CRM in Tourism

Abstract

Businesses tend to operate under the influence of their internal and external environment for favourable outcome and competitive sustainability. Under such circumstances, it becomes critical to develop and maintain mutually beneficial relationships with the variety of stakeholders and customers being of paramount importance, especially in the tourism sector. The recent time has seen dramatic growth in tourism industry and tourism has been considered as one of the largest global export industries (UNWTO, 2003). In order to strive, it has to meet the competitive challenges of the future where quality will be the main driving force which mainly focuses upon the satisfaction of all the legitimate product and service needs, requirements and expectations of the consumer, at an acceptable price, in accordance with the underlying quality determinants such as safety and security, hygiene, accessibility, transparency, authenticity and harmony of the tourism activity concerned with its human and natural environment. These expected needs correspond to what the customer expects to receive and to what is experienced as important. These needs can be expressed by the customer and if these expectations fulfilled, will lead to satisfaction and doing so the service provider creates expected quality (Kvist and Klefsjo, 2006). Recognizing this value of end user's opinion, more and more business organizations are focusing towards customer relationship management (CRM) for building and facilitating ever lasting relationship with them (Richard and Johns, 2008). The competitive marketing environment characterized with the availability of differentiated products (Gartner,2009),availability of low switch over options(Massey et al,2001) and the increasing cost of attracting new customer(Peppard, 2000) not only threaten the loyalties but also raise customer's expectations thus necessitating the need for CRM (Pan &Lee,2003). Buttle (2009) projects that the core aim of CRM is towards managing customer relationship shifting the focus from transaction to acquisition, development and retention.