Journal of Tourism and Development

Journal of Tourism and Development

Classification of tour and activity business models using cluster analysis

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Esmaeil Ghaderi 1
mohammadtaghi Taghavifard 2
Jafar Bapiri 3
1 Tourism management department, Management and accounting faculty, Allameh Tabatabaei University
2 Industrial Management Department, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabatabaei University
3 Tourism Management Department, Faculty of Management and Accounting, Allameh Tabatabae'i University
10.22034/jtd.2019.174844.1674
Abstract
Tour and activity platforms as new business phenomena in tourism industry are playing a vital role in digitizing tour and activity sector. This research aims to classify tour and activity platform business models. The emerging nature of these platforms has contributed to their business model to be unclear, at best. Therefore, this paper intends to identify different business model attribute configurations of tour and activity platforms. To carry out the research, a mixed method approach is adopted. First, an innovative framework is developed to identify the main business model elements of tour and activity platforms using literature review, archival studies and case studies. Then, business model of 41 tour and activity platforms is content analyzed using morphological analysis approach. Next, a cluster analysis is followed to classify the platforms into meaningful types. The findings show that 5 different business model types for tour and activity platforms can be recognized: Comprehensive platforms, efficient standard platforms, customized guiding platforms, professional tour platforms, experiential peer-to-peer platforms.
Keywords
"Tourism"
"Tour and activity platform"
"business model"
"cluster analysis"
Amit, R., & Zott, C. (2010). Business model innovation: creating value in times of change. IESE Business School Working Paper No. 870. University of Navarra.
Bainbridge, A. (2013). “Warning: the big challenges for anyone involved in P2P tour and activity marketplaces”. Retrieved from www.tnooz.com/article/warning-the-big-challenges-for-anyone-involved-in-p2p-tour-and-activity-marketplaces.
Bigg, M. (2017). “The state of tours and activities tech 2017”. [Online research document]. Retrieved from research.skift.com/reports/state-tours-activities-tech-2017
Eisenmann, T., Parker, G,. & Van Alstyne, M. W. (2006). “Strategies for two-sided markets”. Harvard Business Review, 84(10), 92-112.
Elo, S., Kääriäinen, M., Kanste, O., Pölkki, T., Utriainen, K., & Kyngäs, H. (2014). Qualitative Content Analysis: A Focus on Trustworthiness. SAGE Open. pp. 1-10.
Farrell, J., & Katz, M. L. (2000). “Innovation, rent extraction, and integration in systems markets”. Journal of Industrial Economics. 48(4), 413–432.
Fielt, E. (2014). “Conceptualising Business Models: Definitions, Frameworks and Classifications”. Journal of Business Models, 1(1), 85-105.
Gatautis, R. (2017). “The Rise of the Platforms: Business Model Innovation Perspectives”. Engineering Economics. 28(5), 585-591.
Gnock Fah, E. (2015, June 30). “Startup pitch: Klook has high ambitions for tours and activities in Asia” (Fox, L, interviewer). Retrieved from www.phocuswire.com/Startup-pitch-Klook-has-high-ambitions-for-tours-and-activities-in-Asia.
Hagiu, A. (2014). “Strategic decisions for multisided platforms”. MIT Sloan Management Review, 55(2), 71-80.
Henry, D. B., Tolan, P. H., & Gorman-Smith, D. (2005). “Cluster Analysis in Psychology Research”. Journal of Family Psychology, 19(1), 121-132.
Ketchen, D. J., & Shook, C. L. (1996). The application of cluster analysis in strategic management research: An analysis and critique. Strategic Management Journal, 17, 441-458.
Kutschera, S. (2018). “Travel statistics to know about in 2018 and 2019”. Retrieved from www.trekksoft.com/en/ blog/65-travel-tourism-statistics-for-2019.
Lambert, S. C. (2015). “The Importance of Classification to Business Model Research”. Journal of Business Models, 3(1), 49-61.
O’Niel, S. (2015, Nov. 16). “Peek’s CEO on building a tours and activities platform” [Blog post]. Retrieved from www.tnooz.com/article/peeks-ceo-on-building-a-tours-and-activities-platform/    
Osterwalder, A. (2004). The business model ontology: a proposition in a design science approach. Doctoral Dissertation. University of Lausanne, Lausanne.
Osterwalder, A., Pigneur, Y., & Tucci, C. L. (2005). “Clarifying Business Models: Origins, Present, and Future of the Concept”. Communications of AIS, 16(1), 1-43.
Parker, G., Van Alstyne, M. W., & Choudary, P. C. (2016). Platform Revolution: How networked markets are transforming the economyand how to make them work for you. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
Quinby, D. (2017, May). The Real Revolution in Tours & Activities. Retrieved from www.phocuswright.com/ Travel-Research/Research-Updates/2017/The-Real-Revolution-in-Tours-and-Activities
Rochet, J. C., & Tirole, J. (2003). “Platform competition in two-sided markets ”. Journal of the European Economic Association, 1(4), 990-1029.
Rochet, J., & Tirole, J. (2006). “Two-sided markets: a progress report”. The Rand Journal of Economics. 37(2), 645-667.
Sampson, H. (2019). “Megatrends defining travel in 2019” [Online research document]. Retrieved from skift.com/2019/01/16/the-megatrends-defining-travel-in-2019/
Shaughnessy, H. (2016). “Harnessing platform-based business models to power disruptive innovation”. Strategy & Leadership, 44(5), 6-14.
Staykova, K. S., & Damsgaard, Jan. (2015). “A Typology of Multi-sided Platforms: The Core and the Periphery”. Twenty-Third European Conference on Information Systems. Münster, Germany.
Tams, S. A. (2017). “The changing face of tours and activities”. [Online research document]. Retrieved from www.eyefortravel.com/distribution strategies/changing-face-tours-and-activities
Tauscher, K., & Laudien, S. (2017). “Understanding platform business models: A mixed methods study of Marketplaces”. European Management Journal, 36(3), 319-329.
Teece, D. J. (2010). “Business models, business strategy and innovation”. Long Range Planning, 43, 172-194.
Timmers, P. (1998). “Business models for electronic markets”. Electronic Markets, 8(2), 3-8.
UNWTO (2018). International Tourism Highlights. 2018 Edition. Retrieved from www.e-unwto.org/doi/book/10.18111/ 9789284419876.
Vayable (n.d.). A few things to help you know us better. Retrieved from https://www.vayable.com/how_this_works.
Vesa, J., & Van Heck, E. (2005). “Factors in adopting multi-access technologies in online consumer auction markets in Finland”. European Management Journal, 23(2), 182-194.
Weill, P., & Vitale, M. R. (2001). Place to space: Migrating to eBusiness Models. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
Zott, C., & Amit, R. (2008). “The fit between product market strategy and business model: Implications for firm performance”. Strategic Management Journal, 29(1), 1-26.