Customer Behaviour and Marketing Channels in High-end Experiential Travel Market

Abstract: This report is a qualitative analysis of consumption behaviour of high net worth individuals (HNIs) and the marketing channels that are effective in the high-end travel industry. The travel industry caters to a vast audience and it becomes important to understand a specific niche to serve the customers better. For products targeted exclusively towards the HNI segment, conventional mass marketing methods may not be the best or the most efficient ways to reach out to the target market. Mass marketing may result in lower perceived exclusivity and brand image of the company, and it may result in lower efficiency in terms of marketing costs when the target market is merely a small percentage of the total population. The study utilizes articles and theories on consumption behavior as well as marketing theories aimed towards HNIs in order to understand and analyse the data gathered during interviews. The report outlines the factors that influence the customer behavior and consumption practices in the high-end travel industry and based on their behavior outlines effective marketing channels that could be used in order to reach the customers. The major factors influencing customer behavior such as family influence, their motivations to travel, influence of friends and groups as well as their expectations were analyzed based on which effective marketing channels were found such as agents or agencies, popular magazines as well as social media. This report provides a comprehensive understanding of the importance of recognizing the influential behavioral factors in the HNI community in order to develop an effective marketing strategy to help the companies reach their customers better.