ASSESSMENT OF PUBLIC RELATIONS AMONG YAM MARKETERS IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Public relations (PR) is often overlooked in agricultural marketing and organization. Less priority on PR is usually an indication of poor management that results in inefficient and high labor turnover. This research paper highlights the importance of PR, its determinants in yam marketing and outlines the major challenges hindering the use of PR. A two-stage sampling method was used to select 177 respondents from a total of 299 marketers. Data were collected with the aid of a structured interview schedule. The results revealed that marketers use different PR strategies and the most frequently used PR strategies were phone calls and retailers’ association. The market concentration index was developed to determine the structure of yam markets. The value 0.013, indicates that the yam market was perfectly competitive and non-concentrated. The marketing efficiency is 128.61 percent depicts that the wholesale yam marketers in Lagos state were efficient. The market margin of 22.24% reveals that every 1 USD sale resulted in a price spread oc 0.22 USD in the wholesale yam marketing. The variables explaining PR strategies are shop size, cost of spoiled yam, the distance of market to the state capital, shop rent and household size. The major challenges hindering the use of PR are a disregard for PR strategies and poor training opportunities. We recommend the use of mobile phone technology and the training of marketers on the use of PR strategies. Weak network and high airtime tariff challenges should be addressed by the government to reduce wastage and mitigate the effects of poor sales on the marketing margin of yam marketers