Developing reciprocal exchanges for tourism investors

Abstract

This article is based on a unique sample of 111 tourism investors in Tanzania. Investors have a significant role in establishing services and supporting continuance in local tourism networks. As important as investors are, many of them overlook relationships they may find abundant but not meaningful. Many investors shift relationships when meaningful ideas or other outcomes no longer feed into the relationship. Relationships could thus be seen as gradual processes in which meaningful exchanges cement the relationships together. At the entry stage, investors select partners they trust or focus on identifying a specific style characterized by partner-related criteria. These expectations typically depend on the motives or reasons investors enter relationships. We suggest that investors’ relationships develop from motives toward defined selection criteria as the basis for a continued exchange defined by their reciprocal orientation. Thus, a theoretical model is presented with constructs such as hard and soft motives, trust and network awareness, partner selection criteria, and reciprocal orientations. We hope these findings may illustrate how policymakers in Tanzania can support investor relationships and nurture them toward a long-term exchange.