Identifying Componential Elements of Tourism Marketing Using Metasynthesis Method

As the most widely provided service industry worldwide, tourism has attracted the attention of a wide variety of managers and researchers. Therefore, it is crucially important to identify the componential elements involved in tourism marketing and offer optimal solutions to facilitate tourist attraction. Considering the fact that previous has merely partially investigated the factors involved in tourism marketing, this study sought to conduct a comprehensive examination of such factors, systematically reviewing the expansive related literature. This study is considered exploratory in terms of purpose and applied in terms of nature, using the meta-synthesis method to analyze the collected data. The study’s statistical population comprised 580 studies conducted from 2000 to 2020, out of which 87 studies were selected using purposive sampling. The collected data were then gone through content analysis, coded based on open, axial, and selective coding methods, according to which 78 codes, 21 concepts, and six categories were identified and analyzed using the meta-synthesis method. Finally, the validity of the analyzed data was confirmed by Cohen’s Kappa Coefficient. According to the study’s results, the main categories identified for tourism marketing were as follows: integrated marketing (incentive promotional mixtures); satisfaction; relationship marketing; internal marketing; electronic marketing; and ICT factors. Therefore, it could be argued that this study offers a deep understanding of the existing literature on tourism marketing.