Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Young Consumers Can Influence Spending
As Sutherland and Thompson (2001) explain through the sub-group
framework, young people are effective at influencing and pestering adults into
purchasing on their behalf. This skill in persuading adults was highlighted
in VisitBritain's
Families Research
published in 2006, which investigated how
young people persuade parents where to holiday. The research claimed that
family holidays account for at least a third of all holiday trips in the UK
and the key influencer on where the family visits is made either directly or
indirectly by the children.
The National Trust, a major tourism organisation in the UK, experienced
a similar pattern and believed that children had some influence on which
National Trust sights the family visited (National Trust, 2010). As this was
anecdotal, the Trust engaged the Market Research Group at Bournemouth
University to investigate the issue, and the results indicated that the children
influenced in more than 50% of all visits (John Bracktsone, 2007, personal
communication). While both sets of market analysis specifically focused
on short holidays in Britain, the findings can also be considered for other
destinations when developing marketing strategies, particularly destination
campaigns for the family holiday. These results reflect what Weaver and
Lawton (2006: 175) describe as 'an interesting factor in the [destination]
decision-making process, since they [young people] do not usually have
much of an actual say, but exercise a strong influence over their parents'.
Similar findings were realised through research undertaken by both Aus-
tralia's National Capital Authority and the University of Canberra's Centre
for Tourism (in the National Capital Educational Tourism Project). Their
findings revealed that 40% of students (aged 8-14) visiting the Australian
capital, Canberra, for educational purposes returned to the city for a family
holiday within two years. As the children enthusiastically discuss their
initial school visit with their parents, this influences a family holiday return
trip (Ritchie & Uzabeaga, 2005).
The Young Traveller - Why the Need to Target Them
While some tourism operators may not believe that young people can
influence major purchases, such as holidays or cars, there is evidence that
they do (Lindstrom, 2004; Schor, 2005). This is supported by Thornton
et
al
., who contend that the tourism industry has traditionally believed that
if young people do have influence in this area it is only in 'making small-
scale choices and none in major resource-binding (expensive) and infrequent
purchases, such as holidays' (Ekstrom
et al
., 1986, as cited in Thornton
et al
.,
1997: 289.)
Thornton
et al
. take this point further by adding: 'this possibility of
children being active participants, or negotiators, in family decisions has
