Contemporary Logistics Tourism Industry

Contemporary Logistics 07 (2012) 1838-739X
Contents lists available at SEI
Contemporary Logistics
journal homepage: www.seiofbluemountain.com
The Study of E-color Marketing Technology Application in
Tourism Industry
Yuanyuan LI*
School of International Business, Inner Mongolia University of Technology, Baotou 010080, P.R.China
KEYWORDS
ABSTRACT
E-color marketing technology,
Tourism industry,
Application,
Purchasing behavior
This article discusses and considers the great significance of E-Color marketing technology
application in tourism industry combining the theory of Color Marketing. The intangible
characteristic of tourism products leads to low information capacity and low product
marketability in internet. Meanwhile, facing the homogenization of serious competition, we
have to carry out the marketing strategy on tangibility of service to affect purchasing
behavior, and improve the information capacity and market competitiveness by providing
multi-media technology, including pictures, voices and videos. In this case, E-Color
Marketing technology application is particularly crucial to the tourism enterprises. Finally,
following the analysis mentioned above, this paper further makes suggestions on E-Color
Marketing technology application in tourism industry.
© ST. PLUM-BLOSSOM PRESS PTY LTD
1 Introduction of E-color Marketing
1.1 The theory of color marketing
The theory of Color Marketing was firstly introduced by an American, Ms. Carroll Jackson who builds the Color Me Beautiful (CMB)
Company. Ms. Carroll Jackson refined and summarized the theory through practice. It belongs to a borderline subject which is the
combination of the modern aesthetics, psychology and marketing. The color is one of the most important external characteristics of
products, brings high additional value and very amazing effects to the E-marketing. Appropriate color is good to understand the
feeling of the brand by the consumers. Color representation, which is a characteristic of many channels used to convey product
information, impact the effectiveness of sender-to-client informing.[1] American marketing sums up the “7 seconds rule”，which is
consumers’ intention are usually determined in 7 seconds. Color sale helps an enterprise leave the deepest impression to customers in
the first time. Research shows that the first impression accounted for 60% of consumer decision making and it is brought by color.
The essence of this theory is promoting by color marketing mix according to the consumers’ psychological color demand.
*
Corresponding author.
Email: [email protected]
English edition copyright © ST. PLUM-BLOSSOM PRESS PTY LTD
DOI: 10.5503/J.CL.2012.07.002
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1.2 The E-color marketing
With the developing and spreading of the Color Marketing theory, coloring strategy has been used widely in net marketing activities
now, and makes enterprises have possibility to get competitive superiority, and becomes an important means to strengthen the
competitive ability in the market. E-commerce is enabling alternative routes to market. [2] The E-Color Marketing is an alternative
structure differing from the traditional e-Marketing structure. The E-Color Marketing combines the modern Color Marketing theory
with the Internet technology by color marketing mix according to the consumers’ psychological color demand. Tourism Cyber
Marketing refers to a marketing mode based on electronic information technology, with mediums of a computer network or the
Internet, promoting network products. [3] When Chinese tourism industry growing up quickly with the annual growth rate of 30%, the
application of E-Color Marketing Technology makes the traditional network travel service facing the consumer with a more
emotional way. The E-Color Marketing makes up for the gap of emotion communication in tradition, meets the need of tourism
economic development and injects a flow of fresh vitality into tourism e-Marketing. The e-Marketing rule of “Judging by Color” is
just to take advantage of the close association between people’s psychological feeling and color and gives full play to the unique
charm of color to be used as one of promoting means. On the base of analyzing and fully understanding consumer’s psychology, to
do what the consumer want to do, and make the goods as a bridge to the consumer by using fit color to position goods properly so as
to achieve the unity of “goods-color-emotion”.
2 The Significance of E-color Marketing Application
2.1The importance decided by the characteristics of tourism products
The intangible characteristic of tourism products leads to low information capacity of tourism e-marketing and low product
marketability in internet. The tourism enterprises have to carry out the marketing strategy on tangibility of service in order to affect
purchasing behavior, improve the information capacity and market competitiveness with providing multi-media technology including
the pictures, voices, videos and so on. The tangible demonstration of service can be divided into three types: test environment,
information communication and price.[4] The color is an important communication tool, in this case, E-Color Marketing technology
application is particularly crucial. It enriches the content of services, improves service standards and endows the tourism e-marketing
with great energy and has the overall different operating effectiveness from traditional tourism e-marketing.
2.2 The necessity decided by the homogenization of serious competition
The number of Internet purchases continues to increase, making the homogenization competition even more serious in today’s
Tourism. The homogenization is a phenomenon that all kinds of different brands among each main type of goods are produced by
imitating on functions, appearance and even main marketing tool leading to gradual assimilation as a result. The homogenization
represents not only on the single product and repetitive content, but also on the similar corporate image position lacking of diversity.
The fierce vicious competition causes severe conflicts within the tourism business of line, which for the development of the industry
as a whole is negative, but being driven by interest and lack of innovation are two main reasons of homogeneous competition
appeared. Most tourist sites are introduced scenic spots, the price quotation and travel lines primarily in no features and dull
unattractive color. Taking Chinese leading network tourism enterprises as an example, eLong and Ctrip travel network are only
different in providing a separate page of member point. In the era of developed internet economy of tourism, the product
homogenization problem is very prominent. Therefore, intense needs to create a clear unique brand vision image. Color is the key to
the competition of homogenous products, and the way of Color Marketing development in internet is indispensable to the tourism
enterprises.
2.3 The strong influence to purchasing behavior
2.3.1 Leaving a deep first impression
The home page just likes a person’s face, relaxed or nervous, warm or cold, feeding back different feelings to the client. The color
applied and matched in can meet unexpectedly 10 thousand kinds of amorous feelings. When firstly meeting others, you may not
have a very deep impression on her or his looks and dress, but you can easily feel his or her passion or repulsion, like or not and more
or less attention. The feeling is so delicate, may not be said out, but it is really out there, and also affects the continuous exchange.
This principle is followed in color emotional effect of net page. Different colors in the same field have totally various marketing
results. Color itself is not beautiful or ugly. The fit coordination is pretty, that is to say, the color matches with the content you want to
express and atmosphere is the best. The travel network is concentrated on the service, so the strong color should not be used in the
web page, because it can produce subdued feeling easily. People who are planning to travel outside with the ideal of relaxing and
playing happily, may has chosen the leaving as soon as they saw this kind color without opening the main page completely. The color
effect is the fundamental web principle. Different colors used in the same field have different effects. Color itself is not the beauty or
ugliness, appropriate coordination is beautiful.
2.3.2 Stimulating demanders purchasing behavior
Don’t underestimate color’s impact on psychology. Because color is actually a sensation, colors are purely subjective, as interpreted
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by an individual’s visual system and brain.[5] Color is indeed a magnetically expression tool that can stimulate demanders purchasing
behavior, cannot only attract potential target customer, but also convey information more clearly and effectively. The tourism
products’ purchasing behavior is strongly influenced by tourism E-Color Marketing. Appropriate color can stimulate demanders’
purchasing behavior such as the route design of the Red Revolutionary Base Trip, the red color gives people excited and happy
feeling, warm and thriving association; for the Yellow Desert Travel, yellow supplies a vast expanse and distant psychological feeling
to the customer; the Blue Ocean Life journey, the blue presents for quiet, clean and intellectual producing the association of the
surface of the sea rippling and the vast clear sky; the Ecotourism is closely related the green is the color of nature, is believed to be
the representative of spring, associating the beauty of the countryside and pasture; the red orange of Autumn Harvest Trip makes a
ripe fruit and sweet feeling; Luxurious Trip to Europe, the purple with a noble, elegant and delicate sense; Winter Snow White Trip,
white can make a person associate honest, clean, sacred and excellent quality. This kind of tourism color products and services
enriches service contents, improves the service level, and has changed the operation effects of traditional network marketing, injected
the new vitality to tourism E-Marketing. On the contrary, if the enterprises don't concentrate more on the color of encourage, they
will not get performance gains as many as possible.
3 The Suggestions of E-color Marketing Technology Application
If the tourism enterprises skimp their visual design of network products, they will not only lose a concern, but also a business
opportunity. The application of E-Marketing Technology in tourism industry should pay more attention to the following questions:
3.1 To correspondent with targeted consumers’ color preferences
Adhere to the target market and consumer color preferences principle. To different colors, the consumer in different countries has
different aesthetic sense. For example, gray is cheap in China, but it is expensive high quality and reliable in America; color
preferences are different among different genders and ages as well as different psychological states. When being excited, choose red
will sympathize with each other, green will relax; if you are depressed, yellow can make you excited, but gray will bring the further
depression. The psychologist research shows that both preference and reactions of people at the same stage and same sex groups to
colors are of homogeneity. Just like that young males prefer blue and middle-aged women prefer purple, etc. Tourism enterprise in
product’s color choice must be based on the target customers, avoid blindly color preferences by imitating, blindly using E-Color
Marketing Technology. No color preference analysis to the target market and no adequately possessing first-hand information on the
audience color preferences, but blindly collocated color with the goods, could not be recognized and accepted. So I suggest that
travel web page design have to be with reasonable collocation, make the customer feel comfortable and be correspondent with
consumers’ color preferences in the targeted market.
3.2 To consistent with tourist enterprise image
A color can represent an enterprise’s image, such as the green of Crocodile brand and McDonald's red and yellow. Few major brands
do not have their own web site. [6] Firstly, the purpose of choosing “standard” color is to show the unique image, establish brand and
cultivate loyal customers. Secondly, to create unique characteristics of color on culture, according to enterprise culture characteristics
itself. Tourism brand design must make full use of charming color. For instance, Hong Kong has invested hugely to built online travel
tourist e-commerce platform, Mango Net in 2005. This new market, online travel e-commerce brand, has changed the marketing
pattern of lacing obvious color, which used by Elong and Ctrip Travel Network before, color marketing obviously by bright orange
boldly and peak green color combination, and with mango as the main body, the combination image into the image characteristics,
rapid rising in tourism e-commerce market. Only in a year, it has become is an important force in the China tourism electronic
commerce market, has a large market share. From the perspective of brand marketing, Mango network appeals to the urban elite
groups of sunshine life by young color and young image. Except in very consistent position on the brand personality, but by its
distinctive color within short time strengthened consumer impression and memory and spread widely to realize the memory, enhance
market share constantly. As a new brand, if there is no bright brand personality, apparently, it is difficult to shake the online travel
market which has dominated by eLong and Ctrip Travel Network for two years. While it shows that acceptance of many consumers is
because of the bright colors from the feedback information, many people even don’t remember specific mango’s websites, but can
clearly express orange and mango shape. This is enough to prove that Mango E-Color Marketing strategy is a success. Our response
on particular colors is culturally relative, so in process of carrying out enterprise network image positioning, pay attention to match
the using of E-Color Marketing technology with regional and national colors in culture. The color of tourism product position
depends on the different culture of the region and nation. By investigating the cultural differentiation and cultural orientation of color
naming, color marketing, planning and design can be carried out accordingly.
3.3 To blend experience design into the color
Experience design(ED) is the practice of designing products, processes, services, events, and environments with a focus placed on the
quality of the user experience and culturally relevant solutions, with less emphasis placed on increasing and improving functionality
of the design.[7] According to the current parlance, this creation and organization of useful representation in multiple media, in
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multiple ways, across various user situations, is termed “experience design.”[8] The "Experience E-Color Design" is the way of
consumers-centered and taste-based purchasing approach, from which consumers can be served what they want to know through
their own experiences by surfing on the internet; meanwhile, many opportunities are available for a tourism enterprise. When you
clicking on a tourist route and open it, you can see some very vivid pictures or videos of the region’s tourist attractions, and browsing
the page with comfortable visual effect, this is a kind of experience-based tourism product design. The core tourism product is the
tour circuit, in this case, to present more pictures are better than literal in a certain degree. Therefore, to create travel situation on line,
to simulate the real travel circumstance, then people have experience “really” on the “virtual” scene, emphasizing the customer’s
initiative, arousing the customer’s emotion, let customers to perceive the tourist products’ glamour among network space themselves
that will be coming to affect the decision-making process.
4 Conclusion
The application of E-Color Marketing Technology makes the traditional network travel service face the consumer in a more
emotional way. It makes up for the gap of emotion communication in the traditional E-marketing, meets the need of tourism
economic development in network age and injects a flow of fresh vitality into tourism E-marketing. Tourism enterprises should
timely adjust network marketing strategy, to achieve the business model of innovation and change, constantly grow and develop by
the combination of information technology and the color application in the fierce competition today.
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