CONSUMER BEHAVIOR IN TOURISM: FEATURES OF THE MODEL AND METHODS OF STUDY

Abstract

The article examines the features of the model and methods of studying consumer behavior in tourism. The relevance of the chosen topic of the article is determined by the dynamics of changes in the consumer behavior of tourists, radical changes in their preferences and decision-making criteria under various external influences, primarily the COVID-19 pandemic and military operations. It is noted that the behavior of consumers of services in the market of the hospitality and tourism industry has its own characteristics related to the immateriality of tourist services, the delayed period and remoteness of the place of consumption, inflated expectations of tourists, reflection and evaluation of the tourist's own experience.
 A five-level model of consumer-tourist behavior has been adapted for the field of tourism and it is concluded that the greater is the gap between the expected and actual properties of the tourist product, the more acute is the consumer's dissatisfaction, which may affect the consumer's further behavior, his/her tourist motives, and re-appeal.
 The methods of research of consumer behavior in tourism are considered, the attention is focused on the survey method and focus groups, which are actively used in tourism practice. The results of the latest research on consumer behavior according to the own methods of global consulting agencies, travel aggregators, expert communities, professional organizations, travel portals, which should be taken into account by the players of the travel market, are described.
 In general, the understanding of the stages, a tourist goes through in the process of buying a tour, gives the travel company the opportunity to fully satisfy his/her needs, establish long-term interaction and increase loyalty. And the understanding of the role of various participants in the process of purchasing and the factors that influence purchasing behavior when buying a tourist product enables the travel company to develop an effective program to support the demand for tourist services.
 It is concluded that in order to increase the level of satisfaction of tourists, it is necessary to address the following factors: safety, emotions, hospitality of residents, ecology, tourist infrastructure, quality of service, logistics, availability and completeness of tourist information, convenience of planning and booking a trip, prices. It is also important to pay attention to the motives of tourists for traveling and to take into account the emergence of a new solvent young generation of consumers who have their own consumer preferences.