The Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau represents the second-tier city of Springfield and its surrounding region. Most of the region is rural except for Springfield and a couple of smaller cities. Bart Simpson is the executive director of the Springfield CVB, and many describe him as outgoing and a bit of a cartoon character. The major objective of the CVB is to promote tourism for the region. The CVB publishes a promotional guide containing information on lodging, restaurants, entertainment, and tourist attractions. The guide is available free of charge by calling an 800 number, filling out a magazine insert, or requesting it through the Web site. Bart was curious about the conversion rate and wanted to know more about the people who actually visited the region. Therefore, he contracted with a research firm to conduct a survey of people who requested the guide.
The sample was drawn randomly from the list of people who requested the guide over the previous year, including requests from all three vehicles mentioned above. The final sample consisted of 400 respondents, and approximately 52 percent of them indicated that they had actually visited the region.
The following table provides a breakdown of visitation by demographics.
The percentages indicate the number of respondents in each demographic category who visited the region, and the numbers in parentheses indicate the total number of respondents in each category.

This information provided the CVB with a profile of the respondents who actually visited the region within a year of receiving the promotional guide. In addition to the demographics, the survey also asked respondents to provide information regarding the amount of money they spent on their trip. The following table provides the dollar expenditures per person per day for the various categories.

This is the first time the Springfield CVB ever collected this kind of information about the visitors to the region. The main purpose was to determine the primary market segments for promotional activities, as well as some potential secondary markets for growth. Bart Simpson wasn’t quite sure how to analyze the information, so he relied on the research firm.

Case Study Questions and Issues

1. How would you describe the primary market segment(s) for this region?
2. Which market segments show potential for future growth? Explain your answer.
3. What could you do to make the destination more appealing to the primary and secondary market segments?

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VARIABLE % WHO VISITED DEMOGRAPHIC CATEGORIES Age 18-45 (n = 100) 48.4 46-55 (n = 126) 57.4 56 and over (n = 174) 50.0 Gender Male (n = 178) 52.4 Female (n = 222) 51.7 Marital status Single (n = 90) 35.8 Married (n = 270) 55.6 Divorced (n = 40) 63.0 Income $40,001-$70,000 (n = 150) $70,001 and over (n = 160) $40,000 or less (n = 90) 43.1 57.9 53.3