Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Western Cape tourism industry offers a variety of attractions and has the potential to grow further in the next couple of years. According to the statistics provided by Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU) the province is among the three provinces that received the highest number of tourists in the last few years. The critical challenge that the province now needs to look at, is the participation of previously disadvantaged individuals in the mainstream tourism industry. Tourism stakeholders see Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) as an important vehicle for transformation. Although little progress has been made so far, there is a will among all stakeholders to transform the tourism industry. Some of the key challenges raised by the study on the efforts towards greater BEE were lack of finance for BEE businesses, access to the market and lack of skills. Professionalism and good quality service of international standards was also seen to be very important by respondents. The report also looks at two successful deals that were brokered in the tourism industry, namely one by Sun International and the other, the merger between Grass Route Tours and African Eagle Day Tours. In the fieldwork twenty businesses were interviewed, ranging from accommodation and tour operator to restaurants. This was not a random sample, but rather an attempt to target those that were part of the database of Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU). The research tool used by the author of this report was a qualitative and quantitative structured questionnaire. The responses shed further light on some of the Black Economic Empowerment challenges faced by the Western Cape tourism industry. These results will supplement information already available to Cape Town Routes Unlimited. Eventually the findings will be tabled and recommended to relevant stakeholders for action. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Weskaapse toerismebedryf bied ‘n verskeidenheid aantreklikhede en het die potensiaal om te groei oor die volgende paar jaar. Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU) statistieke toon dat die Weskaap een van die drie provinsies landwyd is wat die meeste toeriste groei oor die laaste paar jaar getoon het. Die Weskaap se grootste uitdaging is nou om meer geleenthede in die hoofstroom van die bedryf te bied aan die voorheen onderdrukte individuë. Oor die algemeen beskou belangegrope in die bedryf die BEE as ‘n belangrike middel tot transformasie. Die vordering is tot dusver egter nog maar min, alhoewel daar eenstemmigheid bestaan om die toerismebedryf te omskep en te transformeer. Die studie toon die grootste struikelblokke tot vinniger BEE as die volgende: ‘n tekort aan finansiering vir BEE besighede asook ‘n tekort aan ondervinding en bekwaamheid. Professionalisme sowel as dienskwaliteit (vergeleke met internasionale standaarde) word ook as belangrik beskou. Twee suksesvolle BEE–onderhandelinge word in die studie in besonderhede bespreek, naamlik Sun International en die samesmelting van Grass Route Tours and African Eagle Day Tours. Die studie verwerk onderhoude wat gevoer is met twintig besighede wat akkommodasie, toeroperateurs sowel as restaurante ingesluit het. Dit omvat nie ‘n steekproef nie, maar is gebaseer op die CTRU databasis. Die onderhoude is gevoer met ‘n gestruktureerde kwalitatiewe en ‘n kwantitatiewe vraelys. Uit die terugvoerings het verdere BEE stuikelblokke vorendag gekom. Dit is aanvullend tot informasie verkry vanaf CTRU. Al hierdie resultate sal in verwerkte vorm aan belanghebbende groepe beskikbaar gestel word.

近年來，透過社群媒體向消費者宣傳商品與理念的旅遊服務供應商日益增多，但卻有不少企業苦於衡量其中的效果。雖然文獻已提出社群媒體的行銷機會與發展性，然而實際對商品銷售進行分析的文獻仍有限，因此本研究試圖驗證社群媒體行銷活動是否會正向影響旅遊商品的銷售。此外考量到不同的商品特質可能會對媒體行銷效果帶來不同程度的影響，因此本研究將藉由以下五種旅遊商品特性，包括旅遊結構、旅客參與度、旅遊範圍、商品價格與天數，來探討社群媒體行銷與商品銷售的關係。 本研究將一間國內知名旅行社於2012至2013年期間在Facebook粉絲專頁上所行銷過的相關商品作為實驗組，並找出同時期販售但未在Facebook上行銷的類似商品作為控制組，進行差異中之差異法(Difference in Difference)，以探討在Facebook行銷前後，實驗組與對照組商品銷售的差異。研究結果顯示Facebook行銷活動對旅遊商品的購買有正向影響，此外透過社群媒體宣傳較低結構的旅遊、較為放鬆的行程、範圍較小的目的地或相對低價的商品更有機會提升銷售，而天數為唯一無法調節Facebook行銷活動與銷售關係之商品特性。 / A growing number of tourism industry suppliers are using social media to promote their services and reach target customers despite some doubt regarding the effectiveness of these tools. Nevertheless, few researchers have examined the effects of social media marketing, and especially its effects on sales. Therefore, our study aims to assess the impact of social media on the purchase of tourism products. Additionally, to explore whether the influence of social media marketing changes among different types of tourism products, we develop a typology of tourism products that classifies tourism along the following five dimensions: (1) the structure of tourism, (2) the involvement of tourists, (3) the scope of tourism, (4) the price of products, and (5) the length of a tour. All tours with Facebook campaigns conducted by our case company from February 1, 2012 to November 30, 2013 are selected as our target tourism products. Moreover, we choose certain products without Facebook campaigns that were available for purchase during the same time period as a control group. We obtain the sales data from the case company and calculate the sales of each product before and after the Facebook campaigns. We then apply a difference-in-difference approach, comparing the average changes in sales performance of the treatment group with those of the control group. The results show that Facebook campaign activities have a positive impact on purchases of tourism products. Furthermore, sales are more likely to increase when a travel agency promotes products that are less structured, limited in scope, relatively lower-priced, or require less tourist involvement.

觀光事業素有無煙囪工業之稱，自政府於民國四十八年全力推動發展以來 ，來華觀光旅客人數即不斷地成長，此對促進國民外交與增加政府的外匯 收入上有莫大的幫助。觀光旅客人數的多寡，直接影響本地觀光業者與政 府相關單位對觀光業軟硬體設施的投資，像是觀光旅館的興建、導遊人員 的培訓以及整體策略的規劃。不當的評估或不正確的需求預測，都將導致 大量觀光資源的閒置或浪費。本研究計劃主要應用簡算法、時間趨勢模式 、時間序列模式、計量經濟模式，尋找並建立來華觀光旅客長短期需求預 測模式，並針對總體或各主要市場的需求，利用各種模式評估準則提出一 最佳預測模式，以供政府相關單位與觀光業者作為往後政策釐定以及投資 計劃擬定時的參考。

La question de l’aménagement du territoire est constitutive de toute étude portant sur le tourisme. Elle légitime d’une part la prise en considération d’un secteur sous-estimé, et ouvre par ailleurs à la recherche académique un champ d’application privilégié de par ses effets socioculturel, esthétique, technologique et économique tangibles, et sa portée géopolitique. Ainsi notre projet se situe à la confluence de deux orientations complémentaires. La première s’intéresse au développement des connaissances en tourisme, ainsi qu’à celle des schèmes qui progressivement les façonnent, et vise à en dégager un essai de redéfinition du tourisme, à la fois objet et outil de notre réflexion. Le second vecteur de notre recherche est l’application de cet essai de lecture épistémologique à l’étude des évolutions de l’aménagement touristique du territoire, issues des mutations de l’industrie du tourisme, réflexion en prise directe avec l’actualité touristique et aiguillage possible de politiques d’aménagement. À une synthèse des fondements de l’aménagement du territoire, succède une analyse de l’essor de clientèles émergentes dans le contexte positif du tourisme international. Cette occurrence se double de la mutation numérique du marché touristique qui, de par l’expansion des agences et comparateurs de voyages en ligne, réorganise et diversifie les rôles en redéfinissant la chaîne de valeur entre producteurs et distributeurs. Une analyse des évolutions de la station touristique et des stratégies des nouvelles métropoles touristiques finalise notre recherche. L’ensemble cible dorénavant une clientèle aisée, et requalifie le devenir de l’industrie touristique, activité de classe. / The issue of land-use planning is constitutive of any study on tourism. It legitimates consideration of an underrated sector on the one hand, and moreover opens up a field of application to academic research through its tangible sociocultural, aesthetic, technological and economic effects, and geopolitical impact. So our project is located at the confluence of two complementary orientations. The first focuses on the development of tourism knowledge as well as on the patterns that gradually shape them. It aims to highlight a redefinition attempt of tourism both subject and tool of our reflection. The second vector of our research is the application of this attempt of epistemological reading to the study of the developments in the tourist land-use planning, resulting from the changes in the tourism industry, a reflection in tune with the tourist news and possible switchpoint of land-use planning policies. An analysis of the rise of emerging clienteles in the positive context of international tourism succeeds to a summary of the basis for land-use planning. This instance is coupled with the digital mutation of the tourist market which, due to the expansion of agencies and online travel comparators, reorganizes and diversifies roles by redefining the value chain between producers and distributors. An analysis of the tourist resorts developments and of the new tourist metropolis strategies finalizes our research. The whole targets a wealthy clientele, and classifies the fate of the tourism industry as a class activity.

In this study beer breweries and vineyards have been studied. The purpose of the study is to illuminate how beer breweries and vineyards on Gotland market themselves on social media and how they address the Swedish law “Alkohollag (2010:1622): 7 kap. Marknadsföring av alkoholdrycker och alkoholdrycksliknande preparat”. In this study a content analysis was made on four Gotlandic businesses, two vineyards and two breweries. In the content analysis 184 posts, from the different businesses, on both Instagram and Facebook were analyzed based on a coding schedule with eight different subjects. Five semi structured interviews with the Gotlandic businesses were also made. The result showed that all breweries and vineyards are marketing themselves differently and are variously active on social media. It is also shown that there is a difference between the big businesses and the smaller ones on how they address the Swedish law. The bigger businesses have more resources on the marketing side than the smaller ones which may be a result of how they address the law. / I denna studie har ölbryggerier och vingård på Gotland studerats. Syftet med denna studie är att belysa hur ölbryggerier och vingårdar på Gotland marknadsför sig på sociala medier och hur de förhåller sig till “Alkohollag (2010:1622): 7 kap. Marknadsföring av alkoholdrycker och alkoholdrycksliknande preparat”. I studien genomfördes en kvalitativ innehållsanalys där fyra gotländska företag analyserades, två vingårdar och två ölbryggerier. I innehållsanalysen analyserades 184 inlägg på företagens Instagram och Facebook. Inläggen analyserades utifrån ett kodningsschema med åtta olika teman, även fem semistrukturerade intervjuer med de gotländska företagen genomfördes. Resultat visade att alla bryggerier och vingårdar marknadsför sig på olika sätt och är olika aktiva på sociala medier. Det finns en skillnad mellan de stora företagen och de mindre på hur de förhåller sig till alkohollagen 7 kap då de större företagen har fler resurser att marknadsföra sig med än de andra företagen.

This dissertation focuses on the identification and analysis of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) topoi in the travel and tourism industry. A sample set of six companies was selected for the study due to their size and prominence in the industry -- namely Disney, Hilton, Intercontinental, Marriott, Starwood, and Wyndham. Topoi were identified through a blended method of research that employed rhetorical analysis, modified grounded theory, and NVIVO content analysis software. The research followed three guiding principles to recognize textual cues and drive analysis: common and special topoi; topoi as heuristic; topoi for association and amplification; and topoi as fluid and movable. The common CSR topoi, triple bottom line and shared value, were also used as overarching categories for coding the texts. The results of the method yielded six unique topoi that were specific to each company; these included Inspiration, Higher Purpose, Collaborative Innovation, Leadership, The Age of Great Change, and Green. Results also included a set of seven special industry topoi that were common across all of the sample companies; these included Commitment, Management, Alignment, Environment, Engagement, Achievement, and Sustainability. The rhetorical synergy and topological levels identified through this research can inform other studies of CSR about the generative potential of topoi and its fluidity when viewed from different conceptual vantage points.

No / Marketers desire to utilise electronic word of mouth (eWOM) marketing on social media sites. However, not all online content generated by marketers has the same effect on consumers; some of them are effective while others are not. This paper aims to examine different characteristics of marketer-generated content (MGC) that of which one lead users to eWOM. Twitter was chosen as one of the leading social media sites and a content analysis approach was employed to identify the common characteristics of retweeted and favourited tweets. 2,780 tweets from six companies (Booking, Hostelworld, Hotels, Lastminute, Laterooms and Priceline) operating in the tourism sector are analysed. Results indicate that the posts which contain pictures, hyperlinks, product or service information, direct answers to customers and brand centrality are more likely to be retweeted and favourited by users. The findings present the main eWOM drivers for MGC in social media.

In studying organisational change in Air Seychelles, the context, content and process of change together with the interconnections of the airline and the tourism industry in Seychelles through time is explored. The literature review shows that the substantive issues of interest to this study, contextualism as a theory of methods in management research, requires a case based research in particular with regards to the following gaps in the literature: the integration of inner and outer perspectives on sustaining competitive advantage, and conceptual insights on how strategy links firms and their environment. The study adopted a contextual and processual framework to build a theoretical perspective of competitive advantage. The study contributes to the field of strategic management and tourism development in Seychelles in the following ways: firstly, the development of a contextual and processual framework to explain the transformation of firms over time; secondly, the development of an understanding of the historical context of the tourism industry and its interactions with other sectors of the Seychelles economy; thirdly, developing an understanding of how Air Seychelles developed its resources and capabilities to sustain competitive advantage; fourthly, linking change processes and action to performance and in a sense developing an understanding on strategy implementation of strategic management practice in Air Seychelles. The study sheds some light on strategy formation and implementation at the firm level, and the dynamics between the firm and the industry. The findings suggest that firms respond opportunistically to external discontinuities in a dynamic environment - the entrepreneurial leadership of a firm prepares and support managers to operate under conditions of great uncertainty and ambiguity and allows them to behave opportunistically. / Graduate School of Business Leadership / DBL / Thesis (D. B. L.)

台灣有超過2,000家在營業中的旅行社，營運規模由3到5個員工到數千人員工，由極輕量化的公司營運一直到大型營運的公司皆存在旅遊產業中。 本研究個案試著運用幾種企業管理常用的理論模組，讓閱讀本文的人士能夠清楚地了解，如何在適當的時機做對的決策，以擴大營運規模。 以本個案的綜合旅行社為例，年間服務出境旅客超過20萬人次，在過去七年間，員工人數成長約2.5倍，業績成長約3倍，並且上興櫃成功；除了公司內部作業平台的改善及優化之外，本個案要闡明的是，在快速變遷的環境中，如何掌握機會，做好決策，並落實執行的過程。期望能提供有效的資訊給有意將公司大型化的同業參考，並也藉由個案檢視公司成長的決策過程，由累積公司成長的經驗中建立有效、穩定的公司決策模式。讓個案中的公司與有興趣閱讀的人員可以從文中獲得知識的累積與經營事業的啟發。

In studying organisational change in Air Seychelles, the context, content and process of change together with the interconnections of the airline and the tourism industry in Seychelles through time is explored. The literature review shows that the substantive issues of interest to this study, contextualism as a theory of methods in management research, requires a case based research in particular with regards to the following gaps in the literature: the integration of inner and outer perspectives on sustaining competitive advantage, and conceptual insights on how strategy links firms and their environment. The study adopted a contextual and processual framework to build a theoretical perspective of competitive advantage. The study contributes to the field of strategic management and tourism development in Seychelles in the following ways: firstly, the development of a contextual and processual framework to explain the transformation of firms over time; secondly, the development of an understanding of the historical context of the tourism industry and its interactions with other sectors of the Seychelles economy; thirdly, developing an understanding of how Air Seychelles developed its resources and capabilities to sustain competitive advantage; fourthly, linking change processes and action to performance and in a sense developing an understanding on strategy implementation of strategic management practice in Air Seychelles. The study sheds some light on strategy formation and implementation at the firm level, and the dynamics between the firm and the industry. The findings suggest that firms respond opportunistically to external discontinuities in a dynamic environment - the entrepreneurial leadership of a firm prepares and support managers to operate under conditions of great uncertainty and ambiguity and allows them to behave opportunistically. / Graduate School of Business Leadership / DBL / Thesis (D. B. L.)