Understanding
Entrepreneurship
in Tourism
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Business Enterprise: A business enterprise is a formal structure established to undertake and conduct trading activities with the main intention of generating income. For businesses to address the needs of changing consumer trends in the modern market, innovation and flexibility are essential (Page and Connell, 2020.
Entrepreneurship: Self-employment includes creating, organising, and operating a new venture bringing new goods and/or services to the market, and bearing the difficulties arising therefrom. One needs to take some form of risk to generate value and ensure growth is maintained (Aquino, R.S., 2022).
Aim and Objectives: This presentation is going to focus on the concept of entrepreneurship in the tourist industry, and more specifically, the one played by TripAdvisor. Targets comprise an assessment of the key enterprise personality characteristics most likely to yield success (Jørgensen et al., 2021).
This presentation will commence with an introduction to what TripAdvisor is, when and how it was established, and the role that it plays in the tourism industry. We shall then move to understand the key features of successful entrepreneurship drawing special features on the ability to innovate and to persevere. In the third part, we will discuss the impact of innovation on the growth of tourist activities by reviewing and presenting the effect of technology on the consumer, for instance (Ahmad, Youjin, and Hdia, 2022).
SPEAKER NOTES
A business venture could be explained as an organised venture that is established to offer products or even services; usually to make a profit. It covers all forms of business, starting with business startups and ending with large companies. Given that the world is currently a vigorously competitive place, there is no better time than now to embrace innovation. Organisations have to evolve by learning the new market trends that are prevailing as well as the needs of the customers. For instance, a hotel that has received many customers through recommendations or by word could be forced to close down and start operating online; or add value to its services to make the market get attracted to it.
The term entrepreneurship may be taken to mean the creation of a new venture along with the necessary management to offer new products and services in a given market. This means not only the initiation of the business venture but also the day-to-day endeavours of the entrepreneurship exercise, including but not limited to financing, market surveys and clientele base development. There is a propensity to define entrepreneurs as individuals who bear risks to create value out of opportunities.
The general purpose of the presentation today is to better understand the need for entrepreneurship in the tourism business and to evaluate how, in particular, TripAdvisor has been influential in this sphere. We will focus on identifying the characteristics which are associated with success in entrepreneurship and then advancing on how those characteristics can be developed within the industry.
Thus, let’s identify the structure of the presentation to help better structure the discussion. Firstly, it will be necessary to describe the general information about TripAdvisor, giving attention to its creation and development. Now let us turn to understand the nature of the entrepreneur and entrepreneurial theories and characteristics. After that, the description of the experiences that link innovation to tourism will be discussed while the last section will focus on ways of constructing a strong organisational culture in the tourism industry.
Business undertaking, therefore, means an enterprise that is a planned and coordinated effort to offer goods or services with prospects of earning revenues, everything ranging from local business to conglomerate forms of business. In today’s highly dynamic market, any prospective and existing company must be able to change with the market and reciprocate to the needs/preferences of its clients.
The survival in the competitive environment of the ongoing tourism industry so requires the adoption of innovation. Businesses need to embrace new technologies or improve their products and services for instance hotels provide internet interfaces or improving on their services to gain and maintain consumers.
Managers and scholars emphasise that entrepreneurship is about the creation of new organisations and sustaining the organisation through the management of resources such as funds and markets. The major traits of effective enterprise leaders include the ability to assume risks, apply innovation and spot opportunities that other people may not see.
That the firm has impacted the tourism sector is evidenced by the way travellers and marketers make decisions based on information found on the TripAdvisor website. Promoting organisational culture that accentuates communicating and working together in tourism businesses triggers self-employment boosting and meets the growing customers’ needs and expectations.
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Overview of TripAdvisor: This website was created in the year 2000, by Stephen Kaufer and Langley Steinert with the vision of changing the way people plan for their travel. At first, it concentrated on: the collection of qualified opinions and ratings to help a traveler (Moyle, Moyle and Burgers, 2020.
Founders: Kaufer and Steinert had the idea of Harvard graduates to establish a worldwide source of travel information. Both grew from an educational background that oriented them about how to use technology, and users to power their goal of improving travel planning (Bargeman and Richards, 2020).
Business Model: The primary sources of revenue at TripAdvisor are customer reviews, which create trust among users, and travel search, which helps the site’s users find the necessary information quickly. The offered platform follows the cost-per-click business model which helps the program generate substantial revenue from businesses paying for each click on their adverts while the users can access the platform for free (Dahles et al., 2020).
SPEAKER NOTES
TripAdvisor was started in February of 2000 by Stephen Kaufer and Langley Steinart to change travel planning. First, it provided only ‘professional’ opinions and collected pieces of advice from travel specialists for the users. Nevertheless, because consumers made the switch to more trusting reviews written by ordinary people, TripAdvisor focused on crowdsourced reviews which allow different travellers to post their opinions. I found this pivot not just to address the increasing want for real and relevant content but also to key TripAdvisor as the go-to site for individual travel guidance. Kaufer and Steinert are both alumni of Harvard University and the educational influences they received helped them build an entrepreneurial mindset while revolutionising technology to engage users. Because of their vision, they were able to develop a platform that put the power of travel data ‘‘in the people’s hands’. The business model of TripAdvisor is built on two core pillars: an instance where users submit content that promotes trust between them, and a vertical search that eases the planning of travel. Also, the speciality of TripAdvisor is the cost-per-click revenue generation model, which makes it easy to convert into a source of income by charging money for each click made on the ads. This has ensured the platform gets lots of revenues by constantly disclosing the features for free for all users, which has made it an essential tool for all travellers across the globe.
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Creativity is the ability to create new ideas, so they can provide novelties in products or services. Risk-taking means embracing opportunities and competition, which is an important factor that ought to be managed. Endurance is the ability to withstand tough conditions and pressure while elasticity refers to the capacity of an entrepreneur to change his or her strategies to adapt to conditions in the market. Endorsements indicate direction, goals and objectives that they have set are clearly defined. In the sphere of the theory of business ventures, Joseph Schumpeter identified the key concept of entrepreneurship and growth and that is the phenomenon of innovation. His work comprises showing how new initiatives interfere with industries and contribute to development. Moreover, I agree with Peter Drucker specifying that innovation should be systematic, and market needs should be measured for relevance (Walmsley, A. (2019). In terms of TripAdvisor, founders, Stephen Kaufer and Langley Steinert were those who displayed such attributes. Through engagement with the users, the model was changed to crowdsourced reviews, showing that the company is dynamic and consumer oriented. The first questions asked users showed that people had a higher interest in original material, and as such, TripAdvisor focused on reviews from real users, a decision that placed the company ahead of its competitors. This responsiveness shows how traits of entrepreneurship can lead a business to the right path (Dias et al., 2023).
SPEAKER NOTES
Great businesses have certain characteristics that facilitate success in their owners. Creativity means the ability to generate novel concepts and product ideas while taking the necessary risks means the ability to be comfortable with ambiguity. Tenacity is the ability to stay with failure and is different from perseverance, which is the capacity to rise to a challenge, while flexibility gives an entrepreneur the ability to change direction in response to conditions. Perceived organisation means that they are purposeful and have a clear vision about them. According to Schumpeter dynamics of new ideas define entrepreneurship with a focus on innovation as being central to the process of development. According to Drucker, systematic innovation also has to be addressed and the need assessment has to be considered properly by the company. For example, TripAdvisor’s founders – Stephen Kaufer and Langley Steinert demonstrated these attitudes by reacting to the user demands, which shaped the business concept in terms of the crowdsourced reviews’ approach. This shift in the business strategy was due to feedback received during the survey that suggested that travellers were more interested in genuine content as opposed to professional opinions which led to Trip Advisor's devotion to user-generated content and eventual dominance in the travelling niche.
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Impact of Innovation: The concept of innovation is true in the tourism sector because any firm or company in the sector requires innovation to advance on how they can provide better services to their clients and how they can carry out their daily operations. There are positive factors associated with the development and adoption of new and creative ways of engaging customers; this keeps companies afloat and on the watch for their counterparts.
Case Examples: Some of the new generation apps include mobile apps for booking accommodations such as Airbnb through which travelers directly access accommodation options globally. AI-assisted customer service chatbots improve relationships by providing instant information and product advice.
Influences on Innovation: The causes of innovation in tourism are technological factors, trends in customer preferences in the direction of individualisation, and competitive factors. These elements put pressure on businesses and force them to offer value to travelers can be demanding. Specific Innovations: One of the most important benefits of using digital booking platforms is that the process of travel is more convenient for the consumer.
SPEAKER NOTES
Having identified the tourism industry as being competitive, the Need for innovation is critical to achieving success in the segment while improving services and operations. This paper explores the various factors that have created the need for or enhanced the customer experience in business approaches focused on competitiveness in an ever-changing market environment. Some of these include Complicated searches for accommodation such as through mobile booking apps such as Airbnb, and real-time customer service bots such as customer service chatbots. Web-based timetables take convenience a notch higher making it easy for users to organise their trips with ease. Technology, consumer demand seeking individualisation and promotions, and competition purposes are the factors that make the business look for change. Other targeted advancements include, for instance, the electronic booking system helping to make the arrangements easier for travel agencies and virtual tourism which enables potential consumers to tour some awfulise destinations before consuming making customer satisfaction and hence loyalty in the circulation industry higher.
Importance of Innovation in Tourism: Tourism is a very competitive business and new ideas are a key factor in the business. They have to make efforts to improve the quality of customer experiences and organisational processes through the application of technology, to gain greater satisfaction and loyalty.
Factors Driving Change: There is a considerable list of important reasons that simply require innovation, including complex searches for accommodation, the presence of a mobile booking application, as well as the development of AI chatbot services for customers. All these technologies meet the call for convenience and individualisation on the side of the consumers when it comes to planning for travel.
Advancements Enhancing Customer Experience: For instance, firms and agencies can benefit from new advancements like electronic booking systems in managing travel while virtual tourism can enable those potential customers to envision a particular destination before making the trip. These advancements not only make improvements towards customer satisfaction but also loyalty in the tourism industry.
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Organisational culture can therefore be described as the system of beliefs, attitudes and behaviors which determine and demonstrate how the employees of an organisation relate within the firm and execute their responsibilities. It serves as a substantive guide to how the organisation implements all its activities right from decision-making to employee productivity. On the other hand, the cohesive organisational culture is one of the most important factors for employee, retention of employees and that all employees are a part of a consistent goal direction. It raises efficiency while at the same time increasing employment satisfaction and commitment and finally business success.
Google is one of the many companies that have immensely benefited from its adaptive organisational culture. At Google, innovation and performance are valued owing to its organisational culture that promotes creativity, teamwork and communication. Google motivates its employees so that they are interested in work and can come up with new ideas since it offers them freedom in work. Google has a culture that allows its employees to come up with out-of-the-box solutions and innovations and this has benefited the company so much as it continues to represent the tech world. Thus, this example clearly shows that the development of a strong positive culture can lead to direct consequences in the form of a business upswing and provide for the mechanisms of maintaining a competitive edge.
SPEAKER NOTES
Organisational culture is therefore how employees of an organisation perceive, think, feel and behave at workplaces. He or she has the important role of managing the context within which or through which employees work and this does have a direct bearing on motivation, commitment and performance. Organisational culture brings employees into conformity with an organisation's objectives, promotes teamwork and improves organisational commitment, satisfaction, higher performance and reduced employee turnover. Google for instance has established an organisational culture that is primarily based on performance that focuses so much on innovation and creativity. Google; employees are challenged to take risks, to think new, and to share ideas, and ultimately, this makes them feel the company belongs to them. This culture not only establishes and maintains the practice of employee engagement but also creates high organisational performance by constantly challenging the advancement of technology and invention. Therefore, by creating such an active and empowering climate, Google makes sure it stays a market leader.
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Ultimately managing organisational culture is the responsibility of leaders whether they are embedded in the formal bureaucracy of the organisation or not. They affect the behaviour and mindset of the people in the organisation through the demonstration of the expected culture of the organisation. Culture is influenced by the key messages and the behaviour of leaders, staff, clinicians and patients; therefore, it is created, supported and sustained by positive leadership. Of course, as a result of the company’s core values being promoted and used diligently by leaders, the organisational culture within the company is determined (Figueroa-Domecq, De Jong and Williams, 2020.
For example, Satya Nadella of Microsoft changed Company culture around the strategic framing of a “growth mindset”. He stresses hard skills, flexibility, and soft skills and insists on growth throughout the corporation. This change reenergised the work culture of Microsoft, greatly improving communication and creativity, all of which resulted in business breakthroughs. In the same way, Howard Schults, the former Starbucks CEO, created a culture based on pluralism. He also positioned employees, so-called partners, as valuable people to be treated with respect and encouraged people to share their points of view (Zhang, Lu, and Sun, 2021. This leadership approach assisted Starbucks in developing an accrual, true workforce that is harmonious with the mission statement of the habitation as agreeable to its clientele. From these examples, we are convinced that leaders developing positive organisational culture work with an increased level of employee engagement, which contributes to organisational effectiveness and success (Farmaki et al., 2020).
SPEAKER NOTES
There is tremendous evidence that leaders drive organisational culture by demonstrating appropriate behaviours and values, generally promoting a culture of innovation and cooperation. Leaders establish organisational culture and organisational culture directs how employees engage, perceive, and cater for challenges. Core values on the other hand remind the workers of the intended and required direction within the organisation. Microsoft’s Satya Nadella discussed the importance of empathy and what he also refers to as a growth mindset, the means of never-ending learning and flexibility. This change helped increase innovation and cooperation between different entities in the organisation. Likewise, Howard Schults of Starbucks created a culture that would make people or employees appreciate being one with Starbucks making them more committed to the company. In each of these cases, leadership is determined to have played a significant role in positively impacting culture for better performance and increasing staff satisfaction.
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TripAdvisor values customer reviews and feedback the most of all services, as they help maintain its reputation. From the users’ feedback, the decision of the potential travellers is affected, making the reviews the main ones for brand trust. , positive feedback positively impacts the brand image of TripAdvisor making it more attractive to a new customer while the negative side offers a way through which the firm can learn from and improve (Filimonau et al., 2024).To enhance customer feedback it is possible to increase the frequency of the feedback, being reactive to customers’ comments, and incorporate them into the subsequent procedures. For instance, let a hotel get constant compliments on clean rooms; this aspect can then be marketed to increase hotel occupancy. On the other hand, if users are dissatisfied with customer service, giant measures to attend to such concerns can ease hostility. By using customer feedback as a tool, TripAdvisor guarantees that it maintains its admissibility amongst users because the website meets the expected quality threshold (Figueroa-Domecq et al., 2023.
SPEAKER NOTES
To note, the use of feedback given by customers ensures that TripAdvisor operates with high standards, influences its reputation influences decision-making mechanisms among potential users. Within a crowded tourism environment, reviews and ratings represent helpful information concerning the experiences of other tourists for making choices. Recommendations help build TripAdvisor’s brand equity, ensuring that users place their confidence and make additional arrangements through the application. For instance, a hotel or restaurant that quickly rises to the top in the list of recommendations will get more clients, or a place that has multiple positive feedback becomes even more attractive to tourists. On the other hand, they can point to the areas that are requiring important improvements. Thus, for TripAdvisor, it is important to reply to the feedback indicating a willingness to hear something both good and bad. It is possible to prevent even negative reviews from doing much harm because if complaints are reacted upon instantly and if changes are made based on the complaints, customers are changed to loyal patrons. That is why, TripAdvisor can enhance the process of getting feedback from customers, invite users to write reviews more often and enhance the work based on the customers’ feedback. For instance, if customers often complain about the long-time taken to check in the business can solve the issue to improve customer satisfaction. Thus, by utilising reviews to make services better, TripAdvisor confirms its reliability and relying on its previous successes, guarantees long-term prosperity.
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In this presentation, business enterprise and entrepreneurship have been explained concerning invention and flexibility. The analysis of the case of TripAdvisor was done, including the information about founders, the business model, and its impact on the sector. The general aspects of entrepreneurial personalities such as the ability to take risks and creativity were mentioned in the achievements of the TripAdvisor founders (Walmsley, A. (2019). We also looked at how innovation, especially innovation in digital platforms fosters the growth of tourism. Further, we discussed organisational culture and leadership, which highlighted where and how leaders maintain and influence the cultural factors of their organisation, as well as organisational success. Customers and their verification were presented, and the emphasis was placed on the role of reviews and customer opinions in current online environments, such as TripAdvisor (Thirumalesh Madanaguli et al., 2021).
Personal Reflection: For a tourist, this level of customisation matters to them, that’s why they go for travellers’ reviews. This assignment has enriched me on how and why entrepreneurship fuels these experiences and the tourism sector.
SPEAKER NOTES
In this presentation, we have been able to define business enterprise also, and entrepreneurship as an important engine of innovation. In the present study, the TripAdvisor example is considered, including information about its founders and its unusual approach that changed the tourist industry. The concepts of risk-taking and creativity were considered within the context of the entrepreneurial profile of a destination while scrutinising the viability of innovations in tourism. Also, we discussed the topic of organisational culture and leadership as key focus areas influencing the carrying out of work-related tasks within an organisation. The points of focus here were customer satisfaction certification with an explanation of how feedback affects decision-making in areas such as Trip Advisor. Obviously, as a tourist, I value individual approaches and turn to other people’s opinions. I have learnt how entrepreneurship increases customer value and transforms the tourism sector through this assignment.
Business Enterprise and Entrepreneurship: We were able to distinguish between Business enterprise, as an organised activity involving the production of goods and services for sale for a profit and entrepreneurship which is a driving force for innovation and change within the markets.
TripAdvisor Case Study: An example of new venture creation within the context of tourism could be TripAdvisor based by Stephen Kaufer and partners. Its user-generated content model disrupted how travellers search for information and make choices.
Risk-Taking and Creativity: The issues of risks and creativity are critical to the context of an entrepreneurship venture. In tourism, these traits create an entrepreneurial disposition in destinations making innovation possible.
Organisational Culture and Leadership: Concerning organisational culture and leadership, we considered the effects of work processes. Positive culture is inclusive and facilitates cohesiveness and creativity, leadership Co-ordinates group efforts and provides direction towards achievement of group objectives.
Customer Satisfaction and Feedback: Satisfaction is important in any consumptive business, particularly in the tourist business. Such sites as TripAdvisor reveal how feedback can influence strategy in making changes to an organisation.
Individualised Customer Approach: Being a traveller, I expect a certain degree of individual attention and always prefer to read others’ experiences. This underlines the importance of uniqueness for the representatives of the tourism business. Impact on the Tourism Sector: Finally, entrepreneurship creates customer value and hence changes the tourism industry to fit the buyers’ needs and demands.
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