Haiti is a Caribbean country located in the island of Hispaniola and occupies a third of it. The country has been facing high poverty levels that have been attributed to the political instability experienced in the past. Speaking about the weather conditions, Haiti has a warm tropical climate (Coupeau, 2008). The population of the state constitutes about 10 million people according to a recent national census.
Famous sites in Haiti
Haiti offers a lot of opportunities to those visiting the country on either business or leisure activities. It boasts of having some of the world’s most famous sites among which the following are some of the most famous ones:
Citadelle Laferriere
This is a mountain top mammoth fortress located 27 kilometers from the city of Cao Haitien. The Citadelle Laferriere took over 10 years to be constructed by the government of Haiti after the French had expressed their desire to retake the island. It was strategically positioned to help the military forces secure the country. Having 365 cannons, it symbolizes the days the people of Haiti fought in order to gain independence (Spears & Joseph, 2010).
Sans-Souci Palace
This palace served as the official resident of King Henry I. A huge part of the palace was destroyed in an earth quake that also hit the nearby city of Cap Haitien. It should be noted that King Henry I committed suicide in this palace. It is believed that he shoot himself with a silver bullet.
Basin Bleue
This is a breath taking waterfall that is located in Jacmel town. It is hidden in the hills and offers a picturesque setting making it one of the most popular sites in Haiti (Dayan, 2005). One should note that, due to the efforts put by the government of Haiti to conserve the environment, the number of tourists visiting Basin Bleue is restricted.
Languages in Haiti
The national language of Haiti is known as Haitian Creole. Out of 10 million of Haiti’s population, 7 million people use Haitian Creole in the homeland. Haitians living abroad also use this language. However, some part of the population speaks French. It is interesting that Haitian Creole is of French origin. The language uses over 90% of the French language (Goldstein, 2006). However, the grammar of Haitian Creole differs from that of the French language. Thus, French people find it hard to understand the Haitian Creole and vice versa.
Religion in Haiti
No doubt, religion is important in any community. Different communities have been practicing different religions all over the world and Haiti is no exception. Here are some of the religions practiced in Haiti:
Roman Catholicism
This is considered to be the official religion in Haiti.
Voodoo
In contrast to Roman Catholicism, it is Haiti’s national religion. It is practiced by majority of Haiti’s population (Clammer, 2012). However, people who practice voodoo consider themselves Roman Catholics as well. It is also worth noting that some of the practices of the voodoo religion are not performed by Roman Catholics.
Protestantism
A small part of Haiti’s population confess Protestantism. The members of this religion are strongly against the voodoo. In the historical perspective, Protestantism was practiced by the upper and middle class in the early 1950s because it encouraged people to embrace education.
Conclusion
Haiti inherited a great history that offers fascinating and breath taking sites. There are, however, spectacular natural sites that are popular among the visitors of Haiti. Haitian Creole is the most spoken language in this country, but a small population still speaks French. Voodoo is the most popular religion confessed there, but Roman Catholics and Protestants are also an important part of the religious life of Haitian.
References
Clammer, P. (2012). Haiti. Chalfont St. Peter, United Kingdom: Bradt Travel Guides.
Coupeau, S. (2008). The history of Haiti. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Dayan, J. (2005). Haiti, history, and the gods. Berkeley, CA: University of Californi Press.
Goldstein, M. J. (2006). Haiti in pictures. Minneapolis, MN: Lerner Publications.
Spears, A. K., & Joseph, C. B. (2010).The Haitian Creole language: history, structure, use, and education. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books.
Hospitality is a multi-faceted concept embracing constantly changing contexts with regard to social and economical development of a host country. On the one hand, the term refers to the already established norms of private and domestic fields of daily life. It conveys the extent to which homes are opened to guests and strangers and, at this point, hospitality is a practice associated with feelings of friendliness, warmth, and openness.
On the other hand, hospitality is a concept that is closely tied to commercial domains representing the phenomenon in terms of services, management, human resources, and marketing (O’Dell, 2010). These two dimensions of hospitality now co-exist together for generating new market-bound kinds of hospitality (Hay, 2006; Hemmington, 2007).
Apparent relation of hospitality to the marketing sphere still allows to track the hospitality transition from private to commercial forms to discover how the emotional experience was transformed into the hospitality industry. In this paper, I will discuss the stage of hospitality development, as well as its delineation through the introduction of university-bound institutions.
Reinterpreting the Principles of Hospitality While Transitioning From Private to Commercial Domains
Currently, the commercial dimension of hospitality is aimed at achieving political and social goals of a host country. Therefore, such dimensions of hospitality as food, accommodation, and entertainment are taken into consideration as a powerful tool for influencing consumer experience about the country (Lugosi, 2008; Leung & Law, 2010).
Similar implications were present when hospitality was the prerogative of the private sphere (Chen, 2009). To enlarge on this point, hospitality was not considered as a service, or obligation, but as a part of national identity and culture.
Barnett’s Perspective on Commercializing Maori Hospitality
Recent advances in the study of hospitality prove that the current definition of the term is closely connected with the commercial services and provision of accommodations, food, and drinks. In particular, Lashley (2008) states that the notion is now more identified as a commercial term and, therefore, it significantly deviates from the original definitions.
In this respect, Barnett (2001) reveals that original signs of hospitality trace back to tradition and cultures when host countries consider it a duty to meet emotional and psychological needs of guests, especially when hotels, restaurants, and other service facilities were absent.
Discussing the first stage of hospitality development in Maori culture, the researcher emphasized that commercialization of the phenomenon was due to the potent impact had friendliness and warmth of hospitality had on guest.
Insights into Nascent Australian Hospitality
Hospitality was not always considered as a crucial component of tourist, leisure, and service management. So far, the phenomenon was strongly associated with the emotional and behavioral concepts (Molz & Gibson, 2007).
Regarding the case proposed in the studies of Clark (2006), it should be stressed that the era of tourism discovery and hospitality experienced rapid development in the second half of the nineteenth century. The nascent hospitality was primarily based on welcome and friendliness.
In the study, Clark (2006) also mentions that expression of hospitality was the starting points for the emergence of tourism era in Australia.
Hence, there were no signs of commercialization due to the lack of accommodation. More importantly, the idea of hospitality was not considered as a burden or obligation. Travelers were not considered as tourists but as people in need of shelter and food.
Conclusion
In conclusion it should be stressed that commercialization of hospitality is a logically constructed process initiated for the purpose of increasing economical and cultural potential and significance of the country.
The studies provided by Clark (2006) and Barnett (2001) have proved that re-conceptualization of hospitality from emotional and psychological dimensions to commercial underpinnings was dictated by specific political and historical events.
References
Barnett, S. (2001). Manaakitanga: Maori hospitality: A case study of Maori accommodation providers, Tourism Management, 22, 83-92.
Chen, J. (2009). Advances in Hospitality and Leisure. US: Emerald Group Publishing.
Clark, I.D. (2006). Sleeping with Strangers: Hospitality in Colonial Victoria, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 13(1), 1-9.
Hay, L. A. (2006). Hospitality: The Heart of Spiritual Direction. US: Church Publishing.
Hemmington, N. (2007). From Service to Experience: Understanding and Defining the Hospitality Business. Service Industries Journal, 27(6), 747-755.
Lashley, C. (2008). Studying Hospitality: Insights from Social Sciences. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality & Tourism, 8(1), 69-84.
Leung, R., & Law, R. (2010). A Review of Personality Research in the Tourism and Hospitality Context. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 27(5), 439-459.
Lugosi, P. (2008). Hospitality spaces, hospitable moments: consumer encounters and affective experiences in commercial settings. Journal of Foodservice, 19(2), 139-149.
Molz G.J., & Gibson, S. (2007). Mobilizing Hospitality: the Ethics of Social Relations in a Mobile World. Farham UK: Ashgate Publishing.
O’Dell, T. (2010). The Cultural Economy of Hospitality, Magic and the Senses. US: Nordic Academic Press.
There are a number of definitions that exist to describe what the word tourism refers to. In simple terms, tourism can be described as the act of leaving one’s usual place of residence to visit a non-resident location. People will engage in tourism for a variety of reasons and these are in most cases unique to every individual traveler. Motivations for touring places include; education, seeking health services, to undertake work related tasks or for the purpose of relaxation.
In their work, Swarbrooke & Horner (2007) define tourism as that short term movement of people to places some distances away from their usual residences with the inte3ntion of indulging in pleasurable activities. At times, one may travel to attend to official business matters. Closely connected to tourism is the hospitality industry which involves taking care of people by providing them with relevant services to ensure their comfort.
The world over, tourism is now considered a major source of income and for many countries, incomes received from the tourism and hospitality industries form a major part of the domestic spending. With this realization, countries are now doing their best to promote the growth of the tourism industry. Though the developed nations are greatly profiting from tourism activities, there is still so much to be done in the developing nations to get there.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) innovations have considerably revolutionized the way people interact and perhaps, one of the greatest effects of technological advancements has been the change in the way business operations are handled in different sectors of the economy; tourism being one of them.
In the recent past, the Internet has experienced substantial growth and the fact that is available globally has contributed to the increase in the number of service providers who have now turned to the use of the Internet as a key marketing tool for their products and services (Vich-I-Martorell, 2002).
The many hurdles that originally created a barrier between consumers and providers are now a thing of the past. Suppliers are now presented with alternative ways of marketing and distributing tourist services and products. Though this has come with plenty of benefits for the suppliers it has tremendously affected the operations of others, denying them their means of livelihoods.
A majority of consumers and providers are now able to communicate directly with each other without having to depend on intermediaries. Great technological discoveries are seen to provide a working solution for the challenges of growing the tourism industry. Providers are able to cut down on operating expenses allowing them to render their services much cheaply especially by bypassing middlemen. It is also possible for providers to reach a wider audience with very minimal costs.
Sadly though, many developing nations are still lagging behind and have not fully embraced the use of ICT though they are well placed just like the developed nations to improve their economies through this vibrant industry.
According to Mills & Law (2004), the rapid expansion in the travel industry has led to a quest for superior quality information services that are necessary to help meet the demands of a growing number of tourists while at the same time, guaranteeing clients quality tourism services.
There is no doubt that a lot of good has been achieved through the use ICT. This paper mainly discusses the impact of technology on the tourism with some mention of other industries. Also addressed is consumer behaviour when it comes to making decisions on choosing tourist products. The paper also talks about the negative impacts that ICT has had in the tourist industry.
Tourist Consumer Behaviour Processes
The consumer behaviour process can be described as the procedure taken by a consumer when making a choice of what tourist product or service to purchase or use. A study by Swarbrooke & Horner (2007) point out that the purchase decisions can be made either by individuals or in groups.
Consumer behaviour has a big effect on an organization’s marketing of its products and is definitely an important consideration for any organization seeking to benefit from marketing. If thoroughly understood, knowledge of consumer behaviour can help an organization to profit considerably from its marketing activities.
In the work of Pizam & Mansfeld (1999), research on how tourists consume tourist products is central to the success of the tourist industry. The noticeable changes in the tourism industry coupled with strong competition in the market place and the desire to remain competitive, service providers are becoming more and more attentive and want to understand what influences the traveler’s purchase of tourism products.
To capture the customers’ attention, it is critical that tourist products are designed such that they are able to address the many expectations and wishes of the potential tourists. Before making a tourist destination choice, the mode of travel and where to stay, consumers have been found to undergo various decision making processes that eventually influence the choice of tourist products and services.
The choice for a travel destination is influenced by among other things, environmental, cultural and socioeconomic factors and these present the consumer with such a complex issue that requires enough time to ponder about.
According to Swarbrooke & Horner (2007), efficiency in tourism marketing can only be realized when one to understands the way consumers make decisions regarding the purchase and use of products and services.
They further argue that when a service provider is equipped with proper information on the behaviour of consumers, it is possible to understand how best to sell the tourist products and obtain the expected output. Besides learning the art of persuading clients to purchase a product, one also gets to know who to target, at what time and with what type of product.
Pizam & Mansfeld (1999), observed that a number of authors consider motivation to be one major determinant of the tourist behaviour. According to Swarbrooke & Horner (2007), consumers’ decision making processes are greatly influenced by internal and external motivators determinants when making product and service choices.
The effects, however, vary depending on the type of product or service a potential tourist wishes to purchase. A considerable amount of time, for example, is required to make a decision regarding the purchase of a holiday than when deciding on what type of outfit to wear to work on any given day.
Effect of Motivation in Tourism Behaviour
Pizam & Mansfeld (1999) observed that a great number of authors are of the opinion that one thing that is central to the behaviour exhibited by tourists when choosing products and services, is motivation. A number of theories exist to try and explain how tourist behaviour or actions are influenced by the motivation.
Popular theories include; Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Murray’s Classification Scheme, Dann’s Tourism Motivator, and Crompton’s Nine Motives. Central to all these theories though, is the concept of consumer need which is seen as the main driving force behind the stimulation of motivation in individuals.
In the needs hierarchy theory, Maslow made an attempt to explain how motivation affects the behaviour of a tourist (Pizam & Mansfeld, 1999). Maslow’s theory lists the needs hierarchical depending on the level of importance.
Originally, Maslow designed the theory for his clinical psychology work but over the years, its importance has grown and it is now commonly referenced in many other industries, tourism being one of them. Its simplicity in comparison with other existing theories is considered go be the main reason why its usage has increased among tourism researchers.
According to this theory, if the needs specified are not met then the lowest ranked needs will take centre stage in determining the tourist’s behaviour. On the other hand, incase satisfaction was realized at any particular level, then the individual will have to move on to the check whether the other needs were met and so on.
This process continues with the consumer moving up the hierarchy as the needs of each level get satisfied until they are all satisfied. Some of Maslow’s propositions have been rejected while others have received doubtful support. Critics have argued that Maslow’s theory does not provide a complete list of consumer needs that could influence human behaviour.
Murray’s theory on the other hand, lists a total of fourteen physiological and thirteen psychology needs and from these, one can identify factors that could influence a potential tourist’s preference for a holiday. Supporters of this theory believe that it is a better model compared to Maslow’s since it gives a detailed list of the human needs that are likely to determine a consumer’s travel behaviour. Because of its complexity, however, this theory is not that popular with tourism researchers who prefer to use Maslow’s theory.
Dann’s tourism motivator’s are very closely linked to Maslow’s list of needs. The theory singles out two factors that influence a traveler’s decision to purchase tourism products and services. Push factors are those that make one want to travel while pull factors are those that affect where one travels. The theory proposes seven categorizations of travel motivation.
Crampton’s theory is in agreement with Dann’s regarding the push and pull motives. Nine motives are identified in this theory with seven of them being classified as push motives and two as cultural or pull motives. The study further shows that people may sometimes be reluctant to make known their real reasons for travel if these reasons are personal or intimate.
The Influence of ICT on Tourist Behaviour
The above discussion on consumer behaviour theories provides a very good base for appreciating the part played by motivation in determining the consumer’s actions.
As mentioned elsewhere in this paper, the growth in ICT has had a great impact on the way tourism is carried out. Looking at the physiological, safety, love, esteem and self-actualization needs highlighted in Maslow’s theory, one can immediately see the relationship that exists between the use of ICT and the tourist’s behaviour.
In the work of Vich-I-Martorell (2002), technological advancements have driven consumers to shift to the use of the Internet and other technology related services to access the required travel information. On their own and at a convenient time, tourists can visit different Web sites that interest whether commercial or non – commercial to research, plan and if necessary, purchase tourist products and services.
This radical change in consumer behaviour has left providers with no option but to turn to the use of technology in their work so as to answer to the increasing tourist demands and to remain relevant in the travel and hospitality business. Any other remedy short of this will only lead to loss of a provider’s market share.
Being such a powerful tool for sourcing timely and accurate information that is appropriate to the needs of the consumers, ICT is now a must use for everyone.
From the comfort of wherever they are, and at the click of a button, consumers can easily access a great deal of reliable information about just any tourist topic of interest.
Going back to Maslow’s theory, a potential tourist who is already satisfied that all other needs have been met but still has a concern about the security of the destination has no reason to worry as this information is readily available as long as they have access to an Internet connection. With increased terrorism attacks and civil wars all over, security is certainly a threat to many potential tourists. Using ICT, governments are doing all they can to assure the travelers that all is well.
The use of radars to monitor airport operations, and surveillance systems in hotels and other major places are just but some of the technological solutions being used to create a secure environment. Incase of any doubts, however, and one is not satisfied with the information obtained through the Web; there is the option of directly get in touch with service providers at the intended destinations to and request further information as needed. Among other services, the use of email systems, and mobile technology is critical here.
Another example is where one wants to travel to receive treatment away from home. It would be a disaster for anyone to just show up in a foreign place without prior information of what to expect or even what to do. The traveler can tap into the huge pool of information available on the Internet to get their facts right before embarking on the journey.
Impact of ICT on the Tourism Industry
Even though the role played by ICT in allowing organizations to be competitive and stay above the rest was identified many years back, it is only in the recent past that the potential provide by ICT received acknowledge in the tourism and hospitality industries (Nadkarni, 2003) .
Sigala (2002) also observed that very little is known regarding the impact of using ICT on employment trends despite the fact that ICT use has widely been adopted in the tourism and hospitality industries. The use of ICT has presented the tourism industry with amazing capabilities that have to a very great extent transformed business operations in so many ways.
Some of these capabilities include; speedy data processing, compact storage, and accuracy. Online storage of information has made it easy for anyone needing information, to access it from wherever they are. The existence of communication links or networks is distinct advantage of ICT development. The presence of services such as video conferencing has minimized the need to have face to face meetings with consumers or suppliers as the case may be.
In a nutshell, technology has really changed the way people live, travel and do work. With the introduction of technology, consumers are now better placed to demand quality services from service providers and to ensure that they receive vale for money paid.
For success to be realized in the tourism industry therefore, it is essential that the service providers are well prepared to meet the consumer demands.
For this reason, providers have no option but to take advantage of the numerous opportunities made available by ICT to enable them meet the consumer requirements and further their business operations. Embracing the use of ICT will certainly make it possible for any company or organization in the tourism sector, to stand out by offering competitive products and services to its customers.
The use of the Internet for the purposes of planning, making reservations, booking, and payment of travel products accounts for the highest number of sales in the tourist industry when compared with any other online industries (Govers & Go, 2003).
Apart from the many advantages that have resulted from the use of ICT in the tourism and hospitality industries, there are associated negative impacts that one has to be aware of. The application of ICT in business operations has contributed to loss of employment depending on where and how the technology is being used (Sigala, 2002). One negative impact that is apparently obvious to everyone is the huge reduction in employment caused by automating routine tasks.
In their work, Govers & Go (2003) argued that there has been substantial increase in the amount of information available on the subject of tourism due to radical technological changes as well as globalization. Though this might look like a positive development, it poses a major challenge to both consumers and service providers. There is therefore, a need for one to be really careful when sourcing information lest they end up dealing with rogue providers.
The use of technology and the existence of a direct communication channel between the consumers and suppliers have led to reduced business for middlemen and tour operators who have ended up being sidelined in a number of occasions.
This is an act that has not been received well by tour operators contributing to the existence of numerous conflicts between tour operators and service providers (Vich-i-Martorell, 2002). To survive, tour operators have had to invent tricks of dealing with the service providers such as hotel owners and airline operators. Time and again, they will exert pressure on the service providers to reduce prices.
A major effect of the low pricing has been the depletion of local resources in most tourist destinations, with very few initiatives being undertaken to sustain the invaluable environmental and cultural wealth that makes tourism attractions. The following discussion on the Balearic Islands should help to shed some light on this.
Balearic Islands, is a tourist destination in the Mediterranean area, controlled by non-local tour operators. These operators will usually contract hotel rooms a year in advance and then go on to market them together with a travel ticket in the tourist’s home country. As a consequence, suppliers have been forced to heavily depend on the deals made with the tour operators.
This situation, together with threats to deviate tourists to other destinations within the Mediterranean area, is used by tour operators as a means to force hotels to bring down their prices.
The absence of a local tour operator to market this destination abroad, combined with the fact that most hotel companies in the Balearics have neither the resources to market themselves abroad nor the means to sell their product together with a plane ticket, make the foreign tour operators the only feasible way to commercialize and sell the Balearics as a complete tourist package. Using the Internet, however, this trend can be reversed and the extortion is bound to completely disappear eventually.
By using ICT, information can be made readily available to whoever is in needs it leading to the empowerment of the suppliers. Having the correct information will certainly be a source of strength and this can put service providers at a competitive position in the market place. This can later become a source of strength when negotiating business deals with other players in the field.
The Internet can be also be used by service providers in Balearic Islands to get an easier way to sell out their products and services to the final consumer at very reasonable prices without necessarily having to open up offices, shops, or points of sale in each country and city where the potential tourists live.
This is seen an alternative channel that will let companies market and distribute products, and eventually it could lead to a situation where the bargaining power of foreign tour operators could be reduced tremendously to the advantage of local service providers. A research done in the Balearic Islands on the use of the Internet among suppliers in the tourist sector demonstrated that on average, the Internet is highly regarded as a tool that could improve the way tourist business is done.
Another negative effect of the adoption of ICT in the tourism industry is the promotion of illegal activities in the society. Criminals can get exposed to that could promote negative activities in the society. Such information will include the selling drugs, terrorist activities and sex tourism among others.
With this information now widely available everywhere, thanks to Internet availability, it is possible for one to quickly get to know target locations where the activities can be undertaken in disguise. A case in point is Mombasa, a coastal city in Kenya, where sex tourism and drug abuse is the order of the day and is a real threat to the existence of the healthy growth of young generation. Efforts by the Kenya government to curb these illegal activities perpetrated by domestic as well as international tourists are yet to bear fruit.
According to Litvin & Crotts (2003), technology and particularly the use of Internet, has had a huge impact on the traditional approach to the sell of hospitality and tourism services globally.
Despite the existence of the above challenges that associated with the use of ICT, further integration of ICT in tourism and other industries is a reality and consumers and service providers alike, are willing to live with the negative consequences. For many players, technology offers a great foundation for growth in the tourist and hospitality sectors and it is almost practically impossible to imagine the present world without technology.
Conclusion
The use of ICT is considered a key enabler in the transformation of business processes and transactions. Rapid developments that have characterized the technological field have resulted in radical transformations that have taken place in various industries with the greatest changes occurring in the tourism and hospitality industries.
Beyond any reasonable doubt, the use of technology is here to stay and it is up to the service providers to get acquainted with the use of ICT to manage their work. Emerging market trends are now forcing suppliers to adopt the use of ICT so as to excel.
The high number of players present in the tourism sector has created a very competitive environment whereby only those determined to succeed can do so. Therefore, ICT usage cannot be over looked if service providers are to survive. One of the greatest rewards of implementing the use of ICT in the tourist sector is the power to handle competition calmly without any fears. It boosts the confidence of service providers when it comes to dealing the existing market struggles.
In view of all these, many have argued that the negative effects related to the introduction and subsequent uses of technology are necessary evils that only carry a negligible impact that can be managed. These effects are seen as nothing when compared to the huge proceeds derived from ensuring that technology is at the centre of core business operations.
As no one is about to let go of the use of technology, system developers have a challenge to create robust systems with little or no damage to consumers and that cannot be easily compromised. Though a very tricky task, another solution could be creating systems that can help to mitigate the negative impact that the use of technology is having or is bound to have on the society.
Reference List
Govers, R. & Go, F. M., 2003. Deconstructing Destination Image in the Information Age. Information Technology & Tourism, Vol. 6 pp. 13–29. Web.
Litvin, S. W. & Crotts, J. C., 2003. A Framework for Online Sales Negotiations of Hospitality and Tourism Services. Information Technology & Tourism, Vol. 6 pp. 91–97. Web.
Sigala, M., 2002. The Impact of Multimedia on Employment: Evidence from Small and Medium Tourism and Hospitality Enterprises in the UK. Information Technology & Tourism, Vol. 4 pp. 175–189. Web.
Vich-i-Martorell, G. A., 2002. The Internet as a Marketing Tool for Tourism in the Balearic Islands. Information Technology & Tourism, Vol. 5 pp. 91–104. Web.
The concept of hospitality is an evolving phenomenon because it closely correlates with multiple characteristics and qualities at various points of time. Specifically, hospitality aspects have undergone fundamental changes with regard to time, culture, social circumstances, and locations.
These variations are contextually presented in different social and economical environments shaping dichotomy of hospitality between its domestic and non-domestic forms (Wood and Brotherton, 2008).
In this paper, I will discuss that the understanding of ‘artefacts’ or experience can be reached through the analysis of hospitality domains, consideration of cultural and temporal dimensions, and evaluation of experience through different hospitality discourses.
Judging from the above-presented considerations ‘artefacts’ and experiences drawn from South Bank self-trained guide, I will argue that ‘artefacts’ are important elements, physical evidence enhancing intangible dimensions of hospitality through social, cultural, and temporary dimensions.
Main Argument
From my viewpoint, ‘artefacts’ and experience signify the quality and nature of hospitality. They shape the character of hospitality situations that can be imbued with symbolic representations (Wood and Brotherton, 2008). After all, hospitality can be experienced through generating different kinds of artifacts in a non-domestic, commercial domain.
Social and Cultural Role of Artefacts in Shaping Hospitality Domains
According to Lugosi (2008), hospitable experiences in commercial spaces are strongly associated with the means of achieving political and social purposes. They also reflect temporary states marking the different forms and manifestations of hospitality.
In this respect, hospitality ‘artefacts’ identify culturally and socially defined principles in relation to commercial domains. More importantly, emotional aspects of hospitality provided by experience and artifact deviate much from the established rational norms of hospitality.
Hemmington (2007) support the ideas that definition of hospitality should be completely redefined to include the behavior and experience as the core aspects.
Discussing the Phenomenon from Disciplinary Perspective
While considering artifact referring to a specific location, specific emphasis should be placed on discussing historic, cultural, and social sciences disclosing the essence of the presented physical evidence (Molz & Gibson, 2007).
Because self-guide trails are also closely connected with navigation tools, the concept of hospitality can also be placed in the context of technological development. According to Laws (2004), the interest should also be focused on the analysis of psychological factors influencing customers’ service experience.
Specifically, the aspect of cultural diversity should be taken into consideration while displaying the artifacts relating to aboriginal identity for the guest to understand the importance of this historical moment for the country. Establishing the priorities will help the hospitality sphere acquire higher standard of comprehension.
In addition, Clarke (1998) and Mullins (2001) highlight that hospitality management embraces behavioral, psychological, and economical studies to recognize the extent to which a specific experience contributes to the concept of hospitality.
Identifying Hospitality Dimension of Artefacts
Knutson et al. (2010) acknowledges that hospitality experience constitutes a complex relationship between service quality and satisfaction. In this respect, the researcher applies a holistic model to discussing the place of physical evidence in broader dimensions.
In addition, Chen (2007) approves the message that ‘artefacts’ are considered inherent component of hospitality dimension along with space and signs symbols. In whole, the dimension forms a sound physical environment for shaping hospitality.
Emerging Hospitality Discourse While Interpreting the ‘Artefacts’ or Experience
While embracing the major aspects of ‘artefacts’ or experience, hospitality should be discussed through the prism of guest-host relations. These potential perspectives are crucial for understanding how consumer experience is shaped while interacting with physical evidence originated from host culture (Gjerald & Qgaard, 2008; Law, 2004).
The phenomenon, therefore, reflects the main cultural and national influences of host country. While analyzing the artifact, guests can learn more concerning which dimensions and aspects are involved into the definition. In addition, self-guided trails are also development for shaping the sense of reciprocity.
Personal Reflections on Hospitality Aspects With Regard to ‘Artefacts’
Reflecting on the concept of hospitality and role of experience and ‘artefacts’ in shaping the phenomenon, I understood that visiting the South Bank museum’s self-guided trail last year is a great opportunity to learn more about traditions and custom of the country, its mentality and place in the world culture.
Identifying the main artifacts drawn from aboriginal life indigenous population can provide a solid basis for symbolic representation of culture. One the one hand, hospitality experience should be displayed for commercial purposes. On the other hand, the ‘artefacts’ are unraveled for raising social cognition.
Conclusion
Summing up, ‘artefact’ or experience hospitality embraces a complex unity of domains, dimensions, and principles according to which it is possible to identify the main aspects of quality service. Therefore, the presence of physical evidence is essential for advancing customer reaction and attitude to a particular cultural, social, or political phenomenon.
Regarding the hospitality perspectives, experience is closely tied to temporary and social domains while interpreting historical evidence. Hence, the above-presented discussions provide sufficient proof of the arguments because multiple researches consider it necessary to link artifact with intangible services provided.
References
Chen, J. S. (2007). Advances in Hospitality and Leisure. US: Emerald Group Publishing.
Clarke, M. (1998). Researching and writing dissertation in hospitality and tourism. US: Cengage Learning.
Gjerald, O., & Qgaard, T. (2008). Why should Hospitality Management Focus more on the Construct of Basic Assumptions? A Review and Research Agenda. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality & Tourism, 8(4), 294-316.
Hemmington, N. (2007). From Service to Experience: Understanding and Defining the Hospitality Business. Service Industries Journal, 27(6), 747-755.
Knutson, B. J., Beck, J. A., Seunghyun, K., & Jaemin, C. (2010). Service Quality as a Component of the Hospitality Experience: Proposal of a Conceptual Model and Framework for Research. Journal of Foodservice Business Research, 13(1), 15-23.
Laws, E. (2004). Improving Tourism and Hospitality Services. Wallingford, UK: CABI
Lugosi, P. (2008). Hospitality spaces, hospitable moments: consumer encounters and affective experiences in commercial settings. Journal of Foodservice, 19(2), 139-149.
Molz G.J., & Gibson, S. (2007). Mobilizing Hospitality: the Ethics of Social Relations in a Mobile World. Farham UK: Ashgate Publishing.
Mullins, L. J. (2001). Hospitality Management and Organizational Behavior. London: Pearson Education.
Wood, R. C., & Brotherton, B. (2008). The Sage Handbook of Hospitality Management. US: SAGE Publications.
Al-Tayya Travel Group is a limited company which has its origin from, and operations centralized in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The company also has interests abroad. The specialization of the company is in planning and designing of tourism trips as well as itineraries (Bloomberg Business week 1). The company offers reservations tickets for customers on many backgrounds. For those travelling by the sea, the company is ready to make them bookings for their stay upon disembarking from the sea trip.
Those travelling by air also receive this service. For those on land, there are many reservation and related services offered (Hertog 204). They include car rental where the company helps them obtain transportation to the different destination they would desire upon disembarking from their vessels of travel. Besides the car rentals services, the company also offers tourists, services of external hotel reservations. They help the tourists get their bookings to hotels which fit their descriptions (Bloomberg Business week 1).
This service enables the tourists, not only to get access to the best in the hotel service sector but also to match other issues such as their financial base. While servicing as a middle ground on these, the company has developed a wide connection with many travel agencies as well as hotels in the country and the region to which it books the clients or to sea, air as well as land.
The above are not the only services which are offered by the company. Besides the above, the company also offers airport schedule transfers. This activity is wholly done by the company through online messaging upon request for such by the customers who wishes to make flight reschedules. For the company, this is achieved through the customer advancing the details which he or she intends to be passed to the flight operators as reasons for this change.
Serving as a middle ground in the communication, the company gets paid for enabling the two to converse and the customer to have satisfaction of travelling at his or her convenience. The above aside, the company is also engaged in helping tourists with their cargo issues. In this, the company helps such individuals in their clearing of cargo at custom points (Bloomberg Business week 2). To enable this, the company has staff that operates to bridge the services of cargo handling with the necessary officials.
They help such get the permits for transit of cargo at these points. For the tourist with large cargo, this whole process of cargo handling can be done by the company without their presence as long as the customer sends the details. This way, the company has helped many people ensure the safety of their cargo and their reach to their desired destinations many days before they make their own trips to transact or visit places.
The company has been framed to absorb many of services relating to the needs of tourists. At the center of the company, are staffs employed to engage in different activities. Besides the above staff, the company also has staff to provide security to the tourists if they desire to take them on.
The persons employed by the company as bodyguards for hire are enough and each tourist would easily get the number that he or she desires (Bloomberg Business week 2). The bodyguards taken on for his duty are individuals who are employees of respected security companies in the country.
They are those who have distinguished themselves in their service as trustworthy, efficient and effective. These credentials are usually analyzed before such are taken on for the jobs. With such professionalism, some tourists indeed depend on the company for this sole service of sourcing their security detail while they are on their touring ventures.
At the heart of the services being offered by the company, there is identification that the bigger portion of the customer base is in the country thus a population of Arabic speakers.
The company too realizes that the Asian continent especially the Arabic-speaking counties form the most important base from which the tourists come. To this end, the company has invested a lot in having many employees competent and fluent in Arabic offer services to the large portion of the clients who would prefer being addressed in this language (Bloomberg Business week 3).
Today, the company’s staff meets the demand from clients in relation to language of communication not only because of this emphasis on Arabic but because of the culture of language teaching and learning which has been developed. In the company, employees are required to attend language lessons in the company’s academy. Here they are taught different languages which ensure that they are able to meet the language demands of all clients.
The number of services offered by the company is insurmountable. They also include postal services. I this, the company helps those traveling to be able to communicate or correspond with various authorities or relations they would be visiting or making contact with. The framing of the postal services also helps the tourists to send messages across the country from the different locations they are in.
The company, in ensuring the success of this, has allocated transit vehicles among other tools, to ensure that the letters sent by the customers across the different locations are reaching their destinations promptly. Besides the postal services, the company also engages in making conference venue arrangements upon the request for this service by customers (Bloomberg Business week 1).
In this, the company allocates conferencing hall as well as facilities including communication and utility facilities. Besides the conferencing facilities, the company also offers some recreational activities. Some of these which are offered by the company include yatch ad sea cruises. These are available to customers already using the services for which the company engages in. They are bonus services for those for example using the conference facilities of the company.
Partnership with government
In the history of the Al Tayyar Travel Group, its founder, Dr. Nasser Bin Akeel Al-Tayyar will always stand tall. The beginning of this group is traced to the goodwill of prince Salman Bin Abdul Aziz. In the beginning of the company, there were only six people as staff. But things have changes much.
By the year 2007, the company already had thousands of employees. It had expanded from this humble beginning at Riyadh to have more than 200 branches throughout the country. Besides those in the country, the company had also nine branches abroad by this year (Business and Finance club 2).
According to the founder, there is much to talk about the company now. Many of these are explicitly telling by themselves. As an example, the company is rated as one of the biggest companies in the country in overall rankings of companies. It ranks among the topmost in asset base in terms of service companies (Business and Finance club 3).
According to the founder, the company is the great company it is today because it has remained committed to its important business which is to take the tourism business in the country to the next level (Business and Finance club 3). Indeed the company has been hailed as the pioneer of tourism services in the country. Because of the coordination between the prince and the founder of the company, tourism had grown in the last twenty years of the country.
As the founder identifies, when the company was breeding, there was identification that though the country was richly possessed with vast tourist attractions, there was lack of strategy to exploit it. As Dr. Nasser Bin Akeel Al-Tayyar identifies, taking the step into the unknown, the company became the only one which was venturing into the sector of tourism and in opening up the country to international tourism.
This foundation as the first company in tourism service has been its important asset because it stays ahead of the park in relation to understanding the real issues. As Dr. Nasser Bin Akeel Al-Tayyar identifies, the trying in the end bore fruits. Thanks to the company, the country now boosts of numerous tourism destinations which are always completely filled to capacity with both local and international tourists.
As Dr. Nasser Bin Akeel Al-Tayyar states, the prince has always been at the heart of all these. His commitment to developing tourism especially through the many tourist projects that he puts forth has indeed been very important. The company has always watched every opportunity being opened by the prince.
As an example in the recent time, there was an intended project by the prince of opening up the Arkah area as a tourist destination. Sensing this to be an important venture for the future, the company moved to study the details of the case. This project was promising to be an important one because of the success of the Champs Elise which had become great tourism destination in the country.
Being only a few miles from this place, the Arkah area was promising. In the end, this project has bored frits and both the prince and the company are happy from what has been achieved. Today, the cooperation of the two (prince and Al Tayyar Travel Group) has ensured that the place is the best destination for those wishing to engage in all kinds of hobbies. The place has, for example, been framed to make possible walking ventures through the expanse.
Basing on this cooperation such as in the above project, the group has in the end remained so linked with the government. Throughout the history of the company, it has been receiving government social as well as financial support. For the government, it is always true that the intention of the company is not strictly profit but also to strengthen the whole of the tourist sector of the country.
Using the coordination with the government, the Al Tayyar Travel Group has not disappointed (Walker 205). The belief of the Al Tayyar Travel Group which has formed the basis of the cooperation is that the tourism sector can also be made into becoming one of the greatest sectors depended on by the economy.
The view of the company is not specifically to make profit but also to help the government and country diversify the sources of revenue. It is to make the country to expand it resource from the overdependence on oil to have tourism also bringing in the benefits in such volumes.
Challenges and mitigation.
The view of the company has always been that there are not enough infrastructures for the country to fully exploit the tourism potential she has. The belief by the company is that the ball has however started rolling and there is need for important players to be aggressively engaged. The vision of the company is to have the tourism sector in Saudi Arabia equaling the framings in countries such as Spain, France, Egypt, Dubai and Germany.
The company sees many things as needing to be done. Modernization of the existing infrastructures in the tourism sector is one of the greatest concerns of the company. As the company collaborates with other players, it has identified that there is need for all players to ensure upgrade of the existing systems to match them to those possessed by the countries already high in the competition (Business and Finance club 4).
For Al Tayyar Travel Group, the mission is to use the human skills possessed as well as the material and financial resources at disposal to ensure that the transformations in the infrastructure of the tourism sector in the country is happening as fast as possible.
Besides the modernization of structures and infrastructure, the Al Tayyar Travel Group also identifies the legal structures as another objective to be taken on. As the company believes, the country still lacks enough legal guidelines to guide the practice and thus make it beneficial to all players. In relation to the legal infrastructure, the company identifies the lack of a tourist authority in the country for so long. However, working with the government the company has ensured that the creation of this is on track.
Strategies and successes.
Competency is the driving force of the company. To this end, it has invested a lot in its human resource training. The company realizes that taking the country’s tourism sector to the next level is indeed the way forward in making sure that benefits flow to everyone. At the same time, the company realizes that this cannot be a possibility if the country still lacked the human capacity to drive the tourism sector.
To achieve this dream of transforming tourism, the company, besides its important objective of offering tourism services, has also established an academy for training of individuals in tourism and the role it can play to making individuals, companies and the country benefit.
To this end, the company has established the Al-Tayyar Training Academy. The visions for this are two fold. The first is to ensure that going forward; the company is assured of a highly trained staff. The areas emphasized on include booking staff training, tourism design training and tourism accountancy (Business and Finance club 5).
According to the mission of the company, the academy has a central role in ensuring that the services received by the customers are world-class thus cutting-edge. But to fulfill the overall objective, the company does not tie the individuals who graduate to the company. Instead, it allows them to go out and influence positively on the transformations to the tourism sector in the country to make it more enriching.
In transforming the country to a tourism economy, the company intends to carry along the objectives of equality. This is clear in the way it approaches the issue of gender balance at the workplace. From inception, the company has been harboring the dream of one day making the gender disparity in employment opportunities non-existent.
To achieve this, the company has rolled out an aggressive plan to ensure employment of women. The main focus has been to avoid aggressive competition through giving women priority in some areas in order to balance their inadequacy in representation in others.
According to the founder, this dream has been achieved through focus on having all the booking tasks thus jobs taken on by women staff as opposed to having mixed gender. As the founder identifies, this has been an important step which has paid-off by ensuring that the company is an equal opportunity employer. As the founder identifies, ticket bookings in the company is a service which is exclusively offered by women employees (Business and Finance club 5).
Besides the ticket booking, there are many other areas where the women are given focus and some leverage in order to ensure their including. Such areas also include the phone reception. According to the founder, visiting the company today, one is likely to encounter a situation where the person who is booking him or her as well as the one who received is or her phone to make the bookings is women. Besides the two, the company has also given woman presence in the many other jobs relating to entering of data.
One who visits headquarter identifies that the company is built on a data system which ensures that the customer’s needs are attended to promptly and are well coordinated. Though the technical sections are mostly held by men, the company has ensured that the majority of those in the non-technical sections of the technology process are women. This has been an important avenue in balancing the gender at the company.
For a long time, the Saudi Company had been concerned on the lack of synergy between the technological transformations happening in the country and in the continent with the connections; this can have with the tourism sector. For such a long time, the tourism sector remained secluded from many other sectors which had easily embraced technology as the way forward.
On this ground, the company has charted a path to make breakthroughs for the tourism sector. On May 4th may of 2011, something new was happening at the company. On this date, the company was introducing the use of iPhone by customers to make their bookings through the company (Al Bawaba 1).
This strategy was being taken in collaboration with telecommunication players such as 2share as well as Amadeus. According to the the CEO’s’ message at a gala on the launch of this application, this was a strategy aimed at making the company and the country the choice for customers who wished to have the greatest satisfaction in the tourism service industry.
As the CEO identified, it was something whose time had come because with the use of technology now engraved in the Saudi society, it was imperative to avail to consumers something which would increase convenience in obtaining the services they desired (Al Bawaba 3).
The view of the company in taking this path was thus not specifically to reach benefits, but to further open-up the tourism sector and increase profits coming to it. According to the objectives set in this rolling out, the aim of this was also to continue the overall objective for making collaborations with other sectors of the economy to make the tourism sector stronger. As it was identified at the event of the launch, the iPhone mode was also to market not only the company but the sector as a whole.
Many speakers at the event lauded this move as a step for the best for the tourism service sector. According to Nashat Bukhari, Amadeus’ general manager, this step by Al Tayyar Travel Group was to be the first in the country and would help a lot not only in increasing the customer traffic but also in setting a benchmark for the rest to follow suite.
As the manger Amadeus manager identified, this was an important step in assuring the trust of the customers in the company to be the leading in providing them with a cutting edge tools to reach the objectives (Al Bawaba 4).
Conclusion
As discussed, Al Tayyar Travel Group is highly related to the transformations which have occurred and made the tourism sector in Saudi Arabia as booming as it is today. According to the discussion, the company has been at the heart of all reforms shared by the government of making the country an attraction for tourists.
According to the discussion, cultural issues such as gender disparity, infrastructure issues such as lack of recreational centers as well as competency issues have all been influenced and addressed by Al Tayyar Travel Group in the bid to transform the sector. According to the discussion, all these bore fruits and thus more benefits such as the use of technology have been taken on as the new paths.
Founded in 1848, Camperdown Cemetery is an historical site strategically located in the inner suburbs of Sydney along the church street in Newton with a total of more than one thousand eight hundred burials having taken place. People who fought for independence of Australia are buried in this cemetery and it is one of the historical cemeteries that still exist.
Apart from the cemetery, there are other historic monuments in the site that include landscape garden features of mid nineteenth century and samples of indigenous flora. According to Diesendorf (1993), “this site is considered by National Heritage and South Wales Heritage council as a site of national importance.”
Camperdown cemetery is linked with breathtaking stories, known ghosts and killings. Genealogists and historians use this site for studies as well as schools and societies for excursion purposes. It is also a recreation venue for families and societies while at the same time it offers a conducive environment to the surrounding population due to its greenness.
The park is positioned in a natural area, quiet with fresh air with a lot of grass. At the venue one could observe picnics and dog walking taking place. Dogs can play and run without any barriers in the dog’s area and there is a playground to accommodate sporting events.
Cemetery Lodge and the fig tree
At Campedown Memorial Park, there are murals, stencils and graffiti slogans together with street art and graffiti placed on the wall that surrounds St. Stephen Church. The cemetery lodge consists of three rooms and an upper floor which is located in the far right of the cemetery where you make your entrance from Church Street.
The walls are made of bricks and part of it is partially left while the roof is steep with a protruding porches. The curve on the door and design of the roof is a proof of the colonial periods. There is also a big fig tree which is believed to have been planted in 1848 to correspond with construction of the roof of the lodge, the tree has a span of approximately thirty meters and it is surrounded by other oak trees of the same age. Fruit bats are attracted to the tree and one could spot nests.
Monuments
There are different types of monuments within the cemetery with majority of them made from Sydney sandstone. Most of the monuments that are within the cemetery are upright and made with simple designs such as the tombstone. The common styles that are observed are round shaped in the heads, gothic and cross like.
The stones with round heads are simply curved at the top with mould cuts along the edges and decorations of motif like the hour glass and drooping flowers. There are also stones that have the characteristic of neo gothic style where their tops point arches. The stones seem to have been prepared by architectural experts as it is characterized by gothic traces.
Stones that are classically made were captivating to watch, some were carefully curved similar to Italian scrolls while some were plain, the outside appearance is similar to shoulders but with no finishing. The cross like curved stones form minority of the stones, they are made to take the shape of Celtic crosses with an additional circle.
Tamsyn (1999), argued that, carvings on the stones had meaning, for instance, carvings of a ship on the grave implies that a sailor was buried there, while a sword carving implies a soldier was buried on that grave, a bud carve on a wrecked stem means the child had died before maturity.
Of all the monuments in the cemetery, two are unique in style. The sandstone monument representing harpist Nicholas Bochasa is damaged to a big extent and is surrounded by a mourning lady and a harp with damaged strings which is placed on the base of a tree trunk.
This is a symbol of a Scottish style of burial which was done by John Roote for his family. Another striking monument with unique characteristics is the one of John Ley, which has the shape of a ships propeller. There are few white monuments due to the fact all the burials occurred early in the Victorian times.
Odments
Apart from the monuments and grave stones, there is a collection of objects with amazing features that have been recovered and stored in the cemetery. They include the water fountain with a gothic arch which is beautifully made and kept in the cemetery in remembrance of Molesworth for forty five years of service in the church at St. Stephene’s.
Close to this monument is an erect detachment of a building with a carved ship going through the waves. This is placed in the cemetery in remembrance of seamen that worked in Maritime Services Building in mid 1800s.
Conclusion
The walk in the park was interesting and I liked the look of the place. Equipments and landscaping in the park was beautiful. Facilities for adults and children in the park are in good shape. Seats are maintained properly and additional stone walls are available for perching. The park is full of mature eucalypts and sun shades with a grassy and big surrounding, but the only thing that lacks is a toilet.
References
Diesendorf, J. (1993) Camperdown Cemetery Trust: Conservation and Maintenance Practices, unpublished, Cemetery Trust Files.
Tamsyn, T. (1999), Historic Camperdown Cemetery: Lecture to Cape Banks Family, History Society CCT Files.
Clean up Australia is a non-governmental organization which is at the fore-front of environmental conservation. The organization uses community based events as its main tool in environmental conservation. The organization was founded by Ian Kiernan in 1989(Clean Up Australia, 2012).
This was after he had witnessed the level of pollution in various oceans around the world. In 1989, he organized the clean up Sydney Harbour which got an overwhelming response. The first Clean up Australia day was organized in 1990. Clean up Australia has internationalized its operations. Through UNEP, a Clean up the World day was introduced in 1993.
Clean Up Australia has launched a campaign through which it intends to raise funds from individual sponsors. Clean Up Australia day has enjoyed support from both individual and corporate sponsors. The campaign is dubbed ‘We Want You’ is a request to Australians to contribute $ 2 Australian dollars (Clean Up Australia day, 2012).
Also, businesses can contribute towards the course. They are several incentives that have been set up to ensure that individuals and businesses contribute towards the course. A role of honour has been established for individuals and businesses that contribute towards the course.
Businesses that contribute more than $ 5000, a company is given a special honour where they will be featured in by Clean Up Australia as a case study which will be posted on the organization’s website.
High effort behaviour is characterised by several things. One of the aspects associated with high effort behaviour is increased personal cost (Barr et al., 2011). Personal cost can be incurred through direct monetary donations.
Secondly, an individual can invest time and thus forego income generating activities to engage in alternative activities. Low effort behaviour, on the hand, does not require huge monetary or time investments. The above advert involves low effort behaviour as the amount required is low. An individual is required to contribute only $ 2 only towards the initiative.
Clean Up Australia has shifted focus from big corporate donations to community donors. After the 2008 global financial, companies suffered a dip in their profits (IMF, 2009). This led to constrained resources thus reduced amount allocated for community service projects.
The above campaign is aimed to solicit funds from ordinary citizens. Citizens, also, incurred constrained resources after the global crisis in 2008. This was caused by escalating cost of living. Therefore $ 2 contribution is quite reasonable thus more people can afford to contribute. Also, individual including young person’s can contribute towards the course.
There leads to increased awareness on the environmental conservation when an individual contributes towards the course. The individual is keen on initiatives introduced by Clean Up Australia for the utilisation of the funds.
The campaign has set up a role of honour where individuals who contribute towards the campaign are recognized (Clean Up Australia Day, 2012).
Recognition acts as an important reinforcement tool. Individuals feel appreciated for the contribution that they make towards the course. The campaign is also an alternative for individuals for individual who may not be in a position to participate in clean up events. By using the ‘We Want You initiative’, Clean Up Australia aims at increasing environmental awareness through donations.
Analysis
An advertisement is tool of communication used to encourage individuals to take up new products or services. AIDA theory outlines four critical aspects that are associated with an advertisement. They include attention, interest, desire and action (Stern, 2000).
In order for an advertisement to be successful, it must generate the above elements. The structure of ‘ Join?You’ advert is meant attracts ones attention. This is because the advert has question mark which is framed into word ‘you’.
Therefore, one is attracted to the advert due to the creativity exhibited on the presentation of the advert. The structure of the advert, also, arouses ones interest. The need to know what’s behind the question mark pushes one into opening the adverts’ slides.
The low amount of contribution is one incentive that arouses ones desire to contribute towards the project. Another incentive is the role of honour introduced by the organization for recognizing individuals who have contributed towards the course (Clean Up Australia Day, 2012).
The desire to participate in the project is fulfilled by one contributing towards the project. Success of an advert is linked to increase in sales in various firms. Therefore, success of the above advert can only be analysed by the amount of contribution received.
Theory of attention
Selective attention theories indicate that individuals choose to concentrate on specific characteristics of an object. Selective attention is divided into two main stages. The first stage encompasses attention to all characteristics of the object.
An individual focuses on the object as a whole. This is based on mental shortcut known as schemas. There are formed from encounters with similar objects in the past (Meyers-Levy & Tybout, 1989). The second stage encompasses focus on a specific characteristic of object.
Focus on the characteristic could be as a result of its uniqueness. Therefore, it is a source of new information which an individual tries to process and interpret the new information. Thereafter, the new information and thus is part a schema is constructed for perception of similar characteristics in future.
The above advert provokes interest where an individual is firstly drawn to structure of the advert. The imagery portrayed on the advert is quite unique and thus individual are drawn to it.
The creativity on the above advert provokes increased attention to specific characteristics including the intricacy of the artwork. Therefore, one is interest is drawn towards unravelling the initiative behind the advert. Thereafter, incentives arouse ones desire into participating in the initiative.
Cognitive based attitudes
An attitude encompasses an evaluation of an object. The evaluation is based on several aspects including the perceived conditions of excellence or quality of an object (Campbell & Kirmani, 2000). Where the object does not meet the conditions, a negative attitude is developed towards the object.
The multi-component theory of attitudes identifies three critical components of cognitive based attitudes. These components include judgements, thoughts and beliefs (Festinger, 1957). Understanding cognitive based attitudes is a basis from which advertising is premised.
An advert acts as persuasion tool used for development of a positive image about a product or service. Cognitive based attitudes, therefore, are based on information and consequent use of a company’s product or service. A cognitive based attitude is thereby developed through a continuous evaluation process.
Cognitive based attitudes are based on a multi-dimensional structure. Cognitive attitudes are based in specific attributes of a product or service. Attributes can be either positive or negative.
Therefore, they are quite distant from affective based attitudes which are more uni-dimensional thus specific attributes about a product are not observed. Specific attributes refer to specific characteristics about the product or service (Campbell & Kirmani, 2000). An evaluation based on preset standards forms the basis from where either positive or negative attitudes are formed.
There are two main factors that determine the level of persuasion of an advert in relation to cognitive based attitudes. Firstly, the strength of an attitude heavily influences consumers towards purchasing products from a particular company.
The strength of an attitude is based on the duration of evaluation of a brand (Alba & Hutchison,1987). Where an individual has used a company’s product or service, the attitude towards the brand is usually well-established.
On the other hand, first time buyers attitudes are not well established thus rely more on the information provided by the company. Information about the product can be contained in advert detailing use and benefits of product or service. Where a positive attitude towards the brand in well established, there is increased likelihood that the customer repurchases a product from the same brand.
Secondly, attachment generated towards a specific brand is also a critical component that influences success of adverts. Attachment to a brand arises when a customer can relate to directly to a brand. A positive attitude towards a brand results in increased loyalty from the customer (Alba & Hutchison,1987).
He or she, therefore, overlooks some of the faults that may be present in the company’s future products or services. Also, the customer markets the product through word of mouth. This is an important marketing tool where customers act as trusted sources for potential customers
The success of the ‘We want You’ campaign is premised on several aspects. One of the critical components is the image of the company. This is based on aspects as transparency in the organization’s financial policies.
Clean Up Australia has maintained prudent financial practices thus has continuously enjoyed support from individual and corporate sponsors alike. The role of honour is a tool that will be used to increase sponsor’s attachment to the initiative.
Increased attachment gives the initiative momentum by marketing through word of mouth. Businesses that contribute also get recognition by being featured in the Clean Up Australian’s website.
Individual contribution has been put at $ 2 Australian dollars. This is important as more individuals can take part in the initiative. Participation of young people is particularly imperative to the initiative.
This is because by encouraging positive environmental conservation behaviour in young people, young people will be conscious of environmental conservation (Whitmarsh, 2009). In the long term, this translates to reduced consumer waste thus reduced impact on the environment.
This is in line with Clean Up Australia’s long term objectives of reducing environmental pollution across Australia and the world.
Conclusion
The success of the ‘Join?You’ initiative is premised on the successful marketing of the campaign. Clean Up Australia has designed an advert and placed it on its website. Individuals visiting the website can see the advert and thus is bound to attract their attention.
The advert is a combination of a question mark and the word ‘you’. The aim of the initiative is to raise money towards Clean Up Australia day which is observed across Australia. Individual and business sponsors alike can contribute towards the initiative.
A role of honour has been established to recognize individual and business sponsors. Through encouraging individuals to make small contributions, Clean Up Australia can use the initiative as a tool of raising awareness on the importance of environmental conservation.
Reference List
Alba, J.W., & Hutchinson, J. (1987). Dimensions of consumer expertise. Journal of Consumer Research, 13, 411–454.
Barr, S., & Gilg, A. et al. (2011). Helping People Make Better Choice’: Exploring the Behaviour change agenda for environmental sustainability. Applied Geography, 31, 712-720.
Campbell, M.C., & Kirmani, A. (2000). Consumers’ use of persuasion knowledge: The effects of accessibility and cognitive capacity on perceptions of an influence agent. Journal of Consumer Research,27, 69–83.
Clean Up Australia Day. (2012). Join? You – A Major Sponsor Of Clean Up Australia Day 2012. Web.
The economic recession has presented some challenges to the hotel industry. The stakeholders in the industry have been forced to minimize the costs of operations in all departments in order to withstand the harsh climate.
Strategists in the industry have introduced some projects such as Go Green in order to survive in the market and conform to environmental laws. This paper chose to use a 3 in 1 dustbin that is frequently utilized in recycling system for study (Porter 1980, p. 93).
The dust bin performs a number of activities because it inspects, evaluates and separates recyclable and non-recyclable garbage. It puts each category of garbage into a different container. The gadget further compresses the contents into something simple (Michael & McGahan 2007, p. 20).
Literature Review
The issue of ecological conservation affects the hotel industry in many ways. The industry is perceived to be responsible for environmental degradation. According to the 2006 environmental sustainability and management report, the industry can as well benefit economically from the new environmental regulations.
Therefore, hospitality industry can cooperate with the environmentalists to achieve high results in terms of waste management. The 2008 report on managing housekeeping confirms that the hotel industry is responsible for environmental degradation (Ghemawat 1999, p. 13).
For the two sectors to arrive at a win-win situation, they can adopt some policies such as recycling and reprocessing of garbage, which aim at reducing the effects of waste materials. The EBSCO articles (2007) give some strategies that can be used by administrators in the hotel industry to minimize environmental dilapidation (Ghemawat 1991, p. 41).
The articles talk about recycling of waste materials in the hospitality sector hence challenging the sector to rise up and save the environment (Stipanuk, 2006, p. 107).
The 1993 Florida energy extension service observed that hotel apartments could produce more than eight tons of waste materials daily. The report recommended that 60% of the eight tons could be recycled. Furthermore, scholars have established that most hotels utilize trash compactors.
Compactors are bins that can condense garbage (Wittner 2003, p. 9). The bins are economical because they utilize small spaces and are costless in terms of dumping, meaning that labor costs can be reduced. Through analysis, it can be observed that recycling method can be used concurrently with trash compactors.
The compactors are mainly used at the kitchen section and at the lobby region. Combination of the two methods can greatly cut the costs of labor in the housekeeping department (Casper & Matraves 2003, p. 1869). The two techniques can maximize recycling and diminish garbage dumping.
Researchers have attempted to establish the type of detectors utilized in detecting smoke in many hotels. Lawrence Berkeley is one of the research firms that tried to find out the types of detectors (Solomey 1997, p. 89). This is important because it allows researchers to come up with suitable gadgets that can be used in recycling waste materials (Oster 1994, p. 67).
Methodology
The aim of this research is to develop some methods that can be used by the housing staff to improve on performance. The project aims at reducing the workload of employees by devising the most cost effective technique of disposing waste materials.
The project observes that housekeeping staff can increase its efficiency and improve management of waste in hotels. The research will be based on positivism and empiricism (Kumar 2005, p. 47). The two principles have the assumption that the hotel industry can gain economically if it embraces waste minimization strategies. This is achieved through efficient management of waste products. The study used is quantitative in nature meaning that concepts are summarized mathematically (Onwuegbuzie 1997, p. 5).
Research questions will be tested using scientific methods that are based on hypothesis. Testing of hypothesis validates the findings of the study. Data is collected objectively, meaning that the researcher keeps off from personal ideas (Vermunt 1996, p. 35).
The aim of the study will be to come up with a general principle or theory that would be applied to explain how hotels might manage waste products. Reliability is ensured through sharing of information between researchers.
The research will utilize survey method because of the nature of information needed. Much of data will be based on numbers hence using other methods may not yield relevant results. Primary and secondary sources of data will be required to accomplish this study.
Standardized data collection tool referred to as questionnaire will be used to collect information from key informants. The questionnaire will be mailed to relevant respondents mainly to obtain primary information.
The mailed questionnaire will be utilized because of limited time and scarce resources (Onwuegbuzie 2000, p. 324). The researcher will also scrutinize secondary data to gain more insight. Academic journals and government reports will be reviewed in order to extract important information.
This is based on the idea that knowledge is cumulative implying that it builds over time. What others have concluded in their studies is very important in any research. Furthermore, the researcher will rely on the Mass media for international publications (Forte 1995, p. 205).
Special magazines and E-Journals will be analyzed in order to gain more knowledge on what could be happening in other parts of the world. The researcher appreciates the fact that professional, trade and academic journals are important sources of data. In this research however, they would not be utilized fully because of their unavailability. Therefore, primary sources of data will be used because of their availability (O’Leary 2004, p. 102).
The questionnaire will be used to collect data in Switzerland because the project pertains to Swiss catering and hotel business (Zeidner 1991, p. 320). There will be five categories of questions in the questionnaire, which are related to the 5ws. The five Ws will be spread as follows:
Who- this will be the main target of the research. It will be about the hospitality industry in Switzerland.
Where- it is related to the place that the researcher will conduct research. The place will be Switzerland.
When- it is actually related to time.
How- This is related to the manner in which the study will be conducted. Questionnaires will be sent to respondents via email.
What – It is concerned with the outcomes of the study. The researcher will use yes/no options in the questionnaire.
Timescale
Gant Chart (Weeks)
List of References
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Ghemawat, P 1991, Commitment, The Dynamic of Strategy, Free Press, New York.
Ghemawat, P 1999, Games Businesses Play: Cases and Models, MIT Press, Cambridge.
Kappa, M, Nitschke, A & Schappert, P 2008, Managing Housekeeping Operations, the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, Minchigan.
Kumar, R 2005, Research Methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners, Sage Publications, London.
Michael, P & McGahan, MA 2007, “An Interview with Michael Porter”, The Academy of Management Executive, Issue 16, no. 1, pp 2-44.
O’Leary, Z 2004, The Essential Guide To Doing Research, Sage Publications, London.
Onwuegbuzie, AJ 1997, “Writing a research proposal: The role of library anxiety, statistics anxiety, and composition anxiety”, Library & Information Science Research, Issue 19, no. 1, pp 5-33.
Onwuegbuzie, AJ 2000, “Statistics anxiety and the role of self-perceptions”, Journal of Educational Research, Issue 9, 3, no. 5, pp 323-330.
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Zeidner, M 1991, “Statistics and mathematics anxiety in social science students: some interesting parallels”, British Journal of Educational Psychology, Issue 61, no. 1, 319-328.
There are a number of things cruise vacation offers compared to land-based vacation. Cruising is one of the vacations that most people would wish for a second chance compared to land-based resorts because of the following reasons.
Cruising been a new form of vacation many people are eager to have experience.
Cruising is a vacation that is not involving, since one has almost everything at his disposal, unlike the hassles in land-based resorts of logistics. On a cruise, all your logistics arrangements are taken care of, thus leaving one with ample time to do all that he desires during the vacation.
In terms of safety, cruising provides a very safe vacation experience than land-based resort. Land-based resort is very much prone to security threats like robbing and terrorism. The ships environment is very secure from most of these threats.
Cruising is very economical in monetary terms. One derives more utility in cruising in than in land-based resorts. Cruising fare includes nearly everything one will need for a good trip: boarding, entertainment, drinks, food, and transportation.
Lastly, in cruising one pays all his bills in advance. In land-based resort, there are many uncertainties in terms of prices of items like food, drinks and entertainment.
Cruising is an educative experience, even if someone’s goal is merely to have a good time, cruising enables one to visit many places because of the big coverage and stoppages in different centres along the way. On many cruises, geographical experts onboard give lectures that help one understand the origin and history of places.
This is not the case in land-based resorts as one is limited to certain areas because of a number of constrains like money, inaccessibility or time
Lastly, planning a cruise vacation is easy since one has to choose the ship and the place to visit. The cruise company handle all the logistics while on vacation. Land-based resort involves a number of logistics arrangement; in terms of accommodation and travelling.
Strategies applied by the cruise companies to get business in resort vacation
Most cruise companies have invested in catering for all the concerns of people on-board by providing quality and differentiated services to customers.
Modern vessels are equipped with almost every utility that one could need to use while on board ranging from telecommunication service, sporting activities, shopping malls, entertainment centres, medical services, personal grooming services, swimming pools and any other service that one could get in a land-based resort.
It is through the provision of similar service offered in the land-based resorts that the cruise companies have managed to get customers in the resort vacation business.
Currently cruise companies are now offering their services in different times of the year according to the customers needs, thus they are in a position to compete with land-based resorts that offer their services throughout the year.
Currently cruise companies are offering competitive rates that are affordable to many. Cruise companies have low operation cost due to economies of scale, thus they pass this benefits to the customer.
In conclusion, most cruise companies have embraced flexibility in service provision, duration of travel, seasons of travelling and destination of visiting. Cruising now offers all the services one could get in land-based resorts.
As a favorite tourist destination, Taiwan was selected for the destination marketing strategy assessment (Dore & Crouch, 2003).
The media and other promotional activities have played a major role in ensuring that Taiwan is marketed as a luxury destination for target audience. The marketing activities make use of different communication and promotion strategies.
Several activities are conducted in order to correctly identify appropriate ways to reach the target audience (Lee, Scott, & kim, 2008). These include identification of their geographic locations, psychographic and socioeconomic factors.
This can be done via segmented variables that will provide more accurate information on the location and economic status of the targeted audience. In regard to the Chinese audience, specific geographical locations and lifestyles can be used to pinpoint the target audience (Hornik, 2004).
Target Audience: Majority of the Chinese millionaires live in Beijing, Guangdong, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Fujian and Jiangsu. These are the same areas where the super rich live. Most Chinese millionaires are aged between 39 and 45. Preferred activity: Sports preferred by Chinese millionaires include golf (38%), swimming (36%), Yoga (25%), Mountaineering (24%), and Badminton (19%).
The marketing objectives are utilized are designed to identify the target audience and provide them with appropriate information regarding the destinations and other related services. Creative strategies can be employed for maximum returns.
In the case of Taiwan, creative strategies should consist of messages that precisely inform the audience about the luxury tourist services that are provided (Lattimore, Baskin, Heiman, & Toth, 2009). This should be reinforced with advertisements that appeal to the target audience.
Taiwan possesses some advantages that can boost its appeal to Chinese luxury travellers (Lattimore, Baskin, Heiman, & Toth, 2009). The country has gained popularity as a luxury destination that is nearest to the Chinese luxury traveller.
The country can also gain from other actions such as celebrity endorsements and by virtue of having comparative lifestyles with mainland Chinese. The country should put more emphasis on endorsements because they are more popular.
Taiwan should use a promotional mix that includes publicity, celebrity endorsement, product placements and travel and lifestyle programs. Publicity can be done through various ways such as celebrity stunts captured by paparazzi (Lee, Scott, & kim, 2008).
Several media activities can be used to expose Taiwan’s luxury destinations. Writers, Journalists and film crew can be used to provide the necessary exposure. This group of professionals can be engaged deliberately to provide the necessary exposure.
Another favorable promotional mix can be facilitated by concentrating on the different forms of advertisement. This may include: Magazines such as consumer magazines and business publications; national and regional newspapers; in-flight advertisements; and TV commercials.
Interactive media and internet promotional mix can also be utilized to target certain groups of Chinese luxury travellers. Professional websites should be targeted because they offer a direct link with the target audience, who visit them to book flights and hotels.
Social media such as facebook, youtube, twitter and other websites that provide forums can be used to provide specific information regarding tourist destinations (Li & Bernoff, 2011).
The aim of all these activities should be to raise awareness portraying Taiwan as a favorite destination for Chinese luxury travellers (Dore & Crouch, 2003).
References
Dore, L., & Crouch, G. (2003). Promoting destinations: An exploratory study of publicity programs used by national tourism organizations. Journal of Vacation Marketing, 9(2),137-151.
Hornik, R. (2004). Some reflections on Diffusion Theory and the Role of Everett Rogers. Journal of health communications, 7,143-14.
Lattimore, D., Baskin, O., Heiman, S., & Toth, E. (2009). Public relations, the profession and the practice. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Lee, S., Scott, D., & kim, H. (2008). Celebrity fan involvement and destination perceptions. Annals of Tourism Research, 35(3), 809-832.
Li, C., & Bernoff, J. (2011). Groundswell, Winning in a world transformed by social technologies. Massachusettes: Harvard Business School Press.
