Market Potential Analysis of E-Rental Business for Travel Equipments in Thailand
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Travel overseas is a beneficial activity to explore new experience and different cultures. There are necessary several expenses that travelers have to pay for their overseas trips such as accommodations, airfare, local transport and dining etc. Moreover, cost of travel equipments including oversized luggage, seasonal clothes and accessories are added cost. It is not value for money to spend for these equipments which are needed only a short period of time. Thus, it is an idea to start up a rental business of travel equipments via the Internet in Thailand to fulfill untapped needs of budget and infrequent travelers who have quality concerns. In this paper, the concept of sharing economy is critically discussed. Besides, 7Ps of the service mix is thoroughly reviewed in data analysis. The objective of this study is to explore market potential and possibility of this business. A quantitative method is carried out via online questionnaires to gather information about customer needs and business environment for strategic planning of the E-rental business. In addition, some entrepreneurs of rental businesses concerning travel equipments are interviewed to enhance the understanding of consumer behaviors. The findings indicate that there is a limited business potential. However, an enormous size of target market and other significant factors sufficiently make this business attractive to SME entrepreneurs or investors. The business offers a new option of equipment service for travelers. It provides a unique experience with a service standard. To be successful, the business requires a proper strategy to attract prospective customers and compete against competitors or substitute products in the online rental service.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
References
[2] Anitsal, I., Girard, T. & Anitsal, M. M. (2012). An Application of Services Marketing Mix Framework: How do Retailers Communicate Information on their Sales Receipts. Business Studies Journal, 4(2): 77-90.
[3] Beckwith, H. (2001). The Invisible Touch - The Four Keys of Modern Marketing. Knutsford, UK: Texere Publishing.
[4] Bhaopichitr, K. et al. (2014). Thailand Economic Monitor. Washington DC: World Bank Group.
BMI Research. (2013). Thailand Tourism Report. Singapore: BMI Research.
[5] Booms, B. & Bitner, M. J. (1981). Marketing Strategies and Organizational Structures for Service Firms, In J.H. Donnelly and W.R. George (eds.) Marketing of Services (pp.47-51), Chicago: American Marketing Association.
[6] Brunner, G.C. (1989). The Marketing Mix: Time for Reconceptualization. Journal of Marketing Education, 11: 72-77.
[7] Chartered Institute of Marketing. (2015). Marketing and the 7Ps: A Brief of Summary of Marketing and How It Works, Berkshire, UK: CIM
[8] Choorat, N. (2011). Impact of Facebook Social Network on Promoting the E-commerce Website, Master Thesis, Faculty of Industrial Technology and Management, King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok. (in Thai).
[9] College of Management of Mahidol University. (2015). Online Influencer, Retrieved August 13, 2015, from http://inside.cm.mahidol.ac.th/mkt/index.php?article510-marketing-conference-id=42.
[10] Constantinides, E. (2006). The Marketing Mix Rvisited: Towards the 21st Century Marketing. Journal of Marketing Management, 22 (3-4): 407-438.
[11] Cooke, C. (2013). The Sharing Economy. Oregon Business, June 1.
[12] Cowell, D. W. (1984). The Marketing of Services. London: Heinemann.
[13] Crane, F.G. (2013). Marketing for Entrepreneurs: Concepts and Applications for New Ventures, California: Sage Publications.
[14] Department of Tourism. (2015). Summary of Tourist Situation-December 2014, Bangkok: DOT (in Thai)
[15] Fill, C. (2006). Simply Marketing Communications. London: Pearson Education Limited.
[16] Fournier, S., Eckhardt, G. M. & Bardhi, F. (2013). Learning to play in the New “Share Economy”. Harvard Business Review, 91 (7-8): 125-129.
[17] Geron, T. (2013). Airbnb and the Unstoppable Rise of the Share Economy. Forbes. January 23.
[18] Goi, C. L. (2009). A Review of Marketing Mix: 4ps or More. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 1(1): 2-16.
[19] Hoffman, K.D. & Bateson, J.E.G.(2006).Services Marketing: Concepts, Strategies & Cases. Ohio:Thomson.
[20] Kietzmann, J. H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I. P. & Silvestre, B. S. (2011). Social Media? Get Serious! Understanding the Functional Building Blocks of Social Media. Business Horizons, 54(3): 241-51.
[21] Kotler, P. & Armstrong, G. (2012). Principles of Marketing. Harlow: Pearson Education.
[22] Krungthep Turakij. (2013). 9 Online Business Trends for Thailand 2013. Krungthep Turakij, January 2 (in Thai).
[23] Lewison, D. M. (1996). Marketing Management: An Overview. Orlando, FL: The Dryden Press.
[24] Luo, J., Ba, S. & Zhang, H. (2012). The Effectiveness of Online Shopping Characteristics and Well-designed Websites on Satisfaction. MIS Quarterly, 36(4): 1131-1144.
[25] Napompech, K. (2014). Factors Driving Consumers to purchase Clothes through E-commerce in Social Networks. Journal of Applied Sciences, 14 (17): 1936-43.
[26] National Statistical Office of Thailand. (2013). Executive Summary: The Survey of e-Commerce Status in Thailand-2013, Bangkok: NSO.
[27] Patterson, G. P. & Ward, T. (2000). Relationship Marketing and Management, Handbook Services Marketing and Management, New York: Sage Publications Inc.
[28] Rafiq, M. & Ahmed, P. K. (1995). Using the 7Ps as a Generic Marketing Mix: An Exploratory Survey of UK and European Marketing Academics, Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 13 (9): 4-15.
[29] Sacks, D. (2011). The Sharing Economy, Fast Company. 155 (May): 88-131.
[30] Visa Inc. (2015). Visa Global Travel Intentions Study 2015. Singapore: Visa Inc.
[31] Voight, J.(2013).Marketers need to embrace Peer-to-Peer Activities:The Sharing Economy.Adweek, May 27.
[32] World Bank. (2015). Doing Business 2016-Thailand. Washington, D.C.: World Bank Group.
[33] World Tourism Organization and Tourism Australia. (2013). Key Outbound Tourism Markets in South-East Asia: Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, Madrid. UNWTO and Tourism Australia.