Consumer Survey on National Tourism Potential

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Consumer Survey on National Tourism
Potential Quantitative Research Prepared
for Department of Tourism and Resorts Funded
by USAID SME Support Project 2007, March,
Georgia
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Goal of the Survey 1. Available/anticipated
tourist services, indicators of behavior and
motivation of visitors 2. Consumer satisfaction/
dissatisfaction variables 3. Basic variables and
relevance of infrastructure for tourism service
consumption 4. Flexibility model of tourism
service cost 5. Consumer cost of service for the
Signaghi Tourist Complex 6. Recommendations for
infrastructure optimization Sources of
Data Within the framework of a quantitative
research 800 face-to-face interviews were
conducted in the following cities Tbilisi, Gori,
Telavi, Rustavi, Poti, Zugdidi, Batumi and
Kutaisi. Tools and Techniques The data
collected were processed according to the
statistics collected in Tbilisi and other cities.
Statistical analysis was conducted in SPSS 13.
The following statistical methodology was
used Regression analysis Multinomial
logistic Binary logistic Cross
tabulations Factor analysis Varimax method
The volume of the research
Technical Information
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Typology, Practices, Attitude, Segmentation
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The survey reveals that resorts are the most
popular tourism destination places in case of
trips with friends or family and are less
attractive for trips with co-workers. The most
popular for co-workers are cultural and business
trips. Business trips attract only specific
segment of population. Wine tours are most
popular trips with friends and are less
attractive for family trips (4.1).
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Resort Image Identifiers
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Most Popular Resorts
(20)
The most visited resorts in Georgia are Kobuleti,
Batumi, Borjomi and Bakuriani.
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Most Preferable
Resorts (20)
The most preferable resorts in Georgia are
Kobuleti, Batumi, Borjomi and Bakuriani. These
four resorts are the most popular , visited and
prestigious resorts among the population
throughout a year. This factor once again points
to the fact that there has been no individual
style of holidaymaking established in Georgia so
far. There is no consumer approach among
Georgian holidaymakers who choose already
reputable and popular resorts, not looking for
new alternatives.
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Tourism Potential of Signaghi
Is Signaghi one of the destination places where
one can go on vacation?
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According to respondents, Signaghi is a favorable
zone for development of historical, cultural and
wine tourism and has a potential to attract
foreign tourists with its exotics.
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Concept of Signaghi Tourism Complex
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The concept of Signaghi tourist complex analyzed
within the framework of the quantitative research
once again demonstrates that tourism potential
of Signaghi is mostly related to cultural and
wine tourism. In regard to the cultural and
heritage tours, the most important factor for a
visitor is psychological and mental comfort and
for this reason it is necessary to use elements
of nationality, traditions and rituals. The town
itself should give a Georgian touch to all
tourism products available around.
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Based on the factor analysis of the attributes of
Signaghi Tourist Complex, four factors have been
identified .
All respondents participated in the regressive
analysis. Regression was made based on the
variable of potential visitation to Signaghi.
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Regressive Analysis
From the above factors, the wish to visit
Signaghi was outweighed by the national element
factor (43) compared to the factor - organizing
wine tours (35). Construction of the cable way
is an additional but not a defining element in
outlining regressive variables. The data
collected indicates that Signaghi can become one
of the top tourism destination places in Georgia
provided effective national and wine tourism
elements have been introduced. Wine, cultural and
historical tours can be viewed as a precondition
for Signaghi to become attractive for potential
visitors.
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Price Elasticity Model
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The respondents were given 16 various tourist
packages, where components (transportation,
additional services, food, hotel, length of stay)
of the package were divided into more or less
acceptable offers. Respondents had to evaluate
the proposed offers by a 7-point scale, where 1
meant that they would never be interested in the
offer, and 7 that the offer is rather
interesting. Each component included the
following sub-components
Codes of sub-components of additional services
After the assessment, respondents named the
lowest and highest price they would pay for the
lowest and highest-scored products. Based on
these data, average minimum and maximum prices
were calculated. The average minimum price
amounted to 26.55 per night. This parameter is
not the starting price for any type of a product
but it is the starting price for the most
unacceptable product as viewed by respondents.
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Weight of each component of the offer was defined
during the conducted analysis. The most
unacceptable product of all offered are the
offer including local transportation, additional
service package 2, length of tour- 1-2 days, 1
meal a day, and accommodation provided at the
family hotel. Priority parameters within the
components were estimated namely, providing the
lowest parameter in the catering options was 1
meal a day, advantage of other options compared
to this option was calculated using the
multi-dimension line regressive method. Similar
analyses were made for the rest components. The
analyses show that the best tourist offer is
78.34 per night the least acceptable offer is
26.55.
Price of the most desirable product (the highest
coefficient in the table) is the price of the
least acceptable product ( 26,55) plus added
price of the improved service, which in total is
( in USD) 26,559,3413,999,6318,42 0,4178,34
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Using this model it is possible to calculate the
price of any tourist offer. As the table shows,
the price of tourist offer is primarily increased
by 3 meals per day ( 18,42), 1 - week stay
( 9,63), Additional services ( 13,99) and
Full package of transportation services (
9,34) Accommodation type does not matter. The
hotel is preferred to the guesthouse, which gives
a difference in price by 0.41
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• Vacation in Georgia is, first of all, a family
  activity.
• Georgians usually spend vacations at local
  resorts.
• The most popular vacation season is summer.
• Vacation in Georgia is associated with a long
  duration of a trip.
• Vacation is long but a rare occasion.
• Vacation is not associated with fall due to the
  already existing approach. In order for fall to
  acquire the tourism attributes, it is necessary
  to modify the perception of the Georgian
  population in regard to the purpose of a vacation
• It is necessary to modify and expand associative
  margins of the social spectrum of holidaymakers
  friends and co-workers should be added to a
  family.
• Vacation in Georgia is the means to overcome
  physical tiredness and it is not perceived as an
  element of lifestyle.
• The most common source of information used when
  planning a vacation is friends, neighbours,
  co-workers
• ( i.e. people they trust).
• In selecting a destination,68 of respondents
  relied on recommendations from friends. Tour
  agencies were the second most popular source of
  information used by 18. Billboards, radio and
  press are perceived as less reliable source of
  information.

Major Conclusions
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• The life style of the majority of the Georgian
  population is passive outdoor recreation
  activities are less attractive for them.
• A holidaymaker is most sensitive to food quality
  and ecological safety.
• The concept of tourism is quite narrow in
  Georgia it is linked to a resort-vacation
  tourism profile.
• At the level of spontaneous recognizability, the
  most recognizable resorts are Borjomi, Batumi,
  Kobuleti and Bakuriani. They are also the most
  popular and partially prestigious resorts visited
  by the most of population throughout a year.
• The Georgian holidaymaker lacks a physiological
  vision of a consumer he/she is satisfied with
  already tested and reliable options and does not
  look for new alternatives, antiquity or
  exotics.

Major Conclusions
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• From the tourism perspective, Signaghi is viewed
  as a favorable zone for development of heritage,
  cultural and wine tourism. Sighnaghi is perceived
  as a city with a potential for international
  tourism.
• The tourism potential of Signaghi is primarily
  related to cultural and wine tours. In case of
  cultural and historical tours, the psychological
  and mental comfort is most important for a
  holidaymaker. Elements of nationality, antiquity,
  traditions, rituals can ensure that. The city
  should give a holidaymaker an opportunity to
  participate in the Georgian pastimerelated
  processes and feel its specifics and exotics at
  the visual, social, mental and physical levels.
• The Georgian holidaymaker gets much less he/she
  wishes to get. He/she is unhappy with and
  sensitive to quality criteria with a high level
  of relevance and a low level of satisfaction. In
  this regard, security and ecological safety are
  most important variables as well as
  professionalism of staff including services and
  interactions with visitors and hotel attributes
  to ensure comfort to visitors.

Major Conclusions
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• According to the price sensitivity model, the
  best tourism offer includes a full package of
  transport and additional services, 3 meals a day,
  accommodation type-hotel and a length of stay
  3-4 days on average. The second best option that
  slightly differs from the first one is a full
  package of transportation and additional services
  with 2 meals a day and length of stay 1 week .
• The price sensitivity model makes it possible to
  calculate the price of any tourism offer . The
  price of tourist offer is primarily increased by
• 3 meals per day ( 18,42),
• 1 - week stay ( 9,63),
• Additional services ( 13,99)
• Full package of transportation services (
  9,34)
• Accommodation type does not matter. The hotel is
  preferred to the guesthouse, which gives a
  difference in price by 0.41

Major Conclusions
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• The Signaghi related marketing campaign should
  be aimed at both Georgian and foreign visitors
  since it has a potential for local and
  international tourism.
• Information sources should be selected providing
  they cover both target groups.
• With regard to the local tourism, it is desirable
  to position vacation from the perspective of
  social and individual values. The concept of
  vacation should be shifted from motivation of
  safety to those of social recognition and
  self-expression. Vacation should be perceived
  not only as rehabilitation, but rather
  self-respect, self-development,
  self-actualization process with high cultural
  values.
• By means of the social advertisement (PSA) the
  existing social circle of vacation should be
  broadened, the concept of vacation should be
  transformed and viewed as a means to
  pleasantly spend time with friends and
  co-workers in addition to family and an
  opportunity to acquire new experience.

Key Recommendations
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• The Sighnaghi tourism potential is connected to
  wine and cultural/ heritage tourism. The tourist
  offer of this type is most attractive to foreign
  visitors. Due to specifics of the interviewed
  respondents, we cannot provide recommendations
  for international tourism regarding image
  strategy. We assume that wine and cultural
  tourism should be viewed as the Signaghi
  identifier brands. Heritage and cultural
  elements should be widely used the wine tourism
  shall be positioned at the level of social,
  mental, visual and kinesthetic contacts.
  Therefore, the concept of wine tourism should be
  conceivable at all level of the psychological
  system the foreign visitor should be able to
  see, hear, feel, touch, perceive and analyse
  information regarding the ancient culture.
• The marketing strategy should be enriched by
  emotional elements advertisements should be more
  of emotional rather than rational character.

Major Recommendations
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• Due to the specifics of local tourism, the most
  popular and widely used offers are those
  characterized by elements of prestige, price and
  such quality elements as food and ecological
  safety. Currently, Georgians do not perceive
  Sighnaghi as a destination combining these
  elements. Wine and heritage tours are less
  attractive for them, unless we consider a
  special group of visitors spending vacations with
  friends. In order for Sighnaghi to acquire
  attributes of a tourism destination, the city
  should, first, obtain elements of prestige and
  then, ratio of quality and cost should be formed
  based on price sensitiveness as perceived
  relevant by potential visitors.
• In accordance with price of services, the
  consumer should have a choice. A wide range of
  additional services and different trails should
  be available.
• Sighnaghi should be viewed as a tourism
  destination site with outdoor recreation
  opportunities. This factor will give the city
  the veneer of prestige and specificity.
• In positioning the Signaghi complex, it is
  recommended to consider a fact that the Georgian
  consumer is sensitive to a service and/or product
  considered fashionable, prestigious,
  experienced, recognized.

Key Recommendations
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Demography
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Education, Gender
Education
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Employment
Employment
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Financial Status of the Family
Private car
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Number of Family Members