The influence of customer value On behavioural intention in the LGBT tourism sector

The potential economic implications of the LGBT tourism sector have received the attention of scholars, marketing practitioners and tourism destinations, highlighting the LGBT community as a lucrative sector, while also signifying their distinctive needs of the LGBT community. LGBT tourists spent approximately $218 billion on travel in 2018 and they account for approximately 6% of the global tourism market. The LGBT tourism sector is fast growing in South Africa, and it was predicted that by 2030, South Africa will attract approximately 21 million tourists. Within South Africa, Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg have earned a reputation as LGBT friendly destinations, with LGBT tourists expected to contribute approximately R1.8 billion to the Cape Town economy annually. Furthermore, between 10% and 12% of tourists in Cape Town identified themselves as members of the LGBT community. As a result, South Africa – and notably Cape Town – has been named one of the world’s top destinations for LGBT travellers. A well-known characteristic of the LGBT community is that it is comprised of highincome individuals who travel more frequently compared with their heterosexual counterparts. As a result, it is critical for the tourism sector to gain a thorough understanding of this market to effectively target it. Although travel and tourism are critical aspects of the modern LGBT culture, and LGBT tourism represents a developing and lucrative industry (especially in South Africa), there is limited scholarly research that can assist marketers in better understanding the LGBT tourists and their needs. In addition, no research has been conducted on the relationship between customer value and behavioural intentions in the LGBT tourism sector in South Africa. A major challenge for the tourism sector is the ability to offer value to LGBT tourists; therefore, destinations targeting the LGBT market should ensure that they understand how to create value for their customers. v LGBT tourism is considered unique in that the LGBT tourist views value differently than other markets. It is important to understand the dimensions of value to the LGBT market, as LGBT tourists are likely to be discouraged from visiting destinations that do not provide value, which has a significant impact on behavioural intentions. This study, therefore, investigated the dimensions of customer value and their influence on the behavioural intentions of tourists in the South African LGBT tourism sector. A self-administered electronic questionnaire was used to collect data, and 406 usable questionnaires was received. SPSS version 27.0 and Analysis of Movement Structures (AMOS) version 27.0 statistical packages were used to analyse the collected data and test the relationships between the variables examined in this study. The empirical results of this study showed a positive correlation between most dimensions of customer value and behavioural intention while a negative correlation coefficient was observed between cognitive dissonance and dimensions of customer value. The results confirm a positive significant relationship between the independent variables - functional value, emotional value, reputational value, epistemic value, social value - and the dependent variable - customer value. These relationships imply that if functional value, emotional value, reputational value, epistemic value and/or social value, customer value would improve. Interestingly, the findings show a significant positive relationship between monetary and non-monetary sacrifice, and customer value dimensions. These relationships imply that if monetary sacrifice and non-monetary sacrifice increase, customer value would increase. The findings also reveal that customer value has an influence on behavioural intention. Lastly, customer value was not found to be a mediating factor between customer value dimensions and behavioural vi intentions outcomes, namely revisit intention, tourist loyalty, willingness to pay a premium price and word of mouth. Findings from this study could aid destination marketers to ensure that they provide functional, emotional, reputational, epistemic and social value to tourists to gain competitive advantage. LGBT tourists need a safe haven where they can relax and enjoy themselves without fear of societal discrimination, and destinations should do their best to make this happen. This might be accomplished by creating a space where travellers who identify as LGBT can gather and mingle freely. In addition, to improve revisit intention, positive word of mouth and loyalty, tourist destinations should provide unique experiences. Destination marketers should engage in a number of marketing initiatives, including promoting South African LGBT tourism destinations at tourism expos, LGBT music festivals and prides. Lastly, limitations of the study and future research directions are presented.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Business and Economic science, 202