Developing Thailand’s Koh Lad E-Tan as a sustainable community tourism destination

Abstract

This research aims to determine who could be the target tourists, and the marketing communication strategies for sustainable development for the Koh Lad E-Tan community region. The sources of data were key informants such as representatives of community leaders, farmers, and entrepreneurs in Koh Lad E-Tan. Heads of government agencies took a major role, too, as did some tourists. Twenty-seven people were selected as a specific sample (purposive sampling) through a ‘snowball’ technique, where one person suggests another. Some 12 tourists who were visiting the community volunteered. Semi-structured questions were used for in-depth interviews and analyzed using triangulation. A process of analyzing paraphrases and overall content was then undertaken. The results revealed that tourists were people aged 26−42 years of age (millennials). Both singles and families preferred using online media. As for integrated marketing communication strategies, tour companies used a variety of methods to attract tourists. Social media such as Facebook and Tik Tok were among the most used. Government agencies and tour companies are challenged to maintain sustainable tourism and to assist in planning suitable activities in order to attract tourists to visit this particular destination in the future. This research project revealed that it is important for tourist agencies to clearly define their target groups upon which an integrated marketing communication strategy can be developed, particularly using online media. Also, the community itself should be encouraged to develop monthly activities to encourage travelers to visit the community.