Marketing research aims at collecting important information from the customers. In the case of tourism, the tourists are the customers. Just like any line of business, the tourism industry needs to strengthen its relationship with its customers by improving the quality of its services. Marketing research can be an important tool in fulfilling such need.

Function

Marketing research allows tourism organizations and businesses to gather and consolidate information reflecting customer satisfaction, wants and needs. In addition it can also provide statistics on customer`s number of visits, profiles and characteristics. The research can also measure which facilities and activities are very popular among the tourists and which areas of offered services need improvement. You will also be able to know how effective your advertising strategies are in attracting visitors.

Requirements

In conducting marketing research, the most important element is asking the right questions. The right questions always lead to making accurate conclusions. The research process requires a well-organized survey process that is directed towards getting the needed information and valid results. The survey questionnaire must be clear, direct and easy to answer. Another requirement of marketing research is the sample of respondents. This refers to the customers who will answer the questionnaires. The marketing research must be administered and supervised by a team of individuals who are knowledgeable and experienced in this field.

Benefits

Once you are able to retrieve relevant information about customers, you will be able to make calculated decisions and plans to satisfy customers and provide a better service. This is according to an article on the website morebusiness.com. These decisions may include improvement of facilities, entertainment activities and customer service. When customers are satisfied, this will result to repetitive visits. Such customers become advertising tool as they will share their experience to their families and friends. With marketing research, you can design packages and deals and communicate these appropriately to the target market. Taking the steps toward innovation reflects well on the reputation of the business.

Considerations

The method of research must always be taken into account. The customers must be given adequate time to answer the survey and should be picked randomly to ensure that there is no bias on the results. According to the article from the website stayinginwales.com, market research in tourism must be repeated for it to be it effective. The article further emphasized that tourism trend may change suddenly or over a period of time. Factors that affect these changes may be political and economic events and situations.

Challenges

Conducting market research cannot be an act of impulse. It requires careful planning and evaluation. Dr. William A. Cohen, the author and founder of the Institutes of Leader Arts enumerates some of the challenges in conducting market research. He said that that it can be expensive and it requires a considerable amount of time. He further added that it also gives a chance to other competitors to look into what you are doing with your business. You have to set realistic expectations in terms of what you can spend on the research in relation to what you can achieve by doing it.