New Service Development and Innovation for Tanzanian Tourism and Hospitality Entrepreneurs’ Competitiveness

Abstract

The timing and launching of new services is assumed to strongly support satisfied tourists and in turn generate positive outcomes. Tourists are more than ever knowledgeable about what services they expect. This paper builds upon the notion that tourism entrepreneurs in Tanzania offer both unique and less unique services which reflect their performance. Therefore, the study aimed at providing a systematic analysis of how new product development, innovativeness, environmental munificence, and performance variables are related. A quantitative research design was employed to achieve the objective. A sample of 111 entrepreneurs from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, was asked to fill out a survey. These entrepreneurs were purposively sampled and measures met acceptable levels of validity and reliability. A regression analysis presented interesting findings. The findings show a strong negative effect of new innovative offerings (i.e., new product development), while processes refining outcomes (i.e., innovativeness) have a positive relationship towards performance. Our results further indicated that the commercial ideas captured in munificence mediate (i.e., lower) negative effects of new product innovations as well as the positive effects of innovativeness. Timing is thus better if recognizing characteristics of the market and particularly if the market is known as a growing segment. New services can thus not be offered in isolation but through the means of market responsiveness. The study offers unique insights into new product development in Tanzania.