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Sri Sharada Institute Of Indian Management - Research

(A unit of Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri) Approved by AICTE Plot No. 7, Phase-II, Institutional Area, Behind the Grand Hotel, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110070 Website: www.srisiim.org

PROJECT REPORT ON

RURAL TOURISM MARKETING

Submitted To: Prof. Sartaj Khera

Submitted By:Sayantan Pal Sandeep Dubey

PGDM (2011-12)

DECLARATION

We, Sayantan Pal & Sandeep Dubey student of PGDM (2010-12) hereby declare that we have completed this project on Rural Tourism marketing. The information submitted is true to the best of our knowledge.

Sayantan Pal Sandeep Dubey (PGDM 2010-12)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Writing is a solitary task. However turning of millions of bytes of information requires an army of talented folks. We have been fortunate enough to be assisted by many talented people. We wish to express our thanks to all those who have helped us and have given valuable suggestions.

We are indeed grateful to our Director Swami (Dr.) Parthasarthy and Prof. Sartaj Khera for giving us this project as it helped us in enhancing our knowledge and also for providing us the necessary guidance and facility required for completion of this project and for being an effective source of inspiration. We also thank our parents and friends for their support.

CONTENT
Introduction Tourism Types of tourism Rural tourism Definition of rural tourism The impact of rural tourism Rural tourist profile Motives of the rural tourism Rural tourism marketing Conclusion

INTRODUCTION
Tourism growth potential can be harnessed as a strategy for Rural Development. The development of a strong platform around the concept of Rural Tourism is definitely useful for a country like India, where almost 74% of the population resides in its 7 million villages. Across the world the trends of industrialization and development have had an urban centric approach. Alongside, the stresses of urban lifestyles have led to a counter urbanization syndrome. This has led to growing interest in the rural areas. At the same time this trend of urbanization has led to falling income levels, lesser job opportunities in the total areas leading to an urbanization syndrome in the rural areas. Rural Tourism is one of the few activities which can provide a solution to these problems. Besides, there are other factors which are shifting the trend towards rural tourism like increasing levels of awareness, growing interest in heritage and culture and improved accessibility, and environmental consciousness. In the developed countries, this has resulted in a new style of tourism of visiting village settings to experience and live a relaxed and healthy lifestyle. This concept has taken the shape of a formal kind of Rural Tourism. Under this Scheme, thrust will be to promote village tourism as the primary tourism product to spread tourism and its socio-economic benefits to rural and its new geographic regions. Key geographic regions would be identified for development and promotion of Rural Tourism. The implementation would be done through a Convergence Committee headed by the District Collector. Activities like improving the environment, hygiene, infrastructure etc. would be eligible for assistance. Apart from providing financial assistance the focus would be to tap the resources available under different schemes of Dept. Of Rural Development, State Govts. And other concerned Departments of the Govt. of India.

TOURISM
Tourism is usually viewed as being multidimensional, possessing physical, social, cultural, economic and political characteristics. Definitions of tourism share a range of common elements (Dowling 2001, p24). However, this report will adapt the approach of Mathieson and Wall (1982) that tourism is the temporary movement of people to destinations out of their normal home and workplace, the activities undertaken during the stay, and the facilities created to cater for their needs. Tourism is the fastest growing industry in the world. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) tourism is the worlds largest industry generating 12% of the global gross national product and it employs around 200 Kostas E. Sillignakis www.sillignakis.com million people worldwide (WTTC, 1995). The current growth rate is 4%, but it is the natural areas tourism which is the most rapidly growing segment of tourism and the WTO estimates it generates approximately 20% of all international travel expenditures (WTO, 1998b). Tourism in the 21st century will be the biggest industry of the world. Tourist arrivals are estimated to reach 1 billion by 2010 and 1, 6 by 2020, and people will holiday more often, maybe two to four times per year (Pearce, 1995). Tourist arrivals are predicted to grow by an average 4, 3% a year over the next two decades, while receipts from international tourism will climb by 6, 7% a year (WTO, 1999). Along with this great growth, the tourism industry will also have to take on more responsibility for its wide impacts, on the economy, on the environment, on societies and on cultural sites (Dowling 2001).

TYPES OF TOURISM
Tourism is synthesized from mass and alternative tourism. Mass tourism is characterized by large numbers of people seeking relevant to their culture holidays in popular resort destinations. Alternative tourism is sometimes referred to as special interest tourism or responsible tourism and its usually taken to mean alternative forms of tourism which give emphasis on the contact and understanding of inhabitants way of living and the local natural environment (Smith & Eadington, 1992). As to the specific forms of alternative tourism, Mieczkowski (1995) identifies such forms as cultural, educational, scientific, adventure, agritourism, with rural, ranch and farm subsets. (Figure 1.1)

Figure 1.1 (Mieczkowski, 1995: 459)

The development of the environmental movement in the 1980s helped to the development and the incensement of the availability and the range of holiday types which was more environmentally friendly than these which was associated with Mass tourism. Alternative tourism can be broadly defined as forms of tourism that is made to be friendly to the environment and to respect social and cultural values of the communities, and which allow both hosts and guests to enjoy positive and worthwhile interaction and shared experiences (Wearing & Neil, 2000, p38). Cater et al. (1994) notes that alternative tourism comprises small scale, locally owned activities. She suggests that these contrasts with mass tourism, which is often characterized by large-scale multinational concerns, which repatriate the profits to offshore countries. Other characteristics of alternative tourism include its minimal negative environmental and social impacts, and also help to develop other sectors of the local economy as agriculture. Finally, alternative tourism also fosters the involvement of local people in the decision making process and includes them in the tourism development process. Using these criteria, alternative tourism exceeds purely a concern for the physical environment that typifies green tourism, to include economic, social and cultural considerations. Thus alternative tourism can be viewed as being synonymous with the concept of sustainable tourism development (Holden, 2000, p137).

RURAL TOURISM
Rural tourism is among the most polymorphous of all forms of Special Interest Tourism (SIT). The diversity of attractions included within rural tourism embrace: Indigenous and European heritage sites Aspects of culture (agriculture) Industrial tourism (farm practices) Educetioanl tourism

Special events Ecological attractions Adventure tourism Wine tourism Such diversity represents major opportunities for rural areas that have turned to tourism as a means of supplementing diminished incomes (Douglas, 2001).

DEFINITIONS OF RURAL TOURISM


Geographic and demographic definitions:
A multi-faced activity that takes place in an environment outside heavily urbanized areas. It is an industry sector characterized by small scale tourism business, set in areas where land use id dominated by agricultural pursuits, forestry or natural areas (Department of Tourism, 1994: 3)

Product-related definitions:
The Rural Tourism product could be segmented to include such product components as rural attractions, rural adventure tours, nature based tours, ecotourism tours, country towns, rural resorts and country-style accommodation, and farm holidays, together with festivals, events and agricultural education (Department of Tourism, 1994:4).

Tourist experience-related definitions:


Rural Tourism should be seen as offering a different range of experience to those offered in big cities and that the emphasis in rural tourism is on the tourists experience of the products and activities of the area (Department of Tourism, 1994: 3).

Consequently, rural tourism in its purest form should be: 1. Located in rural areas. 2. Functionally rural built upon the rural worlds special features of small-scale enterprise, open space, contact with nature and the natural world, heritage, traditional societies and traditional practices. 3. Rural in scale both in terms of buildings and settlements and, therefore, usually small-scale. 4. Traditional in character, growing slowly and organically, and connected with local families. It will often be very largely controlled locally and developed for the long term good of the area. 5. Of many different kinds, representing the complex pattern of rural environment, economy, history and location.

THE IMPACT OF RURAL TOURISM


Social and Cultural:
The most influential statement on the social and cultural impacts is Bouqeut and winters (1987) diverse anthology of studies on the conflict and political debates associated with rural tourism. They consider the relationship between tourism, politics and the issue of policies to control and direct tourism and recreation in the countryside in the postwar period. In contrast, Neate (1987) considers farm-based tourism in the Scilly Isles in relation to attempts to diversify the economic base of family owned farms in the climate of declining profitability in agriculture. Vincent (1987) argues that rural tourism development requires that close-knit communities adapt to the incursion of capitalism in the expansion of tourism, where family independence, traditional values and cultural traditions may be adversely affected.

The role of women in rural tourism has also belatedly attracted interest as a highly seasonal and unstable economic activity, since tourism is one of the few opportunities taken up by women but also contributes to the marginal status of women in the rural workforce. Increasingly, native people are becoming involved in tourism to help meet their own goals of independence and cultural survival, yet tourism development carries specials risks for them. There are also special problems related to obtaining financing for projects, training with cultural sensitivity, attitudes towards work and service, and making decisions communally (Smith, 1997). In communities with low economic activity and low tourism development there will be high hopes and expectations of tourism (Johnson et al., 1994). It has also be noted that long term residents of rural areas are much more likely to support growth and change than newcomers, usually because the newcomers moved there for amenities which they do not want changed (Getz, 1994).

The Economic impact:


The economic impact of rural tourism has been a fruitful area for research among a range of social scientists, often emphasizing or challenging the role of tourism as a panacea for all the economic and social ills of the countryside (Getz, 1981). But Butler and Clark rightly acknowledge, tourism in rural areas is not necessarily the magic solution to rural development, given its: Income leakages, volatility, declining multiplier, low pay, imported labor and the conservatism of investors. The least favored circumstance in which to promote tourism is when the rural economy is already weak, since tourism will create highly unbalanced income and employment distributions. It is better supplement for a thriving and diverse economy than as a mainstay of rural development (Butler and Clark, 1992: 175).

The environmental effect:


In a rural context, the growing pressure emerging from the development intensive nature of tourism and the expansion of Mass tourism has posed many new pressures as new tourism discovers the qualities of rural environments. In fact, the construction of theme parks in rural environments, second homes (Gartner,

1987), timeshare, conference centers, holiday villages have all contributed to the insatiable tourism appetite for rural environments. A number of recent special issues of journals have also focused on sustainability and rural tourism. However, it is apparent that tourism in rural context displays many of the features of the symbolic relationship, which exists between tourism and the environment. For these reason it is appropriate to consider the tourism resource base, emphasizing supply and demand features in relation to the business aspects of rural tourism (Page and Getz, 1997).

Overall:
Primary producers and rural communities have increasingly turned to tourism as an alternative means of achieving sustainable economic growth and development through restructuring, and greater diversification, of economic activity. Hall (1998) for example, has observed tourism has emerged as one of the central means by which rural areas can adjust themselves economically, socially and politically to the new global environment. Hall (1998) perceive that expansion of tourism in rural areas as designed to: Sustain and create local incomes, employment and growth Contribute to the costs of providing economic and social infrastructure Encourage the development of other industrial sectors Contribute to local resident amenities and services Contribute to the conservation of environmental and cultural resources

RURAL TOURIST PROFILE


Tourist commission gives these characteristics to rural tourists: 1. Better educated 2. More discerning in their demands 3. More interest in green issues 4. More health conscious 5. Greater interest in specialty food (Tourist Commission, 1995) Identifying and segmenting the rural tourism market is probably the least researched and understood process in the rural tourism system (Page and Getz, 1997: 17) Also, The true dimensions of the rural tourism market are difficult to assess because of the nature of statistical definitions (OHollaran, 2000: 129)

MOTIVES OF THE RURAL TOURIST


OHalloran (2002) provides important insights into the motives of those visiting rural destinations that may well reflect those of domestic visitors. Visiting friends and relatives in the region and word of mouth recommendation accounted for almost 50% of the responses analyzed. About 12% of those surveyed had an interest in visiting rural areas with a slightly smaller percentage listing nature based activities as their reason for visiting. In terms of future growth potential, a number of OHallorans respondents reported being on a return visit. However, for these and other rural visitors improvements in shopping facilities and merchandise would enhance their visit (OHalloran, 2000). A motivating factor for tourists to visit rural areas is to experience, or at least view, what is still thought of as the rural idyll (Beeton 1999: 28).

RURAL TOURISM MARKETING


In the European Union the tourism sector provides now days 5% from the PIB, insuring 7 million working places. It is expected that in the coming years this percent will grow, in the light of the integration of the new Eastern European countries, with a significant potential in tourism. Tourism is a domain that encourages the private initiative and it also trains a labor market that is highly adaptable to changes. Another important advantage of this field is the reduced bureaucracy. These are some of the reasons why in the next years we will find important European funding opportunities designated for the development of tourism, with a special attention for rural tourism in all its forms: ecotourism, cultural tourism, agro tourism and thematic tourism. All the member states of the EU had in the last years consistent funding programs for tourism. In the period 2000-2006 European tourism projects were funded with an amount of 7 billion euros. Since 2004 an elaborate tourism development plan was implemented in the new member states, but until now there are few concrete results, due to the complicated evaluation procedures and the abundant documentation, which delayed considerably the process. However, these experiences should be studied by Romania, in order to develop its national tourism, especially because the Romanian initiative in this direction is still shy and it is estimated that in present days Romania is exploiting only 15% of its touristic potential. In Romania the national tourism strategy is still developing, but fast steps are taken every day in order to overcome the problems, such as poor promotion of the funding opportunities, and the lack of information regarding the potential investments. One of the objectives of the national rural tourism strategy is to involve public authorities, as well as the private initiatives. The approach is a holistic one, each tourism program involving also human resource and infrastructure development. Close to 50% of the population of Romania lives in the rural areas, but because of the low offer of employment, many of the young people are migrating to the cities. In order to balance this, rural tourism could be a viable long term solution, first of

all because it fructifies the local potentials, second of all, some forms of it does not require massive investments and third of all because in the next years it will benefit from a large amount of funding.

Rural tourism initiatives:


In the period 1995-2005, due to the improvement of the Romanian tourism marketing, the number of tourists increased every year, as well as the number and the quality of the services offered. Rural tourism was no exception and the number of small private pensions grew significantly. The problem they were confronted with was that of an inefficient marketing - the difficulty to advertise and find clients each of them on their own. A number of private entrepreneurs identified the acute need of promoting the Romanian tourist potential, as well as the fact that, due to the reduced size of the businesses in this field, singular efforts of promotion by individual rural pensions were insufficient and could not have a significant impact.. This is how A.N.T.R.E.C. ( The National Association for Rural, Ecologic and Cultural Tourism) was founded. The main purpose of the organization was to identify, develop and promote the Romanian hospitality and rural tourism. Its basic declared functions were: Representation/ Lobby Marketing/ Promotion Quality control / Standards Training Reservations / Information. Now days the association has 32 county bureaus and a number of over 3500 members (pension owners) from 800 locations. A.N.T.R.E.C. is a member of the European Federation of Rural Tourism EUROGITES and it is recognized as a leader in Romanian tourism development, in the encouragement of the ecological preservation and protection and promotion of the traditional culture. Its activity consists in organizing trainings for hosts and tourism agencies, national and

international exchanges, information campaigns about rural tourism and marketing campaigns for the members. An important role of A.N.T.R.E.C. was and still is to cooperate with the Resort Ministry, by proposing legislative initiatives and development programs according to the new trends in rural tourism. In promoting the services of its members, A.N.T.R.E.C. combined the rural and ecologic tourism with the Romanian traditions and culture, attracting tourists with the beauty of the land, as well as the life in nature and the people that are embracing this way of life. The reality of the Romanian village, regardless of region, is shown in the tradition, customs, the rural art crafts which we find in every corner of the country, as well as in the beautiful Romanian folklore. All of this gets known to the world by promoting rural tourism and by involving the tourists in these activities.

Forms of Rural Tourism:


The specialists in rural tourism classify it in multiple forms, depending on the specificity of the area in which the tourism takes place. This is why we find in presentations terms like ecological tourism, agro tourism, thematic tourism etc. The term ecological tourism may indicate that all the products used by the pension are obtained naturally, ecologically, without chemicals. There are pension where the tourists request to participate to traditional works, such as taking care of the animals or participating at field works together with the hosts. But ecological tourism may also indicate that in the area where it is practiced there are sites ecologically protected (natural reservations). An important feature of ecological tourism is to teach the tourists the importance of protecting nature, live in harmony with the nature and sometimes even what can happen to nature and the fragile ecological balance when people interfere inadequately. An example of that sort are the pensions in the Rusca Montana Mountains ( western part of Romania), where every year school children are coming to learn about pollution and about how can they help the earth and waters to regenerate after pollution.

Cultural tourism is based on exploring the traditions and believes of the communities be it folklore, or monasteries, or ancient rural crafts. 80% of the Romanian rural pensions are based on this type of approach. Regions characterized by different crafts or traditions attract tourists to buy and learn their crafts. Such is the Horezu village in the central part of the country, where almost every house has a craftsman specialized in making oale de lut? Also, important examples of cultural and religious rural tourism are the pensions near the monasteries from the North of Moldavia centuries old and attracting yearly a large number of believers- driven here by their faith- and nonbelievers driven here by the great painting art of the old monks. The thematic rural tourism holds in its center important events of the traditional Romanian village, events which are organized just as they were a hundred years before. Such are the grape harvest and the making of the new wine, the production of the traditional drink tuica- by the old production procedure which unites the men of the villages in the late autumn days. In the last years in villages where there are many pensions, the owners united in organizing a village large event such as a traditional wedding. The main idea of all these forms of tourism is that each and every pension as each and every house has its own specific features that make it unique and unforgettable the so called local branding. The hosts of the rural pensions know that a satisfied customer is the customer that is treated like someone from the family. And each of the future entrepreneurs in rural tourism have to find that little something, their own brand, that would make their pension special and will offer the client what the marketing specialists call plus value.

Local branding:
A brand represents a label, a word that highlights the identity of a person, company, product, community or a nation. However, the branding process consisting in identifying that specific feature that is characteristic to the product, service or geographical region is very difficult, because of the high competition related to the customers expectation. In order to create and develop a brand, someone has to:

Delimit the interest for a specific geographical area Analyze the characteristics and the functions of the service or product which is labeled The next step is to compare the created potential brand to other similar brands already existing in the defined territory, the main question being what is the difference between this brand and the rest? Another important issue is to see what the main attraction for the potential is clients, what are their expectations All these questions answered, the branding may begin. The local brand of a community is represented by its distinctive characteristics, shared by a large part of the community. In this way the brand can be naturally promoted and developed. The main function of a local brand is to raise the curiosity and determine the tourist to visit the place. The smaller the region the more concrete the local brand. The larger the region the brand gets more diffused and it will not accomplish its main function to attract. A good example is McDonalds Company, which, according to the statistics, is the most popular brand on the planet. A lot a people know the products but nobody is interested anymore where it comes from and how it started and no one visits a place with the main purpose to get the product. The first step to shape a local branding is to gather a group of people of the community preferably older ones and to identify the main traditions and historical implications of the region. It is important to see which one of those features is still alive and which are into the places legend. In both cases it can be part of the brand, because many of the rural tourism businesses were started based on resuscitating old believes and traditions E.g. The Village Bran near Brasov identified as the home of the Vampire Lord Drakula, attracting annually impressive numbers of foreign tourists.

The advantage of a local branding are: authenticity, originality, a strong symbol that penetrates the minds of the potential customers and make them act and come

and visit. The disadvantage is that a good brand attracts many tourists and the region must provide good infrastructure and a safe environment, in order to satisfy needs of a large number of solicitants. But all these can be overcome by an appropriate planning and a well prepared marketing campaign. Tips to verify the characteristics and the adequacy of your local brand: A brand is stronger if the territory is smaller and well defined - it will attract punctually A brand is stronger if it will focus its distinction and will not diffuse in many characteristics of the same place A brand will be sustained with advertising, but it will also need a publicity campaign articles in a newspaper, participation to events where people would talk about you, other public relations events. The best brands are those which concentrate in a strong word that transmits the essence of the brand (E.g. Drakula) In order for a brand to be recognized on the market, it has to prove its authenticity Quality is not a necessity of a local branding, but it can be contained. Sometimes the main characteristics of a place are linked to roughness and hard conditions, rather than comfort. A brand is stronger if it is difficult to replicate, so it stays singularly on the market and it is a highlighted attraction point. Sometimes if similar brands appear, this will kill the initial brand, especially if it has no protection. So in order to maintain and develop a local brand we will need also a specific and supportive legislation. The statistics show clearly that the businesses build on the idea of creation and promotion of a local brand is much stronger, have more clients and better sustainability.

Opening a rural pension:


In the last years the economical power of the Romanians grew. This fact, linked with the speeding of the informational process in the rural tourism, determined an increasing number of small entrepreneurs to start businesses in this field of work. The present legislation requires a set of procedures in order to start a rural pension, as it follows. In present days in Romania the existing rural pensions have different offers for all pockets, from simple rooms to complex houses with pool in the yard. The services vary from bed & breakfast to mountain guides. The more complex the services, the higher the pension are placed.

Classification of the pensions:


Depending on the number and quality of services provided, the rural pensions are classified legally in pensions of 1, 2, 3 or 4 daisies. The main reason for the classification of the pensions is to insure the protection of the tourists, by providing a coded set of standards in comfort and service quality. The classification of the tourism structures is decided by the Office for Tourism Authorization and Control, based on the Government Decision nr. 972/1998 regarding the organization and functioning of the National Authority for Tourism. This is the only institution entitled to authorize companies in developing tourism activities.

Criteria of classification for the touristic and agro touristic pensions:


The Romanian law states a number of criteria of selection for the rural and urban pensions, considering: Number of rooms Facilities for meal preparation and serving Providing of certain products Sanitary problems Complementary services

The tourist pensions are tourist structures with an accommodation capacity of: Maximum 10 rooms and maximum 30 places - in the rural area Maximum 20 rooms in the urban area The pension may function in the owners house or in independent buildings which will provide adequate accommodation places and dining spaces for tourists. Agro touristic pensions are structures that have the production capacity to provide 30% of the ingredients for meals. The placement of the pensions, rural as well as urban, has to be made in areas protected from pollution or other elements that might affect the tourists life or health. The spaces designated for the use of the tourists will be exclusively at their disposal. The deposit of any personal objects of the owners in the rooms or in the bathrooms (clothes, shoes, other private objects which would disturb the comfort of the clients) is forbidden. The National Authority for Tourism classifies the pensions also taking into consideration the rooms used for preparing and serving the meals. It is important to determine if these spaces are only for the clients or they are also for the outside customers. This will be possible only if the number of places in the dining room will exceed with minimum 10 places the number of places for accommodation. The agro tourist pensions which own land for camping will have to meet the sanitary requirements concerning the tourist camping, as well as the regulations regarding the dimension of the parcels for each tent and wagon.

Marketing of the rural tourism activities:


Once a business is started in the rural tourism, once the pension is ready and authorized, the local brand identified and the requests of the market registered, begins the work of promoting the services in such way to attract a large number of customers. For that, any pension owner will need a marketing plan. The marketing concept is an innovation of the Twentieth century which governs both the economic theory and especially the daily economic practices.

The etymologic origins of the word marketing come from English, where the verb "to market" means the development of some market operations of the transactions kind (to sell and to buy). Nowadays the marketing is viewed as the essential element of any organization, the "miraculous solution" that solves the problem of any business. The "marketing" notion is used in practice in three different contexts: 1. The marketing process, which operates at the level of the marketing channel that makes the connection between the producing company and its market; 2. The marketing concept, that is limited to consider the marketing as a social change process, that implies producers and consumers; 3. The marketing as an assemblage of action means of the company in its relation with the customers, who includes the four components of the marketing mix (the product, the price, the distribution and the promotion); 4. The orientation to the marketing, which take account of the consumers and also the producers, facilitating in the same time the process and the concept of marketing; 5. The marketing as a way to maximize the profit. The numerous meanings associated to the marketing concept generated also a diversity of the concept's definitions. In this way, we don't want to become partisans of a certain orientation but we shall build the entire theory by presenting some fundamental concepts of the marketing activity, focusing our attention on the marketing in the rural tourism field. The rural tourism marketing imposes a double reference, both at the general macroeconomic context level (macroeconomic tourist level) and at the restraint economic activity level (microeconomic tourist level). In this way, we may considerate the concept of macroeconomic tourist marketing as being the process of changing tourist products and services at the national, regional or local economic level. Similarly, the microeconomic tourist marketing

names the process of realizing the profit as a result of developing activities of change with tourist products and services by a company, boarding house etc. Similar to the general marketing, the tourist marketing also has specific instruments that act as a unitary whole and are in an organic dependent relation according to the principle of the system concept: so, the components product, tariff, distribution, and promotion are in a complementary relation, mutually conditioned and keeping an equilibrium imposed by the chosen marketing strategy. The complementarities of the marketing instruments as a result of the assumed decisions are known in the specialty literature under the name of marketing-mix or the mix of marketing. The main elements that differentiate the marketing in the rural tourism from other forms of tourism may be synthesized as follows (after Roca E. R., 2001): The decision to "buy" the tourist product is based especially on the emotional factor by rapport to the rational one. This reason is based on the fact that the rural tourism is practices mostly in the family context and the success of acquiring the rural tourist products depends on the image and the tourist experience of all family members and also on the way in which offers or might offer satisfactions to all family members; The complexity of the services in the rural tourism has a relative character, meaning that the diversity of the complementary activities (rest, treatment, cultural etc.) is restricted comparatively to other forms of tourism; The promotion of the product in the rural tourism relays in most of cases on an intermediate (tourism agency, specialized companies, specialized web hosts etc.) or it is realized directly by the "services offertory". In this way, the decision of the rural tourist products' consumer depends directly on the image that is offered by the intermediates (distribution channels) regarding the quality of the rural tourist services, these having the role of experts in the consumer's opinion; The seasonal character of the tourist product and services caused by the natural, social or cultural factors influences directly the elements of the marketing mix. This is why the promoting activities are realised especially during the out of season periods, the price and distribution are at the

maximal level during the season and after that, again, there come periods of maintaining-repairing works and projects for the future tourist products.

The rural tourism product:


The tourism product is the essential element of the marketing mix in agro-tourism, all other "classical" elements being strictly determined by this because the product is distributed, promoted and for it too it is established the price. The tourist product must satisfy the diversity of the consumers' needs and because of that the "producer", to obtain an advantageous profit, must determine the multidimensional nature of the consume demand and supply only those goods that are asked by the tourists. The tourism product offered by the rural tourism includes an ensemble of products and services (board and lodging, entertaining etc.) exploited within a specific context, influenced by the natural factors of a region, locality. The quality of the tourist product is directly related to the exploitation of the tourist patrimony of that area, considering the natural resource, the general infrastructure and especially the quality of the human resources implied in the tourism activity. The rural tourism product may be designed also related to the information previously obtained regarding: The tourists (consumers) in this case we are relating to a segmentation of the market using the criteria: age, profession/occupation, residence, incomes, habits etc. The concurrence relating to the existing tourist supply on the market from other rural tourism operators may help to identify and permanently adapt the personal offer of tourist services and products, to personalize and differentiate it from the concurrence's offer and in the same time to promote it efficiently. The tourist potential of the area supposes a good knowledge and use of the tourist resources placed in the destination areas: natural resources, cultural values, infrastructure, entertainment, historical or religious targets etc. The fundamental elements of a tourist product that has to be distributed by

specialized networks (tourism agencies, tourism operators etc.) may be synthesized as follows: Attractiveness resources: climacterics, landscapes, historical, cultural, tourist services as a motivation to come again in the same location; Infrastructure: access roads, means of transportation, telecommunications, transportation services which may be included in the services packet or left to the client to choose; Reception locations and restaurants: reception, accommodation and food offers are the primary ingredient of the tourist product and the premise to retain the visitor in his staying; Complementary equipments:

Permanent: entertainment, sportive and cultural installations, special features of a tourist centre for a varied and attractive leisure time; Occasional: cultural, artistic, commercial events (fairs, exhibitions, festivals); Human resources: civic education, technical, professional and cultural knowledge, aesthetic education, hospitality (the tourism being an "industry of hospitality"). Synthesizing the characteristics of the rural tourist product, it must be mentioned that this must observe the exigencies of any product offered on the market and most of the following demands: Trademark; Optimal rapport quality price; Singularity and originality on the local, regional, national tourist market; Diversification of the tourist services.

The rural tourist market:


The rural tourist market refers to the economic field of the rural tourist supply concretized by the rural tourist supply (the tourist production) and the rural tourist services' demand (tourist services' consume). Unlike the consumer goods market, the rural tourism market has the following specific elements:

The place of the supply is the same with the place of the consume, but may differ from the place of setting up de demand; The rural tourist supply is the result of a mental image that the potential consumer (the tourist) made using the information directly or indirectly received; The rural tourist supply has a non-flexibility character, meaning that it is not elastic in time and space, and cannot be stored or transformed; The rural tourist demand is very elastic and under a permanent dynamics generated by several factors of economic, social, circumstantial nature; It address itself, momentarily, to a restrained market segment (market niche) that contents consumers of rural tourist services and products with special requests and who are disposed to pay bigger prices for those products that correspond to their requirements. In contrast with the goods market, the tourism market, especially the market of the rural tourism means to sell services and products with a high degree of abstraction, products and services relatively "invisible" which can be quantitatively and qualitatively estimated only partial and indirect. In reality the rural tourist market must be seen as a rapport in permanent dynamics between the tourist demand and the tourist supply, the success of the equilibrium of the two parties being the indirect consequence of the permanent segmentation of the market. The elements that constitute the rural tourist market are synthesized as follows: The supply of the rural tourist products may be presented by a great number of economic agents (SRL, tourism agencies, authorized persons etc.) who develop activities of transport, accommodation, alimentation, leisure, excursions etc., all of them being elements of the "tourist product"; The demand of the rural tourist products comprise the broad mass of the consumers, either internal (local), or external (from outside of the locality, including the foreign tourists); The legal frame in force, which regulates the regime of the tourist circulation, the duration of the holiday, the conditions of moving in territory,

the public transport, the ways of services' accreditation, the qualitative category of the tourist services and products etc.; The distribution channels of the rural tourist products, that has various forms, from the direct distribution of the products until the distribution by "specialized networks", this time represented by tourist agencies; The information and promotion means necessary to "make aware" and transmit to the consumer of all the tourist products offered by the specialized companies; The concurrence of the rural tourist products, represented by the ensemble of other rural tourist products existing on the marked, offered by other tourist companies, economic agents etc. (from the country and abroad) which exist on the market in the same time with the personal offer; The tourist context which in the rural space refers at the physical environment with the existing natural resources and, in the same time, at the influence of the social, economic, cultural and even political factors in which the economic agents of the tourist organizations are developing their activity.

The price:
As an element of the marketing mix, the price is the amount of money that the buyer (the tourist) is disposed and is able to offer to the producer in exchange for the tourist services and products that this one is capable to offer. The price is the less controllable element for the supplier of the rural tourist products and services, because its real level is established on the market under the influence of various objective or subjective factors the he cannot determine, he can only influence them by the quantity of the tourist products offered and the level of the production costs he realized. However, even being the less flexible element regarding the intervention of the rural tourist services' supplier, the price may be influenced more easily during a short period of time. Even being the less controllable element at the internal level, the price generates much quicker effects, in fact immediate effects comparative to other elements of the marketing mix. So, both the demand of the rural tourist services and products

and especially the concurrence on the tourist market react much more easily to the price's variation than the changes of the image or distribution of the tourist products. When elaborates the price policy for the supplied tourist products and services, the supplier (the agro-tourist boarding house or the tourism operator) must rely both on the internal factors and on the external factors. The internal factors that operate in the process of the price developing are: The production cost it means the ensemble of the expenditures that the supplier of the rural tourist services is doing to realise a specific product or service; The phase of the life-cycle of the product/service is a factor that must be taken into consideration because usually in the introductory phase it is used a relatively high price, the growing phase a moderate one, in the maturity phase the price begins to decrease and in the decline phase, related to other factors, the price may grow or diminish; The distribution strategy influences the price by gaining the access at the distribution channels; The promotion strategy is correlated to the price, which becomes an promotional instrument; The internal organization designs the responsibilities in the field of settling and control of prices depending on the organizational structure of the company. The external factors that exercise the most consistent pressure on settling the price of a tourist product or service: The demand of tourist product and services, quantified into the number of the tourists that acquire the rural tourist products and services within a determined period of time. Usually between the price of the rural tourist products and services and the market demand there is an inversely proportional relation. The concurrence reveals the structure of the local, regional or national rural tourist market in which the boarding house offers its tourist services and products. Regarding the market concurrence it is important to differentiate

between the concurrence's natures and to be able to adapt the price strategy of the products and services that are offered. The supply of the rural products and services refers to the production capacity of the company, which is going to be revealed in the price. In this way, the tourist supplier must choose between two extremes: a higher price with a small offer or a bigger offer with a smaller price. The demand's research shall offer him the possibility to select the optimal solution. Other socio-economic factors as: the economic conjuncture, the phase of the economic cycle, the social protection of the consumers etc., which are to be observed by every company if need be.

The promotion:
The promotion is the fourth element of the marketing mix, many theorists considering it as being the most important for the success in the business of the rural tourism. The promotions refers to an ensemble of activities, information means and drawing the attention of the potential customers (tourists) to the selling stations (for the rural tourism, in most of cases the selling stations are the same with the boarding house), for the purpose of satisfying their needs and wishes and implicitly of growing the economic efficiency of tourist services and products supplier. The complementary use of the promotion tools and techniques to accomplish the proposed aims is defining for the promotional mix. The components of the promotional mix are: the publicity, the personal retail, the sales' promotion and the public relations, each of them having different particularities and approach ways. Talking about the specific of the rural tourism activity, we consider that the element of the promotional mix that is the most efficient is the publicity. In promoting the rural tourist services and products it is recommended to ask for intermediary services, in this case the tour-operators, who, in most of cases, are integrated in specific networks. To enjoy the advantages that the tour-operators are able to offer, the following requirements must be observed: the quality of the tourist products and services, the supply's volume, the originality/singularity of the agro tourism operator, the commercial addition, necessary to cover the marketing

costs and finely, the financial advantage that must be obtained by all the partners implied in this circuit. The efficiency of the promotion activities for the rural tourist services and products may be raised if the entire promoting process is observed at the following levels: At the rural inhabitants' farmsteads/boarding houses level, in this case it is recommended to realize advertising materials that offer the information about the farmstead, the accommodation and transport conditions, information about the family's cuisine, crafts etc. At the village, tourist zone level, the promotion may be realized using a written advertising material (tourist guide), video cassettes etc. This material must catalogue all the farmsteads/boarding houses that are prepared for agro tourism, including information about the entire territory, the interesting points etc. At the regional level, it should be drawn a more ample material that should reveal more characteristic elements of that ensemble (egg. ara Oaului). At the national level, it can be published a guide, an agro-tourist guidebook that may orient over an area with tourist potential. In any material that promotes rural tourist services and products must be included the following categories of information: The name of the locality, the name of the family, the photography of the house/pension, the symbols of the animals that are held in the farmstead; Detailed information about the agro-tourist household (number o rooms, number of beds, facilities, utilities etc.); The number of meals, the products that may be served in the farmstead; Other specific elements: arts and crafts, direct sales etc.; The way in which that village, zone can be reached (the road, the distance to the closest town, the means of transportation, road restrictions etc.) even a sketch with the farm place related to the access ways and the means of transportation that the tourist can use; The most interesting elements of the agro-tourist offer.

The promotion campaigns for the agro-tourist services and products can be realized also by organizing exhibitions with images of the farms, the publicity made on some trade fairs, statutory holiday, activities related to various customs (mainly agricultural) or by organizing meals on certain tourist routes, with traditional meals or tasting of wine or fruits etc. On all this situations it shall be distributed publicity materials representing the zone and the possibilities of agro-tourism. A modern promoting way, accessible for the tourists, is the presentation of the tourist services and products supply using the Internet, by designing a presentation site which should contain: A short description of the area, the geographic environment regarding the relief, the climate, the vegetation, the fauna etc.; The page that presents the local folklore, the myths, the customs, the traditions etc.; Services' offer: the catalogue of the available accommodations, the periods of time in which these may be rented, the personnel, the prices, the access possibilities, options for leisure time, supplementary services etc. The present material was conceived in order to offer help to beginners in the rural tourism business. It is a synthetic overview of the steps one entrepreneur has to take in order to start up and develop a company in this field. The focus of the material is on the marketing of the rural tourism because statistics show that more than 70% of the failed businesses are caused by insufficient and ineffective promotion of the services and products. This work is a guide and a check list, an instrument to be used in practice.

CONCLUSIONS
Rural tourism could be a strategy for sustainable development for rural areas and also could be a tool for product differentiation for area that is at stagnation stage of the Destination Life Cycle model of Butler (1986). Although, Tourist commission advises that: 1. Not all areas are suitable for development 2. Not all communities wish to be developed or are suitable for development 3. Not all forms of tourism activity are acceptable in every location 4. There may have to be employed to prevent or repair environmental damage caused by visitor pressure. Rural tourism is a good opportunity for agricultural based communities but the setting of objectives and the final tourism development plan needs caution. For better results the whole ranges of the stakeholders have to participate in the planning stage. Slow and stable steps needs for this kind of planning in order conflicts and mistakes to be avoided.

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