Tahir Rashid

Relationship marketing: case studies of personal experiences of eating out

This paper explains relationship marketing (RM) and discusses the benefits to customers and firms applying RM. Nine dimensions central to making RM successful are assessed. These are: trust, commitment, social bonding, empathy, experiences, fulfilment of promise, customer satisfaction, internal relationship marketing, and communication. The researcher then describes three personal experiences of eating out in three different restaurants and discusses good RM techniques applied deliberately or otherwise by these establishments.

Crisis and risks in tourism: death takes a holiday – debunking the myth of terrorism and its psychological impact on the tourism industry

Over recent years the proliferation of terrorist atrocities has had a negative impact on the tourism industry and these images have been viewed globally facilitated by the media revolution. The aim of this paper is to examine the reality of terrorism and whether or not such media representation correctly portrays the reality on the ground or merely distorts the image of the geographical region. The paper attempts to place in context the potential risk for the general holidaying public and instead identifies other potentially apocalyptic scenarios resulting from environmental mismanagement/global warming which may impact negatively on the tourism industry.

Visitors experience of travel to the city of heaven (Madinah)

In modern society which, by definition is increasingly secular and culturally motivated, the Hajj is considered the culmination of each Muslims religious duties and aspiration. Muslims travel to the city of Madinah, after performing the Hajj, as part of their religious beliefs and not as some may think, as an escape for leisure and entertainment. The people who go to Madinah feel unanimous in the view that nothing can quite prepare them for the sheer beauty of the experience and the overwhelming feeling of humbleness that affects them during the pilgrim of Madinah. This paper will begin with the Islamic approach to life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and explains the principles on which Islamic values for society are based according to the teachings of Allah (SWT) and the perfect examples of his PBUH. The paper will explore the personal experience of an individual participant visiting the city.

Web-based customer-centric strategies: new ways of attracting religious tourist to religious sites

The first step to being customer-centric is making sure that everyone in an organisation is continuously learning about the customers and the markets. It needs to be the responsibility of individuals in an organisation to respond appropriately to the customers and market through what they have learned. Customer-centric is an approach adapted to improve customer service and satisfaction. For an organisation to become customer centric, it means looking at the organisation from the outside in rather than inside out. The aim of this paper is to investigate new ways of attracting tourists to religious sites. There is a relative paucity of literature available on the subject and this study will contribute to the current knowledge. The research process will adopt a social constructionism research philosophy by applying exploratory research using literature review, website observation, site visits and informal discussions in a case study approach.

Relationship marketing and entrepreneurship: South Asian businesses in the UK

A great deal has been written about Relationship Marketing (RM) from different perspectives in the last 20 years. This literature includes the perspective of service marketing, business-to-business marketing, consumer marketing, international marketing and the perspectives of various ethnic groups such as Chinese, European, North and South American people. One ethnic group which has been largely ignored in business academic research is the South Asian businesses. This paper is an attempt to fill in this gap in the literature on relationship marketing. It examines South Asian businesses in the UK from the perspectives of relationship marketing and entrepreneurship with a particular reference to the researchers own personal experience of the UK clothing industry. The paper begins by discussing the background of South Asian businesses in the UK, followed by a discussion on the concepts of relationship marketing and its application to South Asian businesses. The paper argues that the success of most South Asian businesses can be partly contributed to relationship marketing.

The phenomenon of information technology for small community-based businesses

The information technology phenomenon has become a feature of most small businesses. Over the last few decades, small businesses have played a major part in UK economy and in local communities. Companies can now reach consumers almost anywhere in the world at a very low cost, while consumers can easily find product and company information. This paper investigates and explores the reasons why Afro-Caribbean and Asian communities in the UK lack skills and knowledge in the use of information technology. It uncovers and explores their business development prospects for the 21st century. The data were collected from a sample of 12 organisations, representing various communities across UK. The results indicate that most small community organisations predict the future with information technology. They feel it necessary to establish continuity, attract a wider audience and bring revenue to their events. With over 10 million home internet users throughout the UK, it is vital to have an effective communication tool with fully trained individuals.