CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR AND DECISION MAKING 42

The majority of tourists to the country are Muslims on pilgrimage. Most pilgrims arrive from neighbouring and Asian countries like India, where there is a sizeable Muslim population. To develop the MICE sector, this is highly inadequate. The country needs to attract non-Muslims from other the important markets.

In marketing, a consumer is attracted to a product only if it fulfils a felt need. The consumer should feel that the product is essential for some purpose. Therefore, it is essential to know what the customer wants and what factors affect the choice of a specific product within this want. The same principle needs to be applied for attracting customers to MICE in the KSA. This can be achieved through research on how MICE participants select their destinations, or in other words the decision making processes of MICE participants.

One method is to frame a decision making model of MICE participants. But this can be done only if all factors that contribute to decision making are known. Many

research studies have proposed and used models of consumer decision making. Before directly considering the decision making models of MICE participants, consideration of the more generalised models of consumer decision making, and their application to tourism is necessary.

3.3.1  MODELS  OF  CONSUMER  DECISION  MAKING  

How consumers behave with respect to decision making is the most important aspect which ultimately determines the success or failure of business. This applies to any sector including the MICE sector. Therefore, models and frameworks of consumer behaviour and decision making may be viewed at three levels: general consumer models, tourism related models, and specific models of the MICE sector. 3.3.2  GENERAL  CONSUMER  BEHAVIOUR  MODELS  

According to Moutinho (1987), decisions result from choosing one action from two or more alternatives. There are many theories on consumer decision-making. For example, Yoo and Chon (2008) evaluated various theories of consumer decision making, while others have taken different approaches such as expected utility theory (von Neumann & Morgenstern, 1947) prospects theory (Kahneman & Tversky, 1974), regret theory, satisficing theory (Simon, 1957), theory of reasoned action (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980) and its variant, and planned behaviour theory (Ajzen, 1987).

Expected utility theory proposes a method to rationally choose a product when the outcome of that choice is uncertainty risk. For example, this applies to the first-time MICE participants to the KSA, when they perceive certain risks involved in the trip. Thus perception becomes an important factor determining whether this theory is applicable to MICE participants’ destination choice of the KSA. The decision making process is more complex when the potential MICE participants to the KSA have other competing options. In this study, responses to the questions on safety and friendliness included in perceptions and destination variables are indicative of risk perception. High response rates towards the extreme importance of safety, indicates that this issue is serious. But to know the extent to which it affected the decision to visit the KSA can be evaluated only by estimation of its relationship with the number of visit frequencies. This theory views the consumer as a rational economic man.

Sometimes probabilistic alternatives determine the choice of a destination. Here, prospects theory applies. The MICE participant weighs the probabilities of uncertainty risks of some MICE destinations and chooses the one perceived to have minimum risk probability. Here too, the responses on questions on safety perceptions apply as above. The degree of uncertainty about the risk is given by comparison of the response rate from not at all important to high importance.

The possibility of a wrong destination choice can lead to feeling regret over the choice. This is regret theory. Regret is more visible after the effects of the choice are felt. Thus, feeling regret over the choice of the KSA as a MICE destination for example occurs if the choice leads to undesirable tour experiences. A comparison of what was expected before tour and the post-tour response on experiences indicates this. If the MICE participants are satisfied, the choice is not wrong and therefore there is no need to regret. High importance attached to all destination parameters is indicative of the right choice if revisit intensions are high. Then the theory does not apply.

Satisficing theory proposes that decisions are made when an acceptable threshold is met from searching the available alternatives. For example, the decision to select the KSA as a MICE destination can be made only after searching alternatives and selecting the KSA because it has the minimum threshold. Indirect evidence of this is the source of information. If the decision was made in response to an email, the decision is in response to the email. In that case, the theory does not apply. If the decision is based on web search or word of mouth or social media, the decision could have been made after considering other alternatives, although it need not necessarily be so. The theory is applicable only in the case of answers to sources of information such as the web or word of mouth.

Theory of reasoned action proposes that decisions are based on pre-existing attitudes and behavioural intentions. The decision is based on the intentions created by pre-existing attitudes and subjective norms. It becomes reasoned due to the compromise between a prediction to stop the behaviour and actually predicting the behaviour. If in the case of non-Muslims, negative perceptions result in a high probability of preventing them from visiting the country, but if the visit occurs, then a reasoned action occurs. Here the reasoning factor, negative perception, decreases the probability of visiting, although there is an intention to visit. In this study, the

opposite is true. In spite of negative attitude factors, non-Muslims have visited the KSA. The responses to attitude questions, especially by non-Muslim participants, may be explained by this theory. Comparison between Muslim and non-Muslims can further enlighten this aspect.

The theory of planned behaviour is an extension of the theory of reasoned action. One more factor, predictive behaviour control, is added to the earlier model. This was done to account for not acting as per intentions due to lack of confidence or lack of control over the behaviour. This theory links beliefs and behaviour. For example, the belief that the KSA is a desirable MICE destination arises out of favourable attitudes and perceptions. When that occurs, planned behaviour is the visit itself. In this study only people who actually visit the KSA are proposed to be examined. So the decision of not visiting can be evaluated only indirectly from the not important response to revisit intentions.

Svenson (1992), proposed a differentiation and consolidation theory. The differentiation part of the theory assumes decision making as an active process in which one alternative is gradually differentiated from others. Once the best product is determined, a consolidation process involving justification for the choice is found. Uncertainty about the future of the product makes the consumer lower the risks of failure. For example, consumers differentiate the KSA from other destinations. Favourable attitudes towards the KSA reflect the ultimate selection of the KSA. Once the KSA is chosen, the parameters arising from attitudes, become parameters of justification. However, uncertainty about the future of the KSA as a MICE destination may not be a significant factor. This is because, same or different types and levels of uncertainties exist for other destinations as well. More likely, the consumer selects the MICE destination as new opportunities arise in the course of time. The conditions prevailing at that time may be the factors of differentiation. Thus, there is no need to lower the risk perception.

Therefore, any one or more theories may be applicable to explain parts of the observed findings. The ultimate aim of this study is to attract more attendees and especially non-Muslims from the main MICE markets to the KSA. If the finings reveal the reasons for non-Muslims selecting or not selecting the KSA as a MICE destination, the predictive applications of the theories can be used for identifying strategies to attract more attendees as MICE participants to the KSA.

Some more theories and models were discussed by Swarbrooke & Horner (2007). The theory of buyer behaviour by Howard & Seth (1969) describes several social, psychological and marketing factors influencing consumer decisions. The consumer decision model suggested by Engel et al. (1968) has been revised several times, with the latest model similar to the theory of buyer behaviour, but structured differently. The cognitive approaches were replaced by humanistic theories.

The theory of trying and the theory of goal-directed behaviour were proposed by Bagozzi & Warshaw (1990) and Perugini & Bagozzi (2001) respectively. The latter has been adapted from the theory of planned action adding more variables. The applicability of any of these theories in this study context also depends on the nature of findings obtained as explained above.

Swarbrooke and Horner (2007) held that consumer behaviour models serve the purpose of simplifying the relationship of various factors that impact consumer behaviour. But if they explain only parts of the findings as noted here, they may, in fact complicate the relationships.

Mair (2005) proposed two models for situations when there is uncertainty of brand attributes. Both were dynamic models: one related to immediate utility and the other, future use. Usage experience and advertisement exposure influenced brand choice probabilities in both models. Consumers were found to be risk-averse for variations of brand attributes. This discourages buying unknown brands. Advertising had weak short-term effects but cumulative long-term effects. For example, if the KSA is marketed as a brand representing rich traditional Islamic culture, it is no longer an unknown brand. This will enhance the number of visitors including non-Muslims. However, should more non-Muslims be attracted as a part of a total increase in visit volumes, or should a deliberate branding strategy be directed towards non-Muslims? According to Mair (2005), a significant proportion of purchases, including first purchases, do not involve any decision making process at all. However, this theory has not received serious attention and is not considered in this study.

Thus, MICE trip decision making is influenced by motivation, perception gained from information obtained either from own experience or of others, and attitudes developed towards specific destinations compared to others. Unlike general consumers, tourism consumers need to spend a lot of money and travel time.

Uncertainties about new destinations can make the tourist cautious and select the destination perceived to be safe. In the next subsection, these dimensions are reviewed critically with respect to some decision making models applied specifically to tourism.