Governance and regulation of the tourism industry: An internet marketing perspective

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study is to establish governance and regulation issues pertaining to Internet marketing approaches within the South African tourism sector. The study focuses on the norms and practices of Internet marketing among small-scale lodging establishments in Bushbuckridge – a small tourist town in northeast South Africa. In-depth interviews were collected from eight participating bed and breakfast (B&B) owners. Findings revealed that, while Internet awareness was quite high, only a few B&Bs utilised the Internet for marketing. Participants cited lack of clear industry guidelines on Internet marketing approaches as well as limited Internet experience, among others, as barriers to adoption. Implications and recommendations of the study are presented within the ambit of the existing literature.