The Characteristics of the Target Tourism Industry for the Development of Industrial Tourism with the Importance-Performance Analysis Method (Case Study: Kashan Herb Industry)

Development is one of the main concerns of policy makers and executives of many countries, and so far many ideas and policies have been designed, implemented and evaluated in this field. One of the strategies of economic, cultural and livelihood development in cities and villages is executed through the promotion of tourism which has grown more rapidly and diversified in recent years. On the other hand, trying to improve industrial capacity is one of the most important methods in the field of urban and rural development. The link between tourism and industry, which is manifested in the title of industrial tourism, can also encourage the dual fields of industrial promotion and development. The current research, which was conducted with a combined qualitative and quantitative approach, in addition to identifying the characteristics of the target tourism industry for the development of industrial tourism, analyzed their importance-performance, focusing on the development of the herb industry in Kashan city. In order to identify these characteristics, in addition to library studies, observation and interviewing methods were also employed and finally 9 characteristics were extracted. Then these features were evaluated by 16 experts in the field with the performance importance analysis method. Based on the research findings, paying attention to such characteristics as "innovation degree and difference between the target industry and other industries" and "development capacity of the target industry (tourism)" which have high importance and low performance in the Kashan herb industry, are to be given the first priority.