Thesis (MComm)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Value underlies the notion of marketing, yet it has not received as much attention in marketing literature as it demands. The importance of value co-creation and co-production has confirmed the importance of the active role customers play in value creation. Customers use functional and emotional benefits to guide their interactions with suppliers, which stem from value perceptions. To attract customers to engage in co-production, suppliers offer certain benefits via their value propositions, requiring suppliers to have a thorough understanding of these benefits to incorporate them into their co-production interactions. This study sets out to develop a scale to measure the benefits customers seek from their co-production interactions with suppliers in the travel planning context, because of the inherent nature of interaction, customisation and active customer participation in the ‘production’ of a trip.
To develop a reliable and valid instrument to measure the benefits of co-production, Churchill’s (1979) scale development paradigm was followed in the present research design. Exploratory research in the form of a literature review, insight-stimulating examples, and in-depth interviews with tourism suppliers and travel customers were undertaken to specify the domain, define the construct, identify the dimensions, and generate a pool of 323 items, which was refined in two purification phases. Initially 10 benefit dimensions were proposed: customisation, convenience, confidence, expertise, enjoyment, exploration, financial, support, social and symbolic benefits. The pool of 323 items was subjected to expert judging, resulting in a 64-item scale measuring the 10 benefit dimensions. The questionnaire was formatted into an online survey to collect a convenience sample of 269 responses. The results of an exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and Cronbach alpha estimates reduced this conceptualisation to 32 items measuring six dimensions: convenience, customisation, expertise, psychological, financial, and support benefits. The revised scale was used in a second purification phase to collect a judgement sample of 565 responses. A confirmatory factor analysis and Cronbach alpha estimates were used to reduce the scale to 19 items, measuring three benefit dimensions: functional, financial, and psychological benefits. The final scale exhibited an acceptable model fit, and showed strong evidence of reliability and validity, therefore achieving the objective of the study. The study concludes with a reliable and valid instrument for academics and practitioners to measure the benefits of co-production in the tourism industry. The scale provides academics with empirical insight into the gap between conditions prior to customer participation and active customer participation in co-production. The scale enables travel agents to identify deficiencies in their co-production processes, and to evaluate the extent to which customer benefits are met. Once travel agents are aware of these benefits they can be integrated into their values propositions and co-production interactions. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Waarde is onderliggend tot die idee van bemarking, maar dit geniet nie die aandag in bemarkingsliteratuur wat dit verdien nie. Die belangrikheid van waarde mede-skepping en mede-produksie het die gewig van die aktiewe rol wat kliënte speel in waarde-skepping bevestig. Kliënte word gelei deur funksionele en emosionele voordele gedurende hulle interaksies met verskaffers. Hierdie voordele spruit uit waarde persepsies. Om kliënte aan te moedig om aan mede-produksie deel te neem, bied verskaffers sekere voordele in hul waarde aanbiedings. Dit vereis dat verskaffers 'n goeie begrip moet hê van hierdie voordele sodat dit geïnkorporeer kan word in hulle mede-produksie. Hierdie studie se doel is om ‘n skaal te onwikkel wat die voordele wat kliënte rakende hulle mede-produksie interaksies soek met verskaffers sal meet. Die skaal is ontwikkel binne die konteks van reis beplanning in die toerismebedryf. Dit is as gevolg van die inherente aard van interaksie, aanpassing en aktiewe kliënt deelname in die ‘produksie’ van sulke beplanning.
Om ‘n betroubare en geldige skaal te ontwikkel wat die voordele van mede-produksie meet, is die skaal ontwikkeling paradigma van Churchill (1979) gevolg in die huidige navorsingsuitleg. Verkennende navorsing in die vorm van 'n literatuurstudie, insig-stimulerende voorbeelde en in-diepte onderhoude met toerisme verskaffers en reiskliënte is onderneem om die domein te spesifiseer, die konstruk te definieer, die dimensies te identifiseer en 'n poel van 323 items te genereer wat in twee suiweringsfases verfyn is. Aanvanklik is 10 voordeel dimensies voorgestel: customisation, convenience, confidence, expertise, enjoyment, exploration, financial, support, social en symbolic. Die poel van 323 items is aan ’n paneel van kundiges voorgeleê en 'n 64-item skaal het hieruit voortgevloei. 'n Aanlyn-opname is gebruik en 'n gerieflikheidsteekproef het tot 269 response gelei. Die resultate van 'n exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis en Cronbach alpha analises het die 'n 64-item skaal konseptualisering tot 32 items verminder wat ses voordele dimensies meet: convenience, customisation, expertise, psychological, financial, en support. Die hersiene skaal is gebruik in 'n tweede suiweringsfase en die steekproef het 565 response gehad. Die resultate van ‘n confirmtory factor analysis en Cronbach alpha metings het die skaal verder verminder tot 19 items, meet drie voordele dimensies: functional, financial en psychological. Die finale skaal stel uit 'n aanvaarbare modelpassing, en het sterk bewyse van betroubaarheid en geldigheid en derhalwe is die doel van die studie bereik. Die studie sluit af met 'n betroubare en geldige instrument wat dit moontlik maak vir akademici en praktisyns om die voordele van mede-produksie in die toerisme-industrie te meet. Die skaal bied akademici met empiriese insig tot die gaping tussen die toestande voor deelname en na aktiewe kliënte deelname in mede-produksie. Die skaal sal reisagente in staat stel om leemtes in hul mede-produksie prosesse te identifiseer, en die voordele wat die kliënt uit die mede-produksie uit pit te meet. Sodra reisagente bewus is van hierdie voordele kan hulle die voordele ïntegreer in hulle waarde aanbiedings en mede-produksie interaksies.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/79866 |
| Date | 03 1900 |
| Creators | Taljaard, Aimee |
| Contributors | Terblanche, N. S., Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Business Management. |
| Publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en_ZA |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | xiv, 220 p. : ill. |
| Rights | Stellenbosch University |
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