market research on rural wellbeing tourists - prowell project

Rural wellbeing tourism services – market research results from Prowell-project Juho Pesonen, Ph. D., University of Eastern Finland, Centre for Tourism Studies [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Managerial summary:

•An online survey was conducted to study the preferences of rural wellbeing tourists, mostly located in Baltic countries.

•550 useful responses were obtained.

•Respondents prefer a rural holiday of 3-4 nights in neighboring countries in beautiful and quiet surroundings.

•A rural wellbeing holiday must also be sustainable and environmentally friendly.

•Swimming, local food and walking in nature are essential for rural wellbeing holiday.

•Rural wellbeing holiday is very often a family holiday.

•Search engine marketing should be top priority for rural businesses.

•14 rural wellbeing products were identified, each consisting of variety of core and ancillary services.

21.9.2015 Juho Pesonen 2

Research goals: Market research for identifying the appeal of the products and the right distribution channels.

•Aim is to gather information about customers interested in Rural Wellbeing tourism offering and find most attractive and suitable distribution channels to support promotional activities.

21.9.2015 3 Juho Pesonen

Creating the survey

•Literature review in April and May 2015

•Focus group in Hardanger among project participants

– Identified central themes and questions:

• Past behavior

• Rural destination attributes

• Wellbeing activities

• Travel motivations

• Information sources

• Socio-demographics


Distributing the survey


•Partner websites with banners •Also social media and e-mail marketing were used

•Data collection method limits respondent group!

Results


Who answered the survey?


550 completed questionnaires


22 %

78 %

Gender

Men

Women

7 %

28 %

33 %

23 %

8 %

1 %

Age groups

18-25

26-35

36-45

46-55

56-65

More than 65 years old

Nationality


10 % 1 %

64 %

19 %

0 %

1 % 0 % 3 % 2 %

Nationality of the respondents

Finnish

Norwegian

Latvian

Lithuanian

Estonian

Danish

German

Russian

Other, what?

Rural tourism holidays


68 %

17 %

8 %

3 % 2 % 1 % 1 %

How many times during the past

three years have you been on a

rural holiday in Norway,

Denmark, Sweden or Finland

0

1

2

3

4-5

6-10

More than 10 times

17 %

12 %

11 %

17 %

13 %

12 %

18 %

How many times during the past

three years have you been on a

rural holiday in Estonia, Latvia or

Lithuania

0

1

2

3

4-5

6-10

More than 10 times

Preferred duration for a rural wellbeing holiday


28 %

41 %

22 %

5 %

2 % 2 %

How long rural holiday would you prefer?

1-2 nights

3-4 nights

5-7 nights

8-10 nights

11-14 nights

More than 14 nights

Living area


20 %

12 %

13 %

10 %

28 %

14 %

3 %

How would you describe the area you live in (Choose

only one):

A large city (100,000 or more

inhabitants)

A medium-sized city (10 000 to 99 000

inhabitants)

A smaller city (from 2000 to 9999

inhabitants)

A village (under 2,000 inhabitants)

A rural area

Do not know

Prefer not to answer

Preferred rural wellbeing holiday company


47 %

19 %

24 %

4 % 6 %

Preferred rural holiday travel group

Family

Partner

Friends

Alone

Work group

What kind of destination rural wellbeing tourists prefer?


Important rural wellbeing destination attributes (0:not important at all, 4: very important)


2,09

2,30

2,34

2,38

2,46

2,49

2,54

2,54

2,71

2,72

2,82

2,84

2,98

3,26

0,00 0,50 1,00 1,50 2,00 2,50 3,00 3,50

Protected areas

Geology (rocks, glaciers, dunes etc )

History of the region

Long rural traditions

Wilderness

Mountain landscapes

Open spaces

Plants and animals

Coastal landscapes

Free access to natural resources

Forest landscapes

Farm landscapes

Quiet places

Lake and river landscapes

When you think about your perfect rural wellbeing

destination, how important are the following attributes?

Most interesting rural wellbeing activities (0:not important at all, 4: very important)


2,01

2,03

2,06

2,07

2,09

2,27

2,28

2,28

2,37

2,48

2,51

2,83

2,86

2,92

0,00 0,50 1,00 1,50 2,00 2,50 3,00 3,50

Visiting spa (relaxation, special saunas, yoga, treatments etc )

Berry or mushroom picking

Visiting recreational spa (swimming, hot tubs, slides etc )

Forest therapy

Taking alternative treatments (e g sauna therapy, reiki, peat therapy)

Study local flora / fauna

Finnish sauna

Go boating

Cycling

Sauna treatments

Hiking

Traditional local food

Walk in nature trails

Swimming

How important are the possibilities to enjoy following activities

during your rural holiday?

Least interesting rural wellbeing activities (0:not important at all, 4: very important)


,57

,62

,82

,84

,87

,90

,91

,96

,99

1,04

1,06

1,08

1,11

1,12

1,13

1,14

1,17

1,20

1,21

1,22

1,29

1,32

1,33

,00 ,20 ,40 ,60 ,80 1,00 1,20 1,40

Indoor group exercises

Going to a gym

Chiropractic care

Doing yoga

Jogging

Outdoor group exercises

Reflexology

Nordic walking

Acupuncture

Spiritual training

Meditating

Participate in fitness- and well being seminars

Taking part in personal development course (for example mindfulness)

Yoga

Physical research or fitness test

Exercise with personal trainer

Fitness exercise

Volunteer work for local community

Balance exercises

Technology enhanced tourism experiences

Charity work / events

Muscle therapies

Doing handicrafts

How important are the possibilities to enjoy following activities

during your rural holiday?

What motivates rural wellbeing holidays?


Importance of travel motivations (-3: completely disagree, 3: completely agree


-,82

,60

1,03

1,06

1,07

1,49

1,63

1,64

1,68

1,73

1,82

1,87

2,01

2,04

2,07

2,11

-1,00 -,50 ,00 ,50 1,00 1,50 2,00 2,50

I travel only during school holidays

I want to be a part of the local community during my holidays

Being one with the nature, connectivity between earth and water

I prefer warm climates for my holidays

I like to meet new people

I want to strengthen my physical wellbeing

I am always looking for good deals

I go for destinations that can offer a good deal of relaxation

I want to escape from the ordinary

I am curious and seek information about the culture of the area that I visit

I want to strengthen my mental wellbeing

I want to recharge my batteries

I like to experience something new and different

I want to be closer to nature

I am environmentally conscious when on holidays

For me wellbeing is about being together with family/relatives/friends

When you think of yourself as a tourist, what characterizes you?

Where do rural wellbeing tourists find information?


Most important information sources (scale 0-4)


1,33

1,37

1,41

1,46

1,48

1,50

1,50

1,54

1,64

1,95

2,02

2,10

2,11

2,24

2,27

2,28

2,55

2,57

2,63

2,96

3,08

3,09

0,00 0,50 1,00 1,50 2,00 2,50 3,00 3,50

Radio

Newspapers

Newsletters

E-mail newsletters and advertisements

Magazines

Visiting travel agency / other expert

Television

Travel fairs

Newspaper and magazine websites

Brochures and tour operator travel catalogues

Social media (eg Facebook)

Travel agents' website

Discussion boards / blogs

Portals (eg GoFinland fi)

Review websites (eg Tripadvisor)

Guide books

Local tourism organisation websites (eg www visitfinland com)

Company website

Online travel agencies (e g booking com, hotels com)

Talking with family / friends

Your own experience from previous visits

Search engine (eg Google com)

How important are the following information sources for you

when you are planning a holiday?

Daily smartphone & Internet use


3 %

17 %

9 %

18 %

19 %

14 %

20 %

Daily smartphone use

I don't know

I don’t have smart phone

Less than 15 minutes

15- 30 minutes

30-60 minutes

1-2 hours

More than 2 hours

8 %

37 %

33 %

13 %

9 %

Time spent online daily on

avarage

Less than 1 hour

1-2 hours

3-4 hours

5-6 hours

At least 7 hours

14 rural wellbeing products Principal component analysis with Varimax rotation

This analysis groups together wellbeing services that the tourists regard as similar to each other, creating a combination of

wellbeing services that together for a wellbeing product.


•Products are divided into core services and ancillary services •Most of the tourists preferring one core service among product category are very likely to prefer all other core services. •Most of the tourists preferring core services also prefer some of the ancillary services. •Core services should be marketed and offered together with the option of choosing also ancillary services. •The higher the loadings, the more connected the services are together (1.000 is max) •Cronbach alphas confirm the reliability of the majority of the products (α>0,700)

1st Product family: Treatments and spa (α=0,964)


Core services Loadings

Visiting spa (relaxation, special saunas, yoga,

treatments etc )

,836

Massage ,823

Taking traditional treatments (e g foot care, facial

treatments, cupping therapy)

,723

Taking alternative treatments (e g sauna therapy,

reiki, peat therapy)

,717

Hot stone massage ,664

Visiting recreational spa (swimming, hot tubs,

slides etc )

,647

Muscle therapies ,627

Sauna treatments ,608

Thalassotherapy ,596

Finnish sauna ,595

Physical research or fitness test ,595

Balance exercises ,573

Participate in fitness- and well being seminars ,567

Fitness exercise ,552

Exercise with personal trainer ,548

Local fruit-based treatments ,546

Ancillary services

Stress coaching ,416

Forest therapy ,367

Reflexology ,431

Chiropractic care ,420

Acupuncture ,464

Folk medicine ,376

Taking part in personal development course (for

example mindfulness)

,304

2nd Product family: Slow living (α=0,937)



Slow living studies ,725

Participating in growing your own

food

,716

Charity work / events ,699

Volunteer work for local community ,678

Silence tour ,666

Protection of local resources ,659

Digital detox ,648

Collect your own herbs ,612

Ancillary services

Forest therapy ,400

Doing handicrafts ,355

Meditating ,353

Spiritual training ,385

Staying in an eco-villages ,443

Visiting an eco-village ,446

Technology enhanced tourism

experiences

,383

Photography tours ,401

Local fruit-based treatments ,306

3rd Product family: Exercises (α=0,933) Core services Loadings

Indoor group exercises ,811

Outdoor group exercises ,699

Nordic walking ,650

Going to a gym ,638

Ancillary services

Jogging ,474

Meditating ,335

Taking part in personal development

course (for example mindfulness)

,374

Doing yoga ,455


Physical research or fitness test ,383


Participate in fitness- and well being

seminars

,356

Fitness exercise ,450

Exercise with personal trainer ,444


4th Product family: Alternative medicine (α=0,944)



Reflexology ,723

Chiropractic care ,723

Acupuncture ,692

Folk medicine ,537

Ancillary services


Hot stone massage ,409


Thalassotherapy ,407



5th Product Family: Local Life (α=0,816)


Doing handicrafts ,694

Buying local handicrafts

and other local products

,678

Study local traditions (like

weaving, embroidery)

,562

Cooking classes ,553

Traditional local food ,543

Ancillary services

Collect your own herbs ,372


6th Product family: Wilderness (α=0,678) Core services Loadings

Go boating ,744

Fishing ,679

Berry or mushroom

picking

,625

Swimming ,581


7th Product family: Outdoor adventure (α=0,880) Core services Loadings

Kayaking ,859

Canoeing ,846


8th Product family: Meditation (α=0,864)


Meditating ,628

Taking part in personal

development course (for

example mindfulness)

,596

Doing yoga ,556

Ancillary services


Folk medicine ,315



9th Product family: Eco-village (α=0,869) Core services Loadings

Staying in an eco-villages ,617

Visiting an eco-village ,569

Ancillary services

Forest therapy ,367

Local fruit-based

treatments

,395

Finnish sauna ,422

Sauna treatments ,451


10th Product family: Outdoor activities (α=0,608) Core services Loadings

Hiking ,716

Cycling ,563

Ancillary services

Riding therapy ,394

Jogging ,338


11th Product family: Learning nature (α=0,742)


Study local flora / fauna ,699

Ancillary services

Walk in nature trails ,306

Protection of local

resources

,424

Silence tour ,325

Study local traditions (like

weaving, embroidery)

,449


12th Product family: Walking in nature (α=0,560)

21.9.2015 35


Walk in nature trails ,532

Traditional local food ,527

Ancillary services

Trekking ,489

Juho Pesonen

13. Product family: Museums (α=0,628)



Visiting museums ,664

Technology enhanced

tourism experiences

,517

Ancillary services

Photography tours ,452

Visiting recreational spa

(swimming, hot tubs,

slides etc )

,353

14. Product family: Sleeping



Sleep more than at home ,828

Marketing channels for rural wellbeing activities Correlation analysis


Five categories of information sources (PCA) 1. Traditional media

– Magazines, Newspapers, Radio, Television, Newspaper and magazine websites, Guide books, Brochures and tour operator travel catalogues

2. Experts

– Visiting travel agency / other expert, Newsletters, Travel fairs, E-mail newsletters and advertisements, Travel agents' website

3. Social Media

– Discussion boards / blogs, Social media (eg Facebook), Review websites (eg Tripadvisor), Online travel agencies (e g booking com, hotels com)

4. Destination information

– Local tourism organisation websites (eg www.visitfinland.com), Portals (eg GoFinland fi), Search engine (eg Google com)

5. Personal information

– Your own experience from previous visits, Talking with family / friends, Company website


Correlations between information channels and rural wellbeing products


Correlations

Treatments

and spa Slow living Exercises

Alternative

medicine Local life Wilderness

Outdoor

adventure Meditation Eco-village

Outdoor

sports

Learning

nature

Walking in

nature Museums Sleep

Traditional

media

Pearson

Correlation

,041 ,245** ,158

* ,290

** ,091 ,098 ,000 ,073 -,042 -,240

** ,116 ,065 ,200

** -,007

Sig. (2-

tailed)

,545 ,000 ,020 ,000 ,182 ,151 ,996 ,283 ,543 ,000 ,087 ,342 ,003 ,919

N 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217

Experts Pearson

Correlation

,327** ,175

** ,334

** ,154

* ,125 ,005 ,016 -,039 ,072 ,022 ,071 ,019 ,141

* -,050

Sig. (2-

tailed)

,000 ,010 ,000 ,023 ,067 ,947 ,814 ,567 ,293 ,747 ,296 ,778 ,037 ,465

N 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217

Social

media

Pearson

Correlation

,120 ,078 ,147* ,034 ,052 ,040 ,083 -,040 ,047 ,115 -,144

* ,026 -,037 ,051

Sig. (2-

tailed)

,077 ,252 ,030 ,613 ,449 ,560 ,221 ,562 ,489 ,092 ,033 ,701 ,590 ,453

N 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217

Destination

information

Pearson

Correlation

,031 ,109 -,066 ,148* -,030 ,098 -,004 ,074 -,062 -,008 ,121 ,232

** ,201

** -,017

Sig. (2-

tailed)

,647 ,108 ,331 ,029 ,664 ,151 ,950 ,276 ,367 ,909 ,075 ,001 ,003 ,807

N 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217

Personal

information

Pearson

Correlation

,101 ,093 -,059 ,005 ,086 ,257** -,063 ,012 ,053 ,177

** ,111 ,152

* ,056 ,062

Sig. (2-

tailed)

,139 ,174 ,386 ,945 ,207 ,000 ,358 ,859 ,435 ,009 ,104 ,025 ,414 ,367

N 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217 217

Yellow: Very good marketing channel for the product category(top row), Orange: Good, Red: Bad

Analysing the correlations:

•People preferring treatments and spas use experts to find information.

•Slow living services are best marketed through experts and traditional media.

•Experts are also important in marketing exercise services.

•Alternative medicine services should be marketed through traditional media.

•Museums should be marketed in traditional media and destination websites.

•Nonetheless, seach engines are most often used information channel.


Conclusions:

•Transnational rural wellbeing products are viable.

– People still prefer to travel to near-by countries.

– Short holidays up to four nights are preferred.

– Family is most popular travel party.

•Rural wellbeing tourism is also connected to water and quietness.

– Moving around in the nature, eating local food.

– Environmental friendliness is a must for rural wellbeing companies and should be actively promoted.

•Rural wellbeing tourists can take holidays outside school holidays, but only for longer weekends.

•Search engines are most often used information channel and should be focused on.

– Also personal information is very important, meaning that the quality of the rural wellbeing services must be very high.


Conclusions (cont.)

•The rural tourism services should be considered as categories.

– 14 rural wellbeing product families.

• Core services should almost always be offered and marketed together

• Ancillary services should support core services and be an option for tourists.

•For some services special attention need to be paid to information channels used.

– Traditional media is good for slow living, alternative medicine and museum products

– Experts should be used in marketing of treatments and spas, exercies and slow living.

– Personal information is important for those enjoying wilderness services and outdoor sports.


For more information see www.uef.fi/mot/prowell www.matkailututkimus.fi www.facebook.com/uef.mot

www.uef.fi

http://www.uef.fi/mot/prowell

http://www.matkailututkimus.fi/

http://www.facebook.com/uef.mot