Effectiveness of Coupons on the Decision to Purchase in the Full-Service Dining Segment of the Restaurant Industry

The National Restaurant Association (1999) indicates that coupons are the second most likely marketing tactic to be utilized in the restaurant industry (Hsu & Powers, 2002). Coupons are a part of marketing a product because the consumer perceives savings (Lichtenstein & Netemeyer, 1991). Customers are the vital driving force in the hospitality industry and it is what customers think and feel, not what the operators or corporations do that defines the marketing orientation (Hsu, & Powers, 2002). Whether customers are generated through creating new ones, stealing them from competitors or they are bound by loyalty, the hospitality industry requires customers for survival (Lewis, & Chambers, 2000). Although they are viable marketing strategy, improperly used, the coupon promotions could have a negative impact (Hsu & Powers, 2002). Coupons are often used in service companies, but little is known as to their influence. The bulk of the information provided encompasses retail couponing and may serve as a basis for better understanding how coupons affect the food service industry (Taylor, 2000). There are two consumer choices; purchase or nonpurchase (Gonul & Srinivasan, 1996). This study investigates the use of coupons on the decision process to purchase, as well as the consumer’s motivations, behaviors and attitudes toward coupons in the full-service restaurant segment. A research instrument was completed by a randomized sample of 246 consumers in the Knoxville, TN market. Further a purchase or no purchase experiment as conducted with the sample and an additional population. The results from both interventions were analyzed and applied to implications effecting the full-service dining segment of the restaurant industry. Consumers report they want coupons to be available. However, the results of this study indicate coupons not be well utilized

The relationship among tourist motivations, winery festival destination performance, overall satisfaction, and repatronage intention for patrons of on-site winery festivals

Scant winery tourism research has been conducted focusing on the Southeastern United States. Furthermore, most winery tourism studies focusing on festivals limited the study to single off-site locations. Little research has been done focusing on multiple festivals and those wineries hosting on-site festivals specifically located in the Southeastern United States. The scope of this study was to employ multiple winery festivals to more fully understand winery tourists\u27 motivations by examining push factors and pull factors of the attendees for on-site winery festivals located in the Southeastern United States. It is well accepted in marketing literature that in order to be successful, companies need to understand what drives consumers. These findings could prove important by channeling efforts for winery owners on those participants\u27 needs and potentially increase the participant body, positively impacting the winery\u27s economic growth as well as that of the surrounding region.The survey instrument consisted of approximately 80 questions divided into six sections. The first section of the survey was developed to measure the motivations of attending winery festivals, focusing on push motivators. The second section of the survey measured the importance of attending winery festival attributes (pull motivators). The third section was developed to measure the destination attribute performance; the fourth section, to measure visitor satisfaction with the on-site winery festival; the fifth section, to measure repatronage intentions of visitors; and the sixth section, to measure demographic information. Destination attributes offered by the venue pull the tourist to the location, while the psychologically-based push motivators fuel desire to attend. K-Means Cluster analysis was performed to assess potential market segments. The study also utilized a gap measure between guest expectations and what the venue delivered by way of the attributes of the destination.The overall effect of destination performance on attendees\u27 satisfaction and repatronage intentions was measured. The reliability scores produced from analysis of the motivation survey questions rated .860 indicating a relationship exists between the reliability of the instrument and the data obtained. The findings contribute to the stream of academic tourism literature supporting the push-pull framework and its importance in determining motivations and participation

Accepted for the Council:

my daughter Stephanie Michelle Poisson Nickens and my son David Michael Poisson for being so supportive through this process. To my dearest friends Sherry Lightfoot Moore, Eva Marie Smith, Laura Grace Jetter and Jennifer Wright for being my support team and my cheerleaders. Foremost and above all, to my major professor, Dr. Rachel Chen, and committee members Dr. John Antun, Dr. Ernest W. Brewer and Dr. Steve Morse whose diligent fortitude contributed to the completion of this dissertation. ii