other Universities across the globe update their modules annually e.g. UNISA, hence factoring in any current changes in the industry or subject. The herald dated 17 September 2012 titled Zimbabwe Open university qualifications dishonoured stated that thousands of teachers who attained a Diploma in Education from ZOU have been rendered jobless after the Public Service Commission refused to recognise the

qualification. When schools opened, graduates had to downgrade themselves and offer Ordinary and Advanced level certificates in desperate attempts to get contracts as temporary teachers. The graduates then petitioned ZOUs vice chancellor Dr Primrose Karasha and threatened to take legal action against the University. The graduates also sought permission to forward their grievances to the Chancellor who is the Head of State and Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces Cde R.G. Mugabe, so that he could intervene in order to rest all the conflicts surrounding the issue. The graduates also expressed that they had endured the pain for long and it was depriving them social, professional and economic status within the society (See Appendix 4). The research intends to find out whether these allegations were of material fact and to find out if ZOU degrees are fully recognised like any other degrees from other universities.

2.6.2.2 Price Kotler (2007) defined price as a cost of producing, delivering and promoting the product charged by the organization. Zeithaml (1988) is of the view that monetary cost is one of the factors that influence consumers perception of a products value. Price can be stated as the actual or rated value of a valuable product which is up for exchange; some define it as amount of money paid for product (Kotler et al, 2005). The price you set for your product or service plays a large role in its marketability. Pricing for products or services that are more commonly available in the market is more elastic, meaning that unit sales will go up or down more responsively in response to price changes (Jones, 2007). It is the amount a prospect is willing to pay for the product or service and in this scenario it is the ZOU tuition fees. There is always the right price for a product or service? If it is priced higher than this then it might not sell, and if it is priced lower than that then the business might be missing out on revenues. Price positions you in the

marketplace, the more you charge, the more value or quality your customers will expect for their money. But there are many issues based on which an organisation determines the price and that is not limited just to the cost of manufacturing it. These other factors include the perceived value of the product in the customer's i.e. students mind, the market share of the business, competition and even local tax regulations and distribution and logistical costs. Then there are issues such as seasonal fluctuations and economic situation that also need to be considered. The current tuition fee of ZOU is almost the same as a fulltime conventional program with other Universities e.g. Chinhoyi University of technology is $500.00 tuition for a non resident student per term. The Chronicle article dated 17 August 2012 published an article titled ZOU students in quandary over new fees regulations. This article was about students who were appealing to the relevant authourities to assist them to fight against the paying upfront policy which had been implemented by ZOU. Students wanted the payment plans to be reinstated so that they could afford to pay the tuition fees (See Appendix 5). One disgruntled student commented saying ZOU should not expect students to pay near equivalent fees of full time formal university students despite the fact that distant education is designed as correspondence courses and hence should command less fees than formal university fees. Student enrolment figures for ZOU Manicaland show that there was a decrease when payment plans were stopped and hence the research intends to find out what students and potential students feel about that ban and its consequences.

2.6.2.3 Place Kotler and Armstrong (2006), defined place or distribution as a set of interdependent organizations involved in the process of making a product available for use or consumption by

consumers. Jones, (2007) defined place as any way that the customer can obtain a product or receive a service. Bowersox and Closs (1996) gave distribution as another name for place. According to them, it is the third element of the marketing mix, and it encompasses all decisions and tools which relate to making products and services available to customers. They claimed that place could be categorized into open market, merchant houses, institutional houses and direct delivery. The question where the product or service is offered is answered here. What are its distribution channels, where are the tutorials going to be taking place, are the university facilities readily available, how and where does the library operate, what are the costs of accessing the university or its other facilities and how will it be done? These are just a few questions that need to be answered. Various strategies such as intensive distribution, selective distribution, exclusive distribution and franchising can be used by the marketer to complement the other aspects of the marketing mix. Pride and Ferrell (2008) emphasize the importance of location in retail industry, and inform about bitter war between major retailers in terms of opening stores in most populous locations and city centres. From this perspective it can be stated that the importance of location in terms of profit maximisation is fully recognised by ZOU due to its wide coverage of servicing students from various areas in the Manicaland region. This is an area where ZOU has done well by being represented far and wide across the nation. However this research intends to find out whether there is need for further decentralisation especially in other smaller towns like Chipinge, Nyanga, Rusape and Chimanimani to make it more convenient for students from those areas. It is important to provide comfortable customer waiting areas with seating, TVs, newspapers. At present ZOU has no classrooms or lecture theatres to conduct its tutorials and exams hence it has to rent from Mutare Poly, Mutare Teachers College or Mutare City Hall. It is also currently renting premises to run the library. Students can be seen studying and discussing

under trees sitting on logs, while student coordinators share offices yet students need private counselling. This research is going to investigate what students think about the location of the university and the available facilities.

2.6.2.4 Promotion Promotion is concerned with any vehicle you employ for getting people to know more about your product or service. Advertising, public relations, point-of-sale displays, and word-of-mouth promotion are all traditional ways for promoting a product. Promotion can be seen as a way of closing the information gap between would-be sellers and would-be buyers (Jones, 2007). Zeithaml et al. (1995) described promotion as part of specific effort to encourage customers to tell others about their services. Kotler, (2007) discovered that Promotions have become a critical factor in the product marketing mix which consists of the specific blend of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, public relations and direct marketing tools that the company uses to pursue its advertising and marketing objective. Promotion includes advertising and marketing the services offered by ZOU? Promotion is the effort to take a product from the business to the customer. Managing the sales force (for a traditional business) also belongs to this. What promotion strategy is best for a business will however not be the same to other businesses? It will vary depending on the product itself, the market, the customer and also the budget the company has. ZOU is currently operating a website which is accessible on www.zou.ac.zw , this is a good marketing tool which has a very wide geographical coverage, which can be accessed by anyone with internet access. However it is limited to those with internet access and who are computer literate. The website can further be improved so that it meets all the requirements or

characteristics of a good website such as the ones from http://mashable.com/2012/02/09/websitemust-haves/: a) A Logical Roadmap A website should be aesthetically pleasing, but it's more important for it to be useful. Before you even pick a server or type an HTML tag, you should map out how you'd like the website to work. This is important both for user experience and for search engines, since Google considers the content and structure of a site when it ranks for search. b) Crucial Business Information "The biggest failure that people have is that they try to build the website they want, not necessarily the website they need," says designer Josh Frankel. If you work in the service industry and have a business that relies heavily on customer service and referrals, put some testimonials on your site. A web designer should include screenshots or link out to previous work for example previous graduates of ZOU. c) Contact Information We can't stress enough that most crucial business detail is contact information which is why it has its own section. Mills exclaims, "How many times do you visit a website and think 'how hard is to contact this company?' Have a number, email, address and a contact form easily accessible and visible," he says. It makes a difference because there's nothing more frustrating than being unable to get in touch with a needed business or service. When you put an email address or a phone number on the site, don't upload this information as part of an image the number or address should be able to be clicked on

or copied right from the site in order to place the call or send an email conveniently and quickly. Most smartphones these days have the ability to do "click to call" on the web, so make the process as easy as possible for users. Customers don't want your phone ringing off the hook? Just use an email address, but be sure you answer emails in a timely manner.

d) Clear Navigation

A map is useless without a legend and a website is useless without clear navigation. Make sure you use easy-to-understand and logical names for the various pages of your site contact, about, FAQ, etc. When developing your navigation strategy, you should consider a call to action. What is it that you want people to do on your site? Place an order? Email for a quote? Become a member? Come to your brick-and-mortar store? Call to speak with a customer service rep? Make your goals clear and obvious.

e) Social Media Integration

There are a lot of social platforms out there (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Skype, Google+) and you should promote your presence on them on your website, because social media is critical part of marketing your business. Integrating these platforms into your website will help boost your SEO (Search Engine Optimised), improve your business' footprint on the social web and build your following across numerous social platforms.

f) A Mobile-Ready Version

Smartphones and tablets are driving an increasing amount of web traffic , and the numbers are only going to grow as mobile devices become cheaper and more mainstream. Andy Chu, director of Bing for Mobile, says 70% of task completion happens within one hour on mobile sites, meaning that people are often browsing on the web with intent they're looking to do something, buy something or go somewhere. g) FAQ People have a lot of questions. As you hear concerns from customers and receive feedback via email, gather up the most frequently asked questions into a list and offer clear, concise answers. Questions often revolve around materials and ingredients used (for allergy reasons), shipping information, company history, sizing (for apparel brands) and cancellation or return policies. h) Appearance A site must be visually appealing, polished and professional. Remember, it's reflecting your company, your products and your services. Your website may be the first, and only, impression a potential customer receives of your company. An attractive site is far more likely to generate a positive impression and keep visitors on your site once they arrive. As businesses large and small continue to populate the web, your challenge is to attract and keep users' attention. Ideas like this are what PR professionals pay attention to keep their businesses successful.

i) Good Hosting

Not having good hosting can cost you in many ways. A slow site is frustrating, one that fails to load is obnoxious and both could turn off customers. But beyond annoying your users and increasing your bounce rate, poor hosting can also affect your rank in search engines, since many search engine algorithms detect webpage loading speed, says Malakai Whitston of design blog WebDesignFan. Every component of your site should work quickly and correctly. Broken or poorly constructed components will only leave your visitors frustrated and disillusioned with your company. Across the spectrum, everything should work as expected, including hyperlinks, contact forms, site search, event registration, and so on. ZOU advertises its services in the local newspapers such as the Herald, Sunday Mail and Manica Post to market the services it provides. ZOU also makes use of the Agricultural Show and Zimbabwe International Trade Fair which are very good platforms to market its services. ZOU is also on social media like facebook, twitter, LinkedIn. Businesses began to move their advertising efforts into areas by making wide use of social media from 2009. The social media includes social networking tools such as Facebook, Twitter, Hi-5, social news tools such as Reddit, Digg Propeller, social photo & video sharing tools such

as Photobucket, Flickr, YouTube and social bookmarking tools such as Del.icio.us, Simpy. One of the advantages of social media advertising is proper targeting of market through the use of the users demographic information provided. The disadvantage is measuring effectiveness of social media advertising, whether or not the number of likes, friends or follows could convert to actual sales. The portion of advertising that is done online will increase significantly over time as more devices such as mobile telephones and televisions are connected to the Internet and people spend more time on these devices. The valuations that the capital markets are placing on

businesses related to online advertising are consistent with this prediction. One major benefit of online advertising is the immediate publishing of information and content that is not limited by geography or time. To that end, the emerging area of interactive advertising presents fresh challenges for advertisers who have hitherto adopted an interruptive strategy. Another benefit is the efficiency of the advertiser's investment. Online advertising allows for the customization of advertisements, including content and posted websites.

2.6.2.5 Physical Evidence (Ambience) Physical evidence in the Booms and Bitner framework refers to the environment in which the service is delivered and any tangible goods that facilitate the performance and communication of the service. Physical evidence is important because customers use tangible clues to assess the quality of service provided i.e. to assess the known track record of the service offered or it reputation or experience. An example is ZOU can hang its various accolades or achievements in the reception as evidence of the quality of service it offers. The Zimbabwe Open University is the largest Open and Distance Learning institution in Zimbabwe that is internationally known for its excellent education and research. At ZOU, we offer you diverse diploma, undergraduate and post graduate degree programmes. We have four faculties, namely, the Faculty of Arts and Education, Faculty of Commerce and Law, Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Social Sciences. With 10 Regional Centres countrywide, ZOU is easily the most accessible university in the country. Why not study with ZOU and change your life for the better. ZOU has been receiving negative publicity in the past about some of its degrees being suspended. In an article which read the suspension of some programmes offered by the Zimbabwe Open University by

the Zimbabwe Council of Higher Education last year caused a lot of suffering among thousands of current and former students. The council is mandated with evaluating and assessing higher education programmes to ensure they meet the countrys training needs while maintaining world class standards. ZOU director of marketing and communications Mr. Nhamo Marandu yesterday said the college felt the suspension of the programmes was unprocedural and irregular. He said apart from an evaluation report on B.Sc Counselling that was compiled by as yet unknown persons, the other programmes had been suspended on unclear basis. According to the Zimche Act, Section 18, sub-section 4, the council must publish the results of the accreditation process but ZOU has not seen such publication. "We are not contesting the authority of Zimche as a regulatory body. They indeed have an important national mandate of quality assuring our higher education. What we are not quite happy with is how the same mandate is being executed. "For instance we should be given the identity and qualifications of those who Zimche assigns to evaluate our programmes. "Not only is this fair and transparent, it also will allay our fears that the evaluators might not have any experience in open and distance learning or they may actually be on the payrolls of our competitors. "We only got instructions to stop offering the programmes and in some cases transfer students to other colleges offering the same courses. "We believe this is beyond the Zimche mandate, which under Section 18, sub Section 5, of the Zimche Act 25.17 is to recommend to the responsible minister. "The decision has thrown thousands of students' future in jeopardy."The decision has broader consequences as former students now have to justify their qualification at work while those studying do not know if they will ever complete the course or not," he said. Zimche in November last year issued a statement suspending five programmes offered by the institution. These include M.Sc. in Counselling, B.Sc in Counselling, Post-Graduate Diploma in Education, Diploma in Education (Primary) and Diploma in Early

Childhood Development. The suspension has affected even students who graduated earlier. The BSC Counselling programme has seen 3 214 students graduate while another 1 090 are in various stages of studying. One hundred and sixty-eight students graduated from ZOU with MSC Counselling degrees with 230 more in-stream while 35 graduated from the ECD programme. He said the university was not offering the Graduate Diploma in Education Certificate as indicated by the council while the diploma in early child development was offered by an affiliate college Elephant College, a private institution. Mr. Marandu said ZOU believed the Diploma in Education (Primary) was designed to cater for practicing untrained teachers to help alleviate the current shortage of teachers in the country. "These were programmes of national importance but were condemned without proper consideration."The suspension has put a dent on the credibility of all other programmes offered by the institution and the country's education system. "We feel the college should be allowed to continue teaching while improvements are being made as the decision was inconsiderate to the students' plight."We believe issues of such national importance require wide consultation and adherence to existing laws." ZOU was established in 1993 and has offered tuition to thousands of Zimbabweans who hold important portfolios in the country. (See Appendix 6) Thus, the more intangible-dominant a service is, the greater the need to make the service tangible (Shostack, 1977). Credit cards are an example of the use of tangible evidence that facilitate the provision of (intangible) credit facilities by banks and credit companies. It is the environment, in which a service is offered and consumed, is central to the students understanding of the service and to her or his enjoyment or satisfaction. The feel is very much part of the service offer (Dibb et al Marketing Concepts & Strategies Pg 636). Whether in a restaurant, hospital, sports club or bank, the appearance and ambience matter. Layout, dcor, up-

keep, noise, aroma, appearance of ZOU staff, general ease of access at ZOU all become part of the service product.

2.6.2.6 Process Dibb et al states that the acts of purchasing and consumption are important in all markets that are consumer, industrial or service. For availing a service certain activities are to be performed. For that purpose procedure, mechanism and flow of activities by which services are delivered are to be decided. That would maintain the standard format for availing the services. This is called process. For example, one wants saving account facility in a bank then he has to apply for opening an account. After this the pass book, cheque book and ATM card would be issued and service can be availed after this. The direct involvement of students in the production of services and the perishability of these services, place greater emphasis on the process of the transaction of the services. Processes - associated with customer service are a number of processes involved in making marketing effective in an organisation e.g. processes for handling customer complaints, processes for identifying customer needs and requirements, processes for handling order etc. Read more: http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/business-theory/marketing/the-extended-marketingmix-7ps.html#ixzz2RTrnh4ij Friendliness of ZOU staff and flows of information affect the students perception of the service product offer. Appointment or queuing systems become part of the service. Ease or difficulty of payment and registration can enhance or spoil the enrolment of students at ZOU. Hence there should be prompt service, informative websites, no waiting or delays in paying of tuition fees or registration as well as getting results. These are operational issues that directly affect student perceptions and satisfaction; they are important aspects of the marketing of services. With

services such as online registration, online application and myVista which allows students to download their results online, makes the process easier, faster and more convenient for students.

2.6.2.7 People The nature of most services requires direct interaction between the consumer and personnel representing the service providers organisation. The services are being provided with the help of employees and to the customers. There is direct contact for delivery of the services to the customers. The type of people providing the service matters a lot from business point of view. The people are to be selected, trained and motivated to keep the customers very happy. In many services, customers interact with one another and the organisations staff also interacts with one another. This level of human involvement must be given maximum attention if customers are to maximise their use of the service and ultimately their satisfaction. ZOU employee selection, training and motivation are central considerations because its success is greatly dependent on their personnel. In a Newsday article dated 30 November 2012, titled All not well at ZOU states that student enrolment has hit rock bottom with other classes being conducted with less than three students. The sources, however said The negative coverage the university got last year is beginning to take its toll. At the moment, ZOU is keeping Ndekwere, whose term of office expired in June. The late Higher and Tertiary Education minister Stan Mudenge refused to renew it. Government has since stopped paying her salaries. She is paid by ZOU by requisitions from student fees. Ndekwere is a former Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco) employee who left the national transporter under a cloud at a time the State was investigating a corruption case former ZUPCO chief executive officer and Deputy Information minister Bright Matonga and ex-Zupco chairperson Charles Nherera. ZOU, the source added, has also taken a

$400 000.00 loan from a local bank to buy staff vehicles, barely two years after doing the same, while some vehicles were locked up at the Deputy Sherriffs office ready for auctioning over a labour dispute involving close to $100 000.00. (See Appendix 7). CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Introduction The chapter explains the procedure followed by the researcher in carrying out the research, giving a detailed account of the methodology. It looked at the research design, study population and sample, data collection instruments (advantages and disadvantages), data collection procedures, data presentation and analysis.

3.2 Research Design-Pragmatic Approach This researcher chose the pragmatic approach to research which involves using the method which appears best suited to the research problem and not getting caught up in philosophical debates about which is the best approach. This has the advantage of freedom to use any of the methods, techniques and procedures typically associated with quantitative or qualitative research. This recognises that every method has its limitations and that the different approaches can be complementary and has the advantages of enabling Triangulation such as Data Triangulation, Theory Triangulation and Methodology Triangulation. A research design is the plan and structure of an investigation (Kerlinger, 1992). Leedy (1980) defines a research design as a strategy for finding out something. It guides the researcher in the process of collecting, analysing and interpreting observations. Moss (1988; 120) said, The design is

a plan for the study providing the overall framework. The researcher opted for a descriptive or narrative survey method since it best suits the research in addressing and answering the outlined aims and objectives. Variables are partly controlled by the situation and by the researcher. The variables are known but their actions are unpredictable. The researcher predicts the variables and knows how to measure them. In most cases the variables would have been studied before hence there is sufficient information to a question about the relationship between them.

3.3 Research Subjects These are research participants that the researcher used in the research or study (Dissertation Research Guidelines, 2002) and they are described hereafter. The research subjects were students, potential students, staff members, security guards and grounds men.

3.4 Sampling Techniques For coming up with the study objects in the sample, the researcher followed a systematic procedure outlined below: 1. Definition of population 2. Determination of sampling frame 3. Selection of a sampling procedure 4. Determination of sample size 5. Selection of the sample elements

3.4.1 Study Population and Sample

Population is that aggregation of elements from which the sample is actually selected from (Babbie E 1991: 197). Population is the set of people that have the information that is of interest to the researcher. Every element meeting the theoretical definitions laid down has a chance of being selected in the sample. In this case the population comprise of students both current and prospective, employers of ZOU students and students from other Universities and their number is 150 people. Members of staff ranging from security guards, administration, programme coordinator and part time tutors were included in the population. Security guards are usually at the gate of the campus, thus become first and last port of call.

3.4.2

Sampling Frame Determination

A sample frame is a list of study objects (or sometimes sampling units) from which a sample will ultimately be selected or drawn.

3.4.3

Sampling Procedure Selection

The researcher employed the probability sampling procedure. A probability sampling procedure is one in which each study object in sampling frame possesses a known chance or probability (typically non zero) of being selected for sample inclusion.

3.4.3.1 Stratified Sampling Of all the probability sampling techniques available, the researcher made use of the stratified sampling method. Stratified sampling is a probability sampling technique in which study objects are first divided into groups based on common business functions and then a sample is selected from each group, usually simple random sampling.

3.4.4

Procedure

Study participants were grouped based on common business which included existing students, potential students, members of staff, security guards and grounds men. Within each group, sample elements were selected randomly.

3.4.5

Sample Size Determination

The researcher used an all-you-can-afford method to determine the sample size. This method allowed the researcher to choose a sample size which was adequate enough to represent the population. The researcher afforded to give out 55 questionnaires to the students. Table 3.1 Sample Breakdown

Group Students Potential Students Staff Members Security Guards Grounds Men TOTAL

Questionnaires Issued 35 16 10 3 4 55
15 4 5 2 1 18

Interviews Booked

Population
50 20 15 5 5 95

3.5 Sources of Information The researcher used a wide range of resource material and facilities available at the university.

3.5.1 Primary Sources This is data that is gathered specifically for the study at hand. It reflects the present trends, the way things are and this gives current information. The methods used included questionnaires, personal interviews and observations.

3.5.1.2Advantages of using Primary Sources: Data is accurate since it does not contain outdated information. Data addresses or gives information for the problem at hand. The source is reliable since data is collected directly from participants. There is no bias because it is first hand and original.

3.5.1.3 Disadvantages of using Primary Sources: It is time consuming to collect. Direct and personal intervention is required in its collection.

In order to mitigate the disadvantages I asked my father to help me hand out the questionnaires to other research subjects so that the researcher could cover more ground in the little time which was available to gather the information. The researcher thanked the research subjects for their help in giving information through the questions after it had been explained to them how valuable their input was and how it would affect the research holistically and the benefits. This made research participants more willing to participate and be of great assistance.

3.5.2 Secondary Sources Secondary data is the data that have been already collected by and readily available from other sources. Secondary data is information from published source such as newspapers, textbooks, University records, and the internet. The researcher used information contained in ZOU graduation booklets, student orientation booklets and downloads from the internet.

3.5.2.1 Advantages of Secondary Data It is economical. It saves efforts and expenses.

It is time saving. It helps to make primary data collection more specific since with the help of secondary data, we are able to make out what are the gaps and deficiencies and what additional information needs to be collected. It helps to improve the understanding of the problem. It provides a basis for comparison for the data that is collected by the researcher. 3.5.2.2 Disadvantages of Secondary Data Accuracy of secondary data is not known. Data may be outdated. There may be biases in the data that you don't know about.

The researcher gathered recent information which was under the period in which this dissertation is covering so that all out dated information will not be used and further investigated the given data to measure authenticity and to assess if there is any bias. 3.6 Data Collection Instruments 3.6.1 Questionnaire According to Borg & Gall (1996:767), a questionnaire is a measure that presents a set of written questions to which all individuals in a sample respond. Haralambos and Holborn (1995:835) defined a questionnaire as list of pre-set questions used to gather data.

3.6.1.1 Advantages of the Questionnaire The same document is sent to many people at the same time and it is cheaper to administer and analyze. Respondents are free to express their views as they fill in details on their own. It gives them ample time to think over answers. They are convenient since respondents can complete it at a time and place that is convenient for them. Questionnaires allow anonymity resulting in respondents giving honest answers in a free atmosphere. They are perceived to be less intrusive than telephone or face-to-face surveys and hence, respondents will more readily respond truthfully to sensitive questions Most people are familiar with the concept of a questionnaire They reduce the possibility of interviewer bias

3.6.1.2 Disadvantages of the Questionnaire It restricts respondents to selected answers from a given choice of selected questions thus depriving them to express their real feelings. It is hard to have a 100% return rate and many follow ups are required. If poorly done questionnaires can leave out vital information thus giving weak findings on which to make conclusions. The researcher does not have control over who fills in the questionnaire even though it may be addressed or delivered to the intended participant. The researcher designed a questionnaire which had open questions which left room for respondents to express themselves rather than being limited to closed questions which require one word answers. The researcher also did a thorough follow up on the given out questionnaires to increase the response rate.

3.6.2 Pre-Testing Questionnaires This is recommended so as to come up with an ideal questionnaire that will capture all relevant information. This is a pilot survey on a few respondents to check on its viability, workability and any other relevant comments. Some minor adjustments were made by deleting questions which were almost similar, rearranging of questions and simplifying some vague questions which respondents failed to understand.

3.7 Interviews This is a conversation between the interviewer and interviewee conducted by either telephone or face to face. Interviews were done which were either structured or unstructured.

A conversation in which one person (the interviewer) elicits information from another person (the subject or interviewee). A transcript or account of such a conversation is also called an interview. The interview is both a research method and a popular form of nonfiction: adapted from www.about.com. Thus interviewing is most effective when the goal of said research is to gain insight into the subjective understanding of those around us. By asking participants why we are enabled to not only observe their behavior but to subsequently understand the meaning that underlies that behavior, and to have this meaning explained to us in the participants own words.

3.7.1 Advantages of Interviews Face to face interviews allows the researcher to modify ones line of thought and permits flexibility and can be adaptive to situations. Facial expressions by the interviewee can say much more to the answers given. Interviews allow the researcher to probe for more information.

3.7.2 Disadvantages of Interviews It is time consuming and needs careful preparation and planning. It requires a lot of patience as many respondents need persuasion. Respondents may give dishonest answers to please the interviewer. It is also difficult to come up with a suitable venue with minimum disturbances and interference and some people are just unwilling to co-operate.

The researcher was very tactical in carrying out the interviews so as to make the interviewees comfortable so that there is no duress and bias toward the interviewer. The researcher first booked the appointments and arranged a meeting at places which were suitable to the interviewees so that it was convenient for them for example some ZOU staff refused to be interviewed at ZOU premises in fear of victimisation. The information which was a bit personal which lacked in the questionnaires was augmented by interviews. This eliminated the bias that could arise from using a single method. The findings from these research instruments complimented each other. This is in tandem with Borg and Gall (1995) who maintained that the validity and reliability of data is checked by use of different instruments.

3.8 Pilot Study Bailey (1982) indicates that a pilot study is a mini study meant to enhance the content and predictive validity of the research instruments. In this study two of each of the research instruments were administered on respondents in a pilot study. Findings of the pilot study were then used to make corrections on the research instruments before the actual study.

3.9 Data Collection Procedures These are the steps taken in administering data collection instruments to collect data from subjects under study (Dissertation Research Guidelines Module, 2003). The initial step was to appreciate that organisations are strategic units and some information is closely and jealously guarded. It was therefore important to get a formal approval from the university authorities. The researcher wrote a formal letter to the ZOU Manicaland Regional Director seeking permission to

carry out the study (see Appendix 1). Permission was granted to carry out the study, issue out the questionnaires and interview ZOU staff during working hours.

3.10 Administration of Questionnaires The questionnaires were self administered and the researcher physically distributed them to the relevant respondents, who filled them in at their convenience to avoid bias. The researcher then made a follow up to collect the questionnaires.

3.10.1 Justification of Using Open-Ended Questions The answers provided extremely insightful data. Since study participants provided answers in their own words there was no researcher bias present with regard to possible answers. Study participants do not have to answer according to pre-specified set of response categories thought to be relevant by the researcher.

3.10.2 Justification of Using Closed-Ended Questions They permit the researcher to focus on only those answers that will result in actionable data. They reduce interviewer bias (i.e. verbosity bias is eliminated). They are easy to use in the field.

3.11 Personal Interviews

The researcher also used personal interviews to collect primary data. These interviews were conducted with the ZOU staff, ZOU existing students and ZOU potential students. It was conducted using a structured interview (see Appendix 2) through Face to face communication between the researcher (i.e. interviewer) and the respondent (i.e. interviewee). The researcher also had unstructured interviews with the grounds-men and security guards (gatekeepers) at ZOU premises.

3.11.1 Guidelines followed when carrying out the Interviews The Researcher Asked indirect questions and informal questions. Remained detached and objective. Probed for more detailed explanation after a Yes or No answer. Allowed the respondent to talk freely while keeping the conversation on target.

3.11.2 Justification of Using Personal Interviews They helped to uncover content and intensity of respondents feelings and motivations behind the rationalized response to the construed question. Data collected was immediate. Non verbal responses were observed and noted. Questions allowed probing for reasons.

3.12 Data Presentation and Analysis Procedures

Kwesu I. et al (Dissertation Research Guidelines) states that Statistics are tools used by the researcher to help make sense of the data collected. Howkins J. M. (1982:153) defined data as facts or information to be used as a basis for discussing or deciding something or preparing to solve a problem. To analyse is to separate a substance into its parts in order to identify it or study it, to examine and or to interpret (Howkins J. M. 1982:20). The collected data was explained, organised, analysed and presented on tables, graphs and pie charts. For more understanding of the data, the researcher interpreted it including percentages rounded to the nearest whole number and commented.

3.13 Summary This section explained how the study was undertaken. This chapter was the theoretical layout of the actual process of collecting data. It looked at the research design, study population and sample, data collection instruments, data collection procedures, data presentation and analysis. This was a critical stage of the research and a great deal of attention had to be given to this stage as it is the one that leads to the actual results of the study.

CHAPTER IV DATA PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Introduction

In this chapter, the researcher is going to present data collected from both interviews and questionnaires which were sent to selected participants. The purpose of this chapter is to enable the researcher to come up with some findings about the study from which conclusions and recommendations can be drawn. The data was analysed quantitatively using the tally method and qualitatively using comments made by respondents. Most of the findings were presented as percentages. Graphs, charts and tables were used for illustration purposes where it was necessary to elaborate the various trends being outlined by the data.

4.2 Overall Response Rate Of the 55 questionnaires issued, 45 were returned and completed. The table below shows the number of questionnaires issued, returned and the response rate of each sample group.

Table 4.1 Showing Overall Response Rate of Questionnaires

Respondent

Questionnaires Issued

Questionnaires Completed Returned 25 8 7 3 2 45 66.67% and

Response rate

Students 30 Potential Students 10 Staff Members 10 Security Guards 5 Grounds Men 5 TOTAL 60 AVERAGE RESPONSE RATE Comment

83.33% 80% 70% 60% 40%

Generally there was a very good response rate holistically though the highest response rate came from the existing students probably because they are the ones more concerned about the research since they are the affected ones, potential students, staff members, security guards and grounds men respectively. Table 4.2 Showing Overall Response Rate of Interviews Respondent Interviews Booked Students 10 Potential Students 8 Staff Members 5 Security Guards 3 Grounds Men 2 TOTAL 28 AVERAGE RESPONSE RATE Comment Of the 10 interviews booked for students 80% were successful, the rest happened as follows 87.5% for potential students, 60% for staff members, 33.3% for security guards and 50% for the grounds men. Of the booked interviews 71.4% of them actually took place because some of the interviewees phoned to cancel the interviews and some postponed to a later day which was not Interviews Done 8 7 3 1 1 20 71.4% Response rate 80% 87.5% 60% 33.3% 50%

feasible to the completion of this dissertation. Maybe the interviewees were too busy to be interviewed especially students who were busy preparing for their exams and as for the members of staff probably feared victimisation.

Table 4.3 Showing type of response by each sample group i.e. both questionnaires and interviews Sample Group No. Questionnaire Respondents of No. of Interview Total Respondents Response of Percentage of Total

each Sample Groups 50.8% 23.1% 15.4% 6.2% 4.6% 100%

Sample Students Potential Students Staff Members Security Guards Grounds Men TOTAL 25 8 7 3 2 45 8 7 3 1 1 20 group 33 15 10 4 3 65

Figure 4.1 Pie Chart showing Percentage Response of each Sample Group

Out of the 65 respondents 50.8% are students, 23.1% are potential students, 15.4% are members of staff, 6.2% are security guards and the grounds men make up the remaining 4.6%. The above pie chart suggests that the students were most responsive to the questionnaires and interviews.

Figure 4.2 Bar Chart Showing Distributions by Gender

Comment A total number of 35 male respondents with 20 responding to questionnaires and 15 to interviews, a total of 20 female respondents with 16 responding to questionnaires and 4 to interviews. ZOU Manicaland Region students majority are made up of males and the females are the minorities and this might be contributed by the fact that men are the most bread winners in the majority of families in Zimbabwe.

Figure 4.3 Line Graph Showing Distribution by Age Group

Comment The above graph shows that most of the respondents age group is 25 to 40 years with 38 respondents, followed by the above 40 years age group with 19 respondents and then the under 25 years age group with 8 respondents. The graph shows that the majority of students of ZOU are the middle age class who have families which means they have other financial obligations and dependents. This is probably the reason why that most respondents pointed out that the tuition fees charged by ZOU was too expensive and why also they wanted flexible payment plans. Pricing for products or services that are more commonly available in the market is more elastic, meaning that unit sales will go up or down more responsively in response to price changes (Jones, 2007). ZOU Manicaland tuition is highly price elastic which means if tuition fees goes up demand for student enrolment will go down.

Table 4.4 Table Showing the Rate of Employment of the Respondents Employed - - 59 No. of Respondents Unemployed - - 6

Equivalent to 90.8% Equivalent to 9.2% Private Sector Public Sector 6 18 Approx 41 Approx 30.5% 69.5%

Comment The table above shows that the majority of the respondents are employed which are the 59 people and the minority of 6 people who are not employed who could possibly be potential students or are actually employers themselves. Of the 90.8% employed respondents 69.5% of them are employed in the public sector i.e. they are civil servants and the remaining 30.5% are in the private sector. McCarthy and Perreault (1987) defined the marketing mix as the controllable variables that an organization can co-ordinate to satisfy its target market. Kotler and Armstrongs definition of the marketing mix: as the set of controllable marketing variables that the firm blends to produce the response it wants in the target market (1989, pg 45). So from the results in the above table the target market is highly composed with employed respondents who are mostly civil servants.

Table 4.5 Tally Showing results from the research instruments SUBJECT Enrol for MBA with ZOU? Does ZOU employ qualified tutors? Yes 39 33 No 26 32

Are ZOU tutorials effective? Are ZOU modules readily available? Are the modules helpful? Is ZOU library adequately stocked and is it easily accessible? Did you get to know ZOU through its marketing activities? Comment

50 19 25 31 11

15 46 40 34 54

The majority of the respondents said they would do their MBA with ZOU while the minority of them pointed out that they would wish to do it with other universities. Of the ones who said they would do their MBA with ZOU gave reasons mainly of the fact that ZOU is a flexible learning institution which cater for their work schedules, while those who said they would not do it with ZOU said they would not be able to afford the fees and would rather do the block release programs. The minority group who said they would not enrol for MBA with ZOU feel the price does not match the value. Zeithaml (1988) is of the view that monetary cost is one of the factors that influence consumers perception of a products value. The majority group perceive ZOUs MBA program as high product value unlike the minority. The bar chart below illustrates the distribution;

Figure 4.4 Bar Chart Showing Distribution of those who would enrol for MBA with ZOU

Figure 4.5 Histogram Showing Whether ZOU Tutors are Qualified

Comment

The above histogram shows that 33 of the respondents thought that ZOU tutors are qualified and 32 of them said ZOU tutors were not qualified, this means that 51% of the respondents think that ZOU tutors are not qualified for the task at hand while 49% think that they are qualified. Amazingly the very same respondents 77% of them think that the tutorials are effective, this might be because students have discussions during tutorials and they think it aids to the tutors material. 33% of the respondents think that the tutorials are not effective. Dibb et al states that the acts of purchasing and consumption are important in all markets that are consumer, industrial or service. Hence the learning process at ZOU Manicaland region should be done by qualified tutors who can deliver the service well.

Figure 4.6 Bar Chart Showing Availability and Helpfulness of ZOU Modules

Comment

From the above bar chart 46 respondents said the ZOU modules are not readily available and 40 of them also said the modules are not helpful. The remaining 19 respondents said the modules were readily available and 25 respondents also said they were helpful in their studies. Hence the majority of the respondents said the modules were not readily available and were not helpful in their studies. Kotler et al, 2005 defined Product as anything that can be offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use or consumption that might satisfy a want or need. According to Ferrell (2005), the product is the core of the marketing mix strategy in which retailers can offer consumers symbolic and experiential attributes to differentiate products from competitors. According to the above mentioned authors ZOUs product i.e. modules seem not to be satisfying the needs or wants of most respondents and there is a lack of principle of order which states that a product should be made available where it is needed in the right state and quantity, unlike the case of availability of modules. Figure 4.7 Doughnut Chart showing Library Stocking and Accessibility

Comment

34 respondents suggested that the ZOU Manicaland library was not fully stocked with books and it was not easily accessible. Further probing revealed that the choice of books were limited and some key books were not available in many copies hence there would be out and students had to sometime queue for books which can take several days. Further probing also revealed that the respondents would prefer it very well if the library was located centrally in town. Kotler and Armstrong (2006), defined place or distribution as a set of interdependent organizations involved in the process of making a product available for use or consumption by consumers at a location convenient. The minority 31 respondents were satisfied with the location of ZOU library and its resources.

CHAPTER V

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Introduction In this chapter the researcher shall present the summary of the study, conclusions drawn from the study and the recommendations necessary for the solving of the problem of declining student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region.

5.2 Summary This study was undertaken on the backdrop of recurring decline in student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region. The research summary dwells on the following; the research problem, literature review, the research methodology and main findings of the study. The researcher discussed the background of the study and the statement of the problem which outlined the identified problem. The research problem is that enrolment figures at ZOU Manicaland Region are falling in the period under review. The falling numbers of new students have a bearing on the future of Zimbabwe Open University. The research was promoted by reports and observations derived from attendance figures at tutorial sessions and newspapers. Newsday November 30, 2012 headed All not well at ZOU. The paper gives details as enrolment has plummeted from an all time high of 21000 students at each given time, till a few years ago to 6543 students. It further reports that Masters of Business Administration enrolling a paltry 23 new students from an average of 400 students recorded at each intake over the past few years. Questionnaires and Interviews were used to collect data from a sample of 65 research subjects. Interviews with students were carried out as students were at tutorial venues which gave reliable information as the students were in the learning environment, thus were able to give and state

their feelings on quality tutorials, tutor modules, equipment and classroom set-up. While other research groups were interviewed at various areas of their convenience which gave unbiased information. The researcher faced various limitations during the course of undertaking this research project such as financial, time, confidentiality and knowledge deficiency, but the project was successfully completed by the sacrifice of both the researcher, supervisor and the respondents. The researcher had to use less expensive ways of collecting data, by conducting the interviews and questionnaires during tutorial sessions. The researcher designed a schedule of activities that took into consideration the researchers work schedule of activities. Another constraint was that the respondents were known to the researcher i.e. former classmates, which might have led to bias and suspicion. The researcher assured the respondents, especially the ZOU staff that the study was for academic purposes only. The respondents also took this opportunity to settle issues with ZOU administration as they provided unsolicited information though it was useful for the purpose of the study. Responses to the published media news about ZOU i.e. found in the appendix, were used as there likely from ZOU students, prospective students, past students and relevant stakeholders. Some respondents defended ZOU qualifications, attributing the fall in student enrolment to financial problems. They put it that the student base is made up of struggling civil servants. Despite all the above challenges, interesting findings and observations were made. The following conclusions and recommendations were based on the research findings. The major finding of the study was that the marketing mix employed by ZOU Manicaland Region was not being fully utilised. In light of the above the researcher managed to sum up some key findings which in turn brought about the following conclusions.

5.3 Conclusions From the findings presented in Chapter Four the researcher drew a number of conclusions which are presented below as follows; 5.3.1 Most of ZOU Manicaland region students are civil servants, the majority being teachers (Table 4.4). Very few students have their fees paid by their employers or parents. 5.3.2 The majority of students are family members who have other financial obligations such as paying fees for their children and other living expenses. 5.3.3 ZOU had no advertising campaign to vigorously advertise its degrees. This was revealed by many respondents who said they became aware of ZOU through friends. Although ZOU Manicaland is situated in the city centre its visibility is low as it is poorly signposted. ZOU marketing strategies are rather weak as very few people are aware of the degrees offered at ZOU especially school leavers. 5.3.4 ZOU is the preferred university as it provides flexible and quality study packages. 60% of respondents would enrol with ZOU for their Masters degrees because of its flexible learning environment. ZOU has won three international awards for quality, leadership in open distance learning and educational leadership. (See Appendix 8.) 5.3.5 Zimbabwe Open University employs averagely qualified tutors. Half of the students stated that in as much as tutors are qualified some seem to struggle in tutorials. The students also stated that modules were not readily available before the semester commenced and were outdated. 5.3.6 Graduates from ZOU are performing well in industry and commerce. Those in Education and Social Sciences degree studies had qualifications snubbed when it came to getting employment and recognition. (See Appendix 4). ZOU staff members through the

interviews revealed that the previously suspended Diploma in Education had been reinstated and was now fully recognised. 5.3.7 Fees charged by ZOU are not affordable as only 10 out of 65 respondents said their fees were affordable. 5.3.8 Seventy five per cent of the respondents indicated that they found tutorials useful and advocated for more hours on tutorials. 5.3.9 Fifty per cent of the respondents ranked ZOU third (3 rd) with one being the highest and fifth the lowest. 5.3.10 ZOU is facing stiff competition from other universities such as Africa University, Great Zimbabwe and Bindura University. These are now offering studies on block release as opposed to ZOU Open and Distance Learning Model (ODL). 5.3.11 ZOU is taking the market led approach to its degrees by offering degrees that wanted by the market as seen by the introduction of a Diploma in Global Strategy and Entrepreneurship to LASOF members, this is a market tailored service which supports what Philip Kotler defined Marketing as a societal process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating, offering and freely exchanging products and services of value with others (Pg 8). (See Appendix 9.)

5.4 Recommendations Given the conclusions the researcher made the following recommendations;

5.4.1

Since the majority of ZOU students are civil servants, a stop order facility should be used

through the Salary Service Bureau for the payment of school fees with flexible and affordable payments plans such that they remain with something to meet their other financial obligations. This will guarantee that ZOU will get their tuition fees and at the same time students will be able to pay, thus enrolment will increase. 5.4.2 ZOU should vigorously market its degree programmes by using the Manica Post, road shows and notice boards in supermarkets. They should also take advantage of schools and colleges prize giving occasions and market their degrees. This means that the marketing department needs to be given adequate resources to carry out such activities. 5.4.3 Physical presence of ZOU needs serious attention. The buildings and surroundings should depict University status. Sign posts should be erected at the main entrance and corner roads leading to the university. 5.4.4 Modules should be error-free and should be regularly updated and also be available to students as soon as they register. 5.4.5 ZOU should embark on public lectures on topical issues and also carry out social responsibility activities such as street cleaning and donating to charities, orphanages and homes for the elderly. It can also give scholarships to its best students for example the best B.Com in Marketing student can be given a scholarship to do their masters at ZOU. 5.4.6 ZOU should start enrolling students well before the semester starts; January for March to June and July for September to December semesters. 5.4.7 ZOU should do away with the $1.00 penalty per day for late registration fine. This negatively impacts on the student numbers to be enrolled as revealed in the interviews.

5.4.8

Tutors should be ambassadors of ZOU. Respondents indicated that some tutors do talk negatively of ZOU during tutorials. They should also be adequately remunerated and be provided with adequate teaching equipment and aids.

5.4.9

ZOU should address the students who would have been doing the degrees that would have been suspended so they restore stakeholder confidence. The students and the public should be addressed formally so that it does not paint a bad picture of ZOU. For example a rotten apple in a basket can render the whole basket bad, so it is very important to give clarity on such issues.

5.5 Recommendations For Further Research

Despite the importance of the contribution of this study to know the impact of marketing mix elements on Student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region 2008-2012, it has some limitations. First limitation is this study is the use of self evaluation criteria of investigating the respondents, which may be biased. Second limitation is that sample size could be higher to make it more representative. Finally it was expensive and without financial assistance it was difficult to make the research successful in all respect. In this research the researcher considered the impact of the marketing mix elements on student enrolment at ZOU Manicaland Region. The research can be done in more depth by considering a wider marketing mix with more than the popular 7Ps i.e. the 11Ps or 17Ps of Marketing. Further research can be done which will take note of the Macro Economic factors for example Political factors, Economic factors, Social factors, Technological factors

REFERENCES

Borden, Neil. H. (1984) CIM, (2004). Ferrell. O.C.(2005). Goi, Chai Lee. (2005).

The concept of marketing mix, Journal of Advertising Research, 1 (9), 2-7. The Chartared Institute of Marketing Marketing strategy (3rd Ed.) Mason, Ohio: SouthWestern Thomson. Marketing Mix: A review of P, Array Development: Web: ://www.curtin, p.8.

http://www.nbplc.com/homepage.php (ww1) Kotler P (2005). Marketing: an introduction, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Kotler, P. & Armstrong, G. (2006). Principles of Marketing, New Jersey, Pearson Education Inc., 10th Edition. McCarthy, E.J. (1964). Basic Marketing, a Managerial Approach, Irwin, Homewood, IL.

Mohammad A.H, Wang A and Sunayya B (2012). Investigating on Tourists satisfaction: An empirical study on East Lake. European journal of business and management. Vol.4 No.7 Peter, P.J. & Donnelly, J.H. (2007). Marketing Management: Knowledge and skills (8th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill. Shankar. C and Chin K.K (2011). A study of the relationship between marketing mix and customer retention for herbal coffee in Malaysia. 2nd International conference on business and economic research (2nd ICBER, 2011) proceeding.

Zeithaml VA, Parasuraman A, Berry LL (1985). Problems and Strategies in Services Marketing. Kothari, C.R. (1985). Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques, New Delhi: Wiley Eastern. Kwesu .I et al (2002). Dissertation Research Guidelines, Harare, Zimbabwe Open University.

Choga .F & Njaya .T (2011). Kerlinger F.N. (1992) Gall M.D, Borg, W.R. & Gall J.P. (1989) Leedy P.D (1980)

Business Research Methods, Harare, Zimbabwe Open Univesity. Foundation of Behavioural Research. London; Harcourt Brace College Publishers. Educational Research. An introduction. London; Longman Group ltd. Practical Research: Planning and Design, New York; McMillan

Dear Respondents, Thank you for participating in this research, it is a self administered structured questionnaire which will help the researcher gather vital information which ultimately seeks to measure the impact of marketing mix on student enrolment at Zimbabwe Open University and how best it can be improved. Your assistance in this regard is greatly appreciated and is vital to the success of this research project. No confidential information is required and any data collected will be kept in strict confidence and shall be used for academic purposes only. If you have any questions regarding the completion of this questionnaire please contact Wellington Marumbi by phone on 0772 342 165 or email wellingtonmarumbi@yahoo.com.

Please submit the completed questionnaire as soon as possible. FOR ZOU EMPLOYEES __________________________________________________________________

INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLETING THE QUESTIONNAIRE

This questionnaire is in a structured format to facilitate its easy completion and to enable the responses to be easily prepared for analysis. Anonymity and confidentiality of your responses will be respected.

Please freely and honestly write your response in the space provided.

Rate each item by placing a cross or a tick in the relevant bracket. PLEASE TURN OVER

1. What is your gender? 2. What is your age group?

Male [

] or female [ Yes [ Yes [

] ] or Above 40 [ ] ] ] ] or No [ ] or No [

Under 20 [

] or 20 to 40 [

3. Are you employed in management? 4. Do you think ZOU is well marketed?

5. Can you please support your above answer _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 6. Is ZOU using appropriate marketing mix to market itself? Yes [ ] or No [ ] 7. May you please support your answer _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___________________________ ___________ _________ ________________________________________________ 8. What marketing mix elements are currently being used by ZOU? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 9. What challenges do you think ZOU is facing in implementing its marketing mix elements? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___________________________ ____________________ ________________________________________________ _ 10. How did you get to know ZOU? or Internet [ From a Friend [ ] or Newspaper [ ] ] ] or ZOU Staff Marketing Activities [ ] or Other [

11. If your above answer is Other please state _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ 12. Do you think ZOU is marketing itself fully through the media? No [ ] Yes [ ] or

13. May you please support your above answer _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 14. Do you think ZOU is receiving good Publicity? Yes [ ] or No [ ]

15. Please give reason for your above answer_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 16. Which program would you want to study or are you studying? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 17. Are you a _ _ _Student [ or Other [ ] ] No [ Yes [ ] Some [ ] or No [ ] ] ] or ] or Prospecting Student [ ] or Member of Staff [ ]

18. If you are a Student, are ZOU tutorials effective? Yes [ 19. Are ZOU lecturers qualified and do they deliver? Some [ ] Yes [ Yes [ ] or No [ ] or No [ 20. Are ZOU modules available? 21. Are the ZOU modules helpful?

] or Sometimes [ ]

22. If your answer is No, do you have any suggestions for improvement? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 23. Is the Library fully stocked with books? Averagely [ ] Yes [ ] or No [ ] 24. Is the Library flexible and easily accessible? Yes [ ] or No [ ] or

25. May you please give reason for your above answer _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 26. Is tuition fees charged by ZOU affordable? 27. Is ZOU staff helpful to students? 28. Is ZOU visible and accessible? MBA with ZOU? Yes [ Yes [ Yes [ ] or No [ ] Yes [ ] or No [ ] ] ] ] or No [ ] or No [

29. If one is doing an undergraduate degree with ZOU are they most likely to do their 30. May you please kindly state your reason for the above answer? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ 31. How would you rank ZOU amongst other Universities from 1 to 5 with 5 being the lowest? 1[ ] or 2 [ ] or 3 [ ] or 4 [ ] or 5 [ ]

32. Do you have any suggestions which you think ZOU can employ to increase student enrolment? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ____________________________________ ___________ _ 33. What do you think has contributed to the decrease in enrolment at ZOU? _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!!!

Dear Respondents, Thank you for participating in this research, it is a self administered structured questionnaire which will help the researcher gather vital information which ultimately seeks to measure the impact of marketing mix on student enrolment at Zimbabwe Open University Manicaland Region and how best it can be improved. Your assistance in this regard is greatly appreciated and is vital to the success of this research project. No confidential information is required and any data collected will be kept in strict confidence and shall be used for academic purposes only. If you have any questions regarding the completion of this questionnaire please contact Wellington Marumbi by phone on 0772 342 165 or email wellingtonmarumbi@yahoo.com.

Please submit the completed questionnaire as soon as possible. __________________________________________________________________

INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLETING THE QUESTIONNAIRE

This questionnaire is in a structured format to facilitate its easy completion and to enable the responses to be easily prepared for analysis. Anonymity and confidentiality of your responses will be respected.

Please freely and honestly write your response in the space provided.

 Rate each item by placing a cross or a tick in the relevant bracket.

PLEASE TURN OVER 1. What is your gender? 2. What is your age group? 3. Are you employed? Yes [ 4. Are you a civil servant? Male [ ] or No [ Yes [ ] or female [ ] ] Please state sector _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ] ] or Above 40 [ ]

Under 25 [

] or 25 to 40 [

] or No [

________________________________________________ 5. Which program would you want to study or are you studying? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ___________________ _________ ___________________ 6. How did you get to know ZOU? or Internet [ From a Friend [ ] or Newspaper [ ] ] ] or ZOU Staff Marketing Activities [ ] or Other [

7. If your above answer is Other please state _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ 8. Is ZOU using appropriate marketing mix to market itself? No [ ] Yes [ ] or

9. May you please support your answer _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___________________________ ___________ _________ __ _____________________________________________ _ 10. Do you think ZOU is receiving good Publicity? Yes [ ] or No [ ] 11. Please give reason for your above answer_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 12. Are you a _ _ _Student [ or Other [ ] ] No [ ] Some [ ] ] or Prospecting Student [ ] or Member of Staff [ ]

13. If you are a Student, are ZOU tutorials effective? Yes [

14. Are ZOU lecturers qualified and do they deliver? Some [ ] Yes [ Yes [ ] or No [ ] or No [ 15. Are ZOU modules available? 16. Are the ZOU modules helpful?

Yes [

] or No [ ]

] or

] or Sometimes [ ]

17. If your answer is No, do you have any suggestions for improvement? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _______________ ________________________________ _ 18. Is the Library fully stocked with books? Averagely [ ] Yes [ ] or No [ ] 19. Is the Library flexible and easily accessible? Yes [ ] or No [ ] or

20. May you please give reason for your above answer _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________ _______________________ _ 21. Is tuition fees charged by ZOU affordable? 22. Is ZOU staff helpful to students? 23. Is ZOU visible and accessible? MBA with ZOU? Yes [ Yes [ Yes [ ] or No [ ] Yes [ ] or No [ ] ] ] ] or No [ ] or No [

24. If one is doing an undergraduate degree with ZOU are they most likely to do their 25. May you please kindly state your reason for the above answer? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ 26. How would you rank ZOU amongst other Universities from 1 to 5 with 5 being the lowest? work? Yes [ 1[ ] or 2 [ ] ] or 3 [ ] or 4 [ ] or 5 [ ] 27. If you are an employer of a ZOU graduate are you satisfied by their performance at ] or No [ 28. Do you have any suggestions which you think ZOU can employ to increase student enrolment? _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________________________________

________________________________________________ ________________________________________________

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!!!

Interview Guide 25 Bunting Street Greenside Mutare

TOPIC : THE IMPACT OF THE MARKETING MIX ON STUDENT ENROLMENT; THE CASE OF ZIMBABWE OPEN UNIVERSITY, MANICALAND REGION FROM 2008 TO 2012 The researcher will interview the respondents on the following: 1) ZOU marketing Strategies

2) Marketing mix elements ZOU is using

3) Challenges are currently being faced by ZOU

4) Challenges are currently being faced by ZOU students

5) The target market for ZOU Manicaland Region

6) Credibility of ZOU qualifications

7) Quality of service delivery at ZOU Manicaland Region

8) Qualification of ZOU Staff and the Tutorials

9) Promotional mix elements being used by ZOU