Identification and Ranking of Entrepreneurial Development Strategies of Rural Tourism in Golestan Province with a Combined SWOT-AHP Approach

Salarzehi, H.; Tabavar, A,

doi:10.30490/rvt.2016.59464

Identification and Ranking of Entrepreneurial Development Strategies of Rural Tourism in Golestan Province with a Combined SWOT-AHP Approach

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

10.30490/rvt.2016.59464

Abstract

Golbahar POURANJENAR [1] , Habiballah SALARZEHI [2] , and Aliasghar TABAVAR [3] Received: 12 June, 2015 Accepted: 19 August, 2016 The purpose of this study was to take advantage of entrepreneurial thinking to identify and prioritize strategies of traditional tourism activities in Golestan province of Iran to drive them towards innovative activities. It used a combined AHP-SWOT approach; first, SWOT analysis to identify and classify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of tourism activities in the province and then, analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to calculate the weight and importance of each criteria and sub-criteria identified by SWOT analysis. For gathering data, a matrix of components and groups paired comparisons was formulated and completed through the viewpoints of 15 experts and activists in tourism industry in the first three months of 2015. The results showed that the most important practical strategy for entrepreneurial development strategy in the tourism industry of the Golestan province was 'SO' strategy with utility index of 0.495; in addition, t he most important strategies identified included : diversification of the advertising program s designed for applications , review of planning and investment , and international marketing .

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