Economic Sciences/6  Marketing and Management

 

Medvedkova A.J., Usachev V.A.

 

Donetsk national university of economics and trade named after Michael Tugan-Baranovsky

 

FORMATION OF SALES CHANNELS IN INTERNATIONAL TOURISM

 

Rapid pace of scientific progress, irregularity of  economic development of countries, worsening domestic competition leads to the fact that more and more companies in the world do not satisfy the coverage of domestic markets, and they want to go to the international level, to offer their products and services to consumers abroad . Under such conditions the question of forming an effective international distribution channels is the particular relevance.

Possible channels of travel services in Ukraine of foreign origin are:  firstly, the producers of tourism services abroad may use a direct channel of its services to Ukrainian consumers.

This method of realization is often the way of reservation or purchase services through the Internet and provides the consumer who does not wish to apply to travel agencies and wants to develop their own travel route itself will search the Internet for themselves adopted proposals for transportation, accommodation and entertainment  in another country. In this passive waiting for client a foreign manufacturer of travel services in Ukraine can conduct their own active sales policy to use the same direct sales channel.

         Despite the effectiveness of traditional direct sales channels in international tourism, they unfortunately do not provide adequate coverage of the target audience and with the active marketing will be too expensive. So the vast majority of foreign manufacturers of tourist services use indirect channels. Sometimes - excluding sales from its direct sales policy in general, sometimes - adding sales through resellers.
It should be noted that the tourism market by sales features slightly differs from the general market. Service by its nature is inseparable from the supplier (manufacturer), and therefore this area is dominated by direct sales channels. Between garages, hairdressers, laundries, hospitals and most other manufacturers of services and their end-users, commercial intermediaries are absent. In tourism, however, intermediaries are traditionally used.

          In international tourism sales intermediaries acting tourist operator, whose main function - a tourism product by combining several individual services of foreign manufacturers.
          Having developed tourism product and entering into agreements with foreign manufacturers, operator offers this product to the domestic tourists. Variations of operator’s sale organization can be:

         a) The first - direct sale to the final consumer in your own office via the Internet, via their branches in all regions of the country, while advertising spreads and use other forms of marketing communications.

        b) The second option is the sale of tourist products through franchisees. Franchising as a way of partnership in the business is making first steps in Ukraine, but already has examples of practical use (chain agencies "Ãàëîïîì ïî ªâðîïàõ "," Ãîðÿùèå ïóòåâêè "and others). During the signing of franchise agreements the company franchisee usually receives from the operators (franchisor) the right to sell their tours, using their names and certain technology customer service. The company - the franchisor provides full marketing support to its chain.
        c)  The third option tourist product sales - sales through travel agents, "engaged in intermediary activity with the tour operators sales of tourist product" and have the appropriate travel agent license. Travel agents in Ukraine can become both juristic and physical persons (entrepreneurs). From the sale of each tour agent receives the contract commission.

        Typical for the tourist market of Ukraine is to build the traditional marketing system, where tour operators and travel agents, as a legally independent entity, enter into cooperation agreements, guided by their own interests and goals. This travel agent usually works with many operators, who, in his turn, have many agents. In general the tourism market is characterized by intense type of distribution. Much less concluded agreements involving exclusive sales.

       Thus, we have systematized the main sales channels in international tourism, which include the use of both direct sales and participation by Ukrainian tourist operators.

Sources:
1.Civil Codecs of Ukraine from 16.01.03 ¹ 435

2.Law of Ukraine "On Tourism" from 18.11.03 ¹ 1282