Bank selection criteria employed by college students in Bahrain: an empirical analysis

To plan an appropriate marketing strategy for attracting new customers, commercial banks need to identify the criteria on which potential customers determine their bank selection decision. The study focuses on examining the bank selection criteria being employed by college students in Bahrain. A total of 1,000 students aged 19‐24 (45 per cent male and 55 per cent female) of the University of Bahrain served as a sample for the study. Our examination relied on 30 selection factors extracted from relevant literature, personal experience and interviews with some bank officials and college students. Findings reveal that the chief factors determining college students’ bank selection are: bank’s reputation, availability of parking space near the bank, friendliness of bank personnel, and availability and location of automated teller machines (ATM). Findings suggest that it may be necessary to deal with male and female students as distinctive segments with different priorities in their bank selection process.