SATISFACTION OF TOURISTS IN SERBIA, DESTINATION IMAGE, loyalty and dmo service quality Author: Mr. Ivan Paunović, MBA, M.Sc Doctoral studies student, Singidunum University, Belgrade, Serbia Email: paun.bg@gmail.com Skype: paun.bg Mobile phone: +381 63 64 64 48

Introduction DMO’s and other decision- makers in tourism need simple, usable quantitative benchmarking models Cooper emphasizes that macro and micro environments are in a constant state of change and evolution, which makes important for decision makers to recognize the magnitude of the events shaping the future

Research questions RQ1: What are the principal components of tourist satisfaction in Serbia? RQ2: What is the mutual relation between service quality, tourist satisfaction, destination (brand) loyalty and destination (brand) image? RQ3: What are the essential elements of the service quality, destination (brand) loyalty, and destination (brand) image?

Tourist satisfaction components-Principal component analysis   Component 1 2 3 4 Nature .768 -.095 -.083 .626 Culture -.723 .521 .268 .358 History -.536 .495 .643 .127 SafetySecurity .917 .032 .207 -.188 Food .185 .686 -.663 -.222 Accomodation .283 .630 -.709 .059 Nightlife -.429 .795 .285 -.319 ProfessionalismOfService .737 .502 .287 -.348 CustomerOrientation .564 .759 .294 -.006 HospitalityOfPopulation .796 .570 .146 -.020 Cleanliness .949 -.047 .298 .050 Transportation .861 .020 .408 Attractions -.715 .641 .258 VarietyOfOffers -.323 .879 -.310 .103 Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis. a. 4 components extracted.

the relation between tourist satisfaction, destination loyalty, IMAGE and DMO service quality Destination (Brand) Image Destination(Brand) Loyalty Tourist Satisfaction DMO Service Quality There are many factors that influence the totality of the tourist experience, and satisfaction is only one of the tools to measure it, while other important tools are destination image, destination loyalty and service quality

Reasons for visiting Serbia as a tourist destination

Destination (brand) loyalty COMPONENTS Strong national destination brands support the private companies in tourism-they act as umbrella brands Dolnicar found strong evidence that one of the main drivers of airline carrier loyalty is the fact that it is the national carrier Place dependence Place identity Behavioral intention Uniqueness of the destination Authenticity

Destination (brand) image The WTTC forecasts that attractive brand image will be crucial for Serbia to succeed in tourism in the short- and medium-term. Old-fashioned/ dusty vs. Aesthetically attractive Boring vs. Inspiring Relaxing vs. Stressful Hospitable vs. Unfriendly Family friendly vs. Alternative Authentic/ original/real vs. fake Overrun vs. Enjoyable Convivial vs. cold Easygoing/ unconventional vs. Elitist Conservative vs. innovative Reserved vs. Outgoing Cultivated vs. ignorant Safe vs. dangerous Romantic vs. down-to earth Environmentally aware vs. unsustainable Chick/Happening vs. outdated Exclusive vs. value for money Cosmopolitan vs. provincial Harmonious vs. distorted Lively vs. quiet

PUBLIC INSTITUTION SERVICE QUALITY COMPONENTS proposed BY Common assessment framework The principal component analysis demonstrated that professionalism of service (or service quality) has very strong influence on the tourism satisfaction

ADDITIONAL DMO SERVICE QUALITY COMPONENTS Social responsibility and environmental sustainability results Key performance results: degree of market internationalization (domestic international, global), DMO budget/overnights ratio, percentage of budget used for promotional activities, Use of social media Crisis Management System

Conclusions and recommendations Tourist satisfaction has cognitive and emotional aspects which cannot be easily measured. As evidenced in the tourism literature and our primary research, the essential part of the tourist satisfaction is always satisfaction with the human contact, and the perception of the people on the destination. Those components are: safety, hospitality, and professionalism.

Conclusions and recommendations Tourist satisfaction, although one of the most important benchmarks for destination competitiveness, should not be considered without consideration of other related marketing tools such as destination loyalty, destination image and service quality. Destination (Brand) Image Destination(Brand) Loyalty Tourist Satisfaction DMO Service Quality

Questions? Thank you for your attention