PROJECT REPORT

ON
“The Role of Effective Service Operations in Tourism Industry”

Submitted to

Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University for Partial

Fulfillment of the Degree of Master in Business Administration
(MBA)”

Submitted by:

Mr. _____________________

Guide:

_____________________________

Supervisor:

_____________________________

Dr. Ambedkar Institute of Management Studies and Research,

DeekshaBhoomi, Nagpur.

2018
 DR.AMBEDKAR INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND
RESEARCH, NAGPUR.

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that investigation described in this project

entitled, “Role of effective operation services in Tourism Industry” was
carried out by Mr. ____________________ in Dr. Ambedkar Institute of
Management Studies and Research, Nagpur under my supervision
and guidance in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree
of Master of Business Administration of R.T.M. Nagpur University,
Nagpur.

This work is the own work of the candidate, complete in all

respects and is of sufficiently high standard to warrant its
submission to the said degree. The assistance and resources used
for this work are duly acknowledged.

DR./Prof._________________ Dr. Sudhir S. Fulzele

(Supervisor) (Director)
 DR.AMBEDKAR INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES AND
RESEARCH, NAGPUR

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this project titled “Role of effective operation

services in Tourism Industry” is bonafide and authentic record of work
done by me under supervision of Dr. ______________ during academic
session 2016-17.
The work presented here is not duplicated from any other source
& also not submitted earlier for any other degree/diploma to any
university. I understand that any such duplication is liable to be
punished in accordance with the university rules.
The source material, data used in this research study have been
duly acknowledged.

Date: _______________________
Place: Signature of Student
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
These is my privilege to express deepest sense of gratitude and in debt sense to my
Supervisor Dr. ______________________, for his invaluable Supervision, unending support, constant
encouragement, keep interest, helpfulness and constructive criticism. All this provided us the
needed moral and confidence to carry out this project.

I am honorably thankful to Dr S.S. Fulzele, Director, DAIMSR, Nagpur and also Dr. V. M.
Chopde, Coordinator, DAIMSR, Nagpur for making us all facilities available.

I am also thankful to all other faculty members of DAIMSR for their help during my project
work.

I take pleasure in expressing heartiest thanks to my parents, colleagues and classmates for
their moral support and helpfulness through my project work. I am also thankful to my other
friends excluding DAIMSR, for giving me full support in my project work.

____________________________

(Name of the Student)

 Table of Content

Chapter 1 Introduction

Chapter 2 Literature Review

Chapter 3 Research Methodology

 Research Methodology
 Statement of the Problem
 Type of Research
 Objectives
 Research Design
 Data Collection
 Methodology of Analysis
 Limitations of the Study

Chapter 4 Data Analysis

Chapter 5 Conclusion

Chapter 6 Recommendations and Future Scope

References

Appendices
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There are a number of important people I want to thank, without whose support, guidance,
encouragement, and help this work would not have been possible. I would also like to give my
greatest thanks to God who deserves the ultimate praise and credit for all good things in my
life.

First and foremost, I want to thank…………..(Guide Name), who has been my advisor and mentor
throughout my studies. Without sir’s patient criticism, continual support, effective teaching,
and constant challenge and encouragement to give my very best efforts to my undertakings, I
would not have learned what I needed to nor been prepared to complete this dissertation and
future work. Much of what I have learned about the craft of research has come from Sir, and I
am forever grateful for the opportunity to have studied under his guidance.

I would not have made it through this research without the support, encouragement, teaching,
and friendship of fellow students in the program
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Definition of Service Quality

There are a number of different “definitions” as to what is meant by services quality. In its
simplest form service quality is a product of the effort that every member of the organization
invests in satisfying customers. In its broadest sense service quality is defined as superiority or
excellence as perceived by the customer.

The delivery of excellent or superior service relative to customer expectations.

Quality is behavior – an attitude – that says you will never settle for anything less community,
your stockholders or colleagues with whom you work every day.

When we want to be effective – delivering good quality to the customer – we must produce
services that meet “as much as possible” the needs of the consumer.

Quality is providing a better service than the customer expects.

One that is commonly us defines services quality as the extent to which a service meets
customer’s needs or expectations. Today the most popular model of service quality in use
is service quality gap model, perceived service quality as the difference between consumer
expectations and their perceptions.
The delivery of excellent or superior service relative to customer expectations.

Quality is behavior – an attitude – that says you will never settle for anything less community,
your stockholders or colleagues with whom you work every day.

When we want to be effective – delivering good quality to the customer – we must produce
services that meet “as much as possible” the needs of the consumer.

Quality is providing a better service than the customer expects.

One that is commonly us defines services quality as the extent to which a service meets
customer’s needs or expectations. Today the most popular model of service quality in use is
service quality gap model, perceived service quality as the difference between consumer
expectations and their perceptions.

Service Quality Assessment

Service quality a critical component of customer’s perception will be the dominant element in
customer evaluation. In cases where customer service or services are offered in combination with
a physical product, service quality may also be very critical in determining customer satisfaction.
Customers judge their quality of service on their perception of the technical outcome and how
was the outcome delivered. For example, a legal service client will judge the quality of outcome,
or how the court case was delivered, and also the quality of the process. Process quality also
 includes such things as lawyer’s timeliness, the responsiveness in returning phone calls, his
empathy for the client, his courtesy and interviewing skills. Similarly, a restaurant customer will
judge the service on customer’s perception of the meals (technical outcome quality) and on how
the meal was served and on how the employees interacted with customers (process quality).
Some researchers found that customers consider following five dimensions in their assessment of
service quality:

1. Reliability: This dimension is shown to have the highest influence on the customer perception
of quality. It is the ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately. When
service delivery fails the first time, a service provider may get a second chance to provide the
same service in the phase called ‘Recovery’. The expectations of the customer are usually
higher during the recovery phase than before because of the initial failure. Thus, the service
provider is likely to come under greater scrutiny, thereby increasing the possibility of
customer dissatisfaction. The reliability dimension, which ensures timely delivery time after
time, helps the service provider to meet the customer expectations fully at the lowest level of
service expectation.
2. Responsiveness: It is the willingness of the service firm’s staff to help customers and to
provide them with prompt service. The customers may have queries, special requests,
complaints, etc. In fact, each customer may have problems of his or her own. While the front-
end employee may have been trained or equipped to deliver standardized services, the
customers want them to go beyond this limit. It is the willingness to help the customer or
willingness to go that extra distance that is responsiveness. The second aspect of
responsiveness is speedy response to a customer request. When response is delayed customers
usually loses interest. Many sales representatives respond on the phone, ‘I will call you back’.
The call is never returned. The customer draws his or her own conclusion about the quality of
service he is likely to receive in the future.
3. Assurance: It is defined as the ability of the company to inspire trust and confidence in the
service delivery. It refers to knowledge and courtesy of the service firm’s employees and their
ability to inspire trust and confidence in the customer toward the company. This dimension is
considered vital for services that involve high risk as customers may not be able to evaluate all
the uncertainties involved in the process by them. There are property developers/builders who
 provide a list of previous buyers of flats or apartments to potential buyers. The evaluation of
construction services is beyond technical capabilities of most buyers. However, the
prospective customers are free to call the previous customers. When prospective customers
hear from them about the company and its satisfactory delivery, they feel assured and develop
a more positive attitude towards the company.
4. Empathy: It refers to the caring, individualized attention the service firm provides each
customer. When service provider puts himself in the shoes of the customers, he may see the
customer’s viewpoint better. When customers feel that the provider is making his best effort to
see their viewpoint, it may be good enough for most.
5. Tangibles: It refers to physical facilities, equipment, and appearance of a service firm’s
employees. The job of the tangible and physical evidence of a service is multifunctional.
When a patient in the waiting room of a clinic sees the doctor’s certificate, he becomes aware
of the quality of service he is about to receive. Tangibles provide the customer proof of the
quality of service.

These dimensions represent how consumers organize information, about service quality in their
minds. On the basis of exploratory and quantitative research, these five dimensions are found.
These dimensions are relevant for banking, insurance, appliance repair and maintenance,
securities brokerage, long distance telephone service, automobile repair service and others. The
dimensions are also applicable to retail and business services. Sometimes customers will use all
these dimensions to determine service quality perceptions at other times not. For example, in
remote encounter such as an encounter with ATM, empathy is not likely to be relevant
dimension and in an encounter such as scheduling a repair call, tangibles will not be relevant

Ancillary Services

Most tourists on holiday will want to be amused, entertained and active during their visit. In this
case, they will require information on their destination’s ancillary services, including activities
and attractions. Shopping, catering and wifi facilities are also important aspects of the tourism
product. The access to business centres, interpreters, financial services and communication
facilities may also be necessary requirements in tourist destinations.
Tourist publications and online content

Tourists will require information about their prospective destination both before they leave home
and once they arrive. This information should give details on the local people and their way of
life, language, currency, climate, amenities, transportation, accommodation and attractions. The
tourists are unable to see, touch or feel the tourism product in advance. Hence, the supply of such
material is critical to the success of any tourist destination. The content marketing of the
destinations could be a deciding factor as to whether tourists will visit them or not. The provision
of clear and informative material that is readily available online are considered as essential
services to prospective visitors.

Today’s travel marketers can increasingly impact their consumers through ubiquitous mobile
devices, including smart phones and tablets. The usage of the mobiles has changed the
consumers’ attitudes, expectations, and even the way they buy hospitality products and travel
related services. Local and “near me searches” have changed the travel path to purchase with in-
destination or “in the moment” sales opportunities. Consumers expect the “mobile first” user
experience with easy access to contact information, maps, directions and reviews. They expect
accuracy in listing information, and immediate responses from brands.

Public Service and Amenities

A destination’s infrastructure is not usually developed with the tourist in mind, but should
include facilities and services that are required by tourists. Infrastructural elements include;
roads, electricity and water supplies, communication facilities, sewage and waste disposal,
policing and security, medical services and hygiene. In developed countries, these facilities are
provided for residents. However, if a region has tourist potential, its infrastructure must take into
account the likely needs for future expansion, due to a possible influx of tourists.

Financial Services

Tourists require access to financial services in order to fund their travel arrangements. Foreign
exchange is probably the most important service required; tourists may also need insurance and
credit facilities.
Insurance is an important service and could be an obligatory aspect of a tourist’s travel
arrangements. Travellers may need coverage for one or more of the following contingencies:
medical care and hospitalisation (and where necessary, repatriation); personal accident;
cancellation or curtailment of holiday; delayed departure; baggage loss or delay; money loss and
personal liability, among other products. Some policies may also include coverage for the
collapse of the travel agent or tour operator (who sold the tourism products).

Travellers today have an ever widening choice of how they could pay for travel services and
goods while abroad. These include carrying foreign cash, in the form of banknotes (yet, this may
lead to loss or theft); by using travel vouchers, credit cards or debit cards. Travellers’cheques
could be utilised in many parts of the world, as these products are sold by banks and commercial
institutions. Travel vouchers may be used for the payment of travel services, including car hire
and hotel accommodation.

Travel Agency Operations

Generally, the travel agents’ job is to work out an itinerary that suit their customers’
requirements in order to secure reservations from them. This can be achieved by either working
through a tour operator or by approaching individual suppliers, directly. The travel agents are
usually paid commission by the supplier / tour operator for sales made on their behalf.

However, many airlines have either reduced their commissions (to travel agents) or eliminated
them, completely. The travel agents secure specific elements of the tourism product to meet their
client needs. Therefore, the travel agents provide a location (either through brick and mortar
premises, or online) where potential tourists can seek information on the tourism products;

• Travel advice on the various options available;

• A booking service to secure reservations, on the various aspects of the product, such as
transport, accommodation, sight-seeing, et cetera;

• Support in travel formalities. This may include the procurement of travel documents, including
passports and visas;

• The issuance of tickets, vouchers and itineraries for all travel arrangements.
A passport (or identification document) is required to travel internationally, and in some cases a
visa may also be needed. The inability to get these documents may hamper the individuals’
ability to travel, at least internationally. Moreover, some destinations may have currencies that
could not be exchanged in other countries. Alternatively, individuals may have certain
restrictions on the transfer of their funds. These issues may restrict international travel, although
they could boost domestic tourism.

SALIENT FEATURES OF TOURISM INDUSTRY

The four main characteristics of the tourism industry are:

1) The tourism industry is highly inflexible.

2) The service provided by the tourism industry is highly perishable.
3) The destination is fixed.
4) It requires large financial investment.

TOURISM – CLASSIFICATION

Tourism can be classified into six distinct categories according to the purpose of travel:

1) Recreational: Recreational or leisure tourism takes a person away from the humdrum of
everyday life. In this case, people spend their leisure time at the hills, sea beaches, etc.
2) Cultural: Cultural tourism satisfies the cultural and intellectual curiosity and involves
visits to ancient monuments, places of historical or religious importance.
3) Sports/Adventure: Trips taken by people with a view to playing golf, skiing in the
mountain and hiking, fall within this category.
4) Health: Under this category, people travel for medical treatment or visit places where
there are curative possibilities, for example, hot springs, spas, yoga, etc.
5) Convention Tourism: It is becoming an increasingly important component of travel.
People travel within a country or overseas to attend conventions relating to their business,
profession or interest.
6) Incentive Tourism: Holiday trips are offered as incentives by major companies to dealer
and salesmen who achieve high targets in sales. Similar to it being offered by government
 and corporate enterprises in the form of LTC in our country.

GROWTH OF TOURISM

The phenomenal growth in tourism during the last thirty-five years has been due to several
economic and technological factors:

1) Increased Leisure: Increasing intervention of ILO and other Labour organization in

fixing holidays per year increased the leisure for many.
2) Industrial development and urbanization: Large-scale industrial development coupled
with pollution and overcrowding in the cities has led to the people’s search for sun, sand
and the pure fresh mountain air during annual holidays.
3) Revolution in transport: The development of air transportation leading to the evolution
of Jumbo jets has resulted in unbelievable low air fares. This has democratized the
holiday market.
4) Rising standards of living: The rapid economic development has raised the standard of
living
5) In developed countries with sizeable disposable income. A part of this income is now
spent on travel for fun.
6) Publicity and promotion – Government Interest: Most governments are actively
promoting tourism like any other product. This has resulted in the current travel boom.

BASIC COMPONENTS AND ELEMENTS OF TOURISM

Tourism does not exist in isolation. It consists of certain components, three of which may be
considered as basic. These three basic components of tourism are:

1) Transport
2) Location
3) Accommodation
Peters has drawn up an inventory of the various attractions which are of significance in tourism.
His five categories are given here:
 1) Cultural: Sites and areas of archaeological interest, historical buildings and monuments,
places of historical significance, museum, modern culture, political and educational
institutions, and religious institutions.
2) Traditions: National festivals, arts and handicrafts, music, folklore, native life and
customs.
3) Science: National parks, wildlife, flora and fauna, beach resorts, mountain resorts.
4) Entertainment: Participation and viewing sports, amusement and recreation parks, zoos
and oceanariums, cinemas, and theatres, night life, cuisine.
5) Other attractions: Climate, health resorts or spas, unique attractions not available
elsewhere.

BARRIERS TO TRAVEL

In spite of numerous factors listed above favouring the development of tourism, there are some
that act as barriers to travel. They fall into the following categories:

 Cost: People are subject to monetary restraints and cannot afford the expense of travel.
 Time: This is characteristic of those who are not in a position to leave their business or
profession to take time off from work.
 Health: Many persons, especially old people cannot travel due to poor health and physical
limitations.
 Family: Parents having small children are not in a position to travel due to family
responsibilities and convenience of travel.
 Lack of ignorance and lack of information about interest of other places and people can
be a major barrier to travel.
Fig. 1.2: The five main components of travel and tourism industry.

In travel and tourism in particular, many marketing managers have been brought in from
manufacturing and other service industries to bring their expertise to bear as firms grow faster
than the level of expertise available from within their own sector of business.

Against this evidence of common ground, however, experience convinces many in the industry,
including the authors of this book, that there are some special characteristics of travel and
tourism services that are so dominant in their implications that standard marketing principles
must be considerably adapted to ensure success in an operational context.

This is clearly a very important consideration and it is based on the belief that marketing in travel
and tourism reflects five aspects of demand and supply in the industry, which individually and
combined give marketing practice its special approach and style.
• The characteristics of demand

• The characteristics of supply

• Products and prices, which match the supply to the demand

• Characteristics of promotion used to influence demand

• Characteristics of distribution used to facilitate purchase

Fragmentation of supply

The tourist product is a composite one, a combination of attractions, transport, accommodation,

entertainment and other services. In most countries, there are many separate suppliers of these
various components – airlines, hotel companies, tour excursion organizers, etc. It is an important
feature of tourism that, though an individual supplier of tourist services may serve more than one
market, rarely, if ever, does a single supplier provide the entire range of products/services
required by a tourist on a visit to a destination. Whether sold as a package or assembled by the
tourist himself or by a travel agent, the tourist product is in practice a composite one. It is
apparent, then, that given the fragmented nature of supply on one hand, and the demand for a
combined set of products on the other, a fundamental challenge for a destination is to achieve
coordination and integration of all components across all subsectors of the tourism industry, that
is, of supply.

Interdependence and complementarity of tourist services

It follows from the fact that tourism demand is for a composite product that the various tourist
products and services are interdependent and complementary. The supply of one (for example,
international airtransport to/from a destination) depends on the supply of another (such as hotel
accommodation) and they complement each other. A destination’s reputation can be set by the
weakest link in the tourist product chain. This leads to the marketing policies and actions of one
enterprise directly influencing other enterprises. A country with a liberal charter policy and/or an
airline with an aggressive pricing policy may result in the attraction of low budget tourists,
something that could damage the high quality image central to the marketing of a five-star hotel
chain in the destination. There is again then the need for coordination and cooperation in order to
enhance the effectiveness of individual marketing and promotional efforts of the various tourism
suppliers.

Rigidity of supply

Much tourism demand cannot be easily and quickly be adjusted in the short term to variation in
demand.A hotel, for example, cannot add or remove rooms in line with demand. This relative
lack of flexibility hasobvious operational and economic implications. When demand falls below
capacity, waste of resourcesoccurs; when it exceeds capacity, the tourism industry fails to
maximize its revenue. This “short term” can extend to years if the rigidity is caused by lack of
airport or hotel capacity, given the extensive lead-time to construct a new airport or hotel.

Fixed in time and space

The composite tourism product cannot be stored – it is perishable – so a hotel room on a

particular night or a seat on a given flight is available only once, and if not utilized, the sales
opportunity is lost. Similarly, it cannot be transported. The need is to bring the consumer to the
tourist product. The importance of ensuring, through marketing, as high a level of utilisation as
possible is particularly marked because of the high fixed costs of many tourist operations. A
hotel has to meet its fixed costs whether it has 5 guests or 200. The non-transportability of
tourism products means there is no physical distribution in the strict sense in tourism marketing.
Similarly, there are limited opportunities for merchandising activities, in consequence of the fact
that the tourist product, unlike consumer goods, cannot be displayed at points of sale other than
via proxy representations.

Intangible – “expectation – experience – memory”

Tourist products, except items like souvenirs, are services rather than goods. As such they are
intangible. The tourism product is subjectively perceived – each destination or individual tourist
operation is a mental concept for each individual prospective tourist encompassing both physical
characteristics and other abstract attributes. The subjective nature of perception involves an
emotional and also an irrational element. In consequence, the tourist has to be offered
psychological benefits. Clearly, this has important implications for advertising and promotion in
tourism and generally on how a tourist product is presented to consumer groups.
In consequence of the intangibility of tourist products, when a supplier of a tourist services
considers the potential market, the essential thought process should be: expectations –
experiences – memories. This is the same whether the supplier is a destination promotion
authority seeking to attract tourists to a specific country or location within that country, or the
operator of a fixed-site facility like a hotel, restaurant or attraction, or a provider of tour
excursion.

Each tourist is a set of expectations. The tourism product cannot be test driven or known about
with certainty in advance of being consumed. The tourist, therefore, builds mental images of the
destination and of the facilities and other components of the tourism product of that destination.
He/she has a set of expectations about the place to be visited.

Experiences because the intangibility of tourism products means that the tourist engages in a
series of activities – typically, for example, riding on transport, visiting attractions, staying in
some form of accommodation, eating, drinking, recreating, interacting with other people – none
of which produce a final physical product to take home. Each tourist trip, therefore, is a
combination of various experiences.

At the end of the trip the tourist is left with nothing more than memories – the derivation of the
word souvenirs and proxies of the trip – such as photos or videos.

The key for the marketer is that the expectations created achieve the fine balance between
attracting the tourist while not promising more than can be delivered. The experiences are
assessed by the tourist against his/her pre-trip expectations. A major determinant of success is
how well the experiences match or exceed these expectations. This assessment has relative as
well-absolute dimensions. A destination may have a perception in the marketplace of being
expensive or offering poor service, something which will limit its drawing power. If the tourist
finds it is not so costly or that service is better than expected, his/her level of satisfaction will be
higher. Of course, the reverse can also be the case with more damaging consequences for the
destination.

The intangibility of the tourist product and the consequent need for the marketer to address the
potential market’s perceptions of the tourist product has two dimensions: first, the need to offer
psychological benefits to the prospective tourist; and, second, to recognize that the perception is
the reality – with each tourist having sovereign power over his/her destination decision-making –
and that marketing activities should be designed to alter the market’s prevailing images in line
with the marketer’s desired position.

Price elasticity of demand

Most forms of tourism demand involve the use of what economists call personal discretionary
disposable income and free time. Holidaymakers or vacation travellers need both money and
time to engage in tourism. They have freedom of choice as to how to use their money and time
for tourism purposes, affecting decisions such as how much to spend, how long to go for, where
to go, when to go, etc. As a result, tourists are highly sensitive to price, and generally their
demand for tourist services exhibits a significant degree of price elasticity.

The marketing implication of these demand characteristics is that the travelling public is
susceptible to price inducements and to other marketing efforts in respect of choices relating to
destination, place and type of accommodation, and timing of the trip. The price elasticity factor
is growing in significance because of two interlinked factors, namely increased pressure on free
time and greater ease of international travel, i.e., more frequent services to more destinations at
fares rising below prevailing rates of inflation. This will increasingly lead to a pattern of shorter
but more frequent holidays.

Seasonality

It is a characteristic of most tourism markets that demand fluctuates over the course of the year.
The principal determinant is climatic – either in the destination or the tourist generating markets.
Residents of northern parts of the European and North American continents tend mostly to take
domestic or intraregional holidays in the summer months of June–September whereas they take
long haul, inter-regional holidays more in the winter when the climate at home is generally cold
and wet. As a result, tourist operators have periods when demand is near capacity and others
when the level of utilization can be 30 per cent or even less, with the remaining months – the
shoulder season – falling in between these two extremes.

These demand variations are all the more acute because of the fact that any tourism product
cannot be stored – the perishability factor – and the concern of marketers is to generate as much
demand inThe role of marketing in the travel and tourism industry is to manage or manipulate
sales – customer purchasing behaviour – on an orderly, continuous, regular basis, in order to
utilize the maximum level of available, inseparable capacity, and to generate extra or marginal
sales that contributes revenue at minimal additional cost.

While the principles of the body of knowledge about marketing, and its main theoretical
elements, can be applied in all industries, the special characteristics of travel and tourism are so
dominant in their implications, that standard marketing principles must be considerably adapted
to be successfully utilization in travel and tourism applications.

Middleton and Clarke (2001) identify three propositions about marketing in travel and tourism
that are relevant to all the forms it takes:

• In the context of opportunities and constraints arising from the business environment of a major
global market, products in tourism are designed, adapted and promoted to meet the long-run
needs, expectations and interests of prospective customers. This is the common ground with all
forms of consumer marketing, and the cornerstone of all marketing theory;

• Service products generally have particular characteristics of inseparability and perishability,

which call for a different application of the traditional marketing mix variables. This is the
common ground with the developing theory of services marketing as distinct from marketing
goods; and

• Marketing in travel and tourism is shaped and determined by the nature of the demand for
tourism and the operating characteristics of supplying industries. The forms of promotion and
distribution used for travel and tourism products have their own particular characteristics, which
distinguish their use in comparison with other industries. These characteristics form the common
ground on which marketing for travel and tourism is based.

Users of Tourism Services

The users of tourism services can be categorized in a number of ways. One such way of
classifying the users is by dividing them into categories such as General, Sex, Region, Education,
etc.
1. General: Domestic, Foreign Kids, Teens, Youths, Seniors, Students, Executives, Artists,
Politicians, Movie stars

2. Sex: Men, Women

3. Region: Rural, Urban

4. Education: Literate, Illiterate

5. Status: Rich, Poor

6. Profession: Executives, Academics, Sportsmen, Artists

7. Occupation: White collar, Blue collar

Another method of classifying users of tourism services is on the basis of the frequency of usage
of services.

1. Non-users: They lack the willingness, desire and ability (income and leisure time).

2. Potential Users: They have the willingness but the marketing resources have not been used
optimally to influence their impulse.

3. Actual Users: They are already using the services generated by the tourist organizations.

4. Occasional Users: They have not formed the habit of travelling.

5. Habitual Travellers: They have formed a habit and avail of the services regularly.
Need for Segmentation

Consumer behaviour can be defined in psychological terms as the whole range of the generation
of wants and their transformation into buying or using decisions. Users have values, perceptions,
preferences and expectations which are the result of environmental influences. There are a
number of factors that influence the behavioural profile of consumers.

In recent years, the users have become more discriminating in their using habits and therefore
their needs for different services, products and brands change constantly. This makes it essential
that the marketers analyze their behavioural profile and undertake segmentation so that they
know the level of expectations.

In a nutshell, tourist organizations need to undertake segmentation in order to simplify their task
of creating and stimulating demand. In this way, they can identify the potential tourists,
transform them into actual tourists and further into habitual tourists.

Segmentation

Though there are a number of bases for segmentation of tourists, one of the most important is
lifestyle. Travelling decisions are fantastically influenced by changing lifestyles. They are also
affected by other factors such as level of income, availability of leisure time, etc.

Such segmentation is useful when deciding the offerings to target a particular segment. For
example:

• The mass market consists of vacationists that travel in large groups and prefer all-inclusive
tours.

They are generally conservative.

• The popular market consists of smaller groups going on inclusive or semi-inclusive tours. This
group includes pensioners and retired people.

• The individual market consists of chairmen, senior executives, etc.

• As the lifestyle changes, consumption of services might change. For example, a newly married
couple might prefer romantic holidays, but once they have children they would prefer family
vacations where there are plenty of activities to entertain kids.

• Teens and youth might prefer adventure holidays whereas senior citizens would probably prefer
more relaxing vacations.
 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW
 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

Sharma Sunil (2007) in his book titled “Planning and Development of Tourism and Hospitality”
gave a descriptive overview of various problems those prevails in Hospitality and Tourism
Industry. These issues were related with planning and development in Hospitality industry. For
the study author used both types of data i.e. primary and secondary. Statistical methods like
moving average, ratios, etc. were applied for analyzing the data. It attempted to comprehend on
the basis of information’s collected about sustainability, cooperative planning, strategic
infrastructure planning and forecasting, implication of advanced information technology and
development of Tourism and Hospitality enterprises, etc. are described in detail. It analyzed the
importance of E-business in Tourism and Hospitality Industry. The study concluded that the
tourism has a great contribution in the GDP of number of developing countries and provides
wide range of opportunities in Hospitality sector, which explores the different career path for
Hotel Management graduates.

Ball Stephen et al (2007) in their book titled “Contemporary Hospitality and Tourism”,
mentioned about the growth and development of Indian Hotel sector. The book identified and
studied the main sectors of Hospitality Industry. The book included the studies of Hotels of India
and China. The authors highlighted that the growth of this industry is basically based on
information’s. They emphasized that information’s accessibility is most important for growth of
Hotel industry because it helped the managers in efficient and effective decision making.
Authors have taken data from academicians and professionals; besides this they have given
number of 26 case studies those made content of this book easy and understandable. Authors
further argued that Indian Hospitality industry is growing very well because of the increasing
GDP of the country and the measure taken by the government for boosting this industry. They
also stressed on the significance of Hospitality Industry in generating employment in the country

Roger J. Challan and Gabrielle Kyndt (2001) in their research paper Business Travelers’
Perception of Service Quality: “A Prefatory Study of Two European City Centre Hotels” had
studied the level of satisfaction of customers for different attributes of Hotel industry. The study
was made with respect to the different categories of customers of Hotel industry. Author did an
extensive literature review on the various attributes of Hotel industry those influenced the
behavior of consumers .The first study was done to find out the level of satisfaction of business
travelers towards the attributes of Hotel. The author has taken the help of other studies like
studies made by Callan (1996), and selected two international five star Hotels for his study. One
hotel was selected from Manchester and other from Brussels. Studies concluded by identifying
the attributes playing a significant role in the satisfaction of Hotel customers. These attributes
were 1. Security (94%), 2. Reliability in reservation (89.2%), 3. Quietness of rooms (87.3%), 4.
Physical condition of the Hotel (83.2%), 5.location (80.2%). Study concluded that security was
considered the most important attribute for customer satisfaction, followed by reservation, then
reliability and so on. The findings of study will help managers to explore the gaps and to assess
the expectations and perception of customers towards the services of Hotel industry.

Alex M. Susskind (2002) in his research paper “I told you so- customer’s word of mouth”
investigated the influence of services failures and services-recovery strategies effectively on the
satisfaction and retention of customers in Hotel Industry. The study found out the influence of
word of mouth communication regarding services failures and service recovery efforts of
organizations. The author found that consumers evaluated the quality of services not as a whole;
rather they evaluated the Hospitality Services in parts or different components e.g. quality of
food, quality of ambience, service quality, physical evidences etc. After evaluating Hospitality
services on the 27 basis of these components they form an opinion for each individual
component. It was revealed that word of mouth influences the decision making of other
customers, may be positively or negatively. Positive word of mouth came out of the satisfied
customers and negative from a dissatisfied customer, it was further found that customers spread
their dissatisfaction with word of mouth more than satisfied customers.

Thanika Devi Juwaheer and Darren Lee Ross (2003) in their research paper “A study of Hotel
Guest Perceptions in Mauritius” assessed consumer’s perception and expectation regarding
services quality delivered by Mauritius Hotels. Author identified the gaps between customer’s
expectations and perceptions; besides this the other objective of this paper was to compare the
perceptions of hotel managers regarding quality of services they delivered to their customers.
After identifying these perceptions. The managers could have been in a better position for
managing the customers and quality in their hotels. SERVQUALS modified version was used in
the research. Likert scale of 1-7 was used to measure the responses of respondents. Research
resulted in nine dimensions of quality of service having 36 variables. The perception score was
lower except “attractive and appealing brochures used for promotion” and” privacy of the
guests”. The largest gaps were found in service quality and extra facilities in room. In totality it
was observed that total perception scores were less than the expectations scores, which
concluded that Hotels of Mauritius were not providing the quality of services as expected by
their guests. The study further highlighted the two problems those were faced by the managers of
Hospitality Industry, first problem was related with the unawareness of managers about the
factors which were important for the satisfactions of hotel guests, and second problem was due to
the non availability of reliable and valid statistical tools to analyze the data The study will help
managers to learn the methodology and statistical.
 CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
 CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research Methodology is a way to systematically solve the research problem. It may be

understand as a science of studying as research is done scientifically in this we study various
steps that are generally adopted by a researcher in studying the research problem along with
logic behind them.

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

Financial management is one the most important on integral part of in any company.
Understanding the financial of the company is necessary for the stack holders. Financial position
deals with knowing the liquidity, profitability, solvency and leverage that is risk involved in the
company. The terms and financial jargons are least understood by layman. The project will try to
solve the problem of understanding the financial problem in easy and presentable form in better
way to help the shareholders for their decision making process.

TYPES OF RESEARCH
 Exploratory of formative study
 Diagnostic study
 Experimental study
 Descriptive study
DISCRIPTIVE RESEARCH

Descriptive research is used to describe characteristics of a population or phenomenon being

studied. It does not answer questions about how/when/why the characteristics occurred. Rather it
addresses the "what" question (what are the characteristics of the population or situation being
studied?) The characteristics used to describe the situation or population are usually some kind
of categorical scheme also known as descriptive categories. For example, the periodic
table categorizes the elements. Scientists use knowledge about the nature of electrons, protons
and neutrons to devise this categorical scheme. We now take for granted the periodic table, yet it
took descriptive research to devise it. Descriptive research generally precedes explanatory
research. For example, over time the periodic table’s description of the elements allowed
scientists to explain chemical reaction and make sound prediction when elements were
combined. Hence, descriptive research cannot describe what caused a situation. Thus, descriptive
research cannot be used as the basis of a causal relationship, where one variable affects another.
In other words, descriptive research can be said to have a low requirement for internal validity.

OBJECTIVES
1) To study the service offered by Tourism Industry.
2) To study the Booking time period of Tourism Industry.

RESEARCH DESIGN

A Research design is a system of conditions for collection and analysis of data which
aims to provide the precise information. Research is a systematic way of exploring, analysing
and conceptualizing social life in order to extend and verify knowledge to see this research
helps to construct a theory. This method is simply a systematically planned way of doing things
to achieve the desired result.
Research design of this study is analytical in nature. It is an arrangement of condition of
collection and analysis of data in a proper that aims to combine relevance to the research
purpose with economy in procedure.

SAMPLE TECHNIQUES
Convenience sampling is used in exploratory research where the researcher is interested
in getting an inexpensive approximation of the truth. As the name implies, the sample is selected
because they are convenient. This nonprobability method is often used during preliminary
research efforts to get a gross estimate of the results, without incurring the cost or time required
to select a random sample.
SAMPLE DESIGN
Collection of data is the process remuneration together with the proper record of research.
Those data which are already been passed through the statistical process. In this study is based
on the secondary sources. Secondary data is the data that have been already collected by and
readily available from other sources. Such data are cheaper and more quickly obtainable than
the primary data and also may be available when primary data cannot be obtained at all.
 It is economical.
 It saves efforts and expenses
 It helps to make primary data collection more specific since with the help of secondary
data, we are able to make out what are the gaps and deficiencies and what additional
information needs to be collected
 It helps to improve the understanding of the problem
 It provides a basis for comparison for the data that is collected by the researcher
The secondary data for the study is mainly collected through
 Annual reports
 Circulars
 Internet
DATA COLLECTION

Different method of Collection of data

There are two way of collecting data

1) Primary data.
2) Secondary data.

1) Primary data:-

Primary data is originally gathered specifically on project hand. One can obtain
information from dealers, salesmen, etc. it offers much greater accuracy and reliability.

In this study facts and figures are raw material with which researcher works.
Thus, in primary data collection researcher come across many methods as follows:
 a) Observation methods
b) Interview methods

Other method include the following :-

1. Warranty cost
2. Distributor
3. Consumer panels
4. Use of mechanical devices
5. Projective technique
6. Dept interview
7. Contain analysis
2. Secondary data:-

Secondary data is the data already collected by someone else. This data is not especially
collected to solve present or specific problem. The information is relevant and can be used for
our purpose.
After doing the data collection in primary method, the researcher did the collection through the
secondary data. In this there are several types such as:-
1) General library
2) Trade –boo
 CHAPTER 4

DATA ANALYSIS
 CHAPTER 4

DATA ANALYSIS

AGE
The charges made for tourism services are reasonable?
For Booking Tickets, From Where u seeks Travel INFORMATION from (Price, Time, etc.)?
Which out of the following features attracted you to choose the company to plan your trips?
Which Travelling Booking minimizes the time period and helps to process quickly?
More organizations plan to increase the money spent on customer’s perception and satisfaction is good.
In which company you interested in registering with the travel company?
Do you Think You Preferred Online Travel Agency Should have a Local Presence in Your city?
Where you prefers Booking Hotel Stay?
FINDINGS
 FINDINGS

 14% of respondents are below 25 aged,14% of respondents are 26-35 aged, 6% of

respondents are below 36-45 aged, 14% of respondents are 46-55 aged and 40% of
respondents are age of 55 and above.
 it is observed that out of 100 respondents there are 80 male and 20 of female respondents
 9% of respondents concluding they are highly satisfied with charges of
companies, 31% of respondents concluding they are satisfied with charges , and
60% of respondents concluding they are highly satisfied with charges .
 Online travel agency is used mostly to find information regarding flight timing ratesand
offers over airline websites and local agents.
 Mostly People plan their travels and tour on the basis of company’s reputation,
performance and services provided by them.
 20% of respondent believe that step in tour have most expensive internet services
provided.3% of respondent believe that centrum have least expensive in internet
services. 36% respondent believe that silk route have expensive if you plan your tour
from company agent and 2% respondent believe that Kesari and Global travels are not
expensive if you plan travel from company’s agent. Silk route have an expensive if you
would plan with dealer and National tourist bureau is less expensive if you would plan
with any dealer.
 55% of the respondents prefer Consultancy, 23% of respondents to Internet, 22
% of respondents to agents service.
 59% of the respondents prefer increase in plan, 41% of respondents do not
agree to increase plan.
 20% of respondent is interest in registering with Kesari Travels and 2% of
respondent have least interest with centrum.
 Out of 100 respondents more than 80% were with the view that there should be an offline
presence of an online travel agency. Offline Presence of Online travel agencies would
result to
 Greater customer satisfaction.
 Mostly people prefer Kesari travels for hotel stay booking and only few respondent
prefers National tourist bureau.
RECOMMENDATIONS
 RECOMMENDATIONS

 Customers are using tour and travel packages for travel features
 The finance through loan facility should be given to the middleclass people.
 The advertisement interior design should change to make customer attractive.
 The number of dealers should be increased.
 The promotions should be made according to customer’s perception.
 On line assistance should be given and there should be a 24 * 7 Helpline.
 The promotional strategy should help in changing consumer’s mind and attracting them
towards the products.
 Events, campaigns and other demonstrations should be done frequently
 Online travel agency work towards creating more trust within customers.
 Online Travel Agency should Have a local presence as they can deliver better customer
satisfaction.
 Having an offline presence can cater even to offline customer as in Nagpur only
 8.5% population has access to internet.
 Online Travel Portals should concentrate more towards selling hotels and holiday
packages.
 Online travel portals should promote deals and offers that people are attracted to buy and
create experience.
 Online travel firms should encourage ‘browsers’ to become ‘purchasers’, by planning the
service according to customer needs.
CONCLUSION
 CONCLUSION

My research in Tour and Travel company of Nagpur was a wonderful experience in the field. I
observed the employee’s dedication to work and everyone were booming in right spirit. Every
small step is pre-planned well with good team effort and guidance from higher authorities. The
employees are trained well by experienced officials leading towards the success of organization.

The study majority focusing towards customers, so far that the showroom and the service station
has taken initiative steps to satisfy them by giving more offers discount, etc., also the salesperson
has to treat them as aValuable asset by rendering proper service.

The people are satisfied with the availability of products and also happy with the sales promotion
strategy of travel companies. The perception of people is very much positive. So it is clear that
the customer’s perception towards the sales promotion strategy on Travel Company is very much
positive, and whateversuggestions are provided by customers if dealer willimplement than
companies as well as dealer will get alot of profit.
The online travel shopping behavior is dependent on an individual’s traits and characteristics. In
online purchases, customers may feel skeptical about the website’s reliability and authenticity. In
developing countries, the unavailability of legal infrastructure support for e-commerce websites
exacerbates the lack of trust. Customers may be uninformed about the technicalities and
procedures of transaction and the outcomes of online purchasing. These issues make customers
skeptical about online purchasing. In making bookings through online travel websites, financial
transactions are involved (where customers have to provide their bank details), and they are
uncomfortable with this, as the Internet does not give the assurance of a physical store. Thus,
using the Internet for improving customer relationships and service quality is difficult to achieve
in developing countries, and investment return may be difficult to measure. Plus an online travel
agency lacks in personal attention and lacks in giving customized offerings. Customers prefer
interpersonal transactions to a faceless medium; this is similar to the cultural attitudes of
customers In case of queries, the customer cannot seek assistance from the service personnel, as
a website lacks a physical identity and is anonymous.
Thus, the effect of perceived risk is amplified and hampers the customer’s use of the service.
Customer satisfaction plays a significant role in fostering trust in online services, and leads to
repeat purchase. Hence a good e-commerce website and its Physical presence would help
strengthening customer trust, provide greater flexibility in payments, personal attention to
individual customer and customized offerings would lead to improving customer satisfaction.