Description
RTM 304 Online: Innovative Business Project Assignment
Suggest an innovative recreation/tourism/leisure business that appeals to you. It might be based on a service, and experience, or a product. Develop the idea and give a 1-2 page (mnimum) outline of the business idea. Refer to trendhunter.com and try Googling “Leisure Trends”, “Tourism Trends” and/or “Recreation Trends” (and variations on these searches) for ideas and insights about current trends and innovations that you can incorporate into your idea. An excellent paper will:
explain why the business idea appeals to you;
explain who the market for this business is;
explain how this idea is innovative; and,
cite/reference two or more sources of information showing and how the idea aligns within current trends.
Explore the business idea from 2 different theoretical perspectives mentioned in class and/or in readings.
For each theory being discussed you should take 1-2 pages (minimum) to:
briefly introduce and explain the theory
explain how your the theory relates to your business idea (if it doesn’t choose another theory)
explain how the theory helps make the case that your business will meet cultural/societal needs
An excellent paper will cite multiple sources information about the relevant theory that goes well beyond the material covered in the textbook and in lectures. Additional material should be referenced in text and in a separate reference list according to the APA style of referencing. An excellent paper will demonstrate a depth of analysis that shows a good understanding of the theory being discussed and how it is relevant in the context of the business idea being discussed.
Library databases as well as online searches for information will yield plenty of information for your assignment. If you are unfamiliar with APA referencing a guide can be found here http://www.apastyle.org/Links to an external site.
A list of theories that you can incorporate into your assignment follows:
Aristotle – Eudaimonia
Epicurianism
Hedonism
Huizinga – Homo Ludens and theories on play & culture
Caillois – Theory on play and types of games
Nicholas Carr – The Shallows: What the internet is doing to our brains
John Muir (writings on the spirituality of nature)
Stebbins – Serious Leisure
Czikentmihalyi -‐ Flow
Mannell – Self as Entertainment
Apter – Reversal Theory
Mead – Symbolic Interactionism
Turner – Liminality & Communitas
Nic Marks – New Economics Foundation – Happy Planet Index
Kelly – Core plus balance
Piaget – Cognitive development in children
Mischel – Marshmallow test
Sahlins -‐ Material wealth & leisure
Time-‐Space Compression/Distantiation (multiple authors g. Harvey, Giddens, Thrift)
Manning -‐ Recreation and crowding
Smale – Distance Decay
Barlow, P. – Cyberhood vs Neighborhood
Rojek/Bryman/Postman – critiques of popular culture
Leisure and Deviance/Taboo Leisure (Anomie/Leisure boredom/Differential Association)
An excellent report will build a clear picture of the business idea in terms of product, market and value proposition giving examples of similar businesses while explaining how this idea is innovative. Theory will be researched using multiple references in addition to those provided for each theory. These references will be correctly cited in text and in a separate reference list, and creatively applied to the business idea being presented in some depth. You should explain how the theory relates to your business: for example, how the theory helps to explain why your business is going to be successful, why people will like it, or what types of experiences your customers will have and why they might be meaningful and how these experiences will help meet societal needs.
