Service delivery perceived as scripts
As alternative way to improve the performance of service delivery is to draw analogies with the performance of a play or film. To see a play, for example, is to experience the writer’s script in action. The words, movements and props are taken from a script and rehearsed to polished fluency. The notion is relevant in tourism because many services can, in effect, be scripted with the staff playing their roles as actors on a stage. A script is a sequence of actions, equipment and words that enables the service delivery process to run smoothly and seamlessly.
Service blueprinting
Talking Levitt’s original conceptualization of the service delivery process to a logical conclusion some authors have concluded that improvements can be derived from constructing a formal service “blueprints” or flowchart of the service delivery process (Haffman and Bateson, 1997). It has also been described as “a picture or map that accurately portrays the service system so that the different people involved in providing it can understand and deal with it objectively regardless of their roles or their individual’s points of view (Zeithaml and Bitner, 1996:277)
- All relevant points of contact (or encounter) between the consumer and the service provider.
- A dividing line between activities that is visible to customers and the support activity that is not.
- Activities of participating, both customers and employees, directionally linked in the flow chart.
- Support processes involved in the service delivery.
- Standard length of time for individual activities and any time targets based on consumer expectations. From these, labour costs and hourly or daily throughout put can be calculated.
- Bottlenecks or points in the process where consumers are obliged to wait the longest period of time.
- Points in the process where service failure might occur that is both rated as significant and observed by the consumer.
- Evidence of service that aids positioning and consumer evaluation of quality.
Blueprints are flexible tools. They can be used to examine differences between key consumer segments and investigate differences between employee and consumer expectations.
Managing physical evidence and design
The third additional component of the services marketing mix is that of physical evidence, rooted in the five senses of sight (especially colour and aesthetics), sound, scent, touch and taste. Because tourism products are characterizes by inseparability, visitors are presents in the production premises and the design of the physical setting for the delivery process is a vital part of the product. Of course, the physical setting is something the raison d’etre for tourism in the first place but here it refers t the design of the built environment owned and controlled by a tourism organization, for example, a theme park or hotel, or to the efforts of an organization to design a natural or built area to meet particular visitor management objectives. Because tourism products are also characterized by intangibility, physical evidence is used additionally to “tangibilize” the offer away from the place of consumption, especially at the point of sale, to influence purchasing. It is also used to reduce post-purchase anxiety, although with the notable exception of the brochure and more recently access to website, the planning of remote physical evidences has often been overlooked. Physical evidence can help to socialize customers and employees, and facilitate desired emotional states or behaviours. Physical evidence should be organized around stated goals. Physical evidences can attract desired segments whilst deterring others. Thus aiding demand management. Physical evidence may be used as a from of virtual reality to create access whilst protecting the resource.
The power that the external and internal design of buildings influences over customers and employees is increasingly recognized in all sectors of travel and tourism. Its use in communicating corporate, brand and product values are becoming more important.
(Marketing in travel and tourism book)
2.Introduction to Marketing Research
Market research and marketing research are often confused. “Market” research is simply research into a specific market. It is a very narrow concept. “Marketing” research is much broader. It not only Includes “market” research, but also areas such as research into new products, or modes of distribution such as via the internet. Here are a couple of definitions:
Marketing research is the function that links the consumer, customer, and public to the marketer through information – information used to identify and define marketing opportunities and problems; generate, refine, and evaluate marketing actions; monitor marketing performance; and improve understanding of marketing as a process. Marketing research specifies the information required to address these issues, design the methods for collecting information, manages and implements the data collection process, analyzes, and communicated the findings and their implications.
American marketing association- official definition of marketing research
Obviously, this is a very long and involved definition of marketing research. Marketing research is about researching the whole of a company’s marketing process palmer (2000).
This explanation is far more straightforward i.e. marketing research into the elements of the marketing mix, competitors, marketers, and everything to do with the customers.
Six main categories of marketing research and their uses
The table is capable of almost endless extension and technical detail but an understanding of the six main categories of marketing research noted will be adequate for most marketing decision purpose. The six categories correspond exactly with the information needs required to make efficient decision for marketing- mix programmes, and the strategic and operational plans within which they are implemented.
Research category used in/for typical research content and methods
1. Marketing analysis marketing planning measurements and project-
Forecasting tions of market volumes,
Shares and revenue by
Relevant categories of
Market segment and
Product type
2. Consumer research segmentation, branding (a) quantitative
And positioning measurement of
Consumer Profiles,
Awareness, attitudes
And purchasing
Behaviour including
Consumer audits
(b) Qualitative assessment of
Consumer needs, perceptions
And aspirations
3. Products and price product formulation, Measurement add consumer testing
Studies presentation, pricing of amended ad new product
And market assessment formulation, and price sensitivity
Studies
4. Promotions and Efficiency of measurement of consumer reaction
Sales research communication to alternative advertising concepts
and media usages; response to forms
Of sales promotions, and sales-force
Effectiveness
5. Distribution Efficiently of distributor awareness of products
Research distribution network stocking and display of brochure
/ Channels and effectiveness of merchandising
Including retail audits and
Occupancy studies analysis of web
Site usage and of call centres
6. Evaluation and overall control of Measurements of customer
Performance marketing results and satisfaction overall and by product
Monitoring studies product quality control elements, including measurement
Through marketing tests and
Experiments and use of mystery
Shoppers
Ten kinds of marketing research commonly used in travel and tourism
Because marketing research has become a large and complex sector of economic activity in its own right, it has inevitably produced its own technical vocabulary. This chapter makes no attempt to cover the full range of technical terms but ten commonly used in practice to denote different research methods will be found helpful and are discussed below.
They are:
- Continuous and ad hoc.
- quantitative and qualitative
- primary and secondary
- omnibus and syndicated
- retail audit and consumer audit
Continuous and ad hoc
Commercial organizations find it increasingly necessary to measure certain key trend data on a regular or “continuous” basis. “Continuous” in this context typically means daily, weekly or monthly, although the growing use of internet distribution permits literally continuous data review. Data covering enquiries, sales, booking types and patterns, market shares, customer satisfaction and seat or hotel bed occupancy, are typical examples of “continuous” marketing –research measures in travel and tourism. There are many specific problems in marketing that require redesigned guidebook for a visitor attraction, with a print life of say three years, produce extra sales revenue? Would the introduction of a buffet- style instead of a full-service breakfast reduce customer satisfaction or increase it? Does the market potential warrant investment in a new hotel and, if it does, what size of hotel and what level of service would be justified? To inform such management decision a specific or ad hoc investigating would be needed.
Quantitative and qualitative
Traditionally, most consumer research studies are based on questions identified in marketing decision making to be asked of random samples of existing or potential customers.
(Marketing in travel and tourism)
Primary and secondary
There are two main sources of data- primary and secondary. Primary research is conducted from scratch. It is original and collected to solve the problem in hand…. Secondary research, also known as desk research, already exists since it has been collected for other purpose.
Primary Research
There are many was to conduct primary research. We consider some of them:
- interviews
- mystery shopping
- focus groups
- projective techniques
- product tests
- diaries
- omnibus studies
Interviews
This is the technique most associated with marketing research. Interviews can be telephone, face to face, or over the Internet.
Telephone interviews
Telephone ownership is very common in develop countries.
Advantages of telephone interviews
- can be geographically spread
- can be set up and conducted relatively cheaply
- random samples can be selected
- cheaper than face-to-face interviews
Disadvantages of telephone interviews
- respondent can simply hang up
- interviews tend to be a lot shorter
- visual aids cannot be used
- researchers cannot behaviour or body language
Face to face interviews
Face to face interviews are conducted between a market researcher and a respondent.
Advantage of face to face interviews
- they allow more depth
- physical prompt such as products and pictures can be used
- body language can emphasize responses
- respondents can be observed at the same time
Disadvantage of face to face interviews
- interviews can be expensive
- It can take a long period of time to arrange and conduct.
- Some respondents will give biased responses when face to face with a researcher.
The internet
In internet can be used in a number of ways to collect primary data.
Advantages of the internet
- Relatively inexpensive
- Use graphics and visual aids
- Random samples can be selected
- Visitors tend to be loyal to particular sites and are willing to give up time to complete the forms.
Disadvantage of the internet
- Only surveys current, not potential customers.
- Needs knowledge of software to set up questionnaires and methods of processing data
- May deter visitors from your website.
Mail survey
In many countries, the mail survey is the most appropriate way to
Gather primary data.
Mystery shopping
Companies will set up mystery shopping campaigns on an organisations behalf
Focus Groups focus groups are made up from a number of selected respondents based together in the same room.
Advantages of focus groups
Commissioning marketers often observe the group from behind a one – way screen
Visual aids and tangible products can be circulated and opinions taken
All participants and the research interact
Areas of specific interest can be covered in greater depth
Disadvantages of focus groups
Highly experienced researchers are needed.
Complex to organize
Can be very expensive in comparison to other methods
Projective techniques are borrowed from the field of psychology
Product tests are often completed as part of the ‘test’ marketing process.
Diaries are used by a number of specially recruited consumers.
Omnibus studies is where an organisation purchases a single or a few question on a ‘hybrid’ interview (either face – to- face or by telephone).
Secondary Research
Secondary (or desk) research uses data that has been collected for other objectives than your own i.e. it already exist. There are a number of such sources available to the marketer, and the following list is by no means conclusive:
- Trade associations
- National and local press industry magazines
- National/international government
- Web site
- Informal contacts
- Trade directories
- Published company accounts
- Business libraries
- Professional institutes and organisations
- Omnibus surveys
- Previously gathered marketing research
- Census data
- Public record
3. Applying the marketing mix to the tourism industry
the marketing mix is one of the most important concepts in the marketing of tourism products and services. It is commonly referred to as the 4 P’s , namely product, place, price and promotion, although some researchers have extended the concept to 7 Ps by including people. Process and physical components. Tourism organisations in both the private and public sectors of the industry are constantly striving to achieve to optimum balance between the four variables of the marketing mix in order to meet their marketing objectives.
Product
The product is at he core of all marketing activity, since it represents the maim benefit received by the customer. To use the term product, however, when considering a service industry such as tourism can be a little misleading. The tourism industry does not produce tangible goods such as television set or cars, but rather a range of experiences and services geared to the needs of a particular market segments.
Indeed, tourism is often thought of as an industry that succeeds by “selling dreams”. The tourism product is, thus, an amalgam of several products and services, the individual components of which are usually supplied by different organisations, both private and public sectors. The sale of overseas package holidays, for example, will involve the combined efforts of a variety of suppliers, including airlines, tour operators, accommodation providers, travel agencies, destination management organisations, car hire companies and coach operator.
Characteristics of tourism products
Tourism products exhibit arrange of specific characteristics, the most important of which are:
- Intangibility: unlike manufactured goods, it is not possible to touch a tourism product such as package holiday or short break.
- Inseparability: the majority of tourism products are consumed at the point of production; a family on an overseas package holiday.
- Permissibility. An airline seat or hotel bed not sold today cannot be stockpiled and resold at a later date, thereby representing a lost sales opportunities to the company concerned.
- Owner ship: the purchasers of tourism products do not generally buy the title to the goods.
- Heterogeneity. Maintaining product consistency is difficult with tourism products.
The product life cycle
All tourism products undergo changes during their lifespan. External and internal influences on organisations, together with changes in consumer demand, affect the development of a given product from the moment it is made available to the general public to the time it is ultimately withdrawn from the market.
The five stages in the product life cycle are as
- Launch: sales will slowly increase once a product is launched on to the market.
- Growth: demand accelerated during the growth phase once the product’s existence becomes more widely known.
- Maturity: growth in sales slow down at this point, perhaps as a result of competitors’ products. At this stage, the company will need to decide whether to stimulant further sales through increased promotional work, remodel the product or allow demand for the product to continue to fall.
- Saturation. Sales have reached a plateau at this stage.
- decline: demand for the product falls steadily.
Branding tourism products
Branding is commonplace in the marketing of fast-moving consumer good (FMCGs), such as cosmetics, food and household cleaning products, and is a technique that is increasingly common in the marketing of tourism products. As the tourism industry matures and its range of products becomes ever greater, assigning a brand name to a product, for example a Disney resort, Hilton hotel or Hertz rented car, helps distinguish it from its competitors and, by so doing, offers customers a buying cue. A tourism organisation also hopes that its customers will show brand locality , by continuing to choose its products and services over and above those offered by its competitors.
Place
In the context of the tourism industry , the “place” component of the marketing mix is concerned not only with destinations and the location of tourist facilities, but also with how they are made available to the customer, including the channels of distributions and how these are being influenced by developments in new technology.
Location of tourist facility
Location is clearly an important factor for many types of tourism enterprise, particularly those that survive on a high volume of “passing trade”. A hotel that is situated in a remote country side location away from major centres of population may struggle to attract custom and will need to devote a greater proportion of its resources to marketing than for example, a hotel located in the centre of a popular tourist city.
Travel agencies that area part of large multiple chains are usually found in the most accessible, and most expensive, high street locations. Independent agents who may not be able to justify the high rent and rates of town centre locations will nonetheless want to be in a position that is not too far away from a town’s main shopping areas.
A destination may have as international reputation, but if its product and services fail to meet customs’ needs, the area will not flourish and its reputation may be tarnished.
1 2 3 4
Channels of distribution in tourism marketing
The suppliers of tourism products, for example hoteliers and transport operators, sometimes make their services available direct to the customer, but more often than not use the service of and intermediary, such as a travel agent or tour operator, as indicated in table above. As the table shows, there are four mail channels for the distribution of tourism products.
Price
In the highly competitive environment of international tourism, price determination is crucial to the success of all organisations is the industry. Daily fluctuations in the price of holidays and other travel products are a fact of life in the majority of the enterprise economies of the world, reflecting changes in demand for products ad services. Tourism operators have to react to the pricing tactics of their competitors and alternations in global exchange rates, while at the same time monitoring their own internal costs, in order to increase or even retain their market share.
Pricing policies in tourism
We now need to investigate the potions open to the organisations when determining its pricing policies.
Tourism enterprises can take one of two broad-based approaches when fixing their prices, the first based solely on the costs of providing the product, the second taking into account the level of demand associated with the product. It is more usual for tourism operators to
Conclusion
Commonly referred to as the fours Ps (product, price, place and promotion), the marketing mix is one of the most important concepts in marketing today. In attempting to achieve its marketing objectives , an organisation must decide what emphasis to put on each element of the mix; a newly opened leisure centre , for example, will spend more on promotion in order to attract new customers; a major tour operator may be forced to change its pricing structures when it discovers that a competitor has undercut its price ; a visitor attraction will need to review its product from time to time in response to changing market expectations; and a major travel company may decide t o close down its regional sales office , thereby altering the “place” component of the marketing mix. These examples show that the emphasis on the different components of the marketing mix will vary over time, as wall as between the different sectors of the industry.
The complete a to z leisure , travel and tourism
Bibliography