TY - JOUR
T1 - Combining benefit-sought segmentation and service quality gap analysis
T2 - Case study of Paklenica National Park, Croatia
AU - SALEH, Abu
AU - Khan, Irfan
AU - Rahman, Zoebur
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - As visitors to national parks differ in terms of their profiles and needs, an empirical evaluation of the quality of their experiences, if based on a homogeneous sample, may lead to false conclusions and, hence, inappropriate management decisions. Using Paklenica National Park as a case study, this paper aims to provide a more heterogeneous perspective on the definition of the quality of visitor experiences with park facilities and services. Data were randomly collected from visitors by means of a self-administered questionnaire with a face-to-face approach (n=342). First, visitors were segmented according to the benefits sought. Second, the differences between the obtained segments were examined in terms of the importance of and satisfaction with the facilities and services provided by the park agency. Hierarchical and K-mean cluster analyses resulted in the identification of three distinct segments: Naturalists, Escapists and Eco tourists. In terms of the importance given to and satisfaction with the park facilities and services, the results indicated that the segments significantly differed in four out of six underlying factors. The results of the gap analysis showed that the quality of the experience differed across the segments. The findings of this study revealed that visitor market segmentation can serve as a powerful technique in evaluating the quality of visitors' experiences.
AB - As visitors to national parks differ in terms of their profiles and needs, an empirical evaluation of the quality of their experiences, if based on a homogeneous sample, may lead to false conclusions and, hence, inappropriate management decisions. Using Paklenica National Park as a case study, this paper aims to provide a more heterogeneous perspective on the definition of the quality of visitor experiences with park facilities and services. Data were randomly collected from visitors by means of a self-administered questionnaire with a face-to-face approach (n=342). First, visitors were segmented according to the benefits sought. Second, the differences between the obtained segments were examined in terms of the importance of and satisfaction with the facilities and services provided by the park agency. Hierarchical and K-mean cluster analyses resulted in the identification of three distinct segments: Naturalists, Escapists and Eco tourists. In terms of the importance given to and satisfaction with the park facilities and services, the results indicated that the segments significantly differed in four out of six underlying factors. The results of the gap analysis showed that the quality of the experience differed across the segments. The findings of this study revealed that visitor market segmentation can serve as a powerful technique in evaluating the quality of visitors' experiences.
KW - Service quality, Gap analysis, SERVQUAL, Higher education, Bangladesh
KW - Service quality gap analysis
KW - Nature-based tourism
KW - Benefit-sought segmentation
KW - Croatia
KW - National park visitor experiences
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84971264934&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Article
SN - 2059-2256
VL - 64
SP - 7
EP - 25
JO - Organisational Studies and Innovation Review
JF - Organisational Studies and Innovation Review
IS - 1
ER -