A Dialogic communications interrogation of the online brand dispositions of banks operating in Ghana

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the dialogic communications potential of bank web sites in Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach – The authors undertook a qualitative content analysis of bank web sites in Ghana, drawing upon Kent and Taylor's dialogic communications framework.

Findings – Banks in Ghana have been fairly successful in creating web sites with high dialogic value, with over half the banks sampled scoring on more than half of all the dialogic principles (dialogic loop, ease of use, usefulness and conservation of visitors). Most banks, however, scored rather poorly on the principle of return visit.

Practical implications – The revelation that the communication content of banks’ web sites in Ghana does not encourage visitors to return poses a serious challenge for banks in their bid to leverage favourable brand dispositions associated with strong customer relationships.

Originality/value – The paper contributes to the scarce literature on dialogic communications potential of bank web sites in an emerging market context.