To T urism Research in European National To T urist Organizations Chapter 14 Research Methodologies
What is an NTO? A national tourist organization is a country’s official organization that is responsible for the development of promotion, research, and marketing of tourism of its country Dependent on the national policy, every country formulates its own goals for the NTO
Activities of NTO’s There are two types: – Tourist information– Tourist promotion Both activities are directed straight at the consumer, for example, the foreign tourist
Consumer Oriented activities The main objective of promotional activities is to inform the public about the NTO’s home country, this can be done through such things as: – By mail– Clients inquiries by phone– Printed matter– Multi-dimensional presentations– Tourist literature– Radio and TV– Advertising campaigns
Research Research is of vital importance and there are many different ways to conduct research: – Desk Research – gathering and col ecting information on tourism research carried out by others – Field Research – a comprehensive research in a given country
Research – Qualitative Research – describing a market with respect to such features as, the number of visitors – Quantitative Research – mainly interested in such factors as, motives, attitudes, and images that form the basis of human behavior – Market Research – which market segments in a particular country should be covered and how
Research Coupon Research – information that can be obtained through coupons included in advertisements in journals and magazines Image Research – how to approach a particular market; how does a foreigner perceive its country Participation Research – testing new designs or posters by submitting them to a panel for review
Research Photographs and pictures – to analyze behaviors in groups Letters – reviewing questions or complaints that have been submitted
Conclusion There are many differences between the various countries and their respective NTO’s and the types of research that they are conducting Western Europeans on have focused on two types of activities: – Consumer promotion– Trade oriented promotion