Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:53:15Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MaxwellSC.pdf: 709809 bytes, checksum: 9bac64e003c92f533d7eb02ced5632a9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2003-10-24 / This study presents the results of a research on the use of financial and non-financial performance indicators used by medium and large hotels. The research was conducted in Rio Grande do Norte, a Brazilian State. The objective is to identify the usage of performance measures by these companies. Hotel industry is one of the most important sectors in the Rio Grande do Norte economy. The research takes the Balanced Scorecard as a conceptual framework, since it represents an original contribution to the literature of managerial accounting, for rethinking old issues, pointing out themes that were forgotten or badly interpreted, to discuss the requirements imposed by the economy environment, dominated by competitive companies, and increasing the understanding of the relationship between strategy and operation. The objective of the research is to investigate if the hotel managers make use of a managerial information system or not, when evaluating the performance of their business unit. The research reveals the usage of performance evaluation using a large variety of measures. Among them is worth mention: the usage of accounting profit altogether with the EVA/MVA, the process cycle time, total quality management, process transformation, strategic mission, vision, strategic measures, measures related to feedback, risk, costs, productivity, incomes, customers retention, customer satisfaction and profitability, measures using time as a component, quality of the process, cost of the processes, employees capabilities, information systems, motivation, empowerment and alignment. The research leads to the conclusion that the usage of the deriving concepts of Balanced Scorecard can improve the performance measurement systems used by hotels / Esta Pesquisa ? resultado de uma investiga??o relacionada aos aspectos que devem ser abordados na utiliza??o de indicadores financeiros e n?o-financeiros para fins de avalia??o do desempenho dos hot?is de m?dio e grande porte do Estado do Rio Grande do Norte, buscando oferecer uma contribui??o ao estudo in loco de tais pr?ticas de avalia??o. Destacando o segmento hoteleiro como um dos mais importantes no cen?rio econ?mico atual. Utiliza como referencial conceitual o Balanced Scorecard, enfatizando, esta teoria como uma contribui??o original ? literatura de contabilidade gerencial, por repensar temas antigos, mostrando os pontos que estavam esquecidos ou mal interpretados, mostrando como podem ser aplicados aos tempos modernos, para atender ?s exig?ncias impostas pelo ambiente mais competitivo para as empresas, aumentando a compreens?o do tema vincula??o entre estrat?gia e opera??o . O Objetivo da pesquisa ? investigar se a gest?o hoteleira disp?e de um sistema estruturado ou n?o de informa??es sobre a avalia??o de desempenho. Como resultado da pesquisa ? revelada a exist?ncia de avalia??o de desempenho utilizando indicadores variados como: lucro cont?bil utilizado juntamente com o EVA/MVA, redu??o do tempo de ciclo, gest?o da qualidade total, reengenharia, miss?o, vis?o, medidas estrat?gicas, feedback, risco, redu??o de custos/melhoria de produtividade, crescimento e mix de receitas, reten??o/capta??o/satisfa??o e lucratividade de clientes, medidas de tempo e espera, qualidade do processo, custo dos processos, capacidades dos funcion?rios, sistemas de informa??o, motiva??o, empowerment e alinhamento. Conclui que a utiliza??o dos conceitos oriundos do Balanced Scorecard pode contribuir com informa??es mais relevantes para o gerenciamento dos hot?is

Introduction The National Department of Tourism (NDT) identified the underutilisation of tourist attractions as a challenge facing South Africa’s tourism. According to eThekwini Municipality (2014) and Gauteng Provincial Government (2001), domestic business tourists, amongst others, visit tourist attractions. The likelihood of business tourists requesting that hotel front office staff arrange visits to tourist attractions is acknowledged in the literature. There is, however, a dearth of research investigating the relationship between hotel front office staff and business tourists’ intentions to visit tourist attractions (hereafter mostly referred to as business tourists’ visiting intentions). The conceptualisation of this relationship is discussed in the context of hotel front office staff, interest in tourist attractions, and business tourists’ visiting intentions. The proposed mediating role of Interest in tourist attractions is highlighted, which was tested statistically, while evidence is provided that Hotel front office staff, Interest in tourist attractions, and Business tourists’ visiting intentions can serve in a causal Model of Business Tourist’s Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions. The inclusion of these constructs in a causal model will enable hotel and tourist attractions managers develop strategies to attract business tourists. Main research question Against the background of Frazier, Tix and Barron’s (2004) and Ro’s (2012) Mediation Model, see section 1.3, the following main research question was proposed for the present study: Is the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions mediated by Interest in tourist attractions in a Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions? Literature review Based on the main research question, this study resulted in the proposal of a theoretical causal model for the mediating role of tourist attractions and a causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions. The likelihood of the newly conceptualised Interest in tourist attractions as a mediator in the relationship between the Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions is evident in tourism literature. As far as could be determined, the influence of interest in tourist attractions in the relationship between hotel front office staff and business tourists’ visiting intentions has not been established to date. An extensive literature review was conducted to conceptualise hotel front office staff, interest in tourist attractions, and business tourists’ visiting intentions as constructs to include in the theoretical model from which the causal model was developed. Business tourists’ demographic details were investigated in the context of gender, age, and province. Research design A research design comprises the research approach and research method of a study. In the present research, a cross-sectional survey was conducted to generate the study’s primary data. A statistical study design was adopted for the purpose of conducting factor analysis (FA) and validating the causal model by means of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) through structural equation modelling (SEM). Furthermore, this study was causal-explanatory, as it explored the mediating role of Interest in tourist attractions. International Business Machines (IBM) software SPSS 22.0 was used to conduct this study’s FA, and IBM SPSS AMOS 22.00 was used for this study’s CFA through SEM. Research method Convenience sampling, which is a non-probability sampling method, was used to select the respondents. The target population was domestic business tourists who stayed at the selected three-star hotel between 15 July 2014 and 15 April 2015. A new measuring instrument was developed to comprehensively investigate hotel front office staff, interest in tourist attractions, and business tourists’ visiting intentions. A seven-point intensity Likert scale was used for all items in the questionnaire. Data were collected by means of a self-administered questionnaire issued to domestic business tourists upon hotel check-in. The sample comprised 282 respondents. Results and discussion Data sets for all constructs were inspected for central tendency, distribution, and missing values. Missing values were replaced by the respective items’ mean score. Once inspected, PCA was conducted to explore the uni-dimensionality of items, and to reduce constructs. All constructs were retained by the PCA, and the achievement of Cronbach alpha scores exceeding .70 confirmed the validity and reliability of constructs (Hotel front office staff, Interest in tourist attractions, and Business tourists’ visiting intentions). PCA was not conducted on Business Tourists’ Visiting Intentions, due to a significant Cronbach’s alpha and the presence of only four items measuring the construct. Pearson’s product-moment correlation revealed positive inter-correlations between dimensions of the constructs Hotel front office staff and Interest in tourist attractions. CFA was conducted to establish the causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions. The establishment of a causal model was followed by exploring the mediating effect of Interest in tourist attractions on the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. The causal model confirmed that Interest in tourist attractions fully mediates the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. This successfully answered this study’s main research question. This study makes a unique contribution by establishing a causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions, confirming Interest in tourist attractions as a mediator in the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. The causal model proves that there is no relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions without the indirect connection with Interest in tourist attractions. In support of this study’s results, Yang, Jou, and in tourist attractions, and business tourists’ visiting intentions. A seven-point intensity Likert scale was used for all items in the questionnaire. Data were collected by means of a self-administered questionnaire issued to domestic business tourists upon hotel check-in. The sample comprised 282 respondents. Results and discussion Data sets for all constructs were inspected for central tendency, distribution, and missing values. Missing values were replaced by the respective items’ mean score. Once inspected, PCA was conducted to explore the uni-dimensionality of items, and to reduce constructs. All constructs were retained by the PCA, and the achievement of Cronbach alpha scores exceeding .70 confirmed the validity and reliability of constructs (Hotel front office staff, Interest in tourist attractions, and Business tourists’ visiting intentions). PCA was not conducted on Business Tourists’ Visiting Intentions, due to a significant Cronbach’s alpha and the presence of only four items measuring the construct. Pearson’s product-moment correlation revealed positive inter-correlations between dimensions of the constructs Hotel front office staff and Interest in tourist attractions. CFA was conducted to establish the causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions. The establishment of a causal model was followed by exploring the mediating effect of Interest in tourist attractions on the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. The causal model confirmed that Interest in tourist attractions fully mediates the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. This successfully answered this study’s main research question. This study makes a unique contribution by establishing a causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions, confirming Interest in tourist attractions as a mediator in the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. The causal model proves that there is no relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions without the indirect connection with Interest in tourist attractions. In support of this study’s results, Yang, Jou, andin tourist attractions, and business tourists’ visiting intentions. A seven-point intensity Likert scale was used for all items in the questionnaire. Data were collected by means of a self-administered questionnaire issued to domestic business tourists upon hotel check-in. The sample comprised 282 respondents. Results and discussion Data sets for all constructs were inspected for central tendency, distribution, and missing values. Missing values were replaced by the respective items’ mean score. Once inspected, PCA was conducted to explore the uni-dimensionality of items, and to reduce constructs. All constructs were retained by the PCA, and the achievement of Cronbach alpha scores exceeding .70 confirmed the validity and reliability of constructs (Hotel front office staff, Interest in tourist attractions, and Business tourists’ visiting intentions). PCA was not conducted on Business Tourists’ Visiting Intentions, due to a significant Cronbach’s alpha and the presence of only four items measuring the construct. Pearson’s product-moment correlation revealed positive inter-correlations between dimensions of the constructs Hotel front office staff and Interest in tourist attractions. CFA was conducted to establish the causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions. The establishment of a causal model was followed by exploring the mediating effect of Interest in tourist attractions on the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. The causal model confirmed that Interest in tourist attractions fully mediates the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. This successfully answered this study’s main research question. This study makes a unique contribution by establishing a causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions, confirming Interest in tourist attractions as a mediator in the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. The causal model proves that there is no relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions without the indirect connection with Interest in tourist attractions. In support of this study’s results, Yang, Jou, and Cheng (2011) asserted that business tourists expect hotels to arrange their visits to tourist attractions. According to Kasavana and Brooks (2009), it is a duty of the hotel front office staff to arrange visits to tourist attractions. Limitations This study was limited to domestic business tourists only, thereby excluding international business tourists. A non-probability sampling method was used to select respondents; this study’s results can therefore not be generalised to the population of domestic business tourists who stay at the selected three-star hotel in Pretoria. This study’s sample was uneven in the context of gender, age, and province of residence. Future research Future studies could explore the established causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions at a different hotel, to verify the validity of the model. Future studies could also explore the moderating effect of domestic business tourists with regard to age, gender, and province of residence in the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Interest in tourist attractions. Future studies could further explore the causal Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions using a different biographical segment, e.g., leisure tourists. Conclusion This study aimed to determine whether scores for Hotel front office staff related to scores for Business tourists’ visiting intentions, and how this relationship is mediated by scores on Tourist attractions scores. The Model of Business Tourists’ Intentions of Visiting Tourist Attractions confirmed that Interest in tourist attractions fully mediates the relationship between Hotel front office staff and Business tourists’ visiting intentions. Based on these results, this study’s main research objective has been achieved. / Business Management / M. Com. (Tourism Management)

Thesis (MTech (Quality (Faculty of Engineering)))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2009. / Customer satisfaction is one of the most important strategic mechanisms of best practice hotel organisations. Daily, managers and employees are continuously faced with the challenges of establishing and maintaining customer satisfaction. The purpose of this study is to seek and identify measures that can be used in the hospitality industry for purposes of assessing and evaluating customer satisfaction and customer service effectiveness. The results from the research will enable hotel owners, managers and decision makers to identify the best practices in customer service design, culminating in customer value. The primary objective of this study is to assess customer expectations and perceptions of service quality in Cape Town based hotels, and to identify the gaps between client expectations and perceptions. This will be used as a basis to investigate the challenges that Cape Town hotels experience pertaining to internal and external customer strategy development and satisfaction. These identified challenges will be used as learning opportunities for improvement in aspects of quality and to establish a usable model for the organisation (hotels) from which strategies can be developed for the effective management of customer relations, and to ensure that customer expectations of service quality are met. The researcher will use SERVQUAL and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) scoring method to rate the customer’s level of satisfaction with each service attribute into an overall service performance of each hotel. The researcher will recommend an appropriate quality improvement mechanism to measure, analyse and improve processes in the hospitality industry.

Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / The hotel sector has been identified as experiencing the largest numbers of employees leaving their jobs within a short period of employment when compared to other sectors of the economy. The large number of employees leaving hotels within a short period of employment is perceived as detrimental towards business’ success. This research is about testing the strength of the relationship between employee retention variables and employee retention in hotels in Cape Town, South Africa. The researcher firstly consulted literature (secondary data) in order to understand the hotel employee retention phenomenon. From the literature findings, the objectives of this research were formulated. The research objectives were built based on the literature findings in order to assess the strength of relationships between employees’ perceptions of employee development, employee compensation, work engagement, good working relationship between line managers and subordinates, long working hours on the one hand; and employee retention in the hotel sector on the other hand. As the research aimed at testing relationships between variables, a quantitative research method was deemed the appropriate approach. Structured questionnaire surveys, using non-probability sampling, were applied in the form of a convenience approach. Hotels willing to participate in the study were selected, as Cape Town has a large population of hotels. Data for this study was collected over a period of ten months. A bivariate analysis was applied in this research in the form of correlation and Chi-square tests, after descriptive statistics were done. Reliability tests also measured the level of internal relatedness of the variables used to explain employee retention and related constructs. The variables and constructs used in this study were tested for relationships. The major results showed that there are highly significant relationships between employee retention, on the one hand, and employee compensation, employee development, working relationship, work engagement, and working hours, on the other hand.

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / The study identifies and examines evidence on how customer loyalty is influenced by hotel product innovation. This examination helps to understand differentiation and the competitive benefits of innovation in product and loyalty for such innovation. The innovation influence provides rationale to extend product innovation as a strategy to differentiate, compete, and gain loyalty in the hotel industry. With increased competition in the hospitality industry, the examination of hotel product innovation becomes imperative for both practical and theoretical relevance. This examination was done using a survey method to collect data from 242 travellers who visited Cape Town, stayed in a graded hotel, and visited Kirstenbosch Gardens during the period of the study. This quantitative survey was supported by data triangulation approach with respondents chosen using systematic random sampling. The semi-structured questionnaire comprised mainly closed-ended and a few open-ended questions. The study found that hotel product innovation has greater influence on customer loyalty and hotel choice. However, not all product innovations have the same level of influence, and not all influences are statistically significant. Therefore, the degree of influence was found to be a useful enabler of competitive and loyalty strategy in the hospitality industry.

Les entreprises du secteur touristique doivent constamment améliorer la qualité de leurs prestations pour satisfaire leurs clients devenus de plus en plus exigeants et pour rester compétitives. Le rôle du personnel en contact est donc primordial pour assurer un niveau de qualité de service élevé, y compris dans le secteur hôtelier (Haynes et Fryer, 2000). Bien que les conditions de travail des personnels travaillant dans le secteur hôtelier soient difficiles (Kim et al., 2007), très peu de chercheurs se sont intéressés à leurs effets sur le stress et sur la qualité de service. L’originalité de ce travail doctoral réside donc dans le fait qu’elle s’intéresse à analyser ces effets. Plus précisément, cette recherche vise à analyser les incidences des conditions de travail, définies en termes d’exigences et de ressources, sur le stress professionnel, au travers du conflit travail-famille, en intégrant les caractéristiques individuelles et le type d’hôtel en tant que variables modératrices. En outre, nous avons pour objectif d’examiner le rôle médiateur du conflit travail-loisirs, qui est un nouveau concept, entre les conditions de travail et le stress professionnel. Finalement, cette étude a l’ambition d’examiner les effets indirects des conditions de travail sur la qualité de service perçue via le stress professionnel. Aucune recherche antérieure n’a traité de telle relation ce qui constitue une autre originalité de notre recherche doctorale. La théorie de la conservation des ressources d’Hobfoll (1989) ainsi que ses principes de « spirale de pertes », de « spirale de gains » et de « resource caravan passageways » (Hobfoll, 2011, 2012, 2014) nous servent d’ancrages théoriques pour expliquer les différentes relations testées dans notre modèle de recherche. Une étude a été menée auprès de 648 personnels en contact, dans le secteur hôtelier en France. Les résultats des analyses des équations structurelles démontrent des effets positifs directs des exigences du travail sur le stress et des effets négatifs directs des ressources du travail sur le stress. Ils attestent également que le stress a un effet négatif sur la qualité de service. Quant aux effets de médiation, les principaux résultats des analyses des effets indirects reposant sur une analyse en bootstrap (Preacher et Hayes, 2004) et sur un test de Sobel révèlent que le conflit travail-famille a un effet médiateur sur la relation entre les exigences du travail et le stress professionnel. De même, ils identifient un effet médiateur du conflit travail-famille sur la relation entre les ressources, et le stress. En outre, les résultats de tests de la médiation modérée montrent que les caractéristiques individuelles et le type d’hôtel sont des variables modératrices. Dans le même ordre d’idées, les résultats dévoilent que les exigences du travail ont des effets indirects sur le stress au travers du conflit travail-loisirs. Ils indiquent aussi que le conflit travail-loisirs médiatise la relation entre les ressources du travail et le stress. Finalement, cette étude souligne que les exigences et les ressources du travail influencent sur la qualité de service perçue via le stress. / The companies of tourism industry must constantly improve the quality of services to satisfy their customers who become more and more exigent and to remain competitive. The role of the employees in contact with customers is therefore essential to ensure a high level of service quality, including in the hotel sector (Haynes and Fryer, 2000). Although the working conditions of employees working in the hotel industry are difficult (Kim et al., 2007), very few researchers have studied their effects on stress and quality of service. The originality of this thesis resides therefore in the fact that it is interested to analyze these effects. Specifically, this research aims to analyze the impact of working conditions defined in terms of demand and resources on job stress through the work-family conflict incorporating the individual characteristics and the type of hotel as moderator variables. In addition, we aim to examine the mediating role of work-leisure conflict, which is a new concept, between working conditions and job stress. Finally, this study seeks to examine the indirect effects of working conditions on quality of service via the job stress. No previous research has dealt with this relationship; this is another originality of our thesis. The theory of the conservation of resources of Hobfoll (1989) and its principles of «spiral of loss», «spiral of gains" and "resource caravan pasageways" (Hobfoll, 2011, 2012, 2014) are used as a theoretical bases to explain the different relationships tested in our research model. A study was conducted among 648 customer contact employees in the hospitality industry in France. The results of structural equation analyzes demonstrate direct positive effects of job demands on stress and directs negative effects of job resources on stress. They also certify that job stress has a direct negative effect on the service quality. As for mediation effects, the main results of the indirect effects analyzes based on a bootstrap analysis (Preacher and Hayes, 2004) and on a test of Sobel show that work-family conflict mediates the relationship between job demands and professional stress. Similarly, these results identify the mediatory effect of the work-family conflict on the relationship between the resources and stress. Besides the results of the moderated mediation test show that individual characteristics and the type of hotel are moderating variables. In the same vein, the results reveal that all job demands have indirect effects on stress through the work-leisure conflict. They also indicate that the work-leisure conflict mediates the relationship between job resources and stress. Finally, this study emphasizes that job demands and resources influence on the service quality through the stress.

The South African government has attempted to find a balance of interests between the employer and the employee by the introduction of the Labour Relations Act in 1995 and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act in 1997. It is critical to the health of the South African economy that these labour laws do not impact small businesses to the extent that the Gross Domestic Product of the country is negatively affected. There are conflicting reports as to how these labour laws affect small businesses. It is therefore important for government to be able to understand, define and measure the impact of its labour laws on small businesses, in order for it to strategise corrective measures, which may include reconsidering the application of the legislative directive, regulated flexibility, if required. The study was limited in the sense that it was solely based on evidence collected from employers. An interpretivist approach was applied as a research methodology to data collected through in-depth interviews. The main findings of the empirical analysis demonstrate that labour legislation does not heavily impact small firms. It was thus determined that extensive measures were not needed with regard to correcting the framework of regulated flexibility.

The application of internet marketing techniques has been widespread in the hospitality sector worldwide, with many hotels crafting websites for marketing purposes. However, there is still a debate and speculation on the impact of internet marketing on business performance and profitability. Given the well-recognised value of internet marketing in the hospitality and tourism industry, this study sought to examine the impact of internet marketing on the profitability of the hospitality sector in South Africa and to establish factors which influence internet marketing usage. In order to achieve these objectives, a perceptual survey was conducted in graded hotels and lodges in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Multiple linear regression analysis and hierarchical regression analysis were used to determine the relationship between internet marketing and business profitability as well as the relationship between organisational and environmental factors and internet marketing usage. Based on the findings of this study, it is concluded that the use of internet marketing can positively influence business profitability. It is also concluded that internet marketing experience moderates the relationship between internet marketing usage and business profitability. The results also indicate that factors such as technological competence, managerial support, level of star grading and alliances significantly influence internet marketing usage. Thus, from the findings of this study, it was concluded that hotels and lodges can enhance their profitability through internet marketing usage.

The purpose of this study was to develop a test blue-print for a hospitality management capstone course to measure programmatic student learning outcomes. A total of 50 hospitality industry professionals and hospitality management faculty were interviewed through focus group discussions, and a post-focus group survey was conducted to determine a weighted percentage for each of the nine determined content domains. A test blueprint was developed from the weighted proportions determined by this study and a process by which other educational institutions could follow to establish a consistent and accurate evaluation method for a capstone course was described.

B.Tech. (Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Faculty of Human Sciences), Vaal University of Technology / The primary objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between marketing effectiveness and the marketing mix of guesthouses in the Vaal Region. This goal was achieved by firstly exploring the application of marketing and marketing effectiveness in the tourism industry through a literature study. Based on the literature study a questionnaire was developed and a survey conducted to analyse the marketing mix as well as marketing effectiveness of guesthouses and the relationship between these two as possible factors influencing both. Marketing is a very important management function in any business. It is a process focused on matching the right customer with a certain product or service in order to satisfy their wants and needs. Marketing can create a competitive advantage for organisations which influences the success and longterm profitability of the organisation. The marketing approach for small organisations differs from that of larger organisations due to limited resources, lack of specialist expertise and a limited impact in the marketplace. Smaller organisations such as guesthouses seem to handle marketing in a more informal and unstructured manner and thereby underestimating the value and role of marketing. Marketing is directly influenced by the application of the four Ps, namely product, price, place and promotion. The planning and application of the four Ps, however, contributes to successful marketing. The question is whether guesthouse owners realise this. Research was undertaken at the guesthouses in the Vaal Region to determine the relationship between the marketing mix and marketing effectiveness through the eyes of the consumer, since they need to react to the marketing material. A total of 500 questionnaires were distributed of which 451 were completed by the visitors. v Firstly, the data was used to compile tables and graphs to interpret the descriptive data: demographic profile of respondents, travel preferences of respondents, a descriptive view of the marketing mix elements and the effectiveness of marketing for guesthouses. Secondly, by means of a factor analyses, the marketing mix elements were grouped according to price, place, product, promotion (advertising) and promotion (contact), and the marketing effectiveness elements were grouped according to quantity control and quality control. Product was found to be the most important element of the marketing mix and quality control was found to be the most important element of marketing effectiveness. Thirdly, no significant differences were found on the marketing mix elements and the marketing effectiveness factors and gender and marital status. The spearman rank order correlations revealed that older people consider product as a marketing mix element to be less important. Frequent travellers consider promotion (advertising), promotion (contact) and quality control to be less important. Lastly, definite correlations were found between the marketing mix elements and the marketing effectiveness factors. This implies that even smaller guesthouses should implement the marketing mix elements which can assist in improving the marketing effectiveness of the guesthouse. Guesthouses will yield better results when implementing the marketing mix effectively. This study contributes to the information that already exists concerning the marketing mix and marketing effectiveness but more in terms of the relationship between the two.