Manuscript Title:

THE EFFECT OF MARKETING MIX ELEMENTS ON THE TOURIST’S TRAVELLING DECISION DURING COVID: AN EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM ARBA MINCH, ETHIOPIA

Author:

DEMISSIE ADMASU, Dr. SASMITA SAMANTA, Dr. SHIKTA SINGH

DOI Number:

DOI:10.17605/OSF.IO/VQZFM

Published : 2022-09-23

About the author(s)

1. DEMISSIE ADMASU - Ph.D. Scholar, School of Management, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar.
2. Dr. SASMITA SAMANTA - Professor and Vice Chancellor, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
3. Dr. SHIKTA SINGH - Associate Professor, School of Management, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar.

Full Text : PDF

Abstract

This study examined the effect of tourism marketing mix elements on the domestic tourists’ traveling decision to Arba Minch during the pandemic times. Further, the study intends to find out which strategies the tourism services providers might adopt in the post-pandemic period for a sustainable tourist destination. The study has used primary survey data, which was collected through an online survey questionnaire along with the secondary sources of data. The primary data was collected from 380 respondents via structured questionnaires. The study has followed the convenience sampling method due to pandemic restrictions on social distancing. Data analysis has been done with regression and quantile regressions to test the hypothesis. The empirical findings indicate that tourists traveling decisions were influenced by four elements viz; product, place, physical evidence, and process. On the contrary, price, promotion, and people were no effect on tourists' travel decisions during pandemic times. This study could generate evidence for policymakers to facilitate tourist services during the crisis period. Further, it can provide guidelines to tourist service providers regarding the demand and supply side needs in future travel restrictions in the city. Adopting pertinent marketing mix factors and choosing a crisis period to explore the likely effects of a pandemic on tourists' decision-making is unique compared to the previous studies.


Keywords

To Travelling Decision, Tourism Services, Marketing Mix, Covid-19, and Arba Minch.