Motivation and Recognition of Need
The more tired a person feels the greater the need will be to take a vacation. Once a need is recognised the consumer buying behaviour will be led by motivators.
Swarbrooke (2007) describes motivators as being ‘those factors which motivate the tourist to wish to purchase a particular product’. As every tourist is different we must determine characteristics which may motivate different individuals.
Beard and Raghob (1983) differentiated 4 components of leisure motivators, outlined below, giving examples on Ko Tao.
- Intellectual – need for learning, exploring, discovery e.g. island tours, cave exploration, kayaking, snorkelling, scuba, cultural learning.
- Social – need for friendship, inter-personal relationships, esteem e.g. beach bars, barbecues, backpacker scene, guided tours.
- Competence-mastery – need to achieve, master, challenge and compete e.g. scuba, snorkelling, angling, rock climbing, bouldering, abseiling, wakeboarding.
- Stimulus avoidance –need for calm conditions to unwind e.g. lonely beaches, spas, our Paradise Zone.
Information Search
Once the consumer is motivated to satisfy their need they will search for product information.
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Internal Search – The consumer will search from memory such as previous experience of our resort (customer loyalty) or information received in the past through promotional activity or word-of-mouth.
Consumers may not want to risk disappointment and will engage in an external search.
External Search – The consumer will look to other sources for information such as friends’ advice, customer reviews, internet search or other media.
External search means we have information available through our website, (www.kotaoresort.com/paradise), FaceBook and brochures at distribution points.
Evaluate Alternatives
Once sufficient information is collected the consumer will evaluate alternative brands before making a decision. The consumers will narrow down the search using search criteria and cut-offs.
Resort criteria may include; price, location, distance to beach, services, reputation.
Once cut-offs are established the consumer will be left with a consideration set to chose from. They will then commit to the Purchase and Outcome will be weighed against expectations and information fed back to internal memory.
Organisational Markets
Swarbrooke (2007) illustrates the ‘differences in behaviour which can exist within the same sector’. Tour operators for example may have their own identity or niche and buying behaviour will reflect this e.g. budget / luxury, serviced / self catering, long-term plans / last minute, Club 18-30 / Sandals.
Neighbouring Ko Samui may be seen as a popular, low-cost destination, suited to mass market package tours. Alternatively Ko Tao may be seen as a niche, ‘off the beaten track,’ destination where tourists can go to pursue interests such as snorkelling and scuba. Our resort may therefore be best suited to specialist operators.
