Chapter 3:

TOURISM AND
CONSUMER
BEHAVIOR
Introduction
Consumer behavior is the process and
activities people engage in when
searching for, selecting, purchasing,
using, evaluating, and disposing
products and services to satisfy their
needs and desires (Belch & Belch
2008). Tourism products are too
expensive to be bought on impulse.
Thus, a careful examination of choices
is made before an actual purchase
happens.
Factors That
Influence
Consumer Behavior
Tourism marketing scholars identify key factors that have an influence over
consumer behavior are as follows: (1) motivations, (2) culture, (3) age and gender,
(4) social class, (5) lifestyle, (6) life cycle, (7) reference groups, and (8) personality
and self-concept.
Personality
and Self-
Concept
Reference
Groups Motivation

Life Cycle Buyer

Culture

Lifestyle Age and

Gender
Social Class
Motivations
Are inner drives that make people take
a specific plan of action to satisfy their
needs. Hudson (2008) defines needs
as the gap between what customers
have and what they would like to have;
seen as the force that arouses
motivation. Kotler et al. (2010) state
that a need becomes a motive when it
is aroused to a sufficient level of
intensity that prompts a person to take
action.
Maslow’s Hierarchy
of Needs

Self-
actualization

Esteem/Status

Belongingness

Safety

Physiological
Dann (1977) describes travel motivators as
linked with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. He
states that there are two factors that make you
want to travel: push and pull factors. The push
factors are those that make you want to travel
while the pull factors are those that affect where
you would want to go. Further, Crompton (1979)
identifies nine motives which are divided into
push and pull factors. The push motives are
what he calls the sociopsychological factors
while the pull factors are classified as cultural
motives.
 Push Factors Pull Factors
(Sociopsychological Factors) (Cultural Motives)

Escape from mundane environment Novelty

Exploration and evaluation Education

Relaxation

Prestige

Regression

Enhancement of
kinships/relationships

Facilitation of social interaction

Further, Krippendorf (1987) elucidates that travel is motivated by
a “going away from” rather than “going toward” something. Also,
traveler’s motives and behavior are mostly for self-gain.

Eight explanations of travel

by Krippendorf:

1. Recuperation and regeneration

2. Compensation and social integration
3. Escape
4. Communication
5. Freedom
6. Self-realization
7. Happiness
8. Broadening of the mind
Culture
The impact of culture cannot be
disregarded in the study of consumer
behavior.

Geert Hofstede defined culture as the

collective mental programming of the
human mind which distinguishes one
group of people from another.
Hofstede discloses the five
dimensions of culture:
1. Power Distance
2. Individualism/Collectivism
3. Masculinity & Femininity
4. Uncertainty Avoidance
5. Long-term and Short-term Orientation

A sixth dimension was recently added, that is, indulgence

versus restraint.
Knowing cultural differences among the countries that the
Philippines wants to tap as a market for tourism will help in
enabling marketers to develop effective products and
services as well as strategies.
Age and Gender
Age pertains to the number of years a
person has been living. It is a traditional
way of segmenting the market and also
greatly influences consumer behavior.
Gender also influences consumer
behavior. Female market is steadily
increasing and more discriminating
than male counterparts. Gay market is
seen having different preference than
male and female market.
Social Class
Social class is one’s position within the
society and is determined by factors by
income, wealth, education, occupation,
family prestige, and value of home or
neighborhood.

Lifestyle
A person’s pattern of living as expressed in one’s
activities, interests, and opinions. Marketers are in
search of relationships between their products and
people’s lifestyles.
Life Cycle
The stages an individual goes through in their
lifetime. Preferences and activities of other stages of
the life cycle may vary; thus, influencing consumer
and purchase behavior.

Reference Groups
A set of people who have a direct or indirect
influence on other people’s attitudes or behavior. We
personally do not know them but are viewed as
highly credible because of their experience and
expertise. They are extremely important in selling
tourism products because the product is intangible;
hence, word of mouth plays an important trigger for
purchase decisions.
Personality and Self-
Concept
Personality refers to distinguishing
psychological characteristics that lead to
relatively consistent and enduring responses
to the environment. This has great influence
over one’s buying behavior.
Self-concept
Refers to his personal mental picture. Consumers
tend to go for product brands that reflect their
personality.
THE BUYER
DECISION-MAKING
PROCESS
In high involvement products, stages in the buyer decision-
making process are more defined and could easily be
identified. Decision-making is made after a thorough
evaluation of alternatives because the products are
expensive, complex, and possibly unrepeatable.
Need/Problem
Recognition

Information Search

Alternative Evaluation

Purchase Decision
Stages of Buyer Decision-
Making Process Post-Purchase
Evaluation
Need Recognition
Metro Manila's streets are crowded with
vendors selling cigarettes, bottled water, and
candies, driven by increased traffic and
understanding consumer needs.
Information Search
Consumers' eagerness for additional
information depends on their desire, existing
knowledge, and satisfaction from the additional
information they gain.
Evaluation of Alternatives
During this stage, customers compare products or
services, considering factors like time, money, brand
image, flight availability, and convenience. For
example, when planning a trip to Singapore, they
compare airfare costs, flight schedules, and brand
image. Low-cost carriers like Cebu Pacific, Philippine
Airlines, Air Asia, and Jet Star are considered, but
brand image is less significant. Other factors include
flight availability and online convenience.
Purchase Decision
Tourism marketers should facilitate speed and
convenience in reaching consumers during the
purchase decision stage by making distribution
networks available and providing easy access to
products.
Post-purchase Evaluation
Product and service providers must ensure customer
satisfaction to foster positive word of mouth.
Satisfaction levels can range from extremely satisfied
to extremely dissatisfied. Tourists' expectations are
influenced by their post-visit experience, and extreme
satisfaction encourages revisitation and
recommendations. Dissatisfied customers may spread
negative word of mouth and complain. Therefore,
customer satisfaction positively correlates with word
of mouth.
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION THROUGH SERVICE QUALITY
Marketers can reduce post-purchase dissatisfaction
by maintaining communication, addressing customer
complaints, and offering a thank-you letter, token, gift,
or feedback form to make customers feel satisfied.
Benefits of Service Quality
Kotler et al. (2010) elucidate some benefits of service quality:
1. Customer Retention. Service quality helps build loyalty among
customers and makes these customers speak positively about the service
provider.
2. Avoidance of Price Competition. Providing high quality service helps
in maximizing potential revenue and veers the company away from a
price war.
3. Retention of Good Employees. When an operation is well run and
produces high quality products, recruitment, training, and retention of
employees are easy.
4. Reduction of Costs. Costs are minimized if there are repeat customers,
absence of a price war, and low turnover rate of employees.
 Repest
Purchase
Service Quality Satisfaction

Referrals to
Friends

Figure 3.5 Relationship of Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction

and Word of Mouth
ORGANIZATIONAL BUYER BEHAVIOR
The organizational buying process is a formal version of consumer buying, involving
more people and greater demand for products and services. Marketers prioritize
understanding buyer behavior for big-time sales and revenues.
The purchase decision process in organizations is more complex than that of individual
purchases. Koder et al. (2010) describe the process as follows:
1. problem recognition
2. general need specification
3. product specification
4. supplier search
5. proposal solicitation
6. Supplier selection
7. order routine specification
8. performance review
Group markets, including meetings, incentive travel, conventions, events, and smerfs,
offer high average room rate and cost per cover, while individuals provide higher rates
and ACC.
TYPOLOGY OF
TOURISTS
Plog's Tourist Motivation Model
Plog's Tourist Motivation Model (1974) categorizes
travelers as allocentrics, who prefer novelty and
novelty, and psychocentrics, who prefer structured
and familiar experiences.
Gilbert (1991) critiqued midcentrism, stating that
tourists exhibit both allocentric and psychocentric
traits depending on the situation or season,
highlighting varying motivations for travel.
 Cohen's Model

Cohen (1972) identified four tourist

classifications: organized mass tourist,
individual mass tourist, explorer, and
drifter. Organized mass tourists buy all-
inclusive tour packages, individual mass
tourists travel independently, explorers
explore new areas, and drifters avoid
traditional tourist establishments.
Stewart's Model of Holidaytaking
Stewart's 1993 study on UK holiday makers reveals
that affluence leads to increased travel, cumulative
experiences, adventurousness, and confidence, with
four distinct phases of holiday taking.
1. Bubble travelers have low affluence, low travel experience, and observe
foreign culture from a bubble. This gives them basic confidence to travel.
2. Idealized-experience seekers - have more affluence and a base of
overseas travel expeience, which gives them more confidence.
3. Wide-berizon moedery - have more affluence, greater confidence, and
more travel experience, now ready for more individually oriented travel to
a wider range of destinations.
4. Total immerers - do not seek to merely observe but to be exposed fully to
another culture's language, food, heritage, and lifestyle.
The Non-Users
Successful marketing strategies should target
various market segments, including non-users, ex-
users, aware customers, and those unaware of the
product's existence. While relationship marketing
is popular, marketers should also focus on
acquiring new customers, as research shows it's
more expensive but crucial for a company's
survival and flourishing.
Thank you!!!