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CUSTOMER RELATIONS IN THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY

6.03 Explain the critical aspects of business and

destination image.

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The perception or

belief that people have

about a business

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FACTORS THAT AFFECT

BUSINESS IMAGE•Products & Services

•Customer mix

•Customer services

•Location

•Employees

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Product/Service Characteristics

•Tangible

•Intangible

•Price and quality

•Selection

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Customer MixCombination of customers that use or are attracted to a particular hospitality and/or travel organization or destination

•Types of customers influence image.

•Certain types of customers attract or repel other customers.

•Actions and behavior of some customers are offensive to others.

•Nice, friendly customers enhance experiences of other customers.

•Hospitality/travel organizations may target specific groups of customers.

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Customer Services

*Service is the most important product of the industry.

•Provide amenities

Examples: thick terry-cloth robes; phones for in-flight use

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•Personal attention/interactionRecognize guest/visitor

Positive first impression

Fulfill visitor’s expectations

Reduce effort required of customer

Facilitate customer decision-making

Create memories

Expect customers to remember bad experiences

Follow-up

Customer Services

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Customer ServicesService encounter: The period of time in which a customer directly interacts with hospitality industry services, personnel, or physical facilities

•Employees must respond favorably to customer complaints or disappointments.

•Employees must respond favorably to customer needs and requests.

•Employees’ actions must reflect favorably on the business.

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Location

•Convenience

•Comfort

•Attractiveness

•Safety

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Employees•Well-trained

•Courteous

•Respectful

•Professional Behavior and Appearance

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Destination Image

The attitudes customers have towards destinations

•Major factor in determining travel location

•most people don’t have firsthand knowledge of destinations

•Every destination has an image.

•Destination images differ from person to person.

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Sources of destination images

•Books

•Movies

•Television

•Postcards

•Songs

•Photographs

•News stories

Induced images: Generated by promotions and advertisements

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Destination image modificationThe process of examining a tourist’s overall travel experience

•Compares traveler expectations to actual experiences

•The tourist is satisfied when experiences live up to expectations.

•The tourist decides whether or not to return to a destination based on satisfaction or dissatisfaction.

•Travelers talk about experiences, which helps others form destination images.

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Functional image: Image of a destination associated with specific activities and attractions at the destination. (Cape Hatteras = Beach)

Symbolic image: Image of a destination which is related to the personality of the area as perceived by the visitor. Different destinations have different personalities. (Disney = Family)

*Both functional and symbolic images help determine a traveler’s choice of destination.

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Overcoming a negative image

•Positive publicity

•Advertising campaigns designed to build positive images

•Incentives

Tour packages

Frequent flyer programs

Frequent guest programs