Marketing of Finland in German travel agencies and the main distribution channels used by German inbound tourists
El Fassi, Taoufik (2014)
El Fassi, Taoufik
HAAGA-HELIA ammattikorkeakoulu
2014
All rights reserved
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-201405219076
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-201405219076
Tiivistelmä
The objective of this thesis is to study the German tourism market for Porvoo City Tourist Office. The paper consists therefore of two research parts, both of the quantitative approach. The first focuses on German travel agencies and their experiences selling Finland. The second focuses on the preferred distribution channels for booking holidays, of German tourists. The goal was to provide the base for creating a marketing strategy.
The theoretical framework of the paper introduces touristic distribution channels and German tourists. Further current trends of both fields are presented.
The results of the questionnaire for German travel agents shows that a great amount of them are already offering package tours for Southern Finland which are likely to include the Porvoo region. Further, more than half of the asked retailers would like to include special offers about Porvoo region into their portfolio. If they are not depending on the decision of a head company, they require additional information to do so. They stated that they prefer to be informed about new regions via E-mail or an on-site visit. They recommend advertising the region more via traditional media channels.
The majority of tourists answering this questionnaire preferred to 80% booking their holidays on their own. They state that for information gathering the travel agency plays still a big role, but social media platforms as Tripadvisor and HolidayCheck are used increasingly. Print media and traditional channels as radio and TV advertisement on the other hand give them ideas and make them want to search for information.
The recommendation for the commissioner is therefore to create a marketing strategy, including traditional channels as print media, TV or radio. Existing information should be offered in German language. Possible collaboration partners as individual travel agencies and purchase departments of concerns should be informed via E-mail and invited to a study tour of the region. Additionally a second marketing strategy should be established, including touristic social media channels as Tripadvisor and HolidayCheck.
The theoretical framework of the paper introduces touristic distribution channels and German tourists. Further current trends of both fields are presented.
The results of the questionnaire for German travel agents shows that a great amount of them are already offering package tours for Southern Finland which are likely to include the Porvoo region. Further, more than half of the asked retailers would like to include special offers about Porvoo region into their portfolio. If they are not depending on the decision of a head company, they require additional information to do so. They stated that they prefer to be informed about new regions via E-mail or an on-site visit. They recommend advertising the region more via traditional media channels.
The majority of tourists answering this questionnaire preferred to 80% booking their holidays on their own. They state that for information gathering the travel agency plays still a big role, but social media platforms as Tripadvisor and HolidayCheck are used increasingly. Print media and traditional channels as radio and TV advertisement on the other hand give them ideas and make them want to search for information.
The recommendation for the commissioner is therefore to create a marketing strategy, including traditional channels as print media, TV or radio. Existing information should be offered in German language. Possible collaboration partners as individual travel agencies and purchase departments of concerns should be informed via E-mail and invited to a study tour of the region. Additionally a second marketing strategy should be established, including touristic social media channels as Tripadvisor and HolidayCheck.