Who Are the Consumers of Public Park and Recreation Services? An Analysis of the Users and Non-Users of Three Municipal Leisure Service Organizations

Authors

  • Dennis R. Howard
  • John L. Crompton

Keywords:

non-use, constraints, target markets

Abstract

It is apparent that municipal park and recreation organizations face a major marketing problem. This analysis reports data from consumer research studies conducted for park and recreation agencies in three U.S. cities. The primary intent of these market studies was to assess the extent to which adults utilized public sponsored leisure services and facilities. Factors which inhibited citizens from making more use of public recreation resources were also identified.

Data from the three city study indicates that municipal park and recreation agencies serve a narrow and limited range of adult clients. The issue of non-use and its implications for the financing and pricing of public leisure services is addressed. Target marketing is recommended as a key strategy for dealing with the substantial variation in the patterns among consumer segments.

Published

1984-07-04

Issue

Section

Regular Papers