Segmenting Umrah performers based on outcomes behaviors: a cluster analysis perspective

Purpose Umrah is a religious ritual that takes place inside the Holy Mosque in Makkah. Umrah can be performed any time during the year; however, performing Umrah in the month of Ramadan is much rewarded. Although the kingdom of Saudi Arabia is hosting this event each year, studies that focus on exploring the Holy Mosque visitor segments are scarce. This study aims to explore and describe the marketing segments of Umrah performers relative to their Umrah experience inside the Holy Mosque of Makkah. Most specifically, this study aims to explore segments of Umrah performers based on their perception of servicescape, hedonic and convenience value and the visitors’ outcome behaviors [i.e. intention to revisit and positive word of mouth (PWOM)]. Design/methodology/approach Mixed-method techniques of data collection [i.e. self-administered questionnaires (n = 278) and short discussions (n = 10)] were used. Findings Cluster analysis is used for data analysis. The findings revealed four clusters of Umrah performers: real, occasional, rational and passionate performers. Research limitations/implications This study is a first attempt to target pilgrims based on their experience with the servicescape during the organized religious event; despite its exploratory nature, it reveals interesting insights that will be useful for managers and scholars. Although the study helps to enrich the existing knowledge on visitors’ experience and proposes some implications for practitioners, it does have some limitations. First, convenience sampling was used, and hence the findings cannot be generalized. Second, the limited period of observation did not allow the authors to provide a complete picture of the pilgrims’ behavior; for this reason, the study findings partially describe the phenomenon. Another limitation is related to the difficulty of approaching respondents from Asia or South East Asia although they constitute a significant percentage of the total Umrah performers every year; this is because of the language barrier as data was collected from only English and Arabic speakers. Hence, to overcome these limitations, it is suggested that future studies could be expanded to target Asian respondents and perhaps other nationalities; and could be undertaken in other religious contexts. Moreover, an interesting future study could be carried out to compare the same model during other religious events. Added to that, another growing area of research could be approached by researchers, such as the impact of pilgrims sharing their experiences on influencing E-PWOM. Practical implications The findings reveal several implications for policymakers and stakeholders. The segmentation of Umrah performers assists destination managers, policymakers and local firms involved in managing this mass event to identify effective marketing decision-makers, business strategies and policymakers to satisfy the needs of these visitors (Disegna et al., 2011). Particularly, the identification of the key characteristics of these visitors can help destination marketers to develop a marketing mix that suits the needs of each cluster (Smith et al., 2014). Despite that the performers’ main motivation is the religious purpose, marketing strategists can attract the attention of these visitors to visit other religious, cultural and heritage sites in the country. Social implications Encouraging the visit to other tourist spots in Saudi has several impacts on nourishing the economy and the community. Tourism in Saudi could encourage entrepreneurs to start new ventures to satisfy the need of visitors to the country. Small-medium enterprises could benefit from tourism as they could target market niches in which leader companies are not serving. For instance, hand-made souvenirs are one of these industries that could grow to satisfy the need of visitors. Originality/value The results contribute to the literature of event segmentation by identifying visitors’ profiles to rarely investigated destinations. The findings reveal several implications for policymakers and stakeholders.

What do we know about capabilities and early internationalization? A review and synthesis

Purpose The purpose of this study is to organize and assess knowledge on the capabilities pertinent to the early internationalization of born globals (BGs) and international new ventures (INVs). Design/methodology/approach A systematic approach is used to search, code, organize and synthesize 155 peer-reviewed journal articles on capabilities and early internationalization. Findings The study delimits eight operational and five dynamic capabilities. The synthesis links capabilities to three antecedents (i.e. firm specific factors, managerial socio cognitive attributes and market factors) and three outcomes (i.e. precocity, survival and performance). While 7 of the 12 linkages identified are well-established, relationships involving market factors, survival and dynamic capabilities are sparsely researched. Research limitations/implications The authors know more about the effects of firm specific factors and managerial socio cognitive attributes on operational and dynamic capabilities than we do the influence of market factors on either group of capabilities. Likewise, the authors know more about the influence of operational and dynamic capabilities on performance than we do their impact on precocity or survival. Practical implications As the pandemic has shown, businesses with adaptable capabilities (e.g. shifting from a brick and mortar to an online/omnichannel approach or micro-breweries competent to switch from manufacturing beer to hand sanitizer) have increased their chance of survival while helping society cope. Originality/value This to the authors’ knowledge is the first study to provide a comprehensive review of literature on the nebulous concept of capabilities, in the context of the burgeoning research stream on early internationalization.

Early Internationalizing of Small-Medium Firms

Internationalization is not an odd term in business, and increasing numbers in the business world show this phenomenon as a vital element that must be emphasized and practiced by an organization to become the top company in international markets. Born global has become a new entity entering the global market and rapidly evolved to catch up and maintain its pace with international new ventures. Gaining the upper hand in the international market has motivated the born global entity to compete with other giant companies in the same markets. This chapter's findings enlighten the crucial parts of the definition between these two terms supported with previous studies that encompass gaps, conventional and new ventures, and the advantages versus liabilities that existed in the new venture firms. In addition, this chapter's discussions would offer better justification and views in global market perspectives.

Analysis of Gayo wine-coffee processing facility development

The Indonesian plantation sector plays an important role in the overall national economy. The development of coffee processing methods into a variety of products, including the relatively new product Gayo wine coffee, will provide added value for farmers. However, the main question that is often asked about relatively new ventures is how viable they are. Thus, a techno-economic analysis of Gayo wine-coffee processing facility development was aimed to answer how viable is the business to ensure sustainability. The results of this research are expected to add scientific information regarding the feasibility study of developing a sustainable Gayo wine-coffee processing facility. The research was conducted in Aceh Tengah District by conducting a comparative study to a micro-scale wine coffee producer in the location, the Syukran Kopi Wine processing facility. Analysis of the facility development was more focused on the technological and financial aspects. The research results considered that Aceh Tengah District is very suitable as a location for a wine coffee factory to minimize the purchasing costs. Moreover, the process of wine coffee production is more difficult than the process of common coffee production. However, the Gayo wine-coffee processing facility uses semi-modern technology like the common coffee processing facility. Besides, all financial indicators meet the financial feasibility criteria for five years economic life of the project. Sensitivity analysis also shows that in both scenarios, all financial indicators still meet the financial feasibility criteria, although decreasing the benefit make a higher impact on most values of the investment criteria than increasing the operational cost.

Identifying the Barriers and Drivers to Agriculture Entrepreneurship in India

This study mainly focuses on the identification of barriers and drivers to agriculture entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship not only includes the creation of new ventures or start-ups but includes innovation and growth. Agri-entrepreneurship can address the current issues of lower farm mechanisation and low productivity of the livestock sector. It can be helpful for farmers in general and agri-entrepreneur in particular. Understanding barriers and drivers to agri-entrepreneurship have become a necessity in current times. Agriculture entrepreneurship has the ability to raise the living standards and helps in the creation of wealth not only for the entrepreneurs but also for other farmers. Agriculture entrepreneurship is beneficial in the global food supply in least-developed and developing countries. The purpose of this chapter is to familiarise the readers with the meaning, prospects, barriers, and key drivers of agri-entrepreneurship to engage in agri-entrepreneurship.

Tourism, Entrepreneurship, and Sustainability

The new global economy and its branches need to be both sustainable and entrepreneurial. In the world where finitude of resources can be eye-witnessed, decisions that lay upon the principles of people, profit, and planet have the ability to preserve the quality of life of present and future generations. Tourism is one of those sectors which have largely expanded over the past decades and whose development affects countries, economies, and natural resources. Sustainable tourism appears to be a natural fit for entrepreneurs wishing to establish new ventures and pursue business opportunities in today's dynamic yet complex business climate. This chapter examines the nexus between entrepreneurship and sustainable tourism. On the basis of theoretical framework and the review of relevant global environmental and tourism-specific tendencies, an online empirical study was conducted to understand how young adults perceive entrepreneurship and sustainability in tourism and the contribution of the two to sustainable development.

Dangerous Liaisons?

Entrepreneurship is an essential engine for economic growth and innovation. During the last two decades, there has been a lot of academic interest in this kind of activity but only recently has research attention been devoted to the ethical problems encountered by entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs. In this chapter, the authors highlight the ethical issues inherent to family firms. Intrapreneurs in a family business face uniquely moral problems related to fundamental fairness, succession process, copyright and brand use, and other challenges. For example, younger generations in family firms face a tricky balancing act between their loyalty to their families and finding new ventures or spin-offs based on the current business. This theoretical work aims to present some contemporary research in entrepreneurial ethics, examines the kinds of ethical dilemmas entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs face, identifies significant research topics and methodological approaches, and discusses possible directions for future research.