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The global threat of climate change, diminishing natural resources and significant socio-economic inequalities is forcing companies and individuals to evaluate the impact they are having on the natural, social and economic environments. This trend has led to an increased availability and demand for socially, environmentally and economically responsible products. The tourism industry relies heavily on the sustained beauty and hospitality of the places and communities it operates in and has come under pressure to manage its negative impacts. Change in the industry has, however, been limited. This paper investigates the current attitudes and perceptions of tourism business owners in Cape Town towards responsible tourism management (RTM) practices in order to develop social marketing strategies that can influence positive behaviour change in management. Cape Town as an internationally acclaimed top tourism destination needs to urgently address its low levels of responsible tourism evidence. Survey data of 244 tourism businesses was used to statistically test what factors are causing the low levels of RTM practices in Cape Town. Findings suggest that despite general positive attitudes towards RTM, tourism businesses are not investing time and money into changing management practices. This is a common emerging market phenomenon where resource constraints negatively impact the relationship between what businesses would like to do and what actually gets done. Factors such as the perceived cost of RTM, a highly competitive environment and a perceived lack of government support are further negatively influencing this relationship. Recommendations are made as to how social marketing can be used to encourage businesses to adopt RTM practices by reducing the perceived and actual costs of implementing RTM. The paper discusses what channels should be implemented to facilitate change.

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -This article is the culmination of an exploratory study into the mature market (defined as over the age of 55) in South Africa. The article aims to focus on the mature market's media consumption, perception of portrayal in the media, adoption of technology, and outlook on life -all of which influence their spending patterns in their twilight years. Design/methodology/approach -The study gained an international perspective of the mature market through the literature on the subject. Empirical analysis of the South African market was thereafter conducted through a lifestyle survey of 117 respondents living in metropolitan areas. The data were imported into -and analysed using -Statistica for descriptive and clustering purposes. Findings -The mature market is, unsurprisingly, most in favour of traditional media channels. To this end, television, radio, magazines and newspapers still remain an effective means to communicate with this market. Use of mobile phones and the internet was observed -although in a limited sense. A negative attitude towards advertising was observed on the whole, with individuals within this cohort feeling neglected in favour of younger consumers. The variables Age, Income, living standard measure (LSM) groupings and Internet usage, when utilised in conjunction, appear to be an effective differentiator of the mature market in South Africa. Three lifestyle clusters were discovered by the study, namely: Old optimists, Young up-beats, and Younger opinionists. Originality/value -It has been established that the mature market is a lucrative one for retailers. However, the majority of studies have been focused on developed nations such as the UK and the USA. This study brings about an emerging market perspective.

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