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Destination Marketing and Management

Theories and Applications


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Destination Marketing
and Management
Theories and Applications

Edited by

Youcheng Wang

University of Central Florida, USA

and

Abraham Pizam

University of Central Florida, USA

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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library,
London, UK.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data


Destination marketing and management : theories and applications /
edited by Youcheng Wang and Abraham Pizam.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-84593-762-1 (permanent paper)
1. Tourism--Marketing. 2. Tourism--Management. I. Wang, Youcheng.
II. Pizam, Abraham. III. Title.
G155.A1D4779 2011
910.688--dc22
2010050329

ISBN-13: 978 1 84593 762 1

Commissioning editor: Sarah Hulbert


Editorial assistant: Alexandra Lainsbury
Production editors: Shankari Wilford and Holly Beaumont
Typeset by AMA Dataset Ltd, Preston, UK
Printed and bound in the UK by MPG Books Group.
Contents

Contributors vii

Preface ix
Youcheng Wang and Abraham Pizam

PART I: DESTINATION MARKETING AND MANAGEMENT: CONCEPTS, STRUCTURES AND POLICIES

1 Destination Marketing and Management: Scope, Denition and Structures 1


Youcheng Wang

2 Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 21


John Jenkins, Dianne Dredge and Jessica Taplin

PART II: DESTINATION MARKETING: UNDERSTANDING CONSUMER DECISION MAKING

3 Travel Motivation, Benets and Constraints to Destinations 39


Philip L. Pearce

4 Traveller Decision Making: The Experientialist Stance 53


Drew Martin, Ercan Sirakaya-Turk and Arch Woodside

5 Destination Information Search Strategies 67


Dogan Gursoy

6 Experiential Consumption and Destination Marketing 82


Andrew R. Walls and Youcheng Wang

PART III: DESTINATION MARKETING: RESEARCH, BRANDING AND IMAGE COMMUNICATION

7 Destination Marketing Research: Issues and Challenges 99


Muzaffer Uysal, Rich Harrill and Eunju Woo

v
vi Contents

8 Destination Branding and Positioning 113


Asli D.A. Tasci

9 Destination Image Development and Communication 130


Amir Shani and Youcheng Wang

PART IV: DESTINATION PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND DISTRIBUTION

10 The Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews, Scotland:


From Religious Relics to Golng Mecca 149
Richard Butler

11 Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing and Promotion 165


John Kracht and Youcheng Wang

12 Destination Marketing Systems: Critical Factors for Functional


Design and Management 184
Youcheng Wang

13 eTourism: Critical Information and Communication


Technologies for Tourism Destinations 205
Dimitrios Buhalis, Daniel Leung and Rob Law

14 Web 2.0, the Online Community and Destination Marketing 225


Peter OConnor, Youcheng Wang and Xu Li

15 Events and Destination Management 244


Graham Brown, Leo Jago, Laurence Chalip, Shameem Ali and Trevor Mules

PART V: MANAGING STAKEHOLDERS AT DESTINATIONS

16 Collaborative Destination Marketing: Principles and Applications 259


Youcheng Wang

17 Tourism Development and Destination Community Residents 284


Claudia Jurowski

PART VI: SAFETY AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT AT DESTINATIONS

18 The Importance of Safety and Security for Tourism Destinations 300


Galia Fuchs and Abraham Pizam

19 Destination Crisis Management 314


Lori Pennington-Gray and Abraham Pizam

PART VII: MANAGING COMPETITIVENESS AND SUSTAINABILITY


AND EMBRACING CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

20 A Model of Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability 326


J.R. Brent Ritchie and Geoffrey I. Crouch

21 Destination Management: Challenges and Opportunities 340


Alan Fyall

Index 359
Contributors

Shameem Ali (Shameem.Ali@vu.edu.au), Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.


Graham Brown (Graham.Brown@unisa.edu.au), University of South Australia,
Australia.
Dimitrios Buhalis (dbuhalis@bournemouth.ac.uk), Bournemouth University, UK.
Richard Butler (richard.butler@strath.ac.uk), University of Strathclyde, UK.
Laurence Chalip (lchalip@mail.utexas.edu), University of Texas at Austin, USA.
Geoffrey I. Crouch (Geoffrey.Crouch@latrobe.edu.au), La Trobe University, Australia.
Dianne Dredge (dianne.dredge@scu.edu.au), Southern Cross University, Australia.
Galia Fuchs (galiaf@netvision.net.il), Ben-Gurion University of the Negev,
Beer-Sheva, Israel.
Alan Fyall (afyall@bournemouth.ac.uk), Bournemouth University, UK.
Dogan Gursoy (dgursoy@cbe.wsu.edu), Washington State University, USA.
Rich Harrill (rharrill@hrsm.sc.edu), University of South Carolina, USA.
Leo Jago (Leo.Jago@nottingham.ac.uk), University of Nottingham, UK.
John Jenkins (john.jenkins@scu.edu.au), Southern Cross University, Australia.
Claudia Jurowski (claudia.jurowski@nau.edu), Northern Arizona University, USA.
John Kracht (jkracht@bellsouth.net), University of Central Florida, USA.
Rob Law (hmroblaw@polyu.edu.hk), Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China.
Daniel Leung (leung.daniel@polyu.edu.hk), Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China.
Xu Li (xuli@mail.ucf.edu), University of Central Florida, USA.
Drew Martin (drmartin@hawaii.edu), University of Hawaii at Hilo, USA.
Trevor Mules (trevor.mules@bigpond.com.au), formerly of University of Canberra,
Australia.
Peter OConnor (oconnor@essec.fr), Essec Business School, Paris, France.
Philip L. Pearce (Philip.Pearce@jcu.edu.au), James Cook University, Australia.
Lori Pennington-Gray (penngray@hhp.u.edu), University of Florida, USA.
Abraham Pizam (apizam@mail.ucf.edu), University of Central Florida, USA.
J.R. Brent Ritchie (britchie@ucalgary.ca), University of Calgary, Canada.
Amir Shani (shaniam@som.bgu.ac.il), Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel.
Ercan Sirakaya-Turk (ercan@sc.edu), University of South Carolina, USA.

vii
viii Contributors

Jessica Taplin (jessica.taplin@scu.edu.au), Southern Cross University, Australia.


Asli D.A. Tasci (adatasci@hhp.u.edu), University of Florida, USA.
Muzaffer Uysal (samil@vt.edu), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, USA.
Andrew R. Walls (arwalls99@gmail.com), San Francisco State University, USA.
Youcheng Wang (raywang@mail.ucf.edu), University of Central Florida, USA.
Eunju Woo (eunjuw3@vt.edu), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, USA.
Arch Woodside (woodsiar@bc.edu), Boston College, USA.
Preface

The development, marketing and management activities of destinations are very much in line
with the development of the tourism industry at the global scale. Various sources have
indicated that the tourism industry has the potential to keep growing for quite some time,
driven by structural factors such as population growth, economic afuence, business expan-
sion and age-related travel patterns, combined with social factors such as the globalization of
cultures and electronic connectedness. As a result, hundreds of thousands of businesses, large
and small, play their parts in selling and delivering services to those who travel to various
destinations. However, destination marketing and management is a complex issue which
requires a comprehensive, holistic and systematic approach to understand it. From the demand
side, travellers have a variety of choices of available destinations; from the supply side, desti-
nation marketing organizations at different levels are trying their best to compete for attention
from a highly competitive marketplace. Therefore, destination competitiveness and attractive-
ness demand effective and integrative marketing and management strategies which are based
on a sound understanding of the market condition.
This book offers a comprehensive understanding of the concept and scope of the tourism
industry in general and of destination marketing and management in particular. Taking an
integrated and comprehensive approach, it focuses on both the macro and micro aspects of
destination marketing and management. Key themes and topics covered include the concept,
scope and structure of destination marketing and management, destination planning and pol-
icy, consumer decision-making processes, destination marketing research, destination brand-
ing and positioning, destination product development and distribution, the role of emerging
technologies in destination marketing, destination stakeholder management, destination
safety, disaster and crisis management, destination competitiveness and sustainability, and
challenges and opportunities for destination marketing and management.
In advocating an integrative and comprehensive approach to destination marketing and
management, the book also highlights the changing role of Destination Marketing Organiza-
tions (DMOs) to Destination Management and Marketing Organizations (DMMOs). This
ongoing and inevitable change occurs as a result of the nature of the tourism product and its
consumption at the destination level. Unlike many other products and services, the tourism
product is not produced and distributed by a single organization that has total and absolute

ix
x Preface

control of the production and marketing processes, which include, among others, the estab-
lishment of quality standards, prices, channels of distribution and various marketing policies
and practices. The tourism product at the destination level is a combination of goods and ser-
vices that are produced by independent enterprises, each one acting autonomously according
to its own needs and interests, and with little consideration for the needs and activities of other
enterprises. But, unfortunately, the tourists do not perceive the situation in this manner. From
a tourist perspective, the tourism destination is a unied product regardless of its numerous
components. When a tourist has an unpleasant experience with a local tourism provider, this
experience may result in a halo effect that causes a negative carry-over judgement to other
tourism providers and to the destination as a whole. If this holds true for all tourist destina-
tions, one can paraphrase an old saying and claim that a tourist destination is only as strong
as its weakest component.
At present, the main function of DMOs is to increase tourist visitation to a destination
area. But this is a major challenge given that the DMOs neither shape the product nor control
its manufacturing, pricing and delivery and, ultimately, cannot inuence tourist satisfaction
with the overall experience at the destination. Their role is conned to marketing a tourism
destination with their hands tied behind their backs. They receive a number of independently
produced products and have to put them on the shelf and market them without having the
ability to have an impact on their quality, attributes, prices or means of delivery. Many DMO
executives have realized the shortcomings of the distinction between the private sector
producers and the public sector marketers, and have quietly called for a change in the role of
DMOs and for a greater inuence in the management and operation of tourism enterprises at
the destination level in a holistic manner. In other words, they wish to turn their DMOs into
DMMOs.
This book is a rst attempt to analyse the factors that affect the effectiveness of the man-
agement and marketing of tourism destinations. We hope that readers will nd the text often
written by top experts in their respective elds both interesting and challenging.

Youcheng Wang and Abraham Pizam


Rosen College of Hospitality Management
University of Central Florida
1 Destination Marketing and
Management: Scope,
Denition and Structures

Youcheng Wang

Destination Marketing and such as the globalization of cultures and


Management: Scope and Denition electronic connectedness (DMAI, 2008). The
United Nations World Tourism Organization
Most of tourism activities take place at (UNTWO; until 2003 the WTO) projects inter-
destinations, and destination forms a pillar in national arrivals to top 1.5 billion by 2020,
any modelling of the tourism system and has with associated revenues of more than US$1
emerged as the fundamental unit of analysis trillion (UNTWO, 2010). As a result, hun-
in tourism (Pike, 2008). However, destination dreds of thousands of businesses, large and
marketing and management is a complex small, play their parts in selling and deliver-
issue which requires a comprehensive, holis- ing services to those who travel to various
tic and systematic approach to understand it. destinations (DMAI, 2008).
From the demand side, travellers have a vari- Effective and integrative marketing and
ety of choices of available destinations; from management strategies for destinations dic-
the supply side, destination marketing orga- tate a comprehensive understanding of the
nizations at different levels are trying their concept and scope of tourism industry in gen-
best to compete for attention from a highly eral and of destination marketing and man-
competitive marketplace (Heath and Wall, agement in particular. Tourism happens only
1992). Therefore, destination competitiveness when a tourist has to leave his (or her) resi-
and attractiveness demand effective and dence for a certain destination by means of
integrative marketing and management transport for various purposes, for example,
strategies which are based on a sound under- to enjoy the beautiful landscapes or the differ-
standing of the market condition (Pike, 2008). ent culture of the destination the tourist is vis-
The development, marketing and man- iting. The key factor in dening a tourist is
agement activities of destinations are very that he or she has to travel away from his or
much in line with the development of the her habitual habitat or residence. For exam-
tourism industry at the global scale. Various ple, a person who visits the Forbidden City in
sources have indicated that the tourism Beijing cannot be regarded as a tourist if he
industry has the potential to keep growing lives and works in Beijing. Therefore, the spa-
for quite some time, driven by structural fac- tial movement from his residence to the desti-
tors such as population growth, economic nation plays an important role in realizing his
afuence, business expansion and age-related travel desire. While travelling, a tourist will
travel patterns, combined with social factors consume the tourism product which brings
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 1
2 Y. Wang

economic benets to the destination/commu- there would be no tourism. Therefore, it is


nity visited. worthwhile attaching great importance to the
It can be argued that from a geographical study of tourists. Besides this, there are other
perspective, spatial movement is a key factor factors which have an inuence on tourism
dening the tourism industry that contrib- demand, such as economic, social and cultural
utes to the understanding of destination factors. Depending on the motivation and
marketing and management. In order to activities engaged in, tourists/travellers can
streamline the conceptualization of the tour- be classied into different types, such as
ism system and destination marketing and leisure travellers, business travellers and
management, Leipers (1995) model can be common-interest travellers. According to the
adapted (see Fig. 1.1). Leiper (1995) used time the tourist travels, there are also day trips
three elements to describe the tourism system: or excursions that do not involve an overnight
stay. Tourism often refers to journeys or stays
1. Geographical elements, which include: at destinations for at least 24 hours.
(i) the traveller-generating region; (ii) the 3. Tourism industry: the tourism industry
tourist destination region; and (iii) transit refers to the businesses and organizations
route region. The traveller-generating region that help to promote the tourism product.
(or home region), refers to the place where the According to Leiper (1995), various industrial
tourists come from. It is the generating mar- sectors can be located in different places. In
ket that stimulates and motivates travel. The the traveller-generating region, we can nd
transit route region includes both the short travel agents and tour operators. In the desti-
period of travel from the tourists home nation region, we can nd attractions and the
region to the destination and other places on hospitality industry, and in the transit route
the way that the tourists may stop to visit. region, we have the transport sector. The pri-
The tourist destination region is one of the mary tourism industry is composed of travel
most important elements in the whole tour- trade, transport, accommodation and cater-
ism system. It emphasizes what the suppliers ing, as well as catering facilities and tourist
can do for the tourists. Of course, this includes attractions, etc. Different sectors or compa-
not only the physical equipment which is cru- nies provide these products and services to
cial to attract tourists, but also the manage- suit all budgets and tastes.
ment and service which are helpful in
enhancing its images and motivating the vis- There are various discussions in the tour-
it. In other words, the tourist destination ism literature about the concept of destina-
functions as a pull factor in the market and tion, but a uniform and standard denition of
provides an area for most of the tourism ac- destination has been proven to be elusive and
tivity. The tourist destination region is where difcult to reach owing to the different per-
the tourists can realize their temporary goal mutations and implications associated with
of travel and go through a memorable tour- such an attempt. Using a systems approach,
ism experience. It provides them with attrac- and supported by consumption patterns of
tions of various types and creates a stage on destinations by consumers, it can be argued
which planning and management strategies that a destination is a geographical space in
can be carried out. which a cluster of tourism resources exists,
2. Tourists: tourism is a complete and com- rather than a political boundary (Pike, 2008).
prehensive system in which the tourists play According to Rubies (2001), a tourism cluster
an important role. On the one hand, tourism is an accumulation of tourist resources and
can enrich tourists experience, widen their attractions, infrastructure, equipment, service
horizons and increase their knowledge. On providers, other support sectors and adminis-
the other hand, tourists can help to improve trative organizations, whose integrated and
the tourism environment, to enhance the coordinated activities provide customers with
images of the destinations to push the tourism the experiences they expect from the destina-
industry forward and to energize the whole tion they choose to visit. Adopting such a clus-
tourism system. In a word, without tourists ter approach, three major destination cluster
Destination Marketing and Management 3

types can be identied: (i) a destination as a external or environmental systems, such as


part of a political boundary (e.g. the French sociocultural, economic, political, physical, etc.
Quarter in New Orleans, Louisiana and Fish- Following the same line of reasoning, destina-
ermans Wharf in San Francisco, California tion marketing and management has been,
(USA) and Darling Harbour in Sydney, and will continue to be, affected by multiple
Australia); (ii) a destination as a political external factors which serve as the driving
boundary (e.g. The Gold Coast, Australia and forces. According to a report of the 2008 Future
Las Vegas, Nevada (USA)); and, (iii) a destina- Studies conducted by KAI (Karl Albrecht
tion across political boundaries (e.g. Alps in International) for the Destination Marketing
Europe and the Mekong Tourism Area in Association International (DMAI), the follow-
South-east Asia). ing eight super trends have been identied as
Following the same line of reasoning, the driving forces for destination marketing
Dredge and Jenkins (2007) dene a destina- and management (DMAI, 2008, pp. 4648).
tion as a location that a person travels to, and
that is distinct from their usual place of resi- THE CUSTOMER ENVIRONMENT PROLIFERATING
dence. They further noted that the boundar- PREFERENCES Travel customers increas-
ies of destinations are necessarily tied to the ingly seek and respond to a diversied set of
characteristics of travel patterns, but that value clusters (i.e. combinations of experi-
destination marketers and managers tend to ences, products and prices that suit their indi-
operate on administrative boundaries that vidual preferences). Destinations must
often limit an accurate conceptualization of a design, promote and coordinate a satisfying
destination. In developing a model of desti- total visitor experience that maximizes the
nation region, Dredge (1999) identied three economic contribution to the destination, and
characteristics: (i) that tourist-generating one that stimulates return intention and refer-
markets and destination regions are separate ral behaviour. Destination marketers must
geographical entities; (ii) that the complex craft an ever richer palette of options and tar-
and multi-scale nature of destinations means get their value packages more skilfully to
that their conceptualization must be a exible various preference patterns.
hierarchical structure adapted to suit differ-
ent scales, locations and market characteris-
tics; and (iii) that destinations can be single THE COMPETITOR ENVIRONMENT THE BATTLE FOR
locations or chained in that they can be a set ATTENTION As the travel market continues
of geographically separate locations linked to evolve towards greater uidity, complex-
through travel patterns or touring routes. ity, disintermediation and reintermediation,
Based on the above conceptualization of visitors and the businesses that sell services
destination, destination marketing and man- to them face a bewildering set of information
agement can be dened as a proactive, choices. The proliferation of free online con-
visitor-centred approach to the economic and tent, especially, creates an intense noise level
cultural development of a destination that that makes it difcult for destinations to make
balances and integrates the interests of visi- themselves the preferred information provid-
tors, service providers and the community ers. Destination marketers must become the
(DMAI, 2008). most popular information source for visitors
and the businesses that sell services to them.
This will mean becoming more visible to
them in all media and, especially, capturing a
Understanding the Driving Factors signicant share of the World Wide Web traf-
of Destination Marketing and c that involves travel decisions.
Management
THE ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT DODGING ASTER-
It should be understood that the tourism sys- OIDS The increasingly volatile and uncer-
tem is not an independent or closed system. Its tain economic environment makes it necessary
development relies on the support of other to plan exibly, and with various economic
4 Y. Wang

shocks and even catastrophic contingencies in in technology and interaction offer opportuni-
mind. The possibility of another major terror- ties for the meetings business, as well as for
ist incident such as that of 9/11, of an interna- consumer marketing, with methods such as
tional health pandemic, of a rapid and the spontaneous formation of afnity groups.
irreversible rise in oil prices, or other such Destinations must promote the travel and
gurative asteroids that could strike without travel-related benets they offer in personal
warning must now be seriously taken into enrichment, mutual appreciation between
account. Destinations must form their strate- cultures, and reduction of political tension
gic plans and development agendas around through a sense of community and connected-
alternative economic scenarios, and must ness. At the same time, they must make their
have contingency plans for responding to messages viable within the saturated media
previously unthinkable economic upheavals. environment that envelops the prospective
travel customers they hope to attract. They
THE TECHNOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT SMART AND can employ various Internet technologies and
FRIENDLY WEBSITES The battle for visitors, strategies, such as blogging, web communi-
and their money, will increasingly be fought ties, virtual visits and social networking pro-
out on the Internet and the Web. As website grams that differentiate their destinations to
design advances in sophistication, functional- specially targeted demographic and psycho-
ity and intelligence, destination marketers graphic populations.
will become less visible to visitors and to
those who sell services to tourists if they fail THE POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT THE QUEST FOR REL-
to keep pace by developing competing web- EVANCE Destination marketers such as
sites that teach, inform, entertain, advise, DMOs (destination marketing/management
support and assist the prospective visitor organizations) continue to face confusion,
with basic features such as property search uncertainty and doubt from their local gov-
tools and tools for the meeting planner. Desti- ernments, stakeholders and partners regard-
nation marketers must build, maintain and ing the roles they can play and the value they
continually improve state-of-the-art Web- can offer. For many, this results in the perpet-
based resources that visitors can rely on for ual pie ght, with an increasing number of
their travel decisions. This includes imple- contenders seeking a portion of local taxes
menting social technologies such as social and municipal forms of funding for non-
networking, community building and user- tourism-related purposes. In very popular
generated content. It also includes constant destinations, leaders of the political process
attention to search engine optimization and may question the need to market the destina-
careful analysis of website trafc patterns. tion at all, and citizens may view tourists as
an intruding nuisance rather than as contrib-
THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT THE ELECTRONIC CUL- utors to the economic development of the
TURE At the same time that human rela- community. DMOs risk being left out of the
tionships and communities are becoming ever important strategic conversation that drives
more physically delocalized, atomized and important decisions about the development
transient, a growing multitude of information of the community. They must proactively
experiences and channels connects people to catalyse and lead the local strategic conversa-
one another, to their various virtual clans and tion with regard to the role and importance of
to the media culture at large. Modern cultures visitor commerce in the sustainable develop-
are increasingly dened in terms of proliferat- ment of the entire destination. They must also
ing numbers of relationships of a more shal- diligently advocate their role in making that
low and transient nature. Social networking is visitor commerce a reality.
becoming a signicant method of reaching
customer populations by creating specialized THE LEGAL ENVIRONMENT MIXED SIGNALS FROM
communities of interest. User-generated con- GOVERNMENT Governments at a variety of
tent is also rapidly becoming an important levels in many countries may increasingly
feature of the electronic culture. These trends impose taxes, laws, and other restrictions upon
Destination Marketing and Management 5

travel-related commerce, as part of their politi- destination marketing and management.


cal, social, economic, and ecological agendas. Unfortunately, most of the existing literature
Some of these legislative interventions work in this area is narrowly dened and typically
to the advantage of certain destinations and to emphasizes only one aspect or certain aspects
the disadvantage of others. Some may lead to of destination marketing and management.
competitive retaliation by other governments. This has created a huge challenge for tourism
In some cases, policies at various political lev- and destination researchers and professionals
els may conict with one another, and may who need to adopt a holistic view about des-
even reect conicting policy theories within tination marketing and management. Taking
certain governments. Destination marketers an all-embracing approach, I argue that a
must vigorously oppose unilateral govern- comprehensive approach to destination mar-
mental actions that threaten to balkanize the keting and management should include, but
travel sector, and advocate shared solutions not limited to, the following themes under
that balance economic, ecological, social, and which a multitude of issues need to be identi-
political benets for all involved. ed, understood and addressed:
the concept, scope and structure of desti-
THE GEOPHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT GOING
nation marketing and management;
GREEN The intensifying focus on global
consumer decision making in relation to
warming, climate change and related ecologi-
destination;
cal concerns will create pressure at many lev-
principles and functions of place image,
els of society and government, and in many
positioning and communication;
economic sectors, to be seen as green (i.e. to
strategies and tactics in destination prod-
appear to be taking the issues seriously and
uct development;
acting upon them). Common sense may be in
strategies and tactics in destination prod-
short supply during this hype phase, and
uct distribution;
strong leadership will be needed to focus the
strategies and approaches for managing
green conversation along rational pathways
stakeholders in destinations;
for long-term impact. Destination marketers
principles and strategies for managing
must advocate a realistic balance in the green
destination competitiveness and sustain-
conversation, promoting intelligent trade-offs
ability; and
and synergistic solutions that combine a
principles and strategies for safety, disas-
rewarding travel experience with sustainable
ter and crisis management.
economic development.
It is within this comprehensive framework of
Each of these eight trends poses various
destination marketing and management that
potential threats as well as opportunities,
this book is structured (refer to Fig. 1.1).
depending on how destinations view them
and how they decide to respond. Creative and
imaginative thinking in each of these sectors
can pay off signicantly in new opportunities, Destination Marketing and
new strategies, and new ways to package and Management: Structure, Roles
offer value to visitors (DMAI, 2008). and Responsibilities

Pike (2008) has identied three distinctive


Destination Marketing and types of tourism organizations at a country
Management: A Comprehensive level that are engaged in destination market-
Approach ing and management; these are DMOs which
are responsible for promotion, government
A systems view of the tourism industry and agencies providing policy advice to govern-
an environmental scanning of factors affect- ment and a private sector umbrella industry
ing destination-level activities require a com- association that champions the causes of
prehensive and integrative approach to member organizations. Though there is a
6 Y. Wang

Customer Competitor Economic Technological


environment environment environment environment

Structure Consumer
policy decision
planning making
Image
Stakeholder
positioning
management
communication
Departing travellers

Traveller Transit route region Tourist


generating destination
region region
Returning travellers

Destination Destination
competitiveness product
and sustainability Safety and Destination development
crisis product
management distribution

Social Political Legal Geophysical


environment environment environment environment

Fig. 1.1. Concept and scope of destination marketing and management.

switch of emphasis from marketing to man- ofce. The national tourism ofce (NTO) is
agement in recent years, these types of orga- used to represent the entity with overall
nizations are usually referred to as destination responsibility for marketing a country as a
marketing organizations (DMOs). Thus, a tourism destination, whether purely as a
destination marketing organization can be DMO or as an NTA (Pike, 2008).
dened as the organization responsible for
the marketing of an identiable destination. STATE TOURISM OFFICE (STO) The organiza-
There are four levels of DMOs operating tion with overall responsibility for marketing
under this denition in most countries: a state (e.g. in the USA), province (e.g. in
Canada) or territory (e.g. in Australia) as a
NATIONAL TOURISM OFFICE (NTO) The World tourism destination, in a country that has a
Tourism Organization WTO (now UNWTO) federal political system.
(1979, p. ii) introduced the term national tour-
ism administration (NTA) as: the authorities REGIONAL TOURISM ORGANIZATION (RTO) The
in the central state administration, or other term region here represents concentrated
ofcial organization, in charge of tourism tourism areas such as cities, towns, villages,
development at the national level. The term coastal resort areas, islands and rural areas.
NTA was used to distinguish it from national This level of DMO is also known by other
tourist organization and national tourism titles in different parts of the world, such as
Destination Marketing and Management 7

convention and visitor bureau (CVB) in the addition to funds allocated by their local gov-
USA and regional tourism boards (RTB) in ernments. Most common in the USA, this
the UK. An RTO can be dened as the organi- dual-funding model requires the leadership
zation responsible for marketing a concen- team of the DMO to reconcile the interests of
trated tourism area as a tourism destination. its commercial members (promoting their
services) with its broader mission of market-
LOCAL TOURISM OFFICE (LTO) A local tourism ing the destination. Some DFNPOs (and some
ofce (LTO) can represent both a local tourism GFNPOs) also receive charitable donations
administration and a local tourism associa- and grant funds to supplement their budgets.
tion. The former may be the local government
authority, while the latter is a form of coopera- MEMBERS-ONLY TRADE ASSOCIATIONS (MOTAs) In
tive association of tourism businesses. some cases, particularly with very small desti-
nations, governments may not have assigned
formal responsibility for destination marketing
to any one entity. Often in those cases, some
The business model of DMOs
coalition of commercial enterprises typically
in the form of a trade association may take
In the report prepared by KAI for DMAI on the destination marketing role. In some
(2008, pp. 3031) four primary business mod- cases, the destination marketing role may
els of DMOs were identied, each represent- default to the local chamber of commerce, hotel
ing a particular type of funding structure, association or a similar commercial entity.
with various governance structures that form
policies and implement strategic plans: The mode of operation chosen by a particular
DMO will typically reect both its funding
GOVERNMENT AGENCIES (GAS) Often the pre- model, as described above, and some gover-
ferred choice of European, Latin American, nance structure typically unique to its cir-
and Asian governments, the GA vehicle is cumstances. GAs may have advisory councils,
simple, straightforward and completely and sometimes boards of directors or the
under the control of the national or local gov- equivalent. GFNPOs typically have paid
ernment responsible for the destination. Most staffs and volunteer boards of directors. DFN-
GAs work with allocated budgets and are POs typically have paid staffs and volunteer
expected to market their destinations in boards of directors, and some have special
consonance with municipal policy. representation structures for their paying
members. MOTAs typically have volunteer
GOVERNMENT-FUNDED NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS boards of directors, and some have paid staff.
(GFNPOS) Typically more common in the A few DMOs operate with hybrid models
USA, and in Canada to some extent, but less combinations of these key features. Clearly,
prevalent elsewhere, the GFNPO is a separate the way a particular DMO is chartered will
business entity, with considerable latitude in strongly affect the way it goes about its mis-
the use of its resources. It survives as a player sion. Its leaders will have different kinds of
in a local constellation of developmental accountability, different degrees of policy
agencies, including those of the government. direction from its sponsors and different
American GFNPOs typically receive a share ranges of latitude for initiatives.
of visitor taxes collected locally by service
providers such as hotels (hence they are also
known as hotel room taxes). Some localities
also tax other services such as restaurants and
The Strategic Roles and
car rental organizations. Responsibilities of DMOs in
Destination Marketing
DUAL-FUNDED NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS (DFN-
POS) Some government-funded DMOs Owing to the ever-increasing competitive-
receive contributions and subscription fees ness of the tourism industry, tourism destina-
from various local service providers in tions now nd themselves in a situation
8 Y. Wang

where they have to compete directly with marketing the entire destination to large and
other destinations at the regional, national small meeting and pleasure travel groups and
and international levels (Presenza et al., 2005). independent travellers (Fesenmaier et al.,
As a result, DMOs are playing important 1992). In this role, a CVB not only becomes
roles by acting as organizers and facilitators the collective marketing vehicle, but is also an
for tourism marketing and development in advocate for the local tourism industry, as
the destination. Fyall et al. (2001) argue that well as a one-stop shopping centre for visi-
DMOs need to be more sensitive to the future tors (Morrison et al., 1998). However, the ful-
needs of the marketplace, especially in the lment of a CVBs destination marketing role
context of ongoing political and economic has been challenged by a number of issues
change of the macro-tourism environment. related to governance and positioning. First,
DMOs need to reect the expectations of all though CVBs are generally referred to as
groups within the destination by developing, DMOs, their organizational structure and
managing and promoting the destination in a governance mechanisms vary. As reported by
manner that is sensitive to the needs of quite Morrison et al. (1998), most CVBs in North
often disparate tourism stakeholders (Fyall America have different types of organiza-
and Garrod, 2004). To better serve the inter- tional structure, ranging from non-prot
ests of the tourism industry in the destina- independent organizations to part of govern-
tion, DMOs need to have a clear understanding ment agency. These different organizational
of their roles and functions in general and of structures, as well as their associated gover-
their working relationship with the local nance mechanisms, make the denition of the
tourism industry in particular. responsibility of such organizations difcult
The role and function of DMOs are and complex, which can possibly lead to dis-
recurring themes in tourism literature relat- appointment or unrealistic expectations of
ing destination marketing/management and the local tourism industry in relation to CVB
tourism planning. A review of the literature performance. Secondly, the trend towards
in this area has revealed that the roles and less government involvement and a hand-
functions played by DMOs in representing over of once public-domain functions to the
the destination regions have been examined private sector in tourism may compound the
from many perspectives. Different terms have problem (Getz et al., 1998). In many situa-
been used to describe the roles and functions tions, CVBs may nd themselves in positions
of such organizations, such as destination of conducting marketing without the owner-
marketer, destination image developer, desti- ship of product, and being engaged in prod-
nation promotion coordinator, and advocate, uct development without being actually
supporter and facilitator of tourism projects involved in the planning process. Thirdly,
in the local community (Gartrell, 1988; Ritchie although the ofcial mission of most CVBs is
and Crouch, 2003; Presenza et al., 2005). These directed to convention sales and marketing
descriptions of DMOs are either fragmented the local destination to the travel trade and
in nature by focusing on one aspect of their consumers, an unrealistic expectation exists
responsibility, or laden with a strong local within the community that a CVB is respon-
context in which these issues are discussed. sible for policy making, quality control, safety
For example, in the American context, and a myriad of related visitor industry ser-
though tourism organizations at different lev- vices (Getz et al., 1998). Fourthly, as a destina-
els can be involved in marketing the destina- tion marketing organization, the success of a
tion, the major marketing tasks are conducted CVBs mission primarily depends on the sup-
by the CVBs. In most destinations, CVBs are port of the various stakeholders in the desti-
charged with the task of developing an image nation. How to get the local tourism industry
that will position their destinations in the involved and what relationships a CVB
marketplace as a viable destination for meet- should maintain with stakeholders are stra-
ings and visitors (Gartrell, 1988; Morgan and tegic decisions that a CVB has to make in col-
Pritchard, 2004). As a result, a CVBs primary laborative destination marketing efforts.
role is to act as a DMO that is responsible for Perhaps the most comprehensive summary of
Destination Marketing and Management 9

a CVBs role is provided by Morrison et al. and promotion efforts of the various tourism
(1998) who suggest ve primary functions of stakeholders are not conducive to developing
a DMO: (i) economic driver; (ii) community a holistic image of the destination and, thus,
marketer; (iii) industry coordinator; (iv) will not enable the destination to obtain a
quasi-public representative; and (v) builder competitive position in the marketplace.
of community pride. DMOs at different levels are charged with
It is agreed that the main mandate of creating greater levels of awareness of the
DMOs is to promote visitation in their desti- destination to the potential markets through
nation areas. This view is supported by Dore collaborative efforts (Wang, 2008).
and Crouch (2003), who state that the destina- Taking a more holistic perspective, Gar-
tion marketing activity of a DMO is often trell (1993) listed six areas as the main func-
operationalized in practice as destination tion of a DMO/CVB: (i) to develop an image
promotion, which may take the form of to position the city in the marketplace as an
advertising, direct marketing, sales promo- attractive destination for meetings and visi-
tion, and public relations. Following the same tors; (ii) to coordinate the constituent ele-
line of reasoning, Gartrell (1988) argues that ments of the industry and public sectors; (iii)
DMOs/CVBs are charged with the tasks to work with meeting and group planners;
of developing an image that will position (iv) to represent both buyers and sellers; (vi)
their destinations in the marketplace as a via- to provide information and respond to visitor
ble destination for meetings and visitors, and inquiries; and (vi) to provide leadership for
that they must coordinate those disparate the industry. Though different terms have
constituent elements. Ritchie and Crouch been used, the dominant theme reected in
(2003) argue that although there is a shift the above discussion is that CVBs are DMOs.
towards recognizing that the role of a DMO Other destination management functions,
goes well beyond marketing to include other especially planning and product develop-
activities that are important to the success of ment, are largely ignored by the mandates of
tourism in a destination from a competitive most CVBs or, in practice, are minor roles. It
and sustainable perspective, it is recognized seems that the literature has agreed that the
that marketing remains the principal purview primary focus of CVBs is on marketing and
of a DMO (Kelly and Nankervis, 2001; Dore sales of the destinations attractions, events
and Crouch, 2003). and meeting facilities. However, there is a
Much of the literature on CVBs is occu- trend that more of their attention is now being
pied with the role they play in helping to cre- given to acting as a catalyst, facilitator and
ate business alliances and networks in order supporter of the local tourist industry.
to achieve the goal of the destination. Pre- The role of DMOs/CVBs has also been
senza et al. (2005) suggest that a DMO, for looked at by the geographical locations they
political and structural reasons, is mainly represent. For example, in 2004 UNWTO
concerned with promoting cooperation and dened DMOs/CVBs as organizations
the widest possible harmonization of objec- responsible for the management and/or
tives within a destination. This partnership- marketing of destinations. Geographically, as
building role is justied by the nature of the well as administratively, these DMOs gener-
tourism industry and the unique characteris- ally fall into one of the following categories:
tics of selling a destination compared with (i) national tourism authorities/organiza-
selling other consumer products (Palmer and tions; (ii) regional, provincial or state DMOs;
Bejou, 1995). For many years, the difculty and (iii) local DMOs who are responsible for
and complexity of destination marketing/ management and marketing of tourism
management have been highlighted by the based on a smaller geographical area or city/
fact that destination products are usually town. Again, these general guidelines pro-
marketed and sold in the marketplace in bits vide no insight as to the dynamic scope in
and pieces by a variety of individual suppli- which these different levels of DMOs oper-
ers that operate independently (Laws, 1995). ate. Several researchers have placed more
The individual and independent marketing emphasis on the nature of the destination
10 Y. Wang

marketing and management vis--vis the have not been supported or conrmed with
role of the CVB without a clear-cut denition empirical data from the local tourism indus-
of the destinations boundaries. For example, try which, to a great extent, denes the legiti-
Heath and Wall (1992) note that the tasks of mate existence of a CVB in the destination.
CVBs are the following: strategy formula- Taking a case study approach and based on
tion, representing the interests of stakehold- interviews with 37 tourism businesses and
ers, marketing of the destination and local DMO staff members in a small destina-
coordination of destination activities. Getz tion in Indiana, Wang (2008) attempted to
et al. (1998) have found a number of roles that understand and record the roles of the local
CVBs full in terms of product development DMO/CVB in general and in marketing the
within a destination. local destination in particular. The perception
This review of the published literature of the interviewees of this question varied
on the roles played by CVBs reveals the range depending on their specic relationships
of interest researchers have had in the contri- with the CVB and the industry sectors that
bution of such organizations to the tourism they were in. Despite some overlapping inter-
industry. However, these denitions of the pretations on some of the roles of CVBs, the
roles and functions of CVBs are rather norma- following general themes emerged out of the
tive and descriptive, and mainly based on the interviews. This information is summarized
observations and interpretations of the and demonstrated in Fig. 1.2 and elaborated
researchers. Such normative descriptions upon in the following section.

Destination marketing

Information
provider
Network Community
management brand
organization builder
Destination marketing

Destination marketing

Partner and Convener


team and
builder facilitator
DMO

Funding
Catalyst
agent

Organizer Advocate

Destination marketing

Fig. 1.2. The role of the destination marketing organization (DMO) in destination marketing (Adapted
from Wang, 2008).
Destination Marketing and Management 11

INFORMATION PROVIDER It was agreed by the individual businesses) have invested in their
interviewees that, at the destination level, own private businesses, so it is very challeng-
CVBs are charged with the responsibility to ing for them to think outside their individual
do research, identify their target markets, partners. If the CVB doesnt exist, there is no
meet visitors expectations, and share the organization that can ll that void.
information with the local constituents. They
are an information source for businesses
CONVENER, FACILITATOR AND LIAISON OF COMMUNITY
who want to enhance what they are doing. To
TOURISM ACTIVITIES CVBs often play the role
quote one industry representative: Their role
of community convener on signicant issues
goes with providing information to the busi-
that may, or may not, result in further com-
nesses so that they are aware of whats going
munity action. The convening role usually
on, what opportunities are available. From a
includes a highly visible public discussion of
visitors perspective, most of the interview-
community issues. These discussions are
ees agreed that a CVB is a contact point for
often related to data gathering or studies that
people who want to visit the area and that it
provide information intended to highlight a
provides information to tourists through var-
common understanding of the issues at hand.
ious channels, such as publicizing informa-
Such discussions are important prerequisites
tion on its website, sending out information
for collaborative community problem solv-
packs to potential visitors and providing
ing. From a marketing perspective, the CVB is
information at facilities that people visit. The
the facilitator for marketing programmes
information provision function has also been
for the local destination by offering a number
extended to local residents.
of different marketing programmes in differ-
ent markets. In this role, the CVB attempts to
help make collaborative destination problem-
COMMUNITY BRAND BUILDER In general, the
solving efforts among non-prot, govern-
CVB is the DMO responsible for marketing
ment, business and other organizations
the whole destination as one entity. Because of
possible and effective. When it works well,
the partnerships that CVBs have at the local
convening or facilitation is valued as a source
and regional levels, they can market the desti-
of fairness and encouragement, and a resource
nation over a larger geographical range as
for all those who might need it in the collab-
well as at a bigger business scale than an indi-
orative process. The CVB is also the liaison
vidual business can afford to do. This view is
between the visitor and the community, and
supported by the following comment: The
between the local tourism industry and the
biggest thing that the CVB does is that it helps
government. CVBs convey information back
us get our message out and brand our area.
and forth between the visitor and the com-
Most of the local tourism industry interview-
munity to keep the visitors happy. They are
ees agreed that the CVBs role is to work in
also the liaison between the visitor and the
collaboration with the local businesses to mar-
visitor industry and the government, and
ket and promote the destination to a multi-
facilitate communications between them.
tude of different markets, bring in corporate
business, bring in conventions and meetings,
group tours and leisure travellers, and act as CATALYST OF THE COLLABORATIVE INITIATIVE The
the marketing representative of the local CVB uses the convening role to stimulate dis-
area. The CVB is the entity that is responsible cussion with a longer term strategy in mind.
for marketing the whole destination by treat- When an organization is catalytic, it makes an
ing the destination as one entity and posi- early and clear commitment to participate in
tioning the destination as one place for people longer term community problem solving that
to visit. This role cannot be easily replaced by begins with an initial discussion of issues. In
other entities in the community, as the inter- this way, it uses its inuence and resource
viewees believe that if the CVB doesnt brand base to make the collaborative initiative real
and market the entire destination, individual in the minds of various other potential part-
businesses will not take that role. They (the ners who may be waiting for leadership
12 Y. Wang

before making commitments to an action them help us to do that because they have a
agenda. To quote one interviewee: they come lot of expertise in that area.
up with ideas, put people together, and make
the program happen. Quite a number of the
FUNDING AGENT FOR COLLECTIVE MARKETING ACTIVI-
interviewees believe that the CVB is also the
TIES The CVB encourages a variety of col-
catalyst for economic development relative
laborative marketing activities by providing
to the tourism industry.
supporting and matching funds, especially
for marketing and promoting the local desti-
ADVOCATE OF THE TOURISM INDUSTRY The CVB nation collectively at a larger scale, either
is the advocate to the tourism industry in that alone or with other funding sources. This is
it conveys the message of the importance of an increasingly common practice in the past
tourism, and its impact on the area and on the few years and has been accepted by the local
local economy, as well as the advantages of tourism industry, and especially by the small
tourism to the local economy. The CVB is also and medium-sized businesses. For example,
viewed as an advocate either for individuals for the art and event programmes, the CVB
or groups that are the primary focus of the has a grant matching programme in which
collaboration activities. Because its partners local businesses can get a dollar to dollar
may be viewed as problematic by other part- matching fund support from the CVB to pro-
ners in the collaboration, it is, therefore, mote their events. On an annual basis, the
important for a CVB to develop frameworks CVB provides about US$60,000 of such
and internal processes within which advo- matching funds to help the local tourism
cacy efforts can emerge with support from as businesses with any marketing programmes
many partners as possible. In general, it can that the CVB believes are viable. Obviously,
be argued that most of the marketing efforts the programme is well accepted by the local
seeking commitments from its partners tourism industry and becomes one of the
require the CVB to play an advocacy role. incentives for them to work with the CVB.
Without such advocacy, collaboration would The local tourism industry believes that the
be limited to only data gathering, information 50% matching reimbursable funds allow
sharing and public education, and it would people to expand their marketing dollars
not be possible to put any proposals into and is pleased with the fact that the CVB has
action. a tremendous budget to work with.

ORGANIZER OF DESTINATION MARKETING CAM- PARTNER AND TEAM BUILDER This appears to
PAIGNS The CVB has a primary interest be the most obvious role of the CVB in the
in understanding what marketing activities destination, and the way that this role is
are viable for the local destination, how played greatly affects the quality of the mar-
the constituents proceed with the marketing keting activities and the likely outcomes of
activities, which marketing activities should such activities. The CVBs role is to make sure
be at the decision-making table and, in par- that the empowering partners share risks,
ticular, how to include as many partners as responsibilities, resources and rewards in
possible. This marketing role often includes collaborative marketing efforts so that they
an ongoing search for good marketing and establish mutually respectful, trusting rela-
promotion ideas, and the welcoming and sus- tionships, take the time to understand each
taining of participation by community-based, others motivations and expectations, and
destination-based and constituency-based state problems in a manner that provides
organizations and individuals. This responsi- opportunities for all the others involved in
bility has been summarized by the following the process. The CVB is also the central focus
comments: [The] CVB is the organizer of dif- to create the team at different levels (i.e. at
ferent marketing activities they put things local, regional and the state levels). In other
into perspective with some of the larger words, the CVB creates the interest for the
groups to bring travellers in . I love to see tourism industry to work together, and thats
Destination Marketing and Management 13

where the partnership between the tourism Future Directions of DMOs and
industry and the CVB starts to interact. Destination Marketing/Management
Whenever the local businesses think they
need to put a partnership together, they look
to the CVB. History can always serve as a mirror for the
future. In many ways, the current state of
affairs in the DMO business, and its likely for-
NETWORK MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION In the ward momentum in relation to destination
domain of destination marketing, it was marketing and management, can be predicted
widely agreed among the interviewees that by the major phases of its history (DMAI,
marketing networks in which individual 2008). A brief retrospective suggests three rec-
businesses that consciously collaborate and ognizable phases from the early 20th century
cooperate with one another are more to the present phase (late 20th to early 21st
effective at providing a complex array of century) which reect the trajectory of the
community-based services than the same next three phases in the near future, each
organizations are able to do when they go owing into the next with the broad evolu-
their own ways. In other words, such mar- tion of the travel, tourism, meetings and hos-
keting networks are vehicles that provide pitality industry (Fig. 1.3). As can be seen in
value to local community in ways that could Fig. 1.3, at each phase, the positioning of
not have been achieved through uncoordi- DMOs and their activities have evolved in a
nated provision of services by fragmented distinctive way which is inuenced by vari-
and autonomous businesses. From a produc- ous key drivers described previously in this
tion perspective, the joint production of mar- chapter, i.e. the changing environments
keting activities may satisfy stakeholders related to customer, competitor, economic,
with multiple needs, but it may also raise technological, social, political, legal and geo-
substantial problems regarding resource graphical developments. Obviously, these
allocation, benet sharing, agreement on macro-level environmental changes have
goals, expected outcomes and the like. While great impacts on the formation of the philoso-
such a marketing network may benet the phy, doctrine, customs and practices of DMOs
community in which it is embedded, espe- in the activities involved in destination mar-
cially the pool of stakeholders that it serves, keting and management (DMAI, 2008).
it must become a viable inter-organizational This evolutionary study of the history of
entity which can coordinate the marketing the story line of destination marketing and
activities. It has to gain considerable legiti- DMOs can yield some useful insights, particu-
macy and external support by satisfying the larly when the primary through-line, a con-
needs of stakeholders and other community ceptual ow of ideas and meaningful events
interest groups. The CVB is regarded by the that create the story of the destination market-
local tourism industry as the network man- ing and management is examined. In the his-
agement organization, acting in its capacity tory of the DMO business, this through-line
as agent for the community and as principal seems to be a progressively increasing degree
to its network members to guide, coordi- of complexity: more players, more roles, more
nate, and legitimize marketing network variables, more products, and more commu-
activities. Many of the network members nity integration and involvement (DMAI,
argue that, besides marketing, promotion 2008). For example, the original DMO model
and visitor services, the CVBs mission is as the Convention chasers in the early 20th
about managing and coordinating a diverse century, as simple as it was, appeared to work
group of industry stakeholders in the com- well considering the simple product that
munity. It is a network management organi- DMOs were trying to sell: that is to bring meet-
zation. It was widely agreed among the ings and conventions to the destination. How-
interviewees that without the support of the ever, as the travel sector grew out of its
stakeholders in the network, no destination adolescent phase and became a trillion-dollar
marketing activities would be possible. worldwide industry, things became more
14 Y. Wang

TIMELINE ACTORS TYPE ACTIVITIES

Boosters
Phase 1: Convention chasers
Destination image enhancement (publicity)
early 20th (bringing meetings and
Future economic development
century conventions to a destination
Retail sales, including lodgings and
that has meeting facilities)
restaurants

Promotioneers and salesmen


Tourism promoters Sell the available destinations
Phase 2: (promotion and sales of
mid-to-late products in order to:
meetings, conventions, Fill convention centres
20th leisure and business tourism)
century Put heads in beds
Generate tax revenues
Create jobs and income

Quasi-marketeers Analysts and Communicators


Phase 3: (making tourists aware of the Identify tourist needs/wants and
present destinations business and communicate them to tourism enterprises
(late 20th leisure tourism that in their turn will produce, price and
to early products/services and distribute them
21st century) convincing them to visit) Promote and sell the available products to
leisure and business tourists

Alchemists
Phase 4: Tourism brand managers
Selecting and blending tangible and
immediate (building a favourable image of
intangible attributes to differentiate the
future the tourist destination that
destinations tourism products/services in an
(25 years) differentiates it in the minds of
attractive, meaningful and compelling way
prospective and existing
tourists from other
destinations)
Decision makers
Identify tourist needs/wants
Study current and future trends
Master plan the tourist destination
Tourism destination managers Coordinate with tourism enterprises
Phase 5: (having a direct role in the
intermediate the production, pricing, distribution and
planning, marketing and promotion of new and existing tourism
future management of the tourist
(58 years) products/services
destination) Monitor tourist satisfaction
Initiate training and education of
tourism employees

Phase 6: Community brand managers Participate in community decision making


distant (having a major role in Promote and protect the community brand
future building a favourable image of Participate in master planning the community
(810 years) the community as a whole)

Fig. 1.3. The evolution of convention and visitor bureaus (CVBs) (After Pizam, 2010).

complicated. Hyper-competition, reconstruc- industry partners and competitors. They


tion and reintermediation have imposed an have to increase their relevance and value by
all-pervading inuence, particularly on players becoming more community oriented and
with more broadly conceived missions such being involved in community brand building,
as DMOs (DMAI, 2008). product development and visitor experience
The long sweep of events has changed management, as well as other important deci-
the surrounding business environment, the sion makings at the community/destination
perceptions of DMOs by their stakeholders, level.
Destination Marketing and Management 15

Based on the report by KAI, DMAI (2008) front of the news media; emphasizing, at
has proposed a strategic road map for destina- every possible opportunity, the DMOs
tion marketing, with the role of the DMO unique role as the ofcial face and voice of the
shown as an integrating contribution, one that destination, and defending it aggressively
brings together the many self-interested play- against encroachment by other entities;
ers into a constellation of value creation that reecting it in the advertising messages, the
centres on a visitor-centred destination mar- slogans, the mission statement and the busi-
keting and management strategy. This strate- ness name; and abandoning any activities,
gic road map shows the DMO as serving four programmes, relationships or commercial
equivalent roles (Fig. 1.4): arrangements that contradict the DMOs role
as the unbiased, cant be bought provider of
informing, educating, and advising the best travel information available.
visitors;
advising and supporting those entities
that market and sell services to visitors; BUILDING COALITION This is the systematic
advocating the total visitor experience to and continuous process of building connec-
all participants in the value constellation; tions to and coalitions with the many
and community leaders, stakeholders, industry
supporting the development of the mas- partners, client entities and opinion shapers
ter strategy for the destination. who can be instrumental to the DMOs suc-
cess. It involves establishing strong, trust-
DMAI (2008, pp. 7983) also highlights sev- based connections to every key stakeholder,
eral important action agendas for DMOs in industry partner and advocacy group within
order for them to claim leadership and rele- the destination community. Some of the tac-
vance. These key agendas include: tics used can include: reviewing and updat-
ing the media-relations programme by
expanding the range of media contacts to
BUILDING IDENTITY This is the ongoing effort
include national, international and Web-
to build a brand identity for the DMO itself,
based media; becoming the go-to source for
separate from but related to the brand iden-
travel writers, publishers and other mavens
tity of the destination. Presumably based on
who form public opinion, including indepen-
the concept of the DMO as the ofcial face
dent online sources; inviting the high-prole
and voice of the destination, the actions in
mavens to visit the DMOs destination and
this category can position the DMO as objec-
giving them the VIP treatment when they do;
tive, unbiased and having no commercial
and building cooperative and supportive
taint to its role as the friendly concierge for
relationships with travel agencies and other
visitors and event organizers. This may also
intermediaries that can send business to the
include making the CEO of the DMO a high-
destination, becoming their preferred infor-
prole spokesperson in and for the commu-
mation source and helping them sell the des-
nity. It is clear that a comprehensive strategy
tination to their clients.
is needed to dene the optimum brand iden-
tity for destinations in the future that pre-
serves the positive perceptions held by some BUILDING COMMITMENT This is the continuous
visitors and meeting planners, establishes the and never-ending practice of teaching,
DMO as the premier visitor expert and pre- preaching, promoting and modelling a
ferred source of information, and enhances visitor-centred doctrine to all stakeholders in
the DMOs perception as providing excep- the destination community. It includes: den-
tional service and kind experiences. Tactics ing service standards for all providers associ-
include: drawing attention to the DMO and ated with the destination, as well as monitoring
its CEO with high-prole community events, and reporting performance against these stan-
industry meetings and newsworthy events; dards; proling the destinations appeal against
using visits by celebrities entertainers, polit- primary visitor motivations; mapping the rich
ical leaders, star speakers to put the DMO in niches (i.e. the psychographic categories the
16
Inform, educate and advise visitor

Travel Publishing
mavens agency

Advertising
agency

Building
identity
Deliver services to visitor
Advise and support marketers

DMO sales Convention Transportation Tour


team sales Visitor-centred companies operators
destination Building

Y. Wang
Building
Local Out-of-town marketing and commitment Hotels/ Local visitor
coalition
organizers organizers management Lodgings services

Event Conference Visitor Destination


management exhibitors attractions infrastructure
firms Building
vision

Local
government

Industry Community
partners leaders

Support and develop


destination strategy

Fig. 1.4. A strategic map of destination marketing and DMO (Adapted from DMAI, 2008).
Destination Marketing and Management 17

destination can serve most competitively); Concluding Remarks


measuring and reporting on visitor percep-
tions of value the end-to-end visitor experi- It is widely known that many businesses and
ence; measuring and reporting on perceptions organizations are involved in destination
of value by out-of-town organizers, such as marketing and management. Depending on
associations, conference organizers and event the structure of the local tourism economy, it
promoters; utilizing in-town organizers as a could be the municipality (e.g. tourism
source of information, inuence and relevance ofces under the chamber of commerce), the
building; building a voice of the customer most important company/companies at the
programme for collecting and publicizing destination (e.g. Disney World in Orlando,
visitor contributions; and spotlighting any Florida), or some other entities such as a
service categories such as taxi services, tour tourism board/CVB. In many destinations,
operators, public transport and others that the local DMO/CVB is regarded by most of
might deliver substandard service levels, and the industry representatives as the umbrella
pressing for local government initiatives to destination marketing organization and is
force improvements. expected to play multiple roles in coordinat-
ing various marketing activities within the
BUILDING VISION AND LEADERSHIP This is the destination. Major strategic roles of DMOs
practice of spotting critical issues and pol- in destination marketing and management
icy questions relating to the development of include: information provider, community
the destination, leading the strategic con- brand builder, convener, facilitator and
versation within the community around liaison of community tourism activities,
these key issues and questions, and helping catalyst of the collaborative initiative,
the community leadership to make wise advocate of the tourism industry, organizer
and well-informed policy decisions. Some of destination marketing campaigns, fund-
of the tactics can include: educating the ing agent for collective marketing activities,
entire DMO team about the key strategic partner and team builder, and network
trends, super-trends and strategic themes management organization. In addition,
of the industry; patiently and persistently DMOs are expected to provide leadership in
building access routes to the inner ofces of initiating, managing and maintaining the
the elected political leaders of the commu- destination marketing networks. This
nity and making the DMOs knowledge, requires that a DMO be skilful in coordinat-
know-how and ideas valuable to them; ing partnerships between the public and pri-
delivering an annual state of the destina- vate sectors, between normally competitive
tion report to community leaders that entities such as hotels, restaurants and
presents the competitive standing of the attractions, and between other diverse con-
destination and recommends areas of stituents within a community. A DMO can be
opportunity or improvement; developing attached to an area more effectively through
an issues agenda for the travel, tourism, coordinated group action than through inde-
meetings and hospitality dimension of the pendent individual actions. A DMO, there-
communitys development, and promoting fore, is expected to serve as a cooperative,
it widely to all stakeholders and to the gen- representing all components of the visitor
eral public; actively engaging in discus- industry that are important to visitors. Each
sions about the communitys priorities component of the visitor industry is
(beyond the hospitality industry) and creat- extremely competitive, yet they have to
ing a role for the industry to be represented work together with the DMO in order to
in achieving those priorities; and taking a carry out a comprehensive, united market-
leading role in the green conversation, and ing programme for their community. In this
helping community leaders see the value to sense, the DMO is the communitys single
economic development of sustainable most important marketing organization,
development and ecologically responsible projecting a coherent image for that destina-
policies. tion into various targeted markets.
18 Y. Wang

Concurring with the proposal by DMAI they contribute to the constellation of inter-
(2008), it is believed that there will be several ests that make up the destinations they serve,
broad, overriding themes or challenges that and a convincing argument for their contin-
will preoccupy the business models of DMOs ued mission, particularly to political interests
and their activities in destination marketing in the communities that they serve.
and management. These broad themes
include relevance, value proposition and
VISIBILITY As the massive migration of
visibility (DMAI, 2008, 56):
content information of every conceivable
kind to the Internet proceeds, visitors and
RELEVANCE To varying degrees, DMOs are those who market services to them have an
perceiving an increasingly noisy, confusing abundance of sources for researching, plan-
and evolving marketplace one in which ning and organizing travel-related activities.
their roles are less and less uniquely dened Sophisticated travellers increasingly go to
and less willingly acknowledged. The increas- online sources to plan their adventures. While
ing disintermediation of the visitor services they may be susceptible and responsive to
marketplace, the rise of new business entities print sources such as newspapers, magazines
contending for the attention of visitors and and the publications of travel writers, the
meeting organizers, the wealth of free infor- battle for customer attention will increasingly
mation made available online, and the be fought on the Internet. If one accepts the
increasing local competition for funds for- premise that the capacity to market anything
merly earmarked for destination marketing depends on some kind of access to those who
all conspire to erode or marginalize the tradi- buy it visibility then DMOs need to be in
tional role of the DMO as the marketing the information pathways that the prospec-
department of a particular locality. tors travel as they make their decisions.
Unfortunately, DMOs as a collective informa-
tion source have been largely bypassed, out-
VALUE PROPOSITION The value proposition
anked or shortstopped by content
issue embodies a long-term question of
aggregators travel information websites of
focus a singular, essential contribution made
all kinds located upstream from them.
by the DMO in the perceptions of the many
stakeholders with whom it interacts. Over the Many issues and challenges remain unan-
years, many new players in the marketplace swered as to how a DMO should perform its
for travel, tourism, meetings and hospitality legitimate functions in organizing, develop-
have been nibbling away at the DMO value ing, and maintaining marketing networks in a
package the conguration of services tradi- local destination in order to increase its rele-
tionally offered. Some DMOs have tradition- vance, value proposition and visibility. Strate-
ally focused on marketing local convention gic actions have to be put in place in order to
centres as a means of generating derivative get the different sectors of the local tourism
revenue for hotels and other service provid- industry actively involved in destination activ-
ers. Some have experienced intense pressure ities and take advantage of the power of net-
from local industry partners to generate working externalities in creating value for the
tangible sales opportunities and leads for destination. Indeed, value creation in a desti-
them. Some have found themselves trying to nation is achieved through the collection of
ride two horses trying to attract the busi- discrete service providers the value network.
ness of conference organizers and event man- The DMOs role is to nd out ways to create,
agers, while also trying to reach out to leisure maintain, and expand the value network so
travellers. Some have had difculty differen- that the destination becomes more competi-
tiating the process of marketing from the pro- tive. A DMO needs to position itself more as a
cedures of selling. DMOs that have struggled network management organization for the
to clarify their essential value proposition local community, a function which might be,
have often found themselves without a com- to some extent, different from the traditional
pelling story a credible concept of what destination marketing organization but crucial
Destination Marketing and Management 19

in building and facilitating the collective marketing and management which will con-
marketing efforts. In this case, the DMO as the tribute to the economic and cultural develop-
network management organization can be ment of destinations with balanced interests of
both the agent of the community and the visitors, service providers and the community.
principal of the network participants and
make efforts to attract and retain individual
tourism businesses as members in the market- Acknowledgment
ing networks. It is hoped that this strategic
analysis of DMOs roles in this chapter, as well Part of the information developed for this
as a comprehensive approach to various issues chapter has been adapted and updated from
related to destination marketing and manage- the following publication: Wang, Y.C. (2008)
ment, as reected in the subsequent chapters, Collaborative destination marketing: roles and
will provide an integrative, holistic, proactive strategies of convention and visitors bureaus.
and visitor-centred approach to destination Journal of Vacation Marketing 14, 191209.

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Dredge, D. (1999) Destination place planning and design. Annals of Tourism Research 26, 772791.
Dredge, D. and Jenkins, J. (2007) Tourism Planning and Policy. John Wiley, Brisbane, Queensland.
Fesenmaier, D.R., Pena, C. and OLeary, J.T. (1992) Assessing information needs of visitor bureaus. Annals
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2 Destination Planning and Policy:
Process and Practice

John Jenkins, Dianne Dredge and Jessica Taplin

Introduction limited selection of Australian-based studies)


but, as Britton (1991) put it, we still need a
Patterns of international and intranational strong focus on theorization that explicitly
(domestic) tourist ows around the world are recognizes and unveils tourism as a predomi-
in a constant state of ux. Predicting how nantly capitalistically organized activity
these patterns will develop beyond anything driven by the inherent and dening social
much more than the short term is fraught dynamics of that system, with its attendant
with problems and risks. Much faith is placed production, social, and ideological relations.
in forecasts and scenarios from reliable Destination planning and policy seeks to
government, academic and other sources, but explore the theoretical and practical aspects
the lack of accuracy and success in forecast- of tourism as it relates to the physical, social,
ing presents an alarming conundrum for economic, political and environmental char-
those with an interest in tourism planning, acteristics of, and changes to, localities and
policy making and development. If tourism place.
transforms places, people and environments, This chapter starts by dening tourism
and it does so on a range of scales from local policy and tourism planning, and in doing so
to global, then tourism planning and policy examines a number of important mainstream
processes which attempt to address the future thoughts and practices, and reviews theoreti-
are critical to any notions of sustainable cal applications in the eld. It then describes
destinations. the approaches and methodologies applied to
Tourism, characterized by the movement policy and planning, and ends with a presen-
of people from origin to destination and the tation of case studies at regional and local lev-
associated transformations of people and cul- els drawn from Australia.
tures and economic development, has in fact
become a large and embedded element of
international and national political economy Background
and local politics. The study and practice of
destination planning and policy should be a The relationships between tourism and desti-
means for fascinating insights into broader nations, at least at a supercial level, are often
economic and social development issues. An assumed to be at their most volatile when
increasing amount of research has gone into there is actual or perceived stress or strain on
these areas (see Table 2.1 for a summary of a the destination or the visitor as a result of
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 21
22 J. Jenkins et al.

Table 2.1. Examples of Australian destination management studies.

Dredge and Tourism is considered as essentially place based and involving the production
Jenkins (2003a) of destination identity at different scales. National, regional and local
organizations are actively engaged in presenting and promoting place identity,
seeking to attract tourists and to increase market share. The study examines
interrelationships and connections between place identity and regional
tourism planning and policy making in New South Wales. Regional tourism
organizations are considered contentious.
Pforr (2001, 2002, Pforr (2001) applied the policy cycle model to a study of the development of
2005) the rst Tourism Development Master Plan (TDMP) for the Northern Territory
region. The TDMP became the foundation of Northern Territory tourism policy.
The tourism policy processes concerning the TDMP are explored and two
themes in that process are described: a top-down approach from the Northern
Territory Government, and the Northern Territory Governments agenda for
rapid economic development. Pforr observes the lack of opportunities for
community-based interest groups and the environmental lobby to engage in
policy and planning processes.
Priskin (2003) Priskin highlighted the difculties in applying collaborative tourism planning
initiatives at the regional scale, reporting on a workshop that sought to identify
a vision for and opportunities and issues relating to planning and managing
nature-based tourism in the Central Coast Region of Western Australia. Priskin
described the inadequacy of regional tourism policy and the lack of regional
tourism planning on the Central Coast. The tourism industry is considered to
be uncoordinated and disjointed. The lack of collaboration between industry
and government limited approaches to the sustainable management of tourism
resources. The workshop led to the formation of a regionally integrated tourism
group to implement recommendations arising from the workshop, but many
factors, including political and other issues arising outside the tourism arena,
limited their implementation.
Richins and Mayes Richins and Mayes summarized policy at a local level by examining the historical
(2008) development of marine- and land-based sustainable management practices
in Port Stephens, New South Wales. The case study described the practices
of a commercial cruise operation. It explained how the owners of the cruise
operations took site-specic, self-managed and voluntary action to provide
leadership and contribute to the development of state regulations for cetacean
watching. Local-level practices were considered in the light of their ability to
contribute to state legislation and how they can affect sustainable marine
wildlife practices from the regional to international scales.
Dredge et al. (2010a) The study focused on issues of governance before, during and after the World
Rally Championship held in the Northern Rivers region in New South Wales.
The New South Wales Government took a top-down approach to planning the
event, whereby collaboration and consultation with the local community and
stakeholders was deemed decient. The study identied that more effective
event governance can be achieved through placing greater importance on
stakeholder participation in decision making, showing commitment to local
issues, demonstrating transparency and accountability, demonstrating
compliance with the rule of law, and promoting collaboration and consultation
with all agencies (government and non-government) that are directly and
indirectly implicated in the planning and management of events.

interactions between the visitor and the their abilities to withstand those impacts
environment. The ability of destination com- (resistance), to recover from impacts (resil-
munities, environments and economies to ience), and to develop and sustain the environ-
withstand or capitalize on tourism is linked to ments that make them attractive (e.g. Laws,
Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 23

1995; Hall, 1999). The stresses relating to tour- The signicance of destination manage-
ism are perhaps most prominent and volatile ment and indeed of tourism planning and
when visitor numbers are high, visitor behav- policy is highlighted by Australias Common-
iour is inappropriate or unusual, or when the wealth Government, which argued that The
physical or social environment is particularly most effective way to address these [many]
fragile or not resilient or resistant enough to challenges [facing Australias tourism indus-
cope with visitors and their associated impacts try] is a coordinated effort from all stakehold-
(Andereck et al., 2005; Pigram and Jenkins, ers: all levels of government and industry. In
2006). Tourism perhaps presents less complex this context, Destination Management Plan-
problems when people venture to places in ning has emerged as a very effective mecha-
small numbers, are culturally sensitive and nism for improved cooperation and
blend in with their environments. Neverthe- collaboration with local industry and [for]
less, a range of other considerations is critical strengthening partnerships with regional eco-
even in areas where tourists passively engage nomic development agencies/boards and
with their surroundings transportation types education and training providers (Depart-
and frequency, waste disposal, demonstration ment of Resources, Energy and Tourism,
effects and spread of disease. Whatever the 2007). The Department adopted A National
case, impacts may (positive and negative) be Framework for Best Practice Destination Man-
exacerbated by the quality or lack thereof of agement Planning, and argued that this frame-
planning and policy decisions and actions work gave to tourism planning organizations
(Hall and Lew, 2009). the tools to produce sustainable and
Concern with destination management competitive tourism in a destination, and
has in fact been around a long time, with that there were many benets to be derived
Youngs (1973), Mathieson and Walls (1982), through this frameworks application,
Pearces (1989) and Halls (1991) texts, for namely: improved destination competitive-
example, highlighting many relevant issues, ness; increased visitor satisfaction; economic,
and particularly the impacts and planning social and environmental sustainability;
issues associated with tourism development effective partnerships; and continuous
in a range of settings and contexts. As a con- improvements. The prescriptive and norma-
cept of detailed study, it became prominent tive message of the Commonwealth Govern-
mainly because of the signicant and rapid ment is tenuous, though, because destinations,
commercial development of tourism and the however dened, are inevitably constructed
impacts of tourism on the economic, social places. How places are constructed can be
and physical environments (e.g. Mathieson better understood and well informed by
and Wall, 1982), and the recognition of tourism policy and planning studies grounded in the
as a signicant economic and social factor in social sciences.
local and regional development and restruc- Studies of tourism planning and policy
turing. The development of transport tech- draw from many social sciences-related
nologies, accommodation and attractions, and disciplines and elds (e.g. political science,
the growth of marketing outlets and avenues public policy, organizational behaviour, soci-
for promotion, as well as the desire for people ology, economics, geography, history, law
to escape and to see new places, have all and psychology). Destination planning and
fuelled a global travel movement which is policy have become increasingly studied
leaving only the most inaccessible and inhos- aspects of destination marketing and man-
pitable places relatively unscathed but, never- agement, but theoretical and conceptual
theless, threatened, especially as technological developments in the eld have been lacking
developments (e.g. transport, communica- and heavily reliant upon discourses in these
tion, the World Wide Web and recreational other disciplines, although some advances
accessories such as hiking and camping gear) have been made (see below). In a relatively
will make these places ever more accessible new interdisciplinary eld, these circum-
and ever more prone to the impacts of travel stances are not surprising, but it is a concern
and tourism. to those with an interest in policy and
24 J. Jenkins et al.

planning processes. Relative to other aspects local) have well-dened geopolitical admin-
of tourism, such as tourist demand, behav- istrative boundaries and are often under-
iour and experiences, policy and planning pinned by important historical legacies.
has attracted much less attention. This per- Dredge and Jenkins (2003a) observe that
haps also reects the often-applied nature of Australian regions are a legacy of post-World
tourism research and the short-term require- War II reconstruction policies. Regions and
ments of industry-driven research, which is regional boundaries were dened on the
frequently at odds with the need for more basis of some perceived level of cohesion of
research that consistently and collaboratively social, economic and geographical character-
grapples with theoretical, conceptual and istics. These boundaries, for example those of
methodological issues arising in the social the Australian states and their regions, may
sciences (for a more detailed discussion, see have been relevant at the time, but are not
Dredge and Jenkins, 2007a). necessarily relevant in a globalized economy
where advances in communication and infor-
mation technologies and transport have
made such boundaries redundant and,
Concepts and Denitions indeed, in many instances inhibitors to
regional economic and social development,
Destinations and environmental planning and sustainabil-
ity. What makes these boundaries so vivid in
Destinations vary widely in their scale and in our lives is that they represent signicant pol-
the historical nature of their development, icy, planning and management divisions such
spatial size and organization, demography, that people living close to one another, liter-
topography, climate and weather, culture, ally across a road, experience markedly dif-
infrastructure, available attractions, gover- ferent policies for their health, education,
nance, politics and management, and human transport and travel, and state taxes and local
resources and nances (Cartier and Lew, government rates and other fees.
2005). Dening a destination is an inherently To make matters even more complex,
difcult exercise because it depends on a destination regions or areas often require the
range of factors. Who or what agency is den- engagement of more than one government
ing the destination? At what scale is the desti- agency (e.g. national parks, reef or marine
nation being operationalized? And, for what authorities, sheries, primary industries and
purposes is the destination being dened? transport agencies may all be involved in
Generally, visitors will dene a destination coastal area planning), as well as different
quite differently from industry or from gov- levels of government in their policy, planning
ernment agencies. Visitors have no particular and management, and each agency comes
interest in the administrative boundaries that armed with its own knowledge and interpre-
shape the ow of money and other resources tation of the destination, including its bound-
to support destination region planning, mar- aries for decision making. The multitude of
keting and management activities. They are actors and agencies involved, especially with
more likely to dene a destination in terms of respect to determining precisely who is
the attractions visited, travel time, the ser- responsible for what, and in mediating the
vices needed and consumed, and the entry politics of planning and policy making, mean
and exit points that dene their travel. Indus- that destination planning and policy are
try is likely to dene tourism destinations in a dynamic, complex and value-laden tasks. To
more uid manner, based on the clusters and operate in such environments, planners and
linkages (e.g. supply chains, marketing and policy makers require high levels of reec-
branding, economies of scale, spatial policies tive, analytical skills to understand how
and programmes offering incentives) between power is distributed and resources allocated,
operators and businesses that have formed distributed and redistributed (Hall, 1994;
over time. Government agencies at all levels Hall and Jenkins, 1995; Dredge and Jenkins,
(i.e. national, state/provincial, regional and 2003b).
Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 25

For the purpose of this chapter, a basic Policy and policy making
denition of a destination region is adopted.
This denition draws from earlier work by In this chapter, policy making is linked to public
Leiper (1990, 1995) and two of the present policy, which has been dened in many ways.
authors (Dredge, 1999, 2005, 2007; Dredge Amidst a raft of denitions of policy and public
and Jenkins, 2003a, 2007a). A destination policy, this chapter adopts the denition pre-
region is dened as a location that a person sented by Bridgman and Davis (2004, p. 3, in
travels to, and that is distinct from their Dredge and Jenkins, 2007b, p. 7), wherein policy
usual place of residence. The travel may be is dened as being a position, strategy, action
for the purpose of an overnight stay or day or product adopted by government and arising
trip. A destination can be a specic site such from contests between different ideas, values
as an urban playground, a theme park or a and interests. Policy-making is concerned with
national park; an urban or rural town or a the processes of making public policy, from the
city; a region; an island or reef; a state or genesis of ideas about a policy, to the develop-
province; a nation state; or an internationally ment of a policy, to its implementation, evalua-
dened region, such as the Asia-Pacic. The tion, review and perhaps abolition.
boundaries of destinations are necessarily The concept of policy making has
tied to the characteristics of travel patterns, received growing attention in tourism studies
but destination planners and managers generally and in destination management
operate on the basis of administrative specically. However, research has tended to
boundaries that often limit an accurate splinter into the sub-areas below, and atten-
conceptualization of the destination region. tion to theoretical development and cohesion
Dredge (1999, p. 779), in developing a model of the overall body of work is lacking. Draw-
of destination regions, identied three fun- ing upon the broader public policy literature,
damental characteristics: (i) that tourist- Dredge and Jenkins (2007a, pp. 78) summa-
generating markets and destination regions rize seven characteristics of policy, which
are separate geographical entities; (ii) that have been expanded to eight below:
the complex and multi-scale nature of desti-
nations means that their conceptualization 1. Policy involves government, but the extent
must be a exible hierarchical structure and nature of government involvement in
adapted to suit different scales, locations policy making varies dramatically (Dye,
and market characteristics; and (iii) that des- 1978). In destinations where tourism is identi-
tinations can be single locations or chained, ed as a key driver of economic development
in that they can be a set of geographically and social well-being, governments may
separate locations linked through travel invest in major infrastructure, undertake
patterns or touring routes (see also Lue research, spend money on marketing and
et al., 1993). promotion, and negotiate international
Also important in considering the de- investment deals and bid for events. In desti-
nition of tourism destinations for the pur- nations not deemed a priority, governments
pose of planning and policy, Hall (1994), may show disinterest or lack knowledge of
Murphy (1988) and Cartier and Lew (2005) and capacity to act in a specic tourism arena
emphasize that tourism destinations are (e.g. ecotourism) and offset any responsibility
generally locations that already have estab- for tourism to non-government agencies such
lished social, environmental, physical, eco- as tourism associations.
nomic, political and cultural attributes. In 2. Policy involves a commitment to do some-
all but the most remote areas, such as wil- thing. It may be publicly stated and approved
derness areas or polar regions or deserts, or it may be a decision not to do something.
destinations are almost always inhabited by Whatever the case, the purpose is to change
local residents before tourism activity, and things.
these existing characteristics have impor- 3. Policy involves a course of action legitimated
tant implications in how tourism is planned by government, even if government has not
and policy is developed. been wholly responsible for the development
26 J. Jenkins et al.

of that policy position. It is now common for we make trade-offs between options when
governments to establish committees and ref- we cannot do everything. But in the context
erence groups to develop policy background of this chapter, planning is aligned with pub-
papers and discussion papers, and to engage lic policy, and refers to the activities and
stakeholders in the development of policy actions of governments.
positions. This characteristic is closely linked According to Hall (1980, pp. 12), who
to characteristic six below. refers specically to land-use planning, plan-
4. Policy involves the future and so requires ning has two key meanings: (i) a set of pro-
thinking about or anticipating future circum- cesses whereby decision-makers engage in
stances and what conditions might be best to logical foresight before committing them-
achieve a certain outcome (Bridgman and selves; and (ii) processes that result in a
Davis, 2004). physical plan about where things ought to be
5. Policy is any action that brings about an located and how things ought to be. But there
effect or outcome or an allocation or redistri- are other types of planning and so this kind
bution of resources, and it involves an of denition needs to be expanded to accom-
intervention of some kind (Levin, 1997), or a modate the fact that planning can also be
decision not to intervene. undertaken in different sectors, such as infra-
6. Policy is an organizational practice or response structure planning, industry planning for dif-
to an issue or situation. This organizational ferent sectors such as tourism and service
practice does not necessarily sit wholly within delivery planning. In these instances, the
government and could involve government physical location of things is less important
and non-government sectors in the collabora- and planning is related to achieving out-
tive processes of policy development. comes such as breaking down barriers and
7. Policy is fundamentally about the choices impediments to investment and economic
that governments and their policy collabora- growth, collaborating across stakeholder
tors make and the expression of that choice groups, or improving access to services
through policy documents and actions through sectoral rather than spatial allocation
(Bridgman and Davis, 2004). or redistribution mechanisms and criteria
8. Policy involves mediating the values and (e.g. an allocation of public funds or incen-
interests of a wide range of stakeholders with an tives to ecotourism operators across Australia
interest in the policy issue, and is inherently rather than an allocation of funds to promote
political. Accordingly, there is an element of tourism generally in a regional destination).
politics in all policies (Considine, 2005). Dredge (1999, p. 774) denes planning as
the process of dening a strategic vision for
an area which reects the communitys goals
Planning and aspirations and taking the necessary
steps to implement it. In this denition the
Policy and planning are interrelated con- full range of interests present in the commu-
cepts. They are sometimes used interchange- nity, including the tourism industry and resi-
ably or together without distinction, but they dents, are valued. However, this author also
are separate terms with separate meanings. notes that planning is neither rational nor
In its most simple form, planning is dened comprehensive, since it is impossible for all
as the activity of setting goals and identify- factors to be investigated and considered
ing steps to full those goals. It is an inher- equally (p. 775). Like policy making, plan-
ently difcult concept to pin down ning involves competing interests, priorities,
conceptually, even though many of us per- values and agendas; it requires cooperation
form planning on a daily basis: we make and collaboration between individuals and
decisions about what tasks are our responsi- groups; and it means there must be negotia-
bility; we choose what tasks are more or less tion and bargaining between industry, gov-
important; we assess the impacts of conduct- ernment and community interests (see
ing these tasks on our available resources; we Dredge and Jenkins, 2007a, p. 9). Reecting
assess how best to undertake those tasks; and this emerging recognition of the importance
Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 27

of multiple interests and stakeholders, deni- Jenkins and Stolk, 2003; Dredge, 2010; Dredge
tions of planning have gravitated towards the et al., 2010b).
rst of Halls (1980) two-point denition of The following section examines
planning above. That is, planning is much approaches to the study of tourism policy
more about the processes by which issues are and planning.
identied and mediated across stakeholder
groups, and decisions are made that set in
motion achieving some future-oriented objec- Approaches and Methods
tives; planning is much less about rational
planning and much more about the relational
Much public policy and planning research is
aspects of collaboration, building broad con-
grounded in the social sciences, but informed
sensus, joint decision making and shared
by a range of disciplines and elds of study,
action (Healey, 1997, 2007).
(e.g. economics, organizational studies, ecol-
So, returning to the earlier point about the
ogy, biology, geography, sociology, political
relationship between planning and policy, pol-
studies, architecture, landscape architecture,
icy sets the parameters for planning; it sets out
planning, public administration and policy
the framework within which planning activities
analysis). These disciplines and elds of
such as collaboration, consensus building and
study are characterized by an array of
decision making are undertaken within and
approaches, methods, concepts and frame-
around destinations. But the outcomes of plan-
works. Destination policy and planning can
ning may expose the limitations of the policy
be likened to a magpie profession or area of
shaping it, in which case policy may need to be
research, where relevant or useful frame-
reviewed or amended. For example, the grow-
works, approaches and methods can be
ing acceptance of the principles of sustainable
picked up and used according to the problem
development in Australia during the 1980s
at hand, and what might be appropriate and
resulted in increased policy directives to include
applicable. Some have discussed whether this
consideration of environmental impacts and
interdisciplinary avour and diversity in con-
sustainability issues in the assessment of a pro-
ceptual, theoretical and applied research
posed development. These directives increased
means that the eld potentially lacks cohe-
the complexity of assessing tourism and other
sion or theoretical and conceptual strength
development applications; increased time and
(e.g. see Etchner and Jamal (1997) and Tribe
nancial costs to developers; and led to a
(1997) for coverage of such issues). The alter-
decline in the level of certainty over whether a
native view is that this diversity and breadth
development might be approved. These factors
in a eld of study provides many opportuni-
inevitably affected investor condence, with
ties for collaborative work, encourages
consequences for the rate of investment in tour-
researchers and practitioners to transcend
ism infrastructure accommodation, and attrac-
traditional disciplinary boundaries, and
tions and economic growth more generally. In
through conceptual, theoretical and applied
response, state governments created special
advances contributes to knowledge and prac-
legislation to streamline the development of
tice not only in tourism but also in other
casinos, major waterfront developments and
elds.
tourist resorts, in an effort to quarantine these
That said, approaches to destination pol-
developments from the growing body of plan-
icy and planning can be broadly divided into
ning requirements. Such legislation effectively
those that emphasize values and those that
removed from local governments the ability to
are substantive applied approaches.
decide whether or not to approve such develop-
ment applications, by handing responsibility
back to a particular state government agency
that had the power to streamline, approve and Value-based approaches
override specic legislation (Craik, 1991). This
is an approach that continues to be used to fast In a widely cited publication, Getz (1987)
track tourism-related development (e.g. see identied four broad traditions or approaches
28 J. Jenkins et al.

to tourism planning that highlight the values and environments, and the two should not be
underpinning decisions and actions: conated. Contemporary debates about the
conicts between tourism, recreation and
1. Boosterism, where it is assumed that the forestry illustrate the point. The industry
key benet of tourism is economic, and there- might prosper and the natural resources that
fore all decisions and actions should be aimed sustain it in a natural environment might well
at boosting the economy through investment be barely affected, but if the decision to sup-
attraction and economic incentives. port tourism resulted in the demise of entire
2. Economic, where it is assumed that tour- forestry or other industries which, in turn,
ism will contribute to a regions income, gen- caused the demise of local communities and
erate employment and foster economic economies and the quality of lives of thou-
growth via ow-on effects and leveraging; sands of people, would this be an example of
destination planning should focus on reduc- sustainable tourism?
ing barriers to economic development.
3. Physical/spatial, where it is assumed
tourism planning should seek to minimize
Domain-based, applied approaches
impacts on the physical and spatial environ-
ments concerned and incorporate ecological
principles linked to spatial, capacity and The above planning traditions, too, argued by
threshold parameters. Dredge and Jenkins (2007a, p. 89), merely
4. Community, where it is assumed that describe how planning can focus on aspects
tourism promotes or empowers local commu- of a destination: economic development; spa-
nities in planning and policy processes; thus, tial arrangements for roads and highways;
destination planning should recognize and infrastructure; attractions; and so on. These
foster the social benets of tourism. approaches do not adequately convey the
intent of tourism planning and policy, nor do
they accommodate the various layers of plan-
To these four traditions, Hall (1998) added
ning and sub-processes that might occur in
sustainable tourism planning. This latter
addressing different problems or issues in
approach represented an attempt to display
the destination. The above value-based
how tourism planning could and should be
approaches are convenient means to simplify
integrated into wider planning frameworks
what are in fact complex and intersecting
and simultaneously address quality of life,
streams of activity into neat, easily identi-
resource management, and cultural and
able approaches. Subsequently, Dredge and
social sustainability issues, by merging eco-
Jenkins (2007, p. 90) suggested six substantive
nomic, physical/spatial and community
applied approaches that deal with aspects of
approaches. Some years before, Gunn (1988)
destination planning and management:
suggested an approach that integrated per-
spectives derived from landscape architec- 1. Industry development planning and pol-
ture, land use and geography studies, while icy: this recognizes the particular and often
others have presented approaches linked to highly fragmented characteristics of the tour-
destination competitiveness (Ritchie and ism industry, and the challenges, opportuni-
Crouch, 2000, 2003). ties and potential initiatives to improve its
An important point lost at times in functionality.
these discussions about the focus of tourism 2. Market planning and policy: this recog-
planning and policy making is not how to nizes the highly specialized marketing, branding
plan for sustainable tourism. The real prob- and promotional activities that are undertaken
lem is in fact how tourism, just like forestry, by agencies to promote destinations.
agriculture, education or health services, can 3. Spatio-physical destination planning
be planned and managed to contribute to and policy: this recognizes that tourism has
sustainable communities and societies. A a spatial dimension, and that the location
sustainable tourism industry does not neces- and management of tourism-related land
sarily amount to sustainable communities uses and infrastructure often involves
Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 29

agencies and stakeholders who operate in a tourism. This component can employ a range
separate domain to other destination plan- of methods from broad mega-trend analysis
ning activities. and scenario building, to forecasting and
4. Conict management planning and poli- trend analysis (e.g. Dwyer et al., 2008; Yeo-
cy: this recognizes that planning is needed to man, 2008). The question that this component
mitigate the conicts that can emerge between seeks to answer is If I do X then what effects
tourism and other resource-based activities, will it have on the destination?
such as forestry, mining and protected area 4. The procedural tradition that provides
management. direction on how to plan and manage desti-
5. Communicative planning and policy: this nation and is oriented towards identifying
recognizes that governance structures and detailed steps, actions and initiatives. The
processes are often required to oil the wheels stagist planning processes amply described in
of collaboration and joint action across the a range of texts explain the steps in the plan-
multitude of stakeholders involved in tourism. ning process (e.g. Murphy, 1985, 1988; Gunn,
6. Crisis-response planning and policy: this 1994; Dredge and Jenkins, 2007a; Hall, 2008).
recognizes that crises emerge from time to time This component seeks to answer the question
(e.g. avian u, terrorism, global nancial cri- What do we need to do to achieve X?
ses), and that governments are often required 5. The evaluative component that seeks to
to pull together a raft of actions at short notice identify how a plans success and impacts can
to respond to perceived risks. Separate plan- be measured and evaluated, so that it may be
ning processes and policy development can be revised in the future. The question that this
triggered in such scenarios. component seeks to answer is How can the
plan be implemented and evaluated, and
what changed as a result of the plan?
Methods

The methods used in destination planning Advocating a meta approach


vary considerably, and are heavily inuenced
by the institutional and policy context in
Dredge and Jenkins (2007a) argue that each of
which planning activity takes place. In gen-
these approaches and methods offer some-
eral, destination planning and policy-making
thing useful in the mix of knowledge that is
methods involve some or all of the following
needed to inform tourism planning and pol-
components:
icy. Moreover, in practice, these approaches
1. A descriptive/explanatory component and traditions are not mutually exclusive,
that seeks to understand and develop histori- and actually require those engaged in desti-
cal knowledge about how policy has been nation planning and policy to blend
made in the past, and what the strengths and approaches and methods, and continually
weaknesses of this approach were, it may even reect upon and reassess their directions, pri-
explain how certain outcomes have emerged. orities and actions. Indeed, there is a need to
This component seeks to answer the question step back from the detail of what to plan,
How has the current situation emerged? how to plan, and what values to adopt, to
2. The normative/prescriptive component examine the big picture and to appreciate the
that seeks to provide guidance on the content broad drivers that inuence, sometimes in
of policy for the development and manage- less than explicit ways, what can be done and
ment of tourism in the destination. This com- how it can be done. This requires the adop-
ponent or dimension of the planning and pol- tion of an approach to understanding how
icy processes is geared towards answering the planning and policy take place, and to incor-
question How ought the destination to be? porating a exible conceptualization of the
3. The predictive component that makes destination region across multiple scales,
predictions about the possible causes and involving different stakeholders and address-
consequences of various policy actions on ing various interrelated issues and problems.
30 J. Jenkins et al.

Figure 2.1 shows such a framework for under- current government trends?; What agencies
standing tourism planning and policy. might have an interest in this issue and how
Although this framework highlights should they be engaged in the process?;
matters that should be of concern to those From what interest groups or associations
studying tourism policy and planning, it also are these plans or policies likely to attract
serves as a framework for understanding criticism and how might we head off that
what factors affect destination policy and criticism?; Is there adequate recognition of
planning processes. Thus, in developing the need for collaboration, alliances and part-
plans and policies, or in the act of engaging nerships to ensure its successful implementa-
in planning and policy-making activities, tion?; What groups or individuals could be
these factors should be considered. Any included in the development of a plan and
framework for destination management policy to help ensure that their participation
should promote awareness of these factors. provides adequate representation of interests
Questions at the forefront of policy makers and the prospects of reducing opposition?.
and planners minds might be: Are the ideas The remainder of this chapter examines
encapsulated in this plan well aligned with how these methods and approaches might

Institutional context
What are the values, beliefs, perceptions and attitudes about the role of the state?
How do the structures and practices of government influence policy making?

Issue drivers and influences


What are the social, economic, political, environmental and technological
factors that influence how issues emerge and what priority they are given?

Actors, agencies and their relational characteristics


Who are the actors with direct and indirect interests in tourism
policy?
What are the characteristics of their relationships?

Policy dialogues
What effect do policy dialogues have on:
collaboration, alliances and partnerships?
communication, knowledge transfer and learning?
rules of conduct, power relations and leadership?

Understanding policy making


as a product;
as an outcome;
as a reflection of power; and
as a response to selective
interest.

Analysis of policy making:


Over time
Across space (macro, meso and micro scales)
Interdisciplinary
Integrated description, explanation and analysis

Fig. 2.1. Conceptual framework for understanding tourism policy and planning.
Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 31

play out in destination policy and planning, as transport, communications, resources


using Australia as a case study. It explores the development, resources marketing, energy
characteristics of destination policy and plan- policy, urban affairs, Aboriginal affairs, taxa-
ning at national, regional and local levels. tion and, indeed, tourism. The responsibili-
ties of the various levels of government for
tourism have developed disjointedly under
the divisions of powers that directly and indi-
Context and Setting rectly affect tourism. The lack of specic pow-
ers to deal with tourism under the
Australia is widely considered a liberal Constitution has resulted in the duplication
democracy, which means that it has a politi- of government responsibilities and, therefore,
cal system heavily inuenced by liberal con- disagreement between the states and territo-
cepts of politics characterised by belief in the ries themselves and especially between the
individual, a consensual theory of society, states/territories and the Commonwealth
belief in reason and progress, and suspicion (Hall, 1991; Jenkins and Sorensen, 1996).
of concentrated forms of power (Althaus Local government is unrecognized in
et al., 2007, pp. 1231). The basic legal docu- Australias Constitution and each Australian
ment of Australias Federation is the Austra- state has its own system of this level of gov-
lian Constitution. This is a British Act of ernment. Local governments derive their
Parliament passed in 1900. The Constitution functions from Local Government Acts oper-
serves two important functions: it serves as ating in each of the states. Those Acts give
the legal foundation of the nation by setting local governments many legal powers,
out constitutional laws and practice; and it including the power to deal with develop-
denes the parliaments roles, responsibilities ment generally and with tourism develop-
and powers. Australia has a complex and ment in particular, and to control health
hybrid form of government, in which parlia- standards and rating structures according to
mentary government, derived from the state government frameworks (Dredge, 2001).
House of Commons in the Palace of Westmin- The roles and responsibilities of local
ster in London, is combined with a federal government in tourism are not clear or exer-
Senate, derived from the USA (Summers, cised consistently. Local governments cannot
1985; Althaus et al., 2007). The establishment avoid engaging in tourism, but it is not man-
of the federal system of government in Aus- datory for them to plan for tourism or to even
tralia in 1901 originally divided political have a tourism marketing budget. Develop-
powers and functions between the six states ment applications for attractions, accommo-
and the Commonwealth. Since federation, a dation and restaurants, for example, must be
three-tier system of government Common- dealt with by local government departments
wealth, state and local has evolved, and the and councils according to local government
Commonwealth (Federation) of Australia has planning frameworks. However, decision
six states and two territories and more than making by local governments can be over-
600 local governments and community coun- turned by courts and state governments, espe-
cils (e.g. Althaus et al., 2007). cially as the latter increasingly vest in
Tourism organizations with responsibili- Ministers the power to override local deci-
ties for tourism destination planning, devel- sions. Hence, local governments have little
opment, management and marketing exist at autonomy in determining the development of
every level of Australian government. All lev- their space or local government area (LGA),
els of Australian government have signicant and planning decisions in adjacent LGAs may
involvement in tourism because the Austra- have a signicant impact upon them anyhow
lian Constitution does not convey powers (Dollery and Marshall, 1997; Western Austra-
and responsibilities for tourism to any par- lian Local Government Association, 2008).
ticular level of government (Hall, 1991). The The politics of tourism between the states
federal division of responsibilities has led to and local authorities is often highly volatile,
problems of policy coordination in such areas particularly with respect to tourism resort
32 J. Jenkins et al.

developments, the staging of events, and initiatives through the establishment and
marketing and promotion strategies (e.g. see resourcing of RTOs; local government bodies
Craik, 1991; Hall, 1998; Dredge and Jenkins, are mainly concerned with local tourism mat-
2007a). Complicating the situation further is ters, visitor facilities and information centres
the nancial primacy of the federal govern- and local planning, but have undertaken
ment which allows it to venture into areas marketing and promotion in specic overseas
traditionally the responsibility of state and destinations. The following section briey
local governments, for example through describes important issues involving RTOs.
funding major transport infrastructure devel-
opment. Although the Commonwealth Gov-
ernment has previously placed restrictions on
how funds allocated to the states could be Regional Tourism Organizations
spent, tax reform packages introduced by it in
1999 mean that the states have more auton- The passing of the Tourism New South Wales
omy in how nancial assistance is distributed Act 1984 prescribed the establishment of the
to local governments. Whatever the case, Tourism Commission of NSW (TCNSW), a
Australias complex system of government statutory corporation, and a commercially
and division of powers are a major constraint oriented organization responsible for the
on the selection of policy instruments in an coordination of the tourism industry in that
Australian setting (Althaus et al., 2007, p. 88). state. It was required by legislation to pro-
Adding another layer to an already com- mote travel to and within NSW and to coordi-
plex system of government constantly under nate the development of ventures relating to
scrutiny, in New South Wales (NSW) and tourism. Since 1985, major decisions by the
other states, state governments have estab- Commission and its successors (the NSW
lished and substantially supported regional Tourism Commission and then, from 1994,
tourism organizations (RTOs) (Jenkins and Tourism New South Wales and later Tourism
Sorensen, 1996; Jenkins, 2000). RTOs are a NSW), have always been approved by a
layer of tourism administration rmly board appointed by and reporting to the
wedged between local and state govern- responsible Minister.
ments. In NSW, RTOs have existed in various A 5 year (1983/41988/9) tourism plan
forms since the early 1900s. Their support for NSW divided the state into nine marketing
from governments increased substantially regions. The RTOs related to these marketing
during the 1980s, but they have lacked long- regions have been a plank of NSW tourism
term commitment and strategic directions policy and planning since the early 1980s. The
from politicians and public administrators. boundary of each RTO embraces a collection
A hierarchical government arrangement of local government areas. Each region was
appears sensible and workable, but as there identied by the Commission as possessing
has long been confusion about the appropri- compatible geographical, historical and natu-
ate roles and responsibilities of each level of ral features. Regions were considered by the
government with respect to destination pol- Commission to be the most effective and ef-
icy and planning, and destination manage- cient means to market NSW facilities,
ment and marketing, many inefciencies and resources and attractions (Jenkins, 2000).
overlaps arise. For example, Australias RTOs have continued to operate in various
national tourism organizations have always forms across the state since that time, but there
engaged in overseas marketing and promo- have been extensive changes in their struc-
tion, but occasionally ventured into domestic tures, functions, operations and funding.
marketing campaigns; the states have always Moreover, some RTOs have withered or been
maintained a strong domestic marketing abolished, new RTOs have been established,
presence but have occasionally ventured into and some LGAs and associated tourism asso-
overseas marketing, and have strongly sup- ciations have switched their allegiances and
ported large-scale events and attempted to moved from one region to an adjacent region
exercise greater control over local tourism (e.g. see Dredge and Jenkins 2003a, 2007a).
Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 33

The Regional Tourism Action Plan 2000 arrangements to realize maximum benets
2003 required that each RTO produce a 3-year for the tourism industry.
Regional Tourism Plan, approved by Tourism 2. Expanding regional tourism: enhance
NSW. The plans would guide infrastructure promotion of regional NSW through strength-
development, transport access information ened regional partnerships.
and service, product development/enhance- 3. Address supply-side issues: government
ment, industry development, and marketing working with industry to ensure sufcient
strategies and activities for each region. The tourism-related infrastructure and services
Plans were considered by Tourism NSW to be are available to satisfy increased demand.
a key delivery mechanism for the objectives 4. Tourism industry plan: implement a
of the Towards 2020: New South Wales Tourism coordinated industry plan to boost tourism
Masterplan (Tourism NSW, 2002). From 2003 performance in NSW based on a partnership
to early 2007 under a Labor party govern- approach from government and industry.
ment there was some stability in the external
operating environment of RTOs, with no sig- Expanding regional tourism included
nicant changes in their operating environ- the provision of more support to build desti-
ments. However, in the period 20072009, the nation capacity and visitor demand, but it
situation changed dramatically. was noted in the strategy that the 13 RTOs
In February 2007, John ONeill was asked were very diverse and had presented chal-
by the Premier of NSW to conduct reviews of lenges to engagement by Tourism NSW. The
major events, convention and exhibition strategy was also seeking to encourage merg-
space, and tourism. In his Review into Tourism ers of RTOs to create greater efciencies and
in New South Wales released in May 2008, economies of scale. The governance of
ONeill (2008) made many recommendations, regional tourism became even more pre-
which included empowering NSW regions, scribed and indeed complex. Rather than
improving regional data, and encouraging RTOs representing themselves direct to Tour-
NSW and Commonwealth governments to ism NSW, RTOs would be represented by a
support the development of tourism assets in Forum of RTOs (FORTO), or representatives
regional NSW. ONeill also indicated struc- of RTOs, which would liaise with a Regional
tural, strategic and operational changes in Reference Group of the Tourism NSW Board,
NSW needed to address a variety of issues and the Regional Tourism Unit of Tourism
relating to market performance failures, NSW. FORTO became the overarching peak
including with regard to RTOs. industry body responsible for guiding and
The NSW government considered the facilitating the development of RTOs and
ONeill report, and in July 2008 commis- coordinating regional tourism development
sioned the Deloitte group to assist in the and marketing activities, and the single
development of a new NSW tourism strategy point of contact for Tourism NSW in liaising
that involved consultations with tourism and consulting across all regional tourism
industry stakeholders. The NSW Tourism organizations (Tourism NSW, 2010). With
Strategy (Tourism NSW, 2008) was released in these pronouncements and requirements,
November of that year. The vision was Grow- RTOs needed to revise their strategic focus.
ing a vibrant tourism sector in NSW by To support RTOs, the NSW government
increasing the States domestic and interna- set aside AU$5.133 million annually (a sub-
tional visitation through a collaborative stantive increase from AU$1.63 million) for
approach between government and indus- 3 years. Each RTO can apply for funding allo-
try. The strategy included eight key areas. Of cated according to two tiers. Tier One funding
those eight areas, four are especially relevant is for demand building on a dollar for dollar
to this discussion of RTOs and their role in basis. Tier Two funding is an allocation
destination policy and planning: designed both for capacity building, and for
demand building on a dollar for dollar basis.
1. Tourism governance: deliver the NSW Of the 13 RTOs in New South Wales, six RTOs
Tourism Strategy within agreed governance have decided to operate at Tier One level,
34 J. Jenkins et al.

arguing they already have the capabilities, organizational skill sets, and funding struc-
resources and systems to achieve long-term tures and processes, have all been geared
sustainability and no longer require capacity towards marketing. There has been little and
building assistance. However, seven of the 13 in some cases no attention to supply-side
RTOs are operating at Tier Two level. These issues such as tourism planning, visitor man-
RTOs require funding to support both aspects agement, investment attraction, and support
of their operations (e.g. staff salaries, adminis- for product innovation and packaging. Local
trative support) as well as demand building on governments have been critical of this
a dollar for dollar basis. Tourism NSW decided regional approach and the lack of support for
that RTOs must become self-sustaining by 31 sustainable tourism planning and manage-
December 2011. From 1 January 2012, the gov- ment activities (e.g. ONeill, 2008; Parliament
ernment will provide funding only for demand of Victoria, 2008; The Stafford Group, 2008).
building (Tier One equivalence). This situation is exacerbated where the sala-
Despite their regional disparities, RTOs ries of RTO managers are supplemented by
do have some common purposes, namely: incentives such as how many marketing dol-
building consumer brand awareness of the lars they attract through cooperative market-
region to increase demand and visitation; ing campaigns. Such a situation actively
developing cooperative opportunities discourages integrated and holistic destina-
through regional participation in marketing tion planning and management by over-
and promotion; developing and sustaining emphasizing marketing activities.
regional sponsorship; and planning and Despite this situation, local governments
developing tourism product and marketing remain at the very centre of Australian tourism
such product (see NCRT, 1999). However, destination planning, policy making, develop-
RTOs are also well placed to be actively ment and management as a result of responsi-
involved in coordinating and disseminating bilities in managing land use and the
tourism research, industry accreditation environmental impacts of development, infra-
schemes and education initiatives, and in structure provision and asset management,
developing regional infrastructure invento- and in servicing local communities via the pro-
ries. These latter activities elude many RTOs, vision of parks and recreation opportunities,
who concentrate mainly on the income and arts and cultural activities and pro-
streams and outcomes that stem from mem- grammes. Local councils, keen to see their
bership, and on marketing and promotion, localities prosper and to improve social and
respectively. community well-being, are fostering tourism
directly, but also indirectly. So, while Austra-
lian local government systems are still very
much a product of their 19th century roots,
Local Government and have been criticized because they are
based on outdated social, economic and demo-
Generally, the RTO framework, as previously graphic systems, they nevertheless have a sig-
outlined, comprises several local government nicant role in shaping local destinations. The
areas, and their elected councils and employ- question for local governments then is how to
ees, which are expected (and sometimes even plan and manage the destination, which may
coerced) to support the RTO. This is often an correspond with the local government bound-
uncomfortable relationship because the RTOs aries, but is more likely to comprise a combina-
have a different set of strategic and opera- tion of surrounding local government areas.
tional objectives from local government. The Moreover, given the liberal democratic ideal
focus of RTO operational objectives and fund- underpinning government in Australia, any
ing has generally been on growing market such planning and policy framework must
demand. Marketing and promotional activi- ensure that the interests of local government
ties receive signicant injections of funds constituents receive adequate and sufcient
when compared with supply-side initiatives. attention. Very tight budgetary conditions and
Moreover, the operational objectives of RTOs, narrowly dened interpretations of council
Destination Planning and Policy: Process and Practice 35

roles and responsibilities can also add an addi- Class which is designed to increase partici-
tional challenge into the mix of destination pants understanding of tourism and of the
planning and policy. different ways that individuals within their
In this context, a recent approach pro- own divisions and also in communicating
vides an interesting solution. Dredge et al. across different parts of council and between
(2010b) argue for an approach that draws councils can promote destination plan-
from the existing capacities existing within ning, policy development and management.
local government rather than the creation of The target audience includes senior manag-
an additional planning process. They argue ers and elected representatives the key
for a joined-up approach wherein key repre- policy makers and decision makers who
sentatives from each division within the generally have little time in the normal
council, and from neighbouring councils course of their duties to consider how tour-
making up the destination region, are invited ism transcends the internal divisions of
into a discussion. The rst part of the discus- council or the potential advantages of work-
sion provides information and opportunities ing collaboratively across spatial and organi-
for discussion around the role and value of zational boundaries.
tourism in their local government area, and Figure 2.2 shows the framework adopted
the second part invites them to consider how in the Master Class, which transcends tradi-
their own work in council might facilitate tional council divisions and the historical ten-
destination planning and policy develop- sions between a marketing focus versus a
ment. The third part takes the form of an destination development focus. The outcomes
action-oriented workshop where actions, ini- of this master-class approach have been to
tiatives and priorities are discussed. facilitate collaboration, knowledge and infor-
In application, this approach takes the mation sharing, to reduce inefciencies asso-
format of a Managing Local Tourism Master ciated with overlapping work programmes

Destination planning and management framework

Broad principles

| Sustainable development | Good governance | Inclusivity and ownership | Rigorous planning |


| Effective marketing and promotion |
Destination goals
and objectives

Destination Destination
Destination
sustainable tourism

development management

Initiatives that contribute to Strategies and actions that Strategies and practices
Pillars of

the social, cultural, political stimulate an appropriate that promote balanced,


and environmental level and type of tourism sustainable administration
sustainability of the locality demand for destination and management of the
as a place to live, to work products and experiences, destination
and to visit and that promote the
benefits of tourism to
residents

Actions and Actions and Actions and


strategies strategies strategies

Vision and statement of principles


govement
Whole of

outputs

Goals and objectives


Issue-based strategies and performance criteria
Implementation
Evaluation and revision

Fig. 2.2. Destination planning and management framework.


36 J. Jenkins et al.

and duplication of effort, to encourage the open to interpretation based upon the pre-
pooling of resources in terms of time, money vailing institutional context, scale and values.
and expertise, and to increase resilience in It is also evident that despite signicant
terms of joint support for initiatives (Dredge advances in our understanding of tourism
et al., 2010b). policy and planning with respect to destina-
tion management and marketing, state gov-
ernments in Australia, for example, continue
to saddle local governments with outdated
Conclusions frameworks and operational boundaries,
namely regional tourism organizations
This chapter has sought to dene and criti- (RTOs). These RTOs can inhibit creativity,
cally examine destination policy and plan- often act as time and resource distractions,
ning. It has examined a number of important and can seriously impede wider collabora-
mainstream thoughts and practices, reviewed tions and economies of scale among local
theoretical applications in the eld, and councils. In this context, however, the Manag-
described approaches and methodologies. In ing Local Tourism Master Class approach is a
undertaking these tasks, it became clear from promising initiative for facilitating many sig-
the outset that the terms destination, policy nicant benets to those individuals and
and planning are difcult to dene and agencies who willingly engage.

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3 Travel Motivation, Benets and
Constraints to Destinations

Philip L. Pearce

Introduction which amounts to seeing the world from the


insider and participants point of view (Pike,
Airports are a good location for observing 1966; Cohen, 1979).
others. Questions about the motivations of A second preliminary consideration
other travellers are common in such contexts. involves the issue of scale or the specicity of
Why is that older couple going to Florida? the motivation question. The question Why
What about that pretty girl travelling alone to do people travel? is, in an academic and
Paris? The family with all the kids and toys practical sense, a poor question. It is akin to
why do they seem to be travelling to Hawaii asking the equally amorphous question:
during school time? For the casual observer What are the impacts of tourism?. These
speculating about peoples motives is a good kinds of questions, which are conceived most
way to pass time, while for destination man- often by those outside the tourism eld, can
agers it involves challenges of matching the only be answered with a bland overview of a
tourism experiences available at their loca- myriad of instances and cases. A much better
tions to peoples needs. Additionally, for approach for all those truly intent on coming
tourism academic researchers, it is a topic rich to a rich understanding of motivation is why
in history, methodological challenges and certain groups of people choose certain holi-
opportunities for rening our understanding. day experiences. A key point implied by this
In order to tackle this topic, several pre- assertion is that we are mostly interested in
liminary perspectives are needed. First, a pro- working at the social or group level rather
fessional view of motivation requires the than in explaining individual motivation. It
analyst to be mindful that other travellers can also be noted here that we are not assum-
may not be driven by the same social, cultural ing that a specic destination, whether it be
and biological needs as the observer. An London or Las Vegas, offers only one set of
enduring challenge for students, profession- experiences. That would be a mistake.
als and academics researching motivation is Instead, we are trying to determine a rela-
to allow the possibility that other people may tively convenient number of common pat-
see the world quite differently, their needs terns or themes dening the forces prompting
may be different and their approaches to the people to travel.
destination they visit may be unconventional. The material presented in this chapter
This issue can be summarized with the moves through a timeline of studies in tourist
expression to take an emic perspective, motivation. Initially, key denitional issues
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 39
40 P.L. Pearce

are considered. Next, the chapter introduces tourism imply that there is likely to be a
contributions to tourism motivation study complex pattern of learning about being
from, in turn, historical analyses, psychologi- a tourist and what satises the individual. As
cal theory and market research work. The tourist motivation is considered in the follow-
value of a good organizing theory or concep- ing sections, the importance of these key
tual scheme is highlighted and the syntheses characteristics will be reconrmed as strong
of ideas about tourist motivation by tourism inuences shaping the development of tourist
academics are considered. Some recent con- motivation ideas and concepts.
cerns about tourist motivation study methods There are other expressions used in the
and concepts embellish the discussion. The study of tourist motivation that warrant
applications of tourist motivation assess- attention. The concept of benets is also
ments are considered and the wider use of employed, often by tourism marketers. Bene-
these kinds of approaches is enthusiastically ts can be understood as the post-travel con-
pursued. sequences relevant to classes of motives
(Ryan, 1995). In this framework, the motive
might be spending time with close family
members, while the benet may be actually
Background strengthening a relationship with a son. It is
possible to see benets as realized specic
Tourist motivation deals with a special subset outcomes of motives. Of course, sometimes,
of the wider interest area of human motiva- benets can be unexpected (and positive) or
tion. It is effectively the total network of bio- fail to materialize. When benets are used in
logical and cultural forces that give value and surveys by researchers as something that
direction to travel choice, behaviour and visitors seek, they function as rather specic
experience (Pearce et al., 1998). The key impli- instances or sub-components of motives. The
cation for all those considering tourist desti- only difculty in this approach is that the
nations and their management is that it is range and complexity of benets challenges
tourist motivation which energizes and gen- researchers abilities to specify condently
erates peoples behaviour (Mansfeld, 1992; and exhaustively all these outcomes for
Hsu and Huang, 2008). travellers.
There are some dening characteristics Another term employed in a similar way
of tourism which shape the kind of explana- to motives is that of values, which are sum-
tions we are seeking when assessing tourist mary statements integrating peoples atti-
motivation. Tourism, like leisure, is a hybrid tudes on a topic. Groups of travellers might
publicprivate sector social enterprise. Con- be identied as having strong environmental
temporary tourism in its many forms permits conservation values which, for example, may
individuals some freedom to choose how to shape their on-site behaviour in a wilderness
spend their time (and money). It thus becomes tourism setting. Values can be linked to social
a likely venue for the expression of well-being and cultural motives but may not necessarily
and an embodied, performative opportunity drive tourist behaviour. For example, indi-
to enhance ones perceived life satisfaction viduals may value social relationships highly
(Harris, 2005). As a consequence, tourist but be fully satised with this aspect of their
motivation analysis needs to be cast within a lives where they live, and hence there are no
framework of considering preferred future motivational implications for their travel
states for individuals. Further, the inuence choices. A further specic limitation of the
of close relationships in particular can be a values concept is that there is little attention
powerful moderator of individual motivation to the biological components of human expe-
in tourism experiences. These characteristics rience which are incorporated in the wider
of tourism have important implications for concept of motivation.
the study of tourist motivation. The episodic, One nal term, that of expectations, is
dynamic, relationship-dependent, future- also sometimes used in motivation studies.
oriented and varied experiences inherent in Expectations, as used in destination studies,
Travel Motivation, Benets and Constraints 41

are really anticipatory beliefs about the artistic effort that has wryly commented on
attributes of destinations. We can expect that travel motivation and tourist behaviour for
there will be good weather, ne beaches and many years. For readers interested in this
good art galleries because our background literary commentary, the classical works
information sources and personal knowledge of Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, John
have shaped our beliefs. It is also possible Steinbeck, Joseph Conrad and D.H. Lawrence
that we will have expectations that a location repay attention. Additionally, popular travel
will satisfy our motives such as believing writers such as Michael Palin, Paul Theroux,
that a trip to Tahiti will meet our needs to Jan Morris, Eric Newby and Bill Bryson make
escape from urban pressures. When viewed for entertaining and at times insightful read-
in this way, expectations can have a role in the ing about what motivates travellers.
assessment and determination of the conse- A second major source of commentary
quences of motives, but they are not in them- on motivation is the more earnest and com-
selves motives. There are consistent lines of plex contribution residing within the disci-
research that use expectations as a fundamen- pline of psychology. It was the work of those
tal component in the assessment of satisfac- writing about dynamic psychology that rst
tion (Kozak, 2001), but complex problems popularized the study of motives and began
with when to assess expectations and the constructing extensive lists of needs (Boring,
clarity of expectations for tourism experi- 1950, p. 692). Dynamic psychology was an
ences have attracted criticism (Ryan, 1995; early 20th century attempt to predict peoples
Pearce, 2005). behaviour from a core understanding of
human nature. The approach built on ante-
cedents in the Greek interest in hedonism,
Sources of Travel Motivation which itself has a long philosophical and
Concepts political lineage (Grayling, 2005). The found-
ing gures here were the Greek scholars,
Aristoppos and Epicurus, who claimed that
An understanding of tourist motivation has
the highest purpose of life was an active
beneted from adapting ideas from at least
devotion to pleasure. At core, hedonism pro-
three sources of information. A broad array of
poses that individuals seek to maximize their
motivational forces can be identied by
pleasure and avoid pain. Immediate pleasure
considering the history of travel and popular
and gratication, when enjoyed without any
writing about that history (Young, 1973; Cas-
view of their consequences, does tend to
son, 1974; Belasco, 1981; Urry, 1990; de Bot-
bring people into conict with others, espe-
ton, 2002, 2009). In these reviews of the forces
cially if they too are outright hedonists. While
that have driven early travellers there are
continuous sensory indulgence, even licen-
imputed motives of escape, relaxation, status,
tiousness, might appeal, and possibly still
education and health. One contemporary
does in some tourism destinations, a slightly
example can serve to characterize the style
longer term view recognizes that such a set of
and contribution of these travel commenta-
actions quickly results in painful interper-
tors. de Botton (2009) emphasizes travellers
sonal conict. The work of Freud, with his
needs as follows:
strong emphasis on sexual needs, represents
We must ask of our destinations, Help me just one branch of dynamic psychology
to feel more generous, less afraid, always thinking identifying issues relating to hedo-
curious. Put a gap between me and my nism. The contributions of other pioneering
confusion; the whole of the Atlantic psychologists, such as Henry Murray, Kurt
between me and my (problems). Travel Lewin and Abraham Maslow, are of particu-
agents would be wiser to ask us what we
lar interest in assessing the continuing contri-
hope to change about our lives rather than
bution of the early psychology researchers to
simply where we wish to go (p. 104).
contemporary tourist motivation.
de Bottons remarks also stand here as a The importance of Lewin and Murray in
representative of the body of literature and this account of the roots of tourist motivation
42 P.L. Pearce

lies in their focus on the sociocultural needs include reducing anxiety, maintaining arousal,
of individuals. While motivation has already achievement, self-development, escape, relax-
been dened as the sum of biological and cul- ation, hunger, security, competence, mastery,
tural forces that drive behaviour, the task of respect, self-actualization and afliation.
inventing a language and denitions of socio- A third line of work contributing to tour-
cultural needs has been the hardest part of ist motivation approaches will be much more
the formulation. The basic biological drivers familiar to destination managers. Two levels
of food, drink, sex and physical shelter can be of contribution can be noted; the work of gov-
assessed and readily understood, but socio- ernment statisticians and the reports of com-
cultural needs must deal with international mercial consultants. Large-scale surveys by
variability and interpretation. In Murrays government departments provide some
system, the term need was employed, rather information relevant to motivation. Migra-
than the older biologically based concept of tion and customs documents typically pose
instinct, and in Lewins work the expression questions to travellers of the form What is
tension was used. The concept of need is the your main purpose of travel? The options
one that has survived best, but Lewins inu- presented to those crossing international bor-
ence remains in asserting that when measur- ders include holiday, visiting friends and rel-
ing motivation, the life context of the atives, business, conference or convention,
individuals must be considered. A need, Mur- and migration. This kind of information is
ray suggested, is characterized by its effect, reported by national tourism bodies as well
not by the particular movements that may as by the United Nations World Tourism
accompany it. Needs are directional because Organization (UNWTO) and provides a
they aim at effects or outcomes. The achieve- broad window framing overall motivational
ment of the effect abates or diminishes the categories. Much of the other consultancy
power of the need, at least temporarily. As an and academic work in tourist motivation tries
example, the need to achieve is directional to investigate the holiday category more
because it pushes individuals to reach goals intensively, and the broad categories used in
and meet standards. The need then is not to the UNWTO-style descriptions are best
complete the spreadsheet or score a home referred to as overall trip purpose rather than
run, but it is reaching the goal that is, accom- tourist motivation.
plishing target activities which dispels the The studies conducted by consulting
urgency of the need. It is important to stress companies on travellers motivations are
here that needs should be reserved for the much less readily available than the govern-
smaller class of driving sociocultural forces ment statistical data. As commercial organi-
rather than be applied to all the specic activ- zations operating on a fee-for-services basis,
ities which may satisfy the underlying driv- the studies carried out by private companies
ing mechanism. are not so subject to the scrutiny of other
Murray in particular was content to researchers. Nevertheless, some companies
describe many sociocultural needs, but other have worked intensively with national and
psychologists tried to be more succinct. Abra- regional tourism organizations for many
ham Maslow especially put forward a much years and provide information on clusters of
referenced system to organize the needs identi- travellers according to schemes they have
ed by Murray and others into a hierarchy devised, which include traveller motivation
with organized layers of succession (Bowen questions. Organizations such as Longwoods
and Clarke, 2009). It is important to reect that in North America and the Roy Morgan orga-
much of this psychological inquiry was nization in Australia are typical examples.
directed at understanding the way personality While the detailed processes, techniques and
was shaped, and that those analysts and clini- even the questions used to generate the nd-
cally minded researchers were often intent on ings are somewhat hidden, it is common to
describing unusual features of individual func- hear motivationally based market segments
tioning. Needs identied by psychologists and described in tourism industry conferences
reworked in formulations of tourist motivation and seminars. Labels such as traditionalists,
Travel Motivation, Benets and Constraints 43

status seekers, achievers, postmoderns nal parts of this chapter represent an ongo-
are variously employed to highlight group ing contribution to how tourist motivation
differences. This kind of work raises ques- might be useful for destination development
tions to which we will return when consider- and management.
ing the application of the travel motivation The criteria for a sound motivational
studies in the academic literature. framework reect some of the unique attri-
butes of tourism specied earlier; notably its
episodic, dynamic, relationship-dependent,
future-oriented and varied character. In order
Specic Tourist Motivation Theories to capture these qualities, Hsu and Huang
(2008), following Pearce (1993) and Pearce
A number of tourism scholars have used et al. (1998), suggest that a good motivation
these multiple sources of information to theory needs to be multi-motive, dynamic,
devise theories or conceptual schemes which measurable and relatively easy to communi-
provide structured approaches to tourist cate. In addition, it is most essential that the
motivation. The distinction between the approach functions as an organizer and syn-
notion of theory and subsidiary terms, such thesizer of existing information, with the
as models and conceptual schemes, is impor- desirable additional characteristic that it has a
tant. At core, a theory sets out assumptions, future-oriented or predictive capacity.
integrates information, species the links The work of Stanley Plog (1974, 1987,
among key driving factors and predicts new 1991, 2001) represents one starting point in
outcomes (Dawkins, 2009; Tribe, 2009). The travel motivation assessments. This work has
manner in which driving forces and outcomes often been presented as the major tourism
are related may be expressed mathematically motivation theory in textbooks. It was con-
or in terms of clearly stated links, chains or ceived in the context of providing advice to
sequences. From these considerations, it can airlines and, in its early phases, the key meth-
be suggested that the existence of a fully ods and data were not subject to substantial
edged theory of tourist motivation is academic scrutiny. Plogs approach suggested
unlikely and that the term is probably over- that travellers could be represented by their
used. A more pragmatic approach in keeping position on a single dimension or scale. Trav-
with the range of ideas already presented ellers were seen as distributed along a dimen-
about motivation, and the levels at which sion that extended from the categorization
those topics are investigated, is to look for psychocentric (non-adventurous, inward
insightful conceptual schemes. These looking) through to mid-centric (neither
research-guiding devices may be seen as a outgoing nor particularly inward looking)
component part of fully edged theories: the through to allocentric (adventurous and
component that species the relationships enthusiastic about seeking new locations). A
among key concepts (Greene, 1994; Pearce, path of social inuence was also noted in the
2005). The simpler term concept is also quite Plog model, with the more adventurous
valuable in tourism study because it offers travellers communicating their experiences to
the promise of sorting and organizing much the less condent ones. In time, the level of
descriptive material. For all those interested travel experience in the community grows
in tourist motivation, it is important to note in and even greater demand is created. There
this context that the existing proposals for are limits though to this transfer of condence
understanding travellers needs are not n- process, because the mid-centrics do not
ished or static products in social science inuence the allocentric adventurers. As a
research. Indeed, the conceptual schemes to consequence of this one-directional inuence,
be discussed here have been modied from destinations tend to develop more facilities
their rst versions and will continue to and sources of comfort to meet the growing
undergo revision as a part of a constructive market. In Plogs view, these processes assist
process of appraisal and reappraisal. In a in explaining the rise and fall of popularity of
small way, some of the suggestions in the travel destinations.
44 P.L. Pearce

In the absence of other approaches, When confronted with this push-pull


Plogs work gained an initial currency in the distinction, some students, and possibly some
tourism curriculum, while its genesis in con- destination management marketers, might
sultancy work prevented some of the close respond that the distinction seems arbitrary
scrutiny which followed its ongoing aca- as both sets of factors matter in getting people
demic use. As noted from the list of refer- to new places. The problem in freely mixing
ences, Plog provided revisions and upgrades pull factors with push factors in trying to
to the approach a second dimension of leth- determine the motivational proles of visi-
argy versus high energy orthogonal to the tors is that it can draw the analyst or
rst dimension was added in 1991 and he researcher into linking attributes to motiva-
continues to work on the scheme while tions in an etic fashion. That is, one activity or
providing advice to companies and travel destination attribute, such as white-water
organizations, including airlines. Commen- rafting or casino gambling, can be valued by
tary on Plogs approach has been mixed, different travellers for very different reasons
with Smith (1990), Andreu et al. (2005) and (cf. Klenosky, 2002). If the destination mar-
McKercher (2005), among others, nding it to keter assumes that it is only the adventure
be inadequate on some of the key good motive which matters then the promotion
theory criteria assembled earlier. The criti- and selling of the product to those who seek
cism has been strongest in terms of the to full other motives may be underplayed. A
transparency and adequacy of its measure- better approach is to prole the true push
ment and its inability to consider multiple motives, then separately assess the destina-
motives or sources of inuence. The link to tion characteristics from the perspective of
destination development is also problematic. the travellers and, lastly, determine the match
Entrepreneurs, and sometimes governments, between these travel dening factors. Some
are involved in the conscious, proactive cre- work in this tradition and some suggested
ation of destinations rather than in slowly improvements to this work will be consid-
responding to changes in demand as empha- ered in the nal section of this chapter.
sized in the Plog approach (Murphy and In the historical timeline of reviewing
Murphy, 2004). contributions to travel motivation, the ideas
Plogs work raises a distinction of some of Dann (1977) and Crompton (1979) can be
importance in tourism motivation because he seen as contemporary with Plogs early work.
suggested that allocentric holiday makers Their contribution to distinguishing between
travelled to far-off destinations which pos- push and pull motivation has already been
sessed exciting characteristics. Both Dann noted. Additionally, and in separate ways,
(1977) and Crompton (1979) identied a dif- they offered relabelled versions of the kinds
ference between motivational approaches, of needs reviewed in the section on motiva-
which emphasized the forces inside individu- tion research in psychology. Crompton, using
als propelling them towards destinations, detailed unstructured interviews, noted the
and the actual characteristics of those destina- importance of escape from a mundane envi-
tions. This difference is known as the push ronment, exploration and evaluation of self,
pull distinction. Push factors are the true relaxation, prestige, regression, enhancement
motivational forces and arise from the indi- of kinship relationships and facilitation of
viduals psychological needs and social con- social interaction. The labels are subtly differ-
text (Pizam et al., 1979). Pull factors, by way of ent but the concepts are very similar to the
contrast, refer to features of the destination core ideas in the psychology of motivation.
which are likely to attract people. It is mis- Danns contribution was a little different, as
leading to refer to these pull factors as moti- he used sociological theory to derive his
vational forces, but it is important that terms; the motives he identied were termed
motivation theorists nd a way to consider anomie (the desire to transcend isolation) and
and integrate them into an understanding of ego-enhancement (peoples need to be recog-
how true motivation functions for destination nized and feel good). Previous commentary
marketing and management. on this work asserted that these labels, while
Travel Motivation, Benets and Constraints 45

arising from a different sociological approach, powerfully as a conceptual scheme for tour-
were in effect restatements of love and ist motivation researchers. Nevertheless,
belongingness needs and self-esteem needs, each of these early motivation efforts builds
as reported by Maslow, Rogers and other psy- the scholarly contribution to the area with
chologists (Pearce, 1982). These early ideas the importance of the travellers context, as
did not develop into full theories of tourist suggested by Iso-Ahola, and the desire to
motivation and remain as content based con- take measurements close to actual travel
tributions to other motivational schemes and times remaining as notable points.
systems. Another travel motivation theory has
The research of Iso-Ahola (1980) and also been developed over a substantial
Mannell and Iso-Ahola (1987) represents period of time. This approach, now known as
another link in the history of push-style the travel career patterns (or TCP) concep-
motivational theories. This approach, devel- tual scheme, is a substantially reworked
oped at rst by Iso-Ahola (1980), was referred version of an earlier travel career ladder
to as the intrinsic optimal-arousal perspec- approach (Pearce, 1988, 2005; Bowen and
tive. It was based on a desired state of Clarke, 2009). The initial conceptual scheme
stimulation for travellers. Iso-Ahola argued highlighted the importance of travellers
that tourist and leisure behaviour takes place changing their motivational needs over time
in a context that permits individuals to with more travel experience. These changing
manage a comfortable pathway between motivational needs were described by build-
overstimulation (too much arousal) and ing on the Maslow hierarchy of needs
understimulation (boredom). The approach approach, which resulted in the use of ve
also emphasized taking motivational assess- levels of a travel career ladder. The steps
ments as close as possible in time to the involved were physiological needs, level of
actual participation. Further, it highlighted stimulation control, relationship needs, self-
the importance of participants feelings of esteem needs and self-actualization or per-
competence and their ability to set their own sonal growth needs. It was argued, both
agendas to ensure their satisfaction. A devel- conceptually and using evidence from travel-
oped version of this approach was offered by lers accounts, that as travellers became more
Mannell and Iso-Ahola (1987). They argued experienced they were motivated more by
for the combined effects of two push forces in the self-esteem and self-actualization needs.
accounting for travel motivation: the desire The use of analogies is, however, sometimes
to escape from routines and stressful envi- a constraining factor in explaining a set of
ronments and the desire to seek recreational ideas. In this case, the use of the term ladder
opportunities and personal rewards. In a tended to see students, destination managers
small diagram to illustrate these push forces, and even other academics use the analogy to
they are represented as two orthogonal mean that travellers belonged to only one
dimensions with one axis being escaping level of the ve steps (Ryan, 1998). This inter-
personal environments and seeking personal pretation was not intended as it was a shift-
rewards and the other escaping interper- ing tapestry of needs that was implied, and
sonal environments and seeking interper- the ladder was meant to be interpreted as
sonal rewards. Again, it is argued that there is emphasizing the development of different
an optimal level of arousal for travellers. In patterns of needs over time. At any one time,
an assessment of early motivation theories, all might be important, but to differing
Pearce (1993) commented on the Iso-Ahola amounts. This problem, together with other
formulation by suggesting that its future useful criticisms of the early work concern-
use would be limited unless more precise ing the need for better measurement, led to
measures of optimal arousal could be articu- the development of the travel career patterns
lated. This prediction seems to have been approach which retained the notion that
conrmed, with Hsu and Huang (2008) not- travellers motives changed with travel expe-
ing that the theory was originally derived for rience. The new work also attempted to
a leisure context and has not persisted provide better measurement of the motives
46 P.L. Pearce

and a fuller treatment of travel experience. on the data such that for all travellers there
It stressed the notion of a pattern of motives was a core layer of motives that were very
with a new pictorial representation (Pearce important. These motives were to escape and
and Lee, 2005). relax, to experience novelty and to build rela-
Because the travel career pattern tionships, and they were relatively unaf-
approach is one of the more developed con- fected by how much travelling the
ceptual schemes used in travel motivation, its participants had experienced. These ndings
development and characteristics will be were in close accord with the early studies in
explained in some detail. A very long list of the eld, especially the work of Crompton
motives and needs was considered in the con- (1979). There were further motives, which
struction of the travel career patterns (Pearce, were structured into a middle and outer
2005). Some of these needs were derived from layer of importance. For the most experi-
intensive qualitative research with a small enced travellers, the middle layer of motives
number of travellers who had different was more important than the outer layer. By
domestic and international travel experi- way of contrast, those with limited travel
ences. Many needs were extracted from pre- experience tended to see all motives as quite
vious studies and the psychology literature important. The phases or stages of the travel-
on motivation. Synonyms and idiosyncratic lers life cycle were also linked to the travel-
responses were eliminated, and 74 motives lers motive patterns, but here there were
were then subjected to principal component some Asian and western cultural differences.
analysis. Fourteen factors were identied in a For western travellers, later stages of the life
survey of over 900 western (mostly Australian cycle also tended to be linked to more travel
and UK) travellers. A repeat of the quantitative experience and the alignment of motive
component of the work was undertaken with importance as already described. This life
over 700 Asian travellers (Korean respon- stage-travel experience and motive patterns
dents), and the details of these studies are link was not so consistent for the Korean
reported in Pearce (2005) as well as in Pearce travellers in the Asian sample. Younger Kore-
and Lee (2005). The 14 resultant motives, ans had often travelled more than older
which were corroborated across the two sam- Koreans, so the links between travel experi-
ples, were, in order of importance, novelty, ence and later stages of the life cycle were not
escape/relax, relationship strengthening, strong. This discrepancy is readily explained
autonomy, seeking nature, self-development because the availability of travel as a discre-
through involvement with hosts or the site, tionary leisure pursuit is a more recent phe-
stimulation, self-development of a personal nomenon in Korean society (Kim et al., 1996).
kind, relationship security (enjoying being Indeed, most of the variability in the Korean
with similar others), self-actualization (get- data was better explained simply by the
ting a new life perspective), isolation, nostal- amount of travelling rather than by the age
gia, romance and recognition (prestige of and life-cycle stage of the respondents. Over-
travelling). These motive categories reected all, the motive structures were broadly con-
many of the forces described in previous sistent both for Asian and the western
studies but, in sum, provided one of the more travellers. The two large-scale studies con-
complete motivation inventories undertaken rmed the notion that individuals tend to
in the tourism eld. The key feature of the have a travel career which is dependent on
travel career pattern approach was then to both their holiday experiences and the stage
use the levels of travel experience reported by that they are at in their life cycle. Together,
the respondents to formulate a three-part these forces shape a different pattern of
model which described the relationships importance in their travel motives. A pictorial
between these 14 motives and the amount representation of the travel career patterns
of travelling which the respondents had approach is provided in Fig. 3.1.
undertaken. The travel career patterns approach, in
The varied importance of the motives common with all the push-based approaches
suggested that a pattern could be imposed to motivation reviewed in this chapter,
Travel Motivation, Benets and Constraints 47

OUTER LAYER MOTIVES

ISOLATION
(away from crowds)

MIDDLE LAYER MOTIVES (EXTRINSIC)


SELF-DEVELOPMENT THROUGH HOSTSITE STIMULATION
INVOLVEMENT (meeting locals) (daring
experiences)
NOSTALGIA
(reflecting KINSHIP NATURE
CORE MOTIVES
on (being with (harmony
memories) considerate, and
NOVELTY
respectful (fun, difference) appreciation)
of others)
ESCAPE/RELAX
SOCIAL STATUS
(away from routine,
(experiencing
resting)
fashionable places)

RELATIONSHIPS
AUTONOMY
(with family/friends)
(obligated to
no-one)
SELF-ACTUALIZATION (new life perspective)
SELF-ENHANCEMENT (skills, mastery)
MIDDLE LAYER MOTIVES (INTRINSIC)

ROMANCE
(having romantic relationships)

Fig. 3.1. The core structure of the travel career patterns (TCP) approach. The highest loading item(s)
for the factors are in brackets and the directions of the arrows indicate changing emphases
with increasing traveller experience.

remains a work in progress. There are offering predictions), but it does require users
opportunities to use and rene these motiva- to work with a long list of motive items.
tion tools either through applied use or
through the processes of academic revision. It
is also possible to reinterpret other data using Additional Contemporary
the approach. For example, the work on the Considerations
motivational underpinnings of spa and well-
ness tourism by Mak et al. (2009) reveals the There are some further contemporary ideas
same kinds of importance patterns for travel- about travel motivation from an array of
lers motives. At this stage in the develop- sources which are valuable in completing
ment of this array of ideas about travel this historically organized review. Some of
motivation, the travel career patterns these contributions are summarized by
approach does meet many of the criteria Bowen and Clarke (2009) in their eclectic
specied for a good motivation theory review of tourist motivation. The points
(dynamic, multi-motive, measurable, inte- raised in their review act both as a commen-
grating and summarizing previous work, tary and a challenge to the kinds of work
48 P.L. Pearce

reviewed. The rst issue to be considered is Israeli researchers (Maoz, 2004, 2005; Noy;
accounting for a postmodern perspective on 2005; Uriely, 2005). Cohens scheme used a
tourist behaviour and experience. In one of mix of travel styles and travellers interests to
the clearest early statements of this approach, form ve broad categories of tourist types.
Urry (1990) suggested that the diversity and These were labelled recreational, diversionary,
complexity of contemporary tourism permits experimental, experiential and existential.
travellers to choose among many alternative Much of the attention has been on whether or
experiences. This expansion of the available not special subgroups of travellers such as
options, like other widening options in con- backpackers were best described by the
sumer culture, permits travellers to be less existential category or by the other labels
consistent customers effectively dilettantes (Maoz, 2004; Noy, 2004). The category scheme
in the way that they approach holiday pur- devised by Cohen has been inuential, but it
chases. The implication of this assessment, is really like an a priori factor analysis of sets
supported by the work of others who have of motives which are then linked to traveller
pursued this style of thinking (cf. Rojek and characteristics. Bowen and Clarke (2009)
Urry, 1997; Uriely et al., 2002), is that it is challenge its continuing usefulness due to its
increasingly hard to dene tourists as having broad nature and the view that it lacks clear
clear and well-dened motives, especially as indications of how the categories can be used
these motives may be in ux across holiday to understand or predict shifts in travel
experiences and even within one trip. The behaviour. It is perhaps best described as a
argument is powerful, but it is not totally short cut in motivational analysis and a useful
destructive in terms of reducing the value of framework for sociological studies, rather
tourist motivation theories. The postmodern than as tting the needs of close academic
accounts still suggest that tourists are moti- scrutiny in a destination management
vated by needs, and both empirical and context.
interpretive studies tend to return to lists of Other questions and challenges have
needs very similar to those already dis- been identied for travel motivation analy-
cussed. Wickens (2002), for example, decides sis. Bowen and Clarke (2009) reintroduce the
that the British tourists she studies in Greece view that travellers may not wish to be hon-
are motivated by several feeling states; est and will report only socially acceptable
escape, ontological security (the force of hab- motives (Dann, 1981). A well-designed ques-
its and comfort levels) and the pursuit of tionnaire and assurances of respondent ano-
pleasure are seen as core drivers. In addition, nymity may limit these effects, but potentially
the postmodern perspective leads her to con- they still exist. The value of appraising
clude that tourists also step outside the mass motives with dual or multiple pathways is a
tourist role which characterizes the type of potentially useful check on these limitations.
trip they have purchased, and that some visi- The limitations of questionnaire and survey
tors show interest in and pursue specic material should not be overstated. In particu-
activities with local communities rather than lar, researchers should not be led into
being focused on hedonistic pleasures. This assumptions that there is a false conscious-
is not really a challenge to ideas such as the ness in their respondents views. That is, it is
travel career patterns approach, but it can be problematic for authors to suggest that while
viewed as a specic and detailed contextual the data they have collected reveals one set of
assessment of the shifting of patterns. Kurt motives, it really means something else
Lewin, writing over 70 years earlier, would because the tourists were unwilling to
have been proud of such an approach. express their true motives. This kind of think-
The activity of classifying tourists expe- ing undermines social science research efforts
riences represents a second issue of relevance because it depends almost entirely on the
to tourist motivation. One scheme in particu- researchers subjective views. The checking
lar, that devised by Erik Cohen (1979), has of motivational perspectives via alternate
provided a framework for many subsequent qualitative and interpretive materials is a
studies, particularly those conducted by more transparent way forward. Projective
Travel Motivation, Benets and Constraints 49

techniques, information from travellers forces discussed here, as well as the remain-
blogs, travel biographies and even focused ing pull factors, thus become the differentiat-
novels about certain groups of travellers, ing determinants of where people travel. A
may all contribute to a mixed-methods second response to the question is at a more
solution (Filep and Greenacre, 2007; Pearce generic level of interest. Research by econo-
and Maoz, 2008). mists does suggest that rises and falls in
A further substantial consideration relat- exchange rates do have a corresponding
ing to travel motivation lies in considering impact on travel between pairs of countries
the constraints that prevent the execution of (Crouch, 1993; Morley, 1994). Cost, then, mat-
peoples stated needs. As an example of this ters and is a part of the mix we need to con-
set of concerns, Fleischer and Pizam (2002), sider when applying motivational theories to
examining travel issues and Israeli seniors, destination selection and management.
observe that as people grow older there is a
contradiction in the inuence of constraining
variables. Poor health and emerging nancial
limitations tend to depress travel, while the Employing Travel Motivation
time available to travel expands. Other kinds Concepts
of travel constraints may be outside individ-
ual control. In China, for example, govern- It is valuable to consider the variety of ways
ment decisions on the provision of the in which motivation studies may be useful.
so-called Golden Weeks as the only available Much of the applied work has concentrated
holiday periods has compressed the time for on the role of motives (often a mix of the push
travel for most citizens. This has produced and pull factors) in broad-scale or overall des-
intense institutional seasonality effects in the tination selection. For examples, see Kim and
form of substantial crowding at many sites Lee (2002) and Yoon and Uysal (2005). This
an effective deterrent to travel (Chen, 2010). work continues to be important but need not
Another form of external inuence lies in the be seen as the only application of motivation
power of the travellers immediate social cir- theories and ideas to tourism planning and
cle. For many, what others want and what management. Motivation studies can also be
they decide for holidays may be the dening applied to on-site behaviours in terms of how
factors inuencing where individual take people behave when at the destination. The
their vacations. This socially networked set of way that individuals use the facilities and
inuences on travellers can be at odds with experiences of a theme park, a museum, an
understanding motivation if only an individ- urban space, a national park or a shopping
ual perspective on traveller decision making precinct can also be of considerable interest to
to only one destination is taken (Stewart and local destination managers (for an example
Vogt, 1997). see Moscardo et al., 1996). A third but not
For the impoverished student, and prob- insignicant use of the motivation ideas dis-
ably for any commercially oriented destina- cussed in this chapter lies in assisting the
tion marketer, there is a major variable broader understanding of changes in tourism
missing in these motivational analyses. It is and leisure. There is considerable speculation
money. How is cost factored into these travel and commentary in the academic and wider
motivation accounts? Perhaps it is all much literature about the changing motives of tour-
simpler than we have been asserting, and ists (Rojek and Urry, 1997; Coleman and
where people go is based on what they can Crang, 2002; Cohen, 2004, 2007; Bowen and
afford. Clearly this is not a trivial issue. There Clarke, 2009), and the ideas presented in the
are two responses to these concerns. First, the motivation theories reviewed here can con-
cost of holidays does indeed vary, and while tribute signicantly to this public discussion.
it is a decisive concern in effect a potentially There are several key points to observe
positive or limiting pull factor, many travel- when applying the concepts and ideas in
lers contemplate holidays that cost about the motivation theory to the specic topic of des-
same amount of money. The motivational tination selection studies. First, it is important
50 P.L. Pearce

to use a comprehensive range of travel the applications of these motivational ideas is


motives. The diversity of motives identied undertaken with quantitative research
in the travel career patterns work represents approaches. This will remain a strong trend,
one such starting resource. A small selection but the approaches offered by Klenosky
of motives or a sample of needs drawn from (2002) using layered questioning built on the
data collected by others for other purposes means-end technique, and by Filep and
can fail to capture the complexity and variety Greenacre (2007) with a qualitative positive
of what drives tourist behaviour. It is also not psychology framework for describing your
enough just to see whether the travellers best day, offer alternatives. It can also be sug-
report the motives; instead, the relative gested that questions using more visual stim-
importance of the motives needs to be uli and images of available experiences might
assessed. A consideration of the destination enhance the accessibility of the destination
characteristics is equally challenging. Desti- characteristics.
nations can offer many kinds of activities and
experiences. The critical question to be asked
is whether or not the travellers believe that
the features of the destination as they are pre- Summary and Conclusion
sented in that location will meet their needs.
Expressed in this way, destination selection is Several key points should be clear from this
akin to individuals undertaking an imagina- analysis of tourist motivation. True travel
tive, embodied leap of projecting themselves motivation is a push factor, a patterned sum-
with their motivational needs and proles mary of the social, cultural and biological
into a variety of experiential settings at the forces driving travel behaviour. Good theo-
destination. The cognitive processes that ries or conceptual schemes in this area require
would-be travellers are undergoing need to a dynamic, multi-motive, measurable and
be sympathetically reected in the way ques- integrative approach with some capacity for
tions about the destination characteristics are prediction. They also need to be transparent
presented. This approach shapes the ques- in their methods, a requirement which is not
tions to be asked of the traveller: how much always met by consultancy efforts in this
would you like to do this activity/experience eld. Of the various candidates put forward
in this destination, how important is this in the academic literature, the travel career
activity/experience to you and do you think patterns approach has considerable merit, but
this experience will meet your key needs? all contributions have strengths and can be
Again, assessing the personal importance selectively employed in applied studies. The
and relevance of the items becomes a key part ideas from travel motivation theories can be
of the question-asking process. used in the contexts of destination selection
The way to implement such an approach and on-site destination management, but a
is to take a specic group of travellers, easily further application lies in adding insights to
identied by a demographic label. It could be the broad analysis of the evolution of tourism
young Chinese female travellers with enough and leisure in contemporary society. Specic
money to travel abroad or older, openly gay recommendations for using the array of travel
residents of San Francisco. The tracking of needs and patterns discussed in this chapter
their experiences through structured ques- include highlighting the need to be compre-
tions, biographies and an exacting search for hensive in determining needs, specicity in
the t between their important needs and key asking about the importance of the needs and
destination attributes could build an array of the requirement to be purposeful in seeking
intensive case analyses culminating in a to link the projected destination expectations
deeper understanding of travel motivation. to the needs. The opportunities for both
These kinds of cases could be shaped by local research and application in this area of tourist
industry needs, as most destinations have a study are rich as, in its development and
priori categories of traveller types that they application, motivation study itself can full
seek to attract. Much of the existing work in many needs.
Travel Motivation, Benets and Constraints 51

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4 Traveller Decision Making:
The Experientialist Stance

Drew Martin, Ercan Sirakaya-Turk and Arch Woodside

Traveller Decision Making: The Never what affected their on-site decision making?
Ending Journey Throughout the process, leisure travel
behaviour is affected by many variables-in-
Helmut and Helga are rst-time visitors to context, such as prior experiences and exter-
Hawaii from Bonn, Germany. He is a nal stimuli. Decades of positivistic research
professional scientist (PhD in physics) and into consumer decision making using con-
she manages the home full time. Their
ventional research methods to gain an under-
three-week trip is split between the islands
standing of consumers destination choice
of Hawaii, Oahu, and Kauai. Many
decisions regarding this couples vacation decisions via testing deductive theories are
seem fairly straightforward and useful, but they fail to provide satisfactory
unremarkable. They decided the Hawaiian answers to these questions. Decisions also
Islands would be a wonderful second continue throughout any trip, suggesting that
honeymoon destination. Since Germany is consumer researchs funnel metaphor does
a long distance from Hawaii, they ew rst not capture a trips complexity. Context inu-
class and stopped in California to rest for a ences and conscious and unconscious internal
few days. While on vacation, the couple retrievals and processing are inuences that
stayed in three star hotels because they did
affect at-site decision making and behaviour.
not plan to spend much time in the room.
This chapter adopts an experientialist
Like many tourism organizations, Hawaiis approach to theory and research to overcome
Department of Business, Economic Develop- the limitations of objectivism (i.e. only one
ment and Tourism (2008) collects most of the reality is observable) and subjectivism (i.e. no
information mentioned above. Aggregate one reality exists) (see Lakoff and Johnson,
visitor proles, along with other crucial data 1980). An experientialist stance offers a
regarding tourist travel behaviour are perspective from which both concerns can
reported annually, but the underlying factors be met at once (Lakoff and Johnson, 1980,
affecting the couples decision-making pro- p. 229). A grounded theory approach allows
cess still evade the seasoned researcher. How researchers to build and to revise proposi-
did this couple make their vacation decision? tional statements of relationships and observe
What inuenced their decision to visit people in specic use-contexts (see Glaser
Hawaii? Why did they not travel to compa- and Strauss, 1967; Decrop and Snelders,
rable destinations such as Ibiza, the Canary 2005). Questioning and observing tourists
Islands, or the Seychelles? Once they arrived, in situ allow researchers to construct theory
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 53
54 D. Martin et al.

from data, and collecting data using has obvious marketing benets; however, the
McCrackens (1988) long interview method primary purpose of this chapter is to illus-
provides an effective method to gather rich, trate the development of such an approach to
detailed data by asking at-site questions. vacation decision making.
Given the messy and non-linear
approach to collecting data with unstructured
interviews, some structure is necessary to Decision-Making Processes
report the results. This chapter adapts the
unstructured and semi-structured decision- Scholars from a variety of disciplines have
making models of Mintzberg et al. (1976) and developed decision-making models that help
Woodside and MacDonald (1994) to explain to explain the tourist decision-making pro-
travellers decision-making processes. The cesses (Sirakaya and Woodside, 2005). These
resulting experientialist model shows how pioneering consumer behaviour models
travellers break down complex decisions into inuence tourism research in decision mak-
manageable decision modules. A travellers ing; however, these grand models of buyer
trip decision planning process is mappable behaviour were primarily created to examine
using the resulting experientialist template. durable goods purchases rather than services
The rich data collected from Helmut and Hel- such as tourism (e.g. Nicosia, 1966; Engel
gas interview receives structuring so that et al., 1968; Howard and Sheth, 1969). Gilberts
tourism theorists and strategists learn both a (1991) summary of these studies nds six
priori trip antecedents to decisions and in situ commonalities:
contextual and gestalt inuences.
Consumer behaviour is a constant deci-
In situ inuences frequently include
sion-making process.
chains of contextunconscious-thinking
The individual consumer is emphasized.
behaviour streams of conscious-thinking.
Behaviour is rational or utilitarian and
While gestalt thinking is a mix of unconscious
can be explained.
and conscious processing, that is, congura-
A buyer actively searches for, evaluates
tions of System 1 and System 2 thinking,
and stores information.
respectively (cf. Evans, 2003), one mode of
Collected information is narrowed down
thinking tends to dominate actions in a given
to choose alternatives.
context. High emotional intensity or
Future purchases are affected by the nal
extremely low emotional intensity in contexts
purchases.
increases the dominance of unconscious ver-
sus conscious thinking (cf. Wegner, 2002). This process adopts a rationality stance
Why did I do that? and What did I do? are towards consumer choices. A decision maker
self-examination issues representative of identies a future choices likely conse-
post-act in-context subjective personal intro- quences and chooses the best alternative that
spections where the decision maker attempts solves his/her problem or maximizes bene-
to use System 2 thinking to interpret prior ts. Consumer information processing steps
System 1-dominated actions. Building theory require signicant inputs from reference
and examining in situ data focusing on Sys- groups and symbolic stimuli (see Howard
tem 1 thinking and congurations of System and Sheth, 1969). In the case of routine pur-
1 and 2 thinking are unique contributions in chases or habitual purchases, some steps are
this chapter. skipped as a result of automaticity (called
The seminal work of Decrop and Snelders heuristics), making consumers nal deci-
(2005) on the grounded typology of vacation sions easier. Finally, the decision process can
decision making informs the present chap- be disrupted at any point. For example, vaca-
ters experiential stance. These authors tion plans are postponed when an automobile
develop a vacationer typology based on their mechanic discovers that the family car needs
decision-making styles (e.g. habitual, ratio- a new transmission.
nal, hedonic, opportunistic, constrained and Some scholars suggest fundamental aws
adaptable). Using such segmentation method in rational choice theory (e.g. Wegner, 2002;
Traveller Decision Making 55

Wilson, 2002). For example, rational choice describes informants lived experiences as
theory assumes that all relevant information causal historical waves.
is available to decision makers and that con- Modelling tourist decision making
sumers have the capacity to evaluate this appears to be complex because both ante-
information using rules. Also, present and cedents to the trip and at-site in-contexts
future external stimuli do not inuence a affect the process. Rational constraints and
decision makers alternatives and evaluation hedonic desires, as well as internal and
of goals. Decisions are less deliberate than external elements, affect decision makers.
rational choice theory proposes. For example, Decisions may be cognitive and require con-
Zajonic (1980, p. 154) suggests that we can siderable planning and weighing of alterna-
like something or be afraid of it before we tives, or instinctive because they feel right.
know precisely what it is and perhaps even Leisure travel also involves continuous high-
without knowing what it is. Perhaps uncon- involvement purchase decisions, which
scious thought is a key process in decision makes the process dynamic. More internal
making. Bargh (2002) further concludes that and external variables affect the decision
most decisions are inuenced by unconscious process once the traveller arrives.
thinking. The experiential stance includes the
Alternatively, constructive choice theory proposition that decision makers employ an
applies information-processing short cuts to array of decision-making models depend-
decision making rather than omniscient ing on variations of streams of System 1
rationality (see Bettman et al., 1998). Con- thinkingprior-trip actionsSystem 2
structive choice theory afrms the inuence thinkingat-site congurations of action
of subconscious information processing on and System 1 thinkingSystem 2 thinking.
decision making; however, the impact of sub- A one-size-ts-all decision model is unreal-
conscious thinking remains relatively unex- istic. Thus, modelling leisure-travel deci-
plored. Choice-making strategies include sion making requires a departure from the
cognitive processing of information, or traditional consumer decision funnel
involve limited information and explicit because travel decisions and behaviour are
thought. The decision maker balances cogni- dynamic with streams that include feed-
tive effort with choice accuracy. Choice alter- back loops resulting in a never-ending pro-
natives also consider the desire to confront or cess. Developing a parsimonious model for
avoid negative feelings created by the end tourism choice decisions has strategic
result (see Oppenhuisen and Sikkel, 2003). marketing implications.
Subconscious heuristic processing creates
spontaneous choices rather than a calculated
pursuit of goals or preferences. Tourist Decision Dynamics
The awareness of ones environment is
the foundation of ecological systems theory. Interpretive researchers explicitly describe
Knowledge about a persons environment their own (etic) conclusions from emic (trip
helps in the understanding of individual participants) explanations and conclusions
choices and behaviours (see Raymore, 2002; that are found while collecting data in eld
Mathur and Moschis, 2005). This approach settings. Generalized eticemic propositions
combines the interactions between the help interviewers to probe in situ inuences
individual, other individuals, and the social with informants abductively. Abductive infer-
structures of society to explain human devel- ences permit reasoning from rule-and-result
opment (Raymore, 2002, pp. 4142). How to case (Holbrook and Grayson, 1986; Mick,
do people interact within the context of 1986). For example, a Japanese family must
their lives? An individuals environmental decide between a 6 night stay on Hawaiis
constraints must be considered to fully Big Island, or spending one-half of their vaca-
understand human behaviour. Combining tion on Oahu. The wife previously visited
constructive choice theory with ecological both islands and she is animate that they
systems theory, Allens (2002) FLAG model spend the entire vacation on the Big Island.
56 D. Martin et al.

She wants to be certain that her son has long-interview studies, demonstrate complex
enough time to see volcanic lava ows and go destination behaviours and how these inu-
star gazing. The husband and son have not ence travellers thoughts and actions; here,
been to the Hawaiian Islands and they want thick expresses great detail in description
to see more than one island. The family and interpretation, and one source of the term
reports moving from disagreeing to concur- is Geertz (1973). The results given by Woodside
rence about routes to take before nalizing et al. (2004) suggest that the decision process
the trip plans (Martin, 2010), with System 1 begins before the actual trip decision and con-
and 2 streaming chains apparent in their tinues until the trip is completed. Figure 4.1
at-site interview. displays nine issues relevant to mapping
Previous studies about tourist purchase travel decision and behaviour ows; these
consumption systems show how unconscious issues focus on destination choices, including
thinking and ecological systems theory affect the antecedents and consequences of decision
consumer decision making (Woodside and implementation. Figure 4.1 also provides a
King, 2001; Woodside and Dubelaar, 2002; template of the long-interview topics covered.
Woodside and Martin, 2008). Woodside and This ethnographic methodology builds mini-
King (2001) provide policy and positioning mal structure to prevent the reviewer from
decisions; however, in-depth reporting at the surfacing explicitly her own tentative system
individual visit level is lacking. The bivariate- of propositional relationships before entering
level analysis presented by Woodside and the eld. The arrows represent tentative prop-
Dubelaar (2002) describes specic destination ositions relevant to following the ow of the
behaviours; however, complete decisions general questions. The following descriptions
and ows at the individual level are not summarize each proposition.
uncovered. The thick descriptions given by Proposition 1 (P1), (Box 1 to 2 in Fig. 4.1),
Woodside et al. (2004), which were based on proposes that demographic and lifestyle

3. Pre-framing and preplanning 6. Key activity drivers 8. Situation


trip issues What activities on-site
Pre-framing events influenced the influences
External stimuli not found? selection of Local
destination? information
P5 sources used
P2 P7 P8 Special
events
P4 7. Activities at
5. Choice of unknown
destination prior to visit
destination
2. Framing leisure Activities planned
1. Demographics Why was
choices and done
Who is this destination P9
Leisure travel Activities planned
visitor? selected?
alternatives and not done
What type of Why were
Activities not
lifestyle does competitive P10
planned and done
he/she have? P1 destinations
Activities not
P3 P6 rejected?
planned and not
done

4. External influences 9. Consequences


Friends, relatives, or co-workers Satisfaction/dissatisfaction with specific
Retrieval of thoughts and attitudes experiences and global visit
Situational constraints and Intention to return
opportunities Willingness to recommend destination

Fig. 4.1. Theoretical map (Adapted from Woodside et al., 2004, and March and Woodside, 2005).
Traveller Decision Making 57

differences affect how visitors frame leisure a strong impact on travel decisions, particu-
choices (see Hsu et al., 2007). This proposition larly reference groups, social class and cul-
recognizes that household-related variables ture (Moutinho, 1987). The purport of
interact with individual-related factors in the proposition 6 (P6) is that social forces inu-
decision-making process (see Van Raaij and ence the selection or rejection of destination
Francken, 1984). Proposition 2 (P2) suggests alternatives (see Hsu et al., 2006).
that unexpected or unplanned events possi- Activity drivers include concrete plans
bly affect leisure choice framing. A popular and pre-trip actions (e.g. bookings) to visit a
Korean television drama shown in Japan, for specic destination. Proposition 7 (P7) pro-
example, may trigger thoughts about visiting poses that these key activity drivers solidify
Korea. The television programme becomes a the destination choice. Woodside and Martin
catalyst for collecting information, or afrms (2008) suggest that activity drivers are a series
the need to visit the specic destination (Kim of tipping points that must line up perfectly.
et al., 2007). The television programme repre- A husbands 2-week window of time to travel
sents a necessary, but not a sufcient, motiva- results in a trip only if his wifes employer
tion to visit Korea. Information is stored in allows her to take a vacation at the same time
the viewers memory for future unconscious and the couple can redeem their airline mile-
retrieval. age award for one free aeroplane ticket.
Proposition 3 (P3) states external and Everything must line up perfectly or this
internal personal inuences affect leisure couple stays home.
choice framing. After listening to their son Proposition 8 (P8) proposes key activity
talk about Hawaiis Big Island for 10 years, a drivers affect planned and accomplished
New York couple book a trip to see what they activities at the destination. Proposition 8
are missing. In another case, many Japanese starts the third phase of the visitors unstruc-
people consider Hawaii to be a traditional tured decision-making process (March and
honeymoon destination. When a Japanese Woodside, 2005; Martin, 2010). Proposition 9
couple decided to get married, Hawaii became (P9) proposes that visitors interpret events
part of their evoked set of destination alter- and change plans while visiting. A family
natives for the honeymoon (see Woodside and rents a standard car to go star gazing, but the
Martin, 2008). External stimuli sometimes steep mountain road requires an all-terrain
serve as proxies for the specic destination, vehicle. Returning to the hotel, the disap-
but their impact remains strong. Proposition 4 pointed wife notices a travel brochure
(P4) posits features and possible benets that advertising a star-gazing tour (Martin and
help to frame leisure choices inuencing Woodside, 2008).
choice of a destination. Woodside and Finally, proposition 10 (P10) concludes
Lysonski (1989) nd the shift of long-term that visitor experiences resulting in specic
memory information to working memory outcomes are the antecedents to a good or
potentially affecting trip decision making. For bad trip (see Frazer, 1991). Positive prior pur-
example, visiting a coffee plantation on chase experiences trigger later purchases and
Hawaiis Big Island tips the balance for a Japa- recommendations to other people. Bign et al.
nese family choosing between visiting Oahu (2001) suggest that these perceptions and
versus Hawaiis Big Island (Martin, 2010). overall satisfaction are not perfect predictors
Proposition 5 (P5) suggests that informa- of destination loyalty because peer-group
tion collected while framing and planning a inuence also affects behaviour.
trip also affects the trip-selection process.
Both conscious and unconscious memory
retrieval result in either a cognitive decision The Dynamic Modelling Theory
or a gut-feeling decision. When unconscious of Travel Decision Making
memory retrieval occurs, informants lack rea-
sons or explanations for the gut-feeling deci- Traveller decisions are complex and opportu-
sions. They simply report that It just felt nistic in deviating from plans throughout the
right (see Allen, 2002). Social forces also have decision-making process including at-site
58 D. Martin et al.

contexts during the trip itself. The literature rst phase and the rst subroutine is repeated.
suggests that tourism decision making is a In a previous example, the husband and wife
dynamic and unstructured process. To prevent get time off for a vacation, but the frequent
being overwhelmed with decisions and alter- ier mileage cannot be redeemed during the
natives, travellers typically split decisions into 2-week window of time. If one of the tipping
smaller and more familiar decisions. Subrou- points is not met, the couple returns to the
tines for trip planning are created. For exam- rst phase of the process. Phase 3 occurs dur-
ple, a trip is broken down into destination ing the actual vacation. This phase is dynamic
choice, transportation, lodging, key activities because additional stimuli create some
and contingency activities. These partitions opportunities and eliminate others. A lost
are not too different from the process that piece of luggage in-transit prevents a honey-
organizations employ to make infrequently moon couple from dining at a fancy restau-
encountered decisions. The primary departure rant on their rst night at a resort; however,
is that the leisure travel model that follows they nd a fantastic casual dining restaurant
accounts for the conscious/unconscious by accident.
dynamic and for personal factors inuencing Finally, Phase 4 is a self-reection pro-
travel decisions. cess. The evaluation of the trip affects the rst
The unstructured decision-making phase of the next travel planning process.
model of Mintzberg et al. (1976) maps a Experiences stored consciously and uncon-
process that organizations may employ when sciously help to frame criteria for the next
encountering unfamiliar decisions. This trip. Surprisingly, these memories are not
model reduces decisions into three main static. Zaltman (2003) concludes that memor-
phases: identication, development and ies are dynamic and that interpretations vary.
selection. After phase identication, familiar Memories are likely to be stored as stories,
central routines are enacted. These interchan- and fragments are pieced together differently
geable, familiar routines are applied to reduce depending on the situation (see Shank, 1990).
the decisions complexity. The Mintzberg Memories also become external inuences to
et al. (1976) model requires more subroutines the framing of trips by a reference group.
than travel planning because business and Destination loyalty and traveller inuence on
other organizations involve more stakeholder reference group members are key ingredients
groups. Tourist decisions typically involve to destination growth. Also, each trip deci-
two or three key decision makers, so fewer sion is dynamic in each phase. For example,
subroutines are needed. the needs of travellers change as they get
Figure 4.2 represents the leisure travel older and their children grow up.
decision form of the Mintzberg et al. (1976)
unstructured and the Woodside and Mac-
Donald (1994) semi-structured decision-
making models. The numbered activity boxes Drilling Down with Grounded Theory
from Fig. 4.1 are included. Phase 1 represents
the foundation for destination selection. This Getting to the root of the key issues requires
subroutine combines demographics, pre- in-depth probing of traveller behaviour. Some
framing based on conscious and unconscious tourism researchers recommend existential
memories, and external inuences to create phenomenological (EP) methods (Pollio et al.,
criteria to decide which destination to choose. 1997) as powerful tools of inquiry and they
Once criteria are decided, Phase 2 begins. question the reliance on a theory-before-data
In Phase 2, key activity drivers (e.g. bud- approach (e.g. Phillimore and Goodson, 2004;
get or time constraints) help to evaluate alter- Hollinshead and Jamal, 2007). EP research
native destination choices. If the subroutine methods emphasize the value of observing
elements line up perfectly, the traveller books and probing informants while they are
the trip. Phase 3 begins when the traveller involved in planning/doing the action.
begins the trip. When activity drivers do not Under these conditions, researchers role can
line up perfectly, the traveller returns to the be a bricoleur piecing together messy and
Traveller Decision Making 59

Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4

6. Key activity 7. Activities at


1. Demographics drivers in destination
planning trip

Initiate trip: During


in-route trip
3. Pre-framing and experiences, evaluation
preplanning Pre-framing and decisions,
Trip 9. Consequences:
trip issues preplanning trip actions
booking post-trip
issues: trip party
actions reflecting
members, trip
and
scheduling
reporting
to others
2. Framing leisure
choices;
deciding on 5. Choice of trip and
how to decide destination(s),
transportation methods,
specific carriers and
accommodations

4. External influences 8. Situation on-site influences

First time and repeat Once the trip decision is Is the experience positive? Has customer
visitor making decision finalized, additional changes Will the destination become loyalty or
to visit a destination are made, particularly onsite. part of the invoked set for emotional
future trip decisions? attachment
developed?

Fig. 4.2. Unstructuredstructured process model for travel decision making (Adapted in part from
Woodside and MacDonald, 1994).

non-linear data to create solutions to problems Emic interpretations alone are unlikely
(see Denzin and Lincoln, 1998). to capture the essence of a larger social issue
Grounded theory is a common EP (see Harris, 1990). The etic viewpoint studies
approach for interpreting traveller experi- behavior from outside a particular system
ences. Grounded theory development usually and is vital to understand an alien system
includes in situ observations and face-to- (Pike, 1967, p. 37). Etic reporting captures dif-
face informant questioning by the researcher. ferent insights on behaviour streams too (e.g.
The researcher writes holistic thick des- Arnould and Price, 1993; Belk and Costa,
criptions from the encounter. These nal 1998). The analysis of etic and emic data pro-
descriptions include emic and etic interpre- vides researchers with a rich method for
tations of informants lived experiences and understanding the complexities and nuances
plans. The emic viewpoint results from of travel experiences (cf. Glaser and Strauss,
studying behavior as from [the participants 1967; Corbin and Strauss, 1990). Holistic thick
vantage points] inside the system (Pike, descriptions provide gestalt or stereoscopic
1967, p. 37). Visitors emic statements pro- views of the integrated whole of tourists
vide insights on both travel motivation and interpretations of their actions before and
behaviour (cf. Pike, 1967, 1990; Harris, 1976; during their trips (see Pike, 1967, p. 41;
Hutto, 2008). Hollinshead and Jamal, 2007).
60 D. Martin et al.

Data Collection Methodology Written, thick descriptions should be com-


pleted for each informant.
McCrackens (1988) long interview method
provides guidelines for collecting data. This
method uses loosely structured questions and
probing follow-up questions. For tourism Helmut and Helga Uncovered
research, the inquiries need to uncover the
rationale behind the visitors decision-making Helmut and Helga were interviewed pool-
process, outcomes and feelings throughout side at their Big Island hotel located in
the trip. Trained interviewers ask probing or downtown Kailua-Kona. The interview lasted
follow-up questions when unexpected issues 60 minutes and they participated equally.
or experiences surface during the interview Figure 4.3 shows the leisure travel decision
process (e.g. Hsu et al., 2007). Interviewing process for Helmut and Helga.
in situ allows reexivity in the analysis (see The couple have three children (17, 18
Hall, 2004). An ethnographic eld study and 21 years old). This trip is the rst time
involves 6090 minute in situ interviews. they felt condent that their children could
McCracken (1988) recommends at least ve manage without adult supervision. During
interviews, but the exact number is a bit the trip, the couple telephoned their children
subjective. Sufcient data are collected when every day. As a safety precaution, Helmut
the major themes continue to surface in the and Helga purposely scheduled Oahu as the
interviews. last leg of their journey in case they needed to
Interviews should take place at locations return home early for an emergency.
and situations considered to provide the Helmut spent at least 20 years thinking
greatest opportunity to gather the most rele- about this trip. As a scientist, he is fascinated
vant data about the phenomena under inves- by volcanoes. News stories about Hawaiis
tigation (Strauss and Corbin, 1998, p. 208). volcanoes over the years were stored con-
Appropriate interview locations include the sciously and unconsciously in his memory.
hotels recreational areas, high-end tourist Helmut became obsessed with visiting
shopping malls and public recreational areas. Hawaii to see lava ows. To make the trip
Proper sample selection includes tourists possible, he saved more than 20 years of
whose similarities and differences can be Delta frequent mileage points. The couple is
maximized. Age group, gender, nationality economy minded, so a necessary trip condi-
and site activity are examples of variables for tion was accumulating enough mileage
sample selection. Both rst-time and repeat awards for rst class tickets. Further evi-
visitors can be interviewed, but it is best to try dence of their frugal mind-set comes from
to interview rst-time visitors at the end of their choice of two- and three-star accommo-
their trips. dation during their trip. During the 20 year
Prospective informants should be pre- waiting period, the mileage accumulation is
screened with general questions about their likely to have encouraged Helmut and Helga
visits and asked whether they would to explore other trip options (e.g. to enter
participate in an interview. For the Helmut Phase 2); however, no other enticing option
and Helga interview, questions addressed: lined up perfectly. The trip decision was put
(i) demographic information; (ii) pre-trip on hold until the mileage award was suf-
planning and sources of information; (iii) cient and the children were old enough. Once
activities and destinations both planned the necessary conditions were met, trip
and unplanned; (iv) issues surrounding planning began.
ights, accommodation and ground trans- For Helga, two additional trip conditions
portation; and (v) overall impressions of the were necessary. First, they had to travel rst
travel experience. To prevent the potential for class. The trip from Germany is long, and she
myopic interpretation of the results, research- wanted to arrive in a relaxed condition. A sec-
ers not involved in the specic interviews ond key selling point was a stopover on the
should analyse and interpret the results. US mainland. While she was supportive of
Traveller Decision Making 61

1. Demographics 6. Key activity drivers 7. Key activities on


Husband and wife for Hawaii visit Hawaiis Big Island
Teenage children See lava and volcanoes Talked to children at
at home home daily
Saw lava tubes
Pre-framing and pre- Snorkelling
planning trip issuses Visited church
Trip needs to be 3 Hilo day trip
3. Pre-framing and
preplanning weeks to get over jet 9. Consequences
trip issues lag; cannot miss more Worthwhile
Are children old work trip, but did
enough to be left Wife insists on visiting not get to see
alone? the US mainland to see lava flows
Saved Delta something else Initiate trip During trip Wife happy
mileage awards Target two- and three- San Diego evaluation now (having
over 20 years star hotels to save stopover; Hotel We visited
I could not afford money 2 hour got what Hawaii)
the trip when I was visit to we
younger, if not Tijuana, expected
now, when? Trip booking actions Mexico for 80
Online booking euros
hotel and rental car Decided to
Redeem Delta miles relax and
limit daily
2. Framing leisure activities
choices 5. Choice of destinations rather than
Husband thinks Trip included 3 night see
(un)consciously stopover in San Diego everything
about visit to Hawaii: three nights on Rental car
South Seas Kauai, four nights on has broken
paradise Maui, four nights on the signal light
No specific media Big Island and five
influence; generally nights on Oahu
aware of Hawaii End in Honolulu so we
No sightseeing can get home fast if
information search necessary
before visit Volcano alone is the
Internet search for reason to come to the
hotel and rental Big Island
car options Alternative: Thailand,
but cannot travel alone

4. External influences 8. Situation on-site influences


General press news stories about Rough coasts; not many breakers
volcanoes in Hawaii Considered helicopter ride to see volcano but
Bought travel guidebook after arriving too expensive
Studied websites for hotel and car rental

Fig. 4.3. Helmut and Helgas unstructured process of travel decision making.

Helmuts dream, this compromise suggests booked over the Internet to get the lowest
that his wife was not as enthusiastic about prices possible.
seeing a volcano as her husband was. She had Despite more than 20 years of dreaming
never been to the USA before. Also, Helga about Hawaii, the couple spent no time
wanted to visit another country if possible. To gathering information about the destination.
appease Helga, Helmut booked a stopover in They did not read travel books or brochures
San Diego. He also promised a day trip to about Hawaii before their arrival. Through
Mexico. Both car rentals and hotels were media and movie images, Helmut had a
62 D. Martin et al.

picture postcard image of Hawaii. He Explaining Tourism Behaviour


expected to see white sand beaches, palm
trees and calm rolling waves everywhere. To For Phase 1, memories, demographics, eco-
Helmuts disappointment, many Hawaii logical factors and unconscious memories
Island coastlines are rough lava rock with lit- inuenced Helmut and Helgas decision-
tle or no vegetation. Also, the oceans strong making criteria. They could not take the trip
undertow limits swimming for inexperienced until their children were old enough to man-
tourists. age for themselves. While Helmut waited, he
Surprisingly, Helmut did not get an kept reading news stories about volcanic
opportunity to witness a lava ow his pri- eruptions in Hawaii and storing information
mary reason for visiting Hawaiis Big Island. in his conscious and unconscious memories.
He rented a car thinking that they could drive Also, led away in Helmuts subconscious
to the lava ows and easily view them. Unfor- memory was imagery of white sand beaches
tunately, public ground access to the lava and palm trees. The right time for the trip
ows was closed for safety reasons. To see the seemed to come when the Helmut had saved
lava, the best vantage point was a US$100 enough mileage points for two rst class air
helicopter ride. Helmut decided not to char- tickets. Although the interview did not sug-
ter a helicopter in order to save money. Given gest that the childrens ages or the mileage
the time and discipline required to save for reward points were the tipping point, the
the trip to see a lava ow, his price sensitivity daily telephone calls to Germany suggested
to the helicopter trips cost is surprising. that the couple would have been unlikely to
Why did Helmut pass up this opportu- have taken the trip a year earlier if they had
nity? Some researcher reexivity is necessary accumulated enough mileage points for the
here because the couple did not provide trip. Perhaps waiting another year would
more information. Because the couple still have allowed them to enjoy the trip more?
had two more islands to visit, perhaps The daily international telephone is likely to
Helmut felt compelled to be nancially con- have cost more than the helicopter ride to sat-
servative during this leg of the trip. Another isfy Helmuts dream. This couple is very bud-
plausible explanation is that Helga had not get conscious and their interview results
expressed a strong desire to see owing lava, suggest that a nancial decision involves an
so Helmut may have felt guilty spending the evaluation of alternative uses for the money.
money on himself or leaving her for several Phase 2 moves the decision to making
hours on their special trip. Evidence to sup- actual plans. Key activity drivers would make
port the latter explanation includes Helgas or break the trip. Helmuts wife was not going
request that they both be present for the to agree to the trip unless they stopped on the
interview. Finally, the helicopter ride may mainland USA for a few days. This once-in-a-
not have been appealing. Helicopter rides lifetime trip needed to be more than a 30 hour
often are turbulent and unpleasant experi- aeroplane ride to see a lava ow. For Helga, a
ences. Finally, local news stories about recent direct ight to Kona would have been a deal
fatal helicopter tour crashes may have tipped breaker. She also wanted to visit another
the balance. country. Landing in San Diego, the couple vis-
Helmuts lack of research and planning ited Tijuana, Mexico for a couple of hours.
is surprising. He did not even look at a map Had they done some pre-trip planning, they
carefully because he described Hawaii as might have chosen a different city from
being located in the South Pacic. Equally Tijuana to visit. Thailand was part of their
surprising was his unwillingness to charter evoked set of alternatives; however, this desti-
the helicopter at US$100 to see the lava ows. nation was not considered viable owing to
The couple avoided shopping and tourist potential difculties in travelling within the
package options; instead, they preferred to country. Was the couple aware of the indis-
have a relatively sedentary Big Island visit. criminate violence from Mexicos drug gangs?
The evidence suggests that Helmut and If this couple was risk adverse, they might
Helga will be unlikely to return in the future. have enjoyed a visit to a Canadian city more.
Traveller Decision Making 63

Like most travellers interviewed, this their interests in the destination. Other warm
couple used the Internet to nd the best prices tropical locations are located much closer to
for car rentals and accommodation. Surpris- where Helmut and Helga live. Given their
ingly though, the Internet was not used much age and interest in seeing other destinations,
to collect information about destination activ- why travel halfway around the world to see
ities. Most informants had one or two pre- the same thing?
planned activities, but nearly every tourist
interviewed waited until they arrived to plan
their itineraries. Conclusions
Phase 3 is where travel behaviour departs
from the traditional consumer decision- This chapter demonstrates a thinking-action-
making funnel. At the trip destination, each thinking streaming approach for understand-
travel party was exposed to unexpected ing the complex and extended decision
occurrences and activities. Leisure activities t making that takes place in leisure travel
into four quadrants: planned-done; planned- pre-trip, at-site and post-trip interpretations
undone; unplanned-done; and unplanned- by travellers. It demonstrates a new applica-
undone. Planned-done activities typically are tion of the Mintzberg et al. (1976) unstruc-
key activity drivers. Visitors destination tured and the Woodside and MacDonald
choices are inuenced by planned participa- (1994) semi-structured decision-making mod-
tion in these activities. Helmut did visit the els to consumer decision making for high-
Mauna Kea caldron, so he saw previous lava involvement service purchases.
ows. Like most tourists, the couple did not Trip planning involves many steps and
engage in in-depth planning, so unplanned- includes many variables. The unstructured
done activities represented the largest share decision model allows the decision maker to
of their leisure time (see Fodness and Murray, break down the decisions into manageable
1999). Helmut and Helga spent more time feedback loops. Once the feedback loops
around the hotel swimming pool than within the phase are completed successfully,
planned because the beaches were not to their the process moves to the next phase. Missing
liking. Planned-undone activities result from elements result in developing new scenarios,
loss of interest, unexpected situational con- or returning to a previous phase sometimes
tingency, or a trade-off/replacement with a for years.
more desirable activity. Helmuts inability to Long interviews consider the importance
see owing lava must have been a disap- of conscious and unconscious thinking in
pointment. He did have the option of charter- travel decisions. The example suggests that
ing a helicopter to see the lava, but the cost measuring the effectiveness of promotional
was too high for him. He thought the price tools is difcult with empirical positivistic
was too high and so he ended up passing up research methods. Helmut thought about
an opportunity he had waited 20 years for. Hawaii for more than 20 years before booking
Finally, unplanned-undone activities are the trip. Standardized questions cannot cap-
when an activity is a possibility; however, the ture these long-term planning elements, par-
visitor does not plan nor engage in the pur- ticularly when information is led away
suit. Helmut seemed unaware that charter subconsciously. Long interviews drill down
boat services routinely take visitors to see the to uncover motivations and to help explain
lava ows into the ocean. This alternative why people act even when they are not sure
would have been within his budget. themselves.
Finally, Phase 4 questions whether or not One surprise is how little pre-trip plan-
the visitor developed an attachment to the ning is done possibly by most visitors. The
destination. Will the tourist became a repeat unstructured model is superior to the funnel
visitor? Helmut and Helga are unlikely to approach because trip planning is dynamic.
visit Hawaii again. They waited many years Services typically are produced and con-
for the trip and travelled a great distance. sumed simultaneously, and the unstructured
Their comments suggest that one trip satised model accounts for the decisions that take
64 D. Martin et al.

place on site (consciously and unconsciously). time is left to explore Hilo and the surround-
Often travel decisions are made based on ing area. Should tourists choose to spend the
learning about new activities, or perhaps a night in Hilo, the west Hawaii resorts would
change in heart about an activity (e.g. charter- lose revenues. The guide made a compelling
ing a helicopter to see a lava ow) because the case that spending the night in Hilo was a
conditions are not right. On-site adjustments waste of time because there is nothing to do
are likely to involve a quick evaluation of the in Hilo. Either the guide was unaware of the
trade-offs with little or no cognitive thought. world class Imiloa Astronomy Center and
Unconscious thought is important for making Lyman Museum, an afliate of the Smithson-
these quick decisions because they feel right. ian Institution, or his motive was to keep visi-
In situ interviews allow researchers to tors on the west side of the island for their
observe external inuences on tourists deci- entertainment, shopping and eating.
sions. Live interviews allow interviewers to Case study research methods are some-
pick up non-verbal clues from the informant. times criticized because the ndings are dif-
Also, being on site helps to interpret the com- cult to generalize to a broad population.
ments because the interviewer sees what the However, achieving replication using theo-
tourist is experiencing. For example, sun- retical sampling of a few cases (ve to ten) of
shine versus rain is likely to affect the mood narrowly dened population segments helps
of the informant. Additional surprises also to overcome such criticism and provides the
surface when in situ. Waiting to interview opportunity to construct Boolean-algebra
tourists, one interviewer was shocked by the based predictive models (see Woodside, 2010).
tour guides presentation to visitors. This Case study research offers deep insights that
Kona-based hotel offers a tour to east Hawaii may be exceptionally useful predictors of con-
to see the Volcanoes National Park, but the sumer behaviour, and data from them support
trip takes one entire day. Owing to the dis- the view that a rich and holistic understand-
tance and time required to see the park, little ing of the tourist behaviour is possible.

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5 Destination Information Search
Strategies

Dogan Gursoy

Introduction search as one of the key components (e.g.


Howard and Sheth, 1969; Bettman, 1979;
There is no doubt that the search for informa- Olshavsky, 1985; Bettman et al., 1991; Engel
tion is one of the most important steps in con- et al., 1993; Schmidt and Spreng, 1996).
sumers decision-making processes because it As for any other consumer products,
represents the primary stage at which market- understanding travellers information-search
ers can provide information and inuence behaviour is critical for strategy development
consumers decisions (Schmidt and Spreng, and service delivery. Information search or
1996; Gursoy, 2001). Therefore, understanding information acquisition is one of the rst steps
information search behaviour and the infor- in the vacation decision-making process. It
mation search strategy utilization of consum- also affects on-site decisions such as selecting
ers is crucial for developing and designing accommodation, transportation, activities and
effective marketing communication strategies tours (Jenkins, 1978; Filiatrault and Ritchie,
and campaigns. Application of basic market 1980; Perdue, 1985; Snepenger et al., 1990;
segmentation techniques, using consumers Fodness and Murray, 1998; Gursoy and Chen,
information source utilization patterns as 2000; Chen and Gursoy, 2001). The emergence
either a segmentation base or a descriptor, of a large number and variety of travel desti-
may enable marketers to develop focused nations has increased the importance of
positioning and media selection strategies. understanding travellers information-search
Certainly, understanding consumers infor- behaviour and the strategies utilized by trav-
mation source utilization strategies can help ellers to gather information. Therefore, as in
marketers to effectively tailor their promo- the consumer behaviour and marketing elds,
tional mix of offerings. So it is not surprising conceptual and empirical examinations of
that consumer information searching has been tourist information search behaviour have a
one of the most examined subjects in con- long tradition in the tourism marketing litera-
sumer research (Beatty and Smith, 1987; ture (Woodside and Ronkainen, 1980; Schul
Schmidt and Spreng, 1996). Copeland (1923) and Crompton, 1983; Etzel and Wahlers, 1985;
was one of the rst researchers who examined Perdue, 1985, 1993; Snepenger and Snepenger,
consumer s pre-purchase information-seek- 1993; Fodness and Murray, 1997, 1998, 1999;
ing behaviour. Since then, almost all consumer Vogt and Fesenmaier, 1998).
information processing and decision-making Studies suggest that because of the
models include pre-purchase information nature of the tourism products, travellers
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 67
68 D. Gursoy

information search behaviour and the strate- The degree and direction of pre-purchase
gies utilized to gather information are likely external information search is directly related
to be signicantly different from the informa- to the type of product that consumers intend
tion search behaviour of consumers who pur- to purchase. Consumers tend to engage in
chase durable products. Most hospitality and more searching when purchasing higher
tourism products are purchased, consumed priced, more visible and more complex
and evaluated in the form of services such as products, such as travel to unknown destina-
vacation trips. The production, consumption tions, which intrinsically create greater
and evaluation of services tend to differ from perceived risk (Beatty and Smith, 1987).
those of durable products (Zeithaml et al., Research indicates that travellers to interna-
1990). Therefore, the way that travellers tional and unknown destinations are more
search for information and the importance likely to utilize external information search-
that they place on it is likely to be signi- ing than travellers to domestic or known
cantly different from the way consumers destinations (Woodside and Ronkainen, 1980;
search for information to purchase durable Snepenger et al., 1990; Snepenger and
goods and the importance they place on this. Snepenger, 1993; Fodness and Murray, 1998;
First, services are mostly intangible. That is, Chen and Gursoy, 2001).
they are not physical objects; rather, they are
performances and experiences. Secondly,
they are heterogeneous. In other words, they
differ substantially from producer to pro- Information Search Strategies Utilized
ducer. Thirdly, they are inseparable. In some by Travellers
instances, purchase and consumption of
services occur at the same time. So the pur- As for many consumer product decisions,
chase process of tourism products is likely to information acquisition is necessary for
be different from the purchase process of selecting a destination and for on-site deci-
durable goods. For example, the consumer, in sions such as selecting accommodation,
reality, purchases and consumes most ser- transportation, activities and tours (Jenkins
vices at different locations from where s/he 1978; Filiatrault and Ritchie 1980; Perdue
lives (Sirakaya et al., 1996). The decision- 1985; Snepenger et al., 1990; Fodness and
making process used to purchase the tourism Murray, 1998; Gursoy and Chen, 2000; Chen
product also takes much longer than for and Gursoy, 2001). Information search can be
many other products, such as a television set. dened as the motivated activation of knowl-
In addition, most of the time, the consumer edge stored in memory or acquisition of
does not get any tangible return for his/her information from the environment (Engel
investment, except maybe souvenirs and a et al., 1995). As the denition suggests, infor-
receipt. Furthermore, the consumer deals mation search can be either internal or exter-
with a high perceived risk because of high nal. Internal search is based on the retrieval of
personal investment of time, effort and knowledge from memory. In contrast, exter-
money (Teare, 1992). Consequently, the con- nal search consists of collecting information
sumer is likely to be more involved in the from the marketplace (Engel et al., 1995).
information search for tourism product pur- Whenever travellers realize that they
chases than for many other product pur- need to make a decision, they are likely to
chases. Consumers are likely to plan purchase employ a series of information search strate-
of tourism products through savings over a gies. An information search strategy refers to
longer time period than for many other prod- the combination of information sources
uct purchases (Moutinho, 1987) owing to the utilized by a traveller when planning travel.
high perceived risk involved in the purchase. Initial information search is likely to almost
All of these factors are likely to inuence the always take place internally, such as when
information search strategies utilized by trav- previous experiences and knowledge are
ellers and the importance that they place on used as the basis for planning a repeat visit
each information source. (Fodness and Murray, 1997; Vogt and
Destination Information Search Strategies 69

Fesenmaier, 1998; Gursoy and Chen, 2000). of search strategies utilized by Swiss travel-
Internal sources include personal experi- lers revealed that they are more likely to uti-
ences, either with the specic destination lize informal sources (friends and relatives),
or with a similar destination, and the knowl- direct sources (destination information
edge accumulated through an ongoing sources plus friends and relatives) and pro-
information search (Schul and Crompton, fessional sources (travel agents plus tour
1983; Fodness and Murray, 1997; Vogt and operators) (Bieger and Laesser, 2004). Recent
Fesenmaier, 1998; Gursoy, 2003). When the studies suggest that the Internet has become a
internal information search proves inade- key source of information for many tourists
quate, travellers are likely to gather addi- (Tjstheim and Tronvoll, 2002; Cai et al., 2004).
tional information from external sources. In Studies also suggest that travellers may
the case of most travel decisions, the search is utilize any of these external information
predominantly external, involving consider- sources for pre-purchase information search
able effort and a variety of information or ongoing information search. Pre-purchase
sources (Schul and Crompton, 1983; Raitz information search can be dened as the
and Dakhil, 1989; Fodness and Murray, 1997). external information search that is driven by
Earlier information search literature has an upcoming purchase decision, whereas
conceptualized external information search ongoing information search can be dened as
in terms of degree (Schul and Crompton, the acquisition of external information
1983; Fodness and Murray, 1997) and direc- regardless of sporadic purchase needs (Bloch
tion (Snepenger et al., 1990; Fodness and et al., 1986); these authors suggested that pre-
Murray, 1997). Degree of external information purchase search is inuenced by involvement
search refers to the number of sources used in the purchase, while ongoing search is inu-
and the amount of time devoted to the search enced by involvement with the product.
(Fodness and Murray, 1997; Gursoy, 2001). An examination of common information
Direction of search refers to the specic exter- search strategies utilized by a group of
nal information sources utilized (Fodness and destination-nave international travellers to
Murray, 1997). Studies suggest that travellers New Zealand revealed that travellers to that
tend to use four broad external information country utilize one of six search strategies
sources when planning their trips. These are: (Hyde, 2006). Those search strategies include:
(i) family and friends; (ii) destination specic a low search strategy; four moderate search
literature; (iii) the media; and (iv) travel con- strategies guidebook brochure agent,
sultants (Woodside and Ronkainen, 1980; guidebook friends, friends and net guide-
Snepenger and Snepenger, 1993). However, book; and a high search strategy friends
other studies suggest that even though travel- net. Results further revealed that of the six
lers utilize those four groups of external alternative information sources examined in
information sources, the groups can be the study travel guidebooks, friends and
grouped into two categories or dimensions: relatives, and the Internet, were utilized by
destination-specic external information the greatest number of respondents during
sources and personal external information their vacation. When asked to rate how impor-
sources which include family and friends, tant each information source they had used
media and travel consultants (Gursoy, 2001). had been for specic travel planning tasks,
Studies have also suggested that consul- respondents rated travel agents and the Inter-
tation with friends and relatives is perhaps net as being more useful than other sources
the most often cited source of information for information on air fares. No one source
used by tourists (Nolan, 1976; Gitelson and was rated signicantly more useful than any
Crompton, 1983). Other sources frequently other for information on transportation at the
used are destination-specic literature (such destination. The Internet and travel guide-
as guidebooks, government or state publica- books were rated signicantly more useful
tions, and travel brochures) and consultants than other sources for information on accom-
(such as travel agents and auto clubs) (Nolan modation at the destination. Travel guide-
1976; Gitelson and Crompton, 1983). A study books and friends and relatives were rated
70 D. Gursoy

signicantly more useful than other sources aspects of the environment (e.g. difculty of
for information on where to go and what to the choice task, number of alternatives, com-
see and do at the destination (Hyde, 2006). plexity of the alternatives), situational vari-
ables (e.g. previous satisfaction, time
constraints, perceived risk, composition of
travelling party), consumer characteristics
Factors Affecting Information Search (e.g. education, prior product knowledge,
Strategies Used by Travellers involvement, family life cycle, socio-economic
status) (Gursoy, 2001, 2003; Gursoy and
The marketing and consumer behaviour lit- McCleary, 2004a,b) and product characteris-
erature suggests that the type of information tics (e.g. purpose of the trip, mode of travel)
search strategy used by consumers is likely (Fodness and Murray, 1998, 1999).
to be inuenced by at least one of three major Most studies of travellers information
theoretical approaches (Srinivasan, 1990; search behaviour followed one of the two
Schmidt and Spreng, 1996; Gursoy, 2001; most inuential theoretical frameworks pro-
Gursoy and McCleary, 2004a). The rst is the posed to enhance the understanding of tour-
psychological/motivational approach, which ists information search behaviour (Gursoy,
suggests that a combination of individual, 2001, 2003). The rst theoretical framework,
product class and task-related variables such the strategic model, was proposed by
as beliefs and attitudes and involvement are Snepenger et al. (1990) and denes informa-
likely to determine search strategy utilization tion search strategies as the combination of
(Beatty and Smith, 1987). The second is the information sources used, e.g. the sources
economics approach, which uses the cost used by a travel party to plan trips. The sec-
benet framework and the economics of ond theoretical framework, the contingency
information theory (Stigler, 1961) to examine model, denes information search in terms of
information search strategy utilization (e.g. individual characteristics, effort, the number
Avery, 1996). The third approach is the con- of sources used, situational inuences, prod-
sumer information processing approach, uct characteristics and search outcomes
which suggests that consumers memory and (Schul and Crompton, 1983; Fodness and
cognitive information processing capabilities Murray, 1999; Gursoy, 2001, 2003).
are likely to inuence search strategy utiliza- As regards the strategic model, several
tion (e.g. Johnson and Russo, 1984; Coupey studies have examined the information search
et al., 1998). Like the consumer behaviour and strategies utilized by travellers, and, as noted
marketing elds, conceptual and empirical in the previous section, the ndings of these
examinations of information search behav- studies suggested that travellers tend to use
iour have a long tradition in the hospitality four broad external information sources when
and tourism literature (e.g. Woodside and planning their trips: (i) family and friends;
Ronkainen, 1980; Schul and Crompton, 1983; (ii) destination-specic literature; (iii) the
Etzel and Wahlers, 1985; Perdue, 1985; Raitz media; and (iv) travel consultants (Woodside
and Dakhil, 1989; Snepenger and Snepenger, and Ronkainen, 1980; Snepenger and
1993; Fodness and Murray, 1997, 1998, 1999; Snepenger, 1993). However, much of the work
Gursoy, 2001, 2003; Gursoy and McCleary, that has operationalized information search
2004a,b). Past research has identied a large using the strategic model has considered only
number of factors that are likely to inuence those travellers who used a single, specic
travellers information search strategies. Pre- source, such as travel agents, to plan their trips
vious studies in the area have focused on (Gitelson and Purdue, 1987; Howard and
developing typologies of consumer informa- Gitelson, 1989; Kendall and Booms, 1989; Fod-
tion search strategies, using nearly 60 vari- ness and Murray, 1997). The previous study
ables that are likely to inuence external ndings indicate the strategic model deals
search strategies (Srinivasan and Ratchford, with the inuence of the sociodemographic
1991). As noted by Schmidt and Spreng characteristics of travellers and their utiliza-
(1996), these typologies included several tion of available external information sources
Destination Information Search Strategies 71

(Snepenger et al., 1990). The main focus of the measured as length of stay, number of
strategic model is the number and combina- destinations visited, number of attractions
tion of information sources utilized by travel- visited and travel-related expenditures. The
lers, but it does not help us to understand why results obtained by Fodness and Murray
travellers utilize those particular external (1999) converged to support the contingency
information sources and ignore others. The model and its underlying proposition that
strategic model is not concerned with the tourist information search strategies are the
factors (except for sociodemographics) that result of a dynamic process in which travel-
may affect the travellers utilization of avail- lers use various types and amounts of infor-
able external information sources. Some stud- mation sources to respond to internal and
ies have attempted to differentiate travellers external contingencies.
who utilized different external information The strategic and the contingency mod-
sources, although the differentiation was only els have certain similarities and differences.
based on sociodemographics (Woodside and Both models examine the inuence of the
Ronkainen, 1980; Gitelson and Perdue, 1987; composition of travel party, prior visits to the
Howard and Gitelson, 1989; Kendall and destination and the degree of familiarity asso-
Booms, 1989; Snepenger et al. 1990). ciated with the destination on external infor-
Unlike the strategic model, the contin- mation search behaviour. However, the
gency model examines the impact of individ- contingency model examines several other
ual characteristics on travellers information factors that are likely to inuence the infor-
search strategy utilization: characteristics mation search behaviour of travellers. Even
such as travel-specic lifestyles, effort e.g. though the contingency model seems supe-
the amount of time spent, previous trip expe- rior to the strategic model for understanding
riences, situational inuences, product char- travellers information search strategy selec-
acteristics and expected search outcomes tion, it has several shortcomings, such as the
(Schul and Crompton, 1983; Gursoy, 2001, unclear denition of prior product knowl-
2003). In the contingency model, Schul and edge and ignorance of motivational and psy-
Crompton (1983) proposed that travel- chological factors. The contingency model
specic lifestyles and individual differences assumes that travellers who are familiar with
are better predictors of the selection of search and/or are experts on the destination will
strategies by travellers than are sociodemo- approach a product decision through a rou-
graphic variables. They operationalized tine or limited problem-solving process and
travel-specic lifestyle by factor-analysing 16 that they are not likely to search for addi-
psychographic variables. Their ndings sup- tional information; their travel decisions are
ported their proposition that an individuals likely to be based on their internal search
travel-specic lifestyle (psychographics) (Fodness and Murray, 1999). In addition, in
explains the travellers search strategy selec- the contingency model, prior product knowl-
tion better than do demographic differences. edge and expertise are measured by a single
The contingency model was later expanded indicator: previous visits to a destination,
by Fodness and Murray (1999) to include sit- although review of the consumer behaviour
uational factors and product characteristics. literature suggests that prior product knowl-
These authors examined the inuence of situ- edge is not a unidimensional construct (Gursoy
ational factors, product characteristics, tourist and McCleary, 2004a,b). Alba and Hutchinson
characteristics, and search outcomes on exter- (1987) propose that prior knowledge has two
nal information search behaviour. They iden- major components, familiarity and expertise,
tied the type of decision making (routine, and cannot be measured with a single indicator.
limited or extended) and the composition of Contrary to the conclusions of Fodness
the travel party as situational inuences. and Murray (1999), the consumer behaviour
Product characteristics included purpose of literature also suggests that prior product
trip and mode of travel. Tourist characteris- knowledge may inuence selective search
tics were identied as family life cycle and behaviour and the depth of analysis (Alba and
socio-economic status. Search outcomes were Huchinson, 1987; Gursoy, 2001, 2003).
72 D. Gursoy

Knowledgeable consumers are more likely to search behaviour. The proposed model
search for new information before making a mainly focused on the pre-purchase infor-
decision because they are better equipped to mation search behaviour of travellers. Pre-
understand the meaning of product informa- purchase information search represents the
tion than novices (Duncan and Olshavsky, functional approach to explaining the nature
1982; Punj and Staelin, 1983; Johnson and of information sought and is dened as
Russo, 1984; Alba and Hutchinson, 1987; information search activities that are related
Gursoy and McCleary, 2004a,b). In addition, to a recognized and immediate purchase
knowledgeable consumers are likely to intention.
focus on particular product attributes Studies suggest that perceived cost of
simply because they are aware of the exis- information search plays a signicant role in
tence of those attributes (Brucks, 1985). determining the length and the extent of
In contrast, novice consumers may have a external information search conducted by
hard time comprehending and evaluating travellers (Vogt and Fesenmaier, 1998; Gursoy,
product-related information because of their 2001; Gursoy and McCleary, 2004a). Travel-
inferior ability to comprehend and evaluate lers tend to keep searching for information as
the product-related facts (Anderson and long as they believe that the benets of
Jolson, 1980; Gursoy, 2001). Because of their acquiring information outweigh the cost of
limited ability to process the product-related information search, as indicated in the eco-
information, novices are more likely to sam- nomics of information theory (Stigler, 1961).
ple the opinions of others (Furse et al., 1984; In the new comprehensive model of travel-
Brucks, 1985; Gursoy, 2003; Gursoy and lers information search behaviour, the cost of
McCleary, 2004a,b). The contingency model external information search represents the
also ignores the motivational factors that are nancial and time costs of external search
likely to inuence travellers information activity while the cost of internal search rep-
search behaviour. The direction and intensity resents the cognitive effort required and the
of all consumers actions are affected by the expected outcome of the internal search. The
motivations of individuals, because the func- model suggests that an increase in the cost of
tion of an individuals motives is to protect, external information search is likely to result
satisfy and enhance him/her (Kassarjian and in a decrease in the level of external search
Robertson, 1968). Consumers acquire infor- activity, and that an increase in the cost of
mation as a strategy to reduce certain risks internal information search is likely to result
regarding the outcome of an action, so as to in a decrease in the internal search activity.
protect themselves and maximize their satis- The model also suggests that the costs of both
faction (Urbany et al., 1989; Murray, 1991; the external and internal information search
Gursoy, 2003). Therefore, the traveller s are likely to moderate the effects of a travel-
motivations are suspected to inuence the ler s familiarity and expertise, which repre-
intensity and direction of his/her external sent a traveller s prior knowledge; here, the
information search behaviour. familiarity dimension of prior knowledge
Recently, Gursoy (2001) and Gursoy and represents the subjective knowledge of trav-
McCleary (2004a) proposed a new theoretical ellers and the expertise dimension represents
framework that integrates all three theoretical a traveller s objective knowledge. Studies
approaches on consumer information search suggest that an increase in familiarity is likely
(i.e. psychological/motivational, economic to decrease the cost of the internal search and
and information processing) and the two increase the cost of the external search, while
theoretical frameworks of travellers informa- an increase in expertise is likely to decrease
tion search behaviour already discussed the costs of both the external and internal
(strategic and contingency) as complemen- information search (Gursoy and McCleary,
tary approaches. Based on this new theo- 2004a). Studies also suggest that travellers
retical framework, Gursoy (2001) and Gursoy familiarity and expertise are likely to be inu-
and McCleary (2004a) proposed a compre- enced by previous visits to the destination,
hensive model of travellers information and involvement and learning.
Destination Information Search Strategies 73

The comprehensive model of travellers and its attractions, the incidental learning is
information search behaviour also proposes likely to increase his/her subjective knowl-
that a traveller who is high in involvement is edge and therefore, his/her familiarity with
likely to utilize both external and internal the destination and its attractions.
information searching. Travellers involve- Overall, the comprehensive model of
ment is also proposed to have a positive effect travellers information search behaviour sug-
on familiarity and expertise owing to the fact gests that information search strategies that
that if travellers are high in involvement they are likely to be utilized tend to be inuenced
are likely to have more familiarity with the by a large number of interrelated variables.
product and are more likely to remember For immediate pre-purchase information
product information, develop better category needs, consumers are likely to utilize either
structures, analyse the information in more internal or external information sources, or
detail, elaborate on it and make automatic both. However, the type of pre-purchase
decisions (Gursoy and Gavcar, 2003). Travel- information search strategy (internal and/or
lers involvement is also proposed to posi- external) that is likely to be utilized is inu-
tively inuence intentional learning. If enced directly by the perceived cost of the
travellers are highly involved, those travellers internal information search, the perceived
are likely to pay more attention to the incom- cost of the external information search, and
ing information and, therefore, learn better. the level of travellers involvement. Travel-
Travellers previous visits are also proposed lers familiarity and expertise (prior product
to positively inuence the familiarity and knowledge), learning and previous visits are
expertise constructs of the new model. The proposed to inuence a travellers informa-
logic behind this proposition is that if a trav- tion search indirectly. The inuence of travel-
eller has been to the destination before, he/ lers familiarity and expertise is likely to be
she is likely to have more familiarity and mediated by the costs of the internal and
expertise on the destination than a traveller external information searches (Gursoy, 2001;
who has never been to the destination. The Gursoy and McCleary, 2004a).
previous visits construct is also proposed to
have a positive inuence on a traveller s
involvement. Previous studies suggest that as
the number of previous visits to a specic Impact of culture on information
destination increases, a traveller s involve- search strategies
ment is likely to increase as well (Kim
et al., 1997). From an international marketing perspective,
In the comprehensive model of travel- culture, a way of directing individuals think-
lers information search behaviour, learning ing, is one of the most critical factors that are
is examined as having two dimensions: inten- likely to inuence travellers decision-making
tional learning and incidental learning. Inten- and destination-selection processes. Culture
tional learning is proposed to increase a also plays a vital role in determining the type
traveller expertise and familiarity, while of information search strategies that are likely
incidental learning is proposed to increase a to be utilized by travellers, including the
traveller s familiarity. If a traveller learns sources of information they utilize in decision
information through intentional learning, making. Several researchers have argued that
he/she is likely to pay more attention to culture determines what forms of communi-
incoming information and process the infor- cations are acceptable, and the nature and the
mation thoroughly (Nelson, 1984) and, degree of external search that travellers from
therefore, increase his/her objective knowl- any particular culture utilize (Engel et al.,
edge and expertise. In contrast, a traveller 1995; Chen and Gursoy, 2001; Gursoy and
who learns through incidental learning is not Umbreit, 2004). The culture of a society can be
likely to process information thoroughly. dened at different levels such as national,
However, because the traveller thinks that s/ regional, corporate and professional (Trompe-
he has some information about the destination naars, 1998). With an increasingly globalized
74 D. Gursoy

society, a plethora of literature has reported other library materials as main sources, fol-
cultural differences at a national level. Hof- lowed by brochures and pamphlets, family
stede (1991) portrayed the differences in and friends, and travel agents. Schul and
national culture with ve distinct cultural Crompton (1983) examined relative ability of
elements: (i) the power distance element, travel-specic lifestyle and sociodemographic
showing that the less powerful individuals variables to predict and explain the search
accept the fact that power is distributed behaviour of British travellers, and to dis-
unequally; (ii) individualism versus collec- criminate between respondents exemplifying
tivism elements, representing the degree passive and active external information
of interdependence that a society maintains; search strategies. Their ndings suggested
(iii) the masculinity versus femininity ele- that the type of external information search
ment, revealing the difference in societal roles strategy utilized by British travellers was
between genders; (iv) the uncertainty avoid- more likely to be determined by their travel-
ance element, indicating the extent to which specic lifestyle variables than by demo-
individuals feel threatened by uncertainty graphic variables. However, this study was
and attempt to prevail in these circumstances; limited to only one national group and, there-
and (v) the long-term orientation, element fore, researchers were not able to conclude
symbolizing the extent to which a society whether ndings were applicable to other
demonstrates a pragmatic future-oriented national groups.
view rather than a normative or short-term Studies that examined the information
perspective. Even though it is well accepted search patterns of travellers from different
that culture plays a signicant role on travel- national cultures also reported signicant dif-
lers information search behaviour, only a ferences due to the moderating role that cul-
small number of studies have examined the ture plays. For example, Gursoy and Chen
impact of culture on travellers external infor- (2000) reported that the information search
mation search behaviour in cross-cultural patterns of British, French and German travel-
settings (see Gursoy and Umbreit, 2004). lers have two dimensions: a business/leisure
Studies that have examined the impact of dimension and a dependent/independent
national culture on travellers external infor- dimension. They also identied four distinct
mation search behaviour concluded that market segments based on the information
national culture plays a signicant role on search behaviour found. Chen and Gursoy
what external information sources travellers (2001) examined the utilization of external
from specic culture are likely to use for pre- information sources by rst-time and repeat
purchase information searching (Schul and British, French and German travellers, and
Crompton, 1983; Uysal et al., 1990; Gursoy also identied a (different) two-dimensional
and Umbreit, 2004). For example, Uysal et al. external information search pattern: propri-
(1990) reported that British travellers are etary/public and focused/unfocused.
likely to use travel agents as the main source
of external information, followed by family
and friends, brochures and pamphlets, and
magazine and newspaper articles, while Communicating with the Tourist
German travellers are more likely to utilize Market
family and friends as their main information
source followed by travel agents, brochures In todays dynamic global environment,
and pamphlets, and books and library mater- understanding how travellers acquire infor-
ials. The ndings of these authors also sug- mation is important for marketing manage-
gested that like German travellers, French ment decisions, and for designing effective
travellers utilize family and friends as main marketing communication campaigns and
sources, followed by travel agents, brochures service delivery (Wilkie and Dickson, 1985;
and pamphlets, airlines, and articles in maga- Srinivasan, 1990). Understanding the infor-
zines and newspapers. In contrast, Japanese mation search strategies of key current and
travellers were found to utilize books and prospective markets can help destination
Destination Information Search Strategies 75

managers and marketers to develop cost- strategies that are most appropriate for each
effective and focused target-marketing com- segment (Gursoy, 2001).
munications. Application of basic market Because travellers who are low in famil-
segmentation techniques, using travellers iarity with a destination are likely to have a
information source utilization patterns as hard time processing information gathered
either a segmentation basis or as a descriptor, from external sources because of their limited
may enable focused positioning and effective processing ability, they may require a differ-
media selection. Certainly, understanding ent communication strategy from travellers
external information source utilization can who are expert. Communication strategies
help marketers to effectively tailor the pro- developed for unfamiliar travellers should
motional mix. then (as already stated) provide simple infor-
As a result, it is crucial for managers and mation about the overall destination. Those
marketers to understand the factors that are communication materials may also need to
likely to inuence travellers information include a comparison of the destination
search strategies. For example, studies sug- against other destinations that target the
gest that travellers prior product knowledge same market to make it easier for the traveller
is one of the most important factors that are to digest the information. In other words,
likely to determine which information search communication materials should clearly
strategies are likely to be utilized. Milman identify the unique selling propositions of the
and Pizam (1995) suggest that the travellers destination to differentiate that destination
familiarity with a destination has a signicant from competitors and to make positioning of
impact on future travel intentions and is the destination easier for unfamiliar travel-
likely to forward the traveller into a more lers. Establishing a good and understandable
advanced stage in the purchase decision pro- communication with unfamiliar travellers is
cess. Also, travellers who are low in familiar- critical in convincing them to choose one des-
ity with a destination are more likely to rely tination over other destinations because low
on external information sources to make their familiarity is associated with higher per-
vacation decisions than those who are in high ceived importance of, and receptivity to, new
familiarity (Woodside and Ronkainen, 1980; information (Park et al., 1988). Studies also
Sheldon and Mak, 1987; Snepenger et al., suggest that travellers who are low in famil-
1990). Findings of other recent studies sug- iarity with a destination utilize personal
gest that travellers who are low in familiarity external information sources, including
or high in expertise are likely to rely on exter- word-of-mouth communications, which can
nal information sources to make their travel be used as an effective method for communi-
decisions. However, destination managers cating with those travellers (in contrast to
and marketers should understand that even travellers high in expertise who are more
though both travellers who are low in famil- likely to utilize destination-specic external
iarity and travellers who are high in expertise sources) (Gursoy, 2001; Gursoy and McCleary,
are likely to rely on external information 2004a,b). Because of their limited ability to
sources, they certainly have different types of process the product-related information,
information needs. Therefore, they are likely travellers who are unfamiliar with a destina-
to utilize different information search strate- tion are more likely to sample the opinions of
gies. Travellers who are low in familiarity others, such as their friends and family.
need simple, understandable and overall Because positive word of mouth is the result
information, while travellers who are high in of satisfaction, special attention needs to be
expertise need detailed and specic informa- given to customer satisfaction and complaint
tion about the destination and its attributes to handling.
make their vacation decisions. This implies As already mentioned, while travellers
that destination managers and marketers can who are low in familiarity with a destination
use travellers levels of prior product knowl- utilize (personal) external information
edge (familiarity and expertise) as a segmen- sources to gather simple, understandable and
tation tool to develop communication overall information about a destination,
76 D. Gursoy

travellers who are high in expertise are likely information is likely to be inuenced by their
to need specic and detailed information perception of the cost of the information
about the destination and its attributes. search. The negative relationship between the
Therefore, a separate communication strat- perceived costs and external information
egy should be developed to communicate searching should cause marketers to take
with expert travellers. Communication steps to make an external search as inexpen-
materials developed for expert travellers sive and time-efcient as possible. This is
should include detailed information about often not the case in hospitality and tourism
the attributes that are important to the target marketing. For example, a perusal of destina-
market. However, those attributes important tion websites quickly reveals sites that are
to the target market should be identied by difcult to navigate, take a long time to load,
conducting formal or informal research on and are linked to empty sites and incomplete
travellers, and not based on managers per- information. The resulting increase in time
ceptions of which attributes are important cost to acquire information can cause travel-
and which are not. A survey can be designed lers to look elsewhere for information.
or a focus group study conducted to nd out Another factor that destination marketers
and monitor what destination attributes are should pay attention to is that the more infor-
the most important ones for expert travellers. mation available about a destination, the
Managers may also identify the important more likely travellers are to increase both
attributes by talking to their existing custom- incidental and intentional learning. These
ers, and special attention should be paid to two factors are likely to lead to an increased
the identication of destination attributes by familiarity and expertise, which, in turn,
expert travellers. If destination managers and decrease information search costs, reduce the
marketers fail to ask the right questions of the necessity for extensive external searching and
right audience, they may end up making the help to focus the search on specic attributes
wrong conclusions and developing a wrong rather than on general information. Market-
communication strategy. After the important ers should also recognize the value of actual
attributes of destinations are identied, these visitation to a site for improving marketing
will need to be communicated to expert trav- outcomes, or of the use of familiarization
ellers, who are more likely to search for (FAM) trips for travel agents, or of on-site
detailed information. Therefore, communica- visitation incentives for selling timeshares.
tion materials (i.e. brochures, direct mailing Indeed, previous visits are likely to have a
materials, etc.) about destinations need to be positive impact on involvement with a
developed that provide detailed information destination while increasing familiarity and
about that destination and its important attri- expertise, which lead to the outcomes dis-
butes. However, destination managers and cussed above.
marketers should also be aware of the fact Studies also suggest that travellers with
that travellers needs, wants and desires keep moderate familiarity of a destination are
changing, and that these changes are likely to more likely to make their vacation decisions
inuence their information needs. Changing based on what they know about that destina-
consumer needs and wants therefore need to tion (Gursoy, 2003; Gursoy and McCleary,
be monitored, because they are likely to shift 2004b). This suggests that destination manag-
the importance placed on destination attri- ers and marketers need to know how much
butes. They will also result in a need to mod- prospective as well as existing travellers
ify communication materials to match the know about their destinations, and how accu-
changed needs and wants of expert travellers. rate their knowledge is. Studies show that
It is also crucial for managers and mar- what people think they know and what they
keters to understand the importance of the actually know often do not correspond (Park
perceived cost of information search. Both et al., 1994). If travellers perceptions (images)
familiar and expert travellers are likely to of the destination are negative owing to their
utilize external information sources to vary- subjective knowledge, which is not accurate,
ing degrees, but their utilization of external results may be disastrous. A traveller who has
Destination Information Search Strategies 77

negative perceptions about a destination is tools should be modied in order to t into


not likely to consider visiting that destina- the culture of the target market.
tion. Furthermore, that traveller is not likely
to recommend a destination that s/he has
negative perceptions of to his/her friends.
Therefore, destination managers and market- Directions for Future Research
ers may need to examine travellers percep-
tions of a destination to make sure that those As discussed earlier, studies suggest that the
perceptions reect reality. If their examina- perceived costs of external and internal infor-
tions indicate that travellers perceptions of mation searches are likely to play a signicant
their destination are negative and do not role in travellers information search behav-
reect the true nature of the destination, they iour. Travellers are likely to continue search-
may need to take corrective actions. In order ing for information by utilizing external
to take corrective actions, destination market- sources as long as they believe that the bene-
ers rst need to identify what causes those ts gained from the search exceed the cost of
negative perceptions, and then they need to search. Travellers are also likely to utilize the
determine the best way to improve the desti- external information source that has the low-
nation image. est external and/or internal search cost. Even
Marketers should also recognize the though understanding the cost of informa-
importance of understanding the cultural val- tion is vital in developing communication
ues held by travellers. As suggested by the strategies and materials, limited research has
studies reviewed above, the culture of travel- been done in this area. Most research in the
lers plays a signicant moderating role in area has focused on the time spent searching
their information-searching, decision-making for information, and most data were collected
and destination-selection behaviour. For through self-instructed survey instruments.
example, a study conducted to examine the There is an urgent need for studies to exam-
external information search behaviour of ine the other aspects of information search-
travellers to 15 European Union (EU) mem- ing. Researchers need to consider utilizing
ber states revealed that national culture experimental research designs rather than
played a signicant moderating role in travel- survey methods in order to truly understand
lers information search behaviour (Gursoy the inuence of cost on travellers utilization
and Umbreit, 2004). Based on the moderating of information sources.
effect of national culture on travellers utiliza- One area of external information search
tion of external information sources, those tools that has been receiving increasing atten-
15 EU member states were grouped into ve tion in recent years is the Internet. An increas-
distinct segments. Each segment was found ing number of researchers are conducting
to utilize signicantly different groups of studies to understand the impact of the Inter-
external information sources. Findings of this net on information search behaviour and how
and other studies suggest that destination best to utilize it. The World Wide Web, or the
managers who want to attract international Internet, has become a powerful and ubiqui-
travellers to their destinations should, rst, tous means of delivering a range of messages
thoroughly study the culture of the target to hundreds of millions of travellers world-
market they are going after in order to wide. As travellers get more familiar with
develop the most effective and efcient mar- using the Internet, they are learning to use
keting communication strategies. The cul- platforms to nd information about travel
tural values of the target market are likely to destinations and travel products other than
determine what an acceptable communica- the ones that are built and maintained by the
tion strategy is in that culture. Furthermore, different sectors of the tourism, travel and
destination managers should understand that hospitality industry. The Internet made it
a strategy that may work in one culture may possible for travellers to share their experi-
not work in others. Therefore, communica- ences with other travellers through chat
tion strategies and specic communication rooms, discussion forums, third-party
78 D. Gursoy

websites that are designed to allow travellers researchers that travellers knowledge is a
to post their experiences, online booking unidimensional construct that can be easily
engines, etc. These developments are moving measured by counting the number of previ-
in the direction of mash-ups of online and ous trips taken to the destination in question.
ofine information sources, the development What is more, the studies suggest that the
of information highways with several lanes, inuences of familiarity and expertise on
and forcing business to be an active part of travellers utilization of external and/or
the online community by providing relevant internal information sources vary. While
and up-to-date information. These changes travellers highly familiar with a destination
have created a radically different approach to rely heavily on internal information search-
developing and distributing information, dis- ing to make their vacation decisions, travel-
rupting the traditional communication distri- lers who are expert are likely to search for
bution model. They are pushing businesses to information from external information
develop new types of information-oriented sources even though they have more prior
platforms and new kinds of customizable product knowledge about vacation destina-
application environments, and forcing busi- tions than travellers who are familiar with a
nesses to think about massive information destination. The studies reviewed further
distribution in a novel and customized man- suggest that the cost of information searching
ner. Furthermore, the landscape shifts very is likely to mediate the relationship between
quickly, making it difcult to settle on busi- prior knowledge and information search
ness models and interaction paradigms. Even behaviour. An increase in the cost of external
though the Internet is changing the way com- information search is likely to decrease the
panies conduct their businesses and the way level of external search activities, and an
consumers search for information and buy increase in the cost of internal information
products, tourism researchers are not paying search is likely to decrease internal search
much attention to these changes. It is critical activities. The costs of both external and inter-
for companies to understand the why, what, nal information searches are suggested to
when and how of the Internet and the way moderate the effects of the travellers famil-
that travellers utilize it. iarity and expertise, which represent the
traveller s prior knowledge.
Studies suggest that as travellers famil-
Conclusion iarity with a destination increases they are
more likely to make their vacation decisions
This chapter has examined travellers infor- based on what they know about that desti-
mation search behaviour and strategies, and nation (Gursoy, 2001). Whether a traveller
the factors that are likely to inuence external relies solely on internal information search
and internal search strategies. The studies will depend heavily on the perceived ade-
reviewed revealed that the type of informa- quacy or perceived quality of their existing
tion search (internal and/or external) a trav- knowledge. Tourism managers and market-
eller conducts is likely to be inuenced ers should remember that familiarity is a
directly by the perceived cost of an internal measure of subjective knowledge. Subjec-
information search, the perceived cost of an tive knowledge refers to peoples percep-
external information search and the level of tions of what or how much they know about
travellers involvement. The studies also a product or product class (Monroe, 1976;
showed that travellers prior product knowl- Park et al., 1994). Therefore, if a traveller is
edge, the way they learn the information, and condent that s/he knows enough about a
previous visits are likely to have indirect destination, s/he may not utilize any of the
effects on travellers information search available external information sources.
behaviour. They also suggest that travellers Even if a traveller utilizes external informa-
prior product knowledge of a destination has tion sources, this perceived self-condence
two components, familiarity and expertise, as may affect the utilization of those informa-
opposed to the general belief among tourism tion sources (Brucks, 1985). Another factor
Destination Information Search Strategies 79

that is likely to moderate the type and level important for destination marketers to have
of information search activity is the culture an overall picture of how travellers acquire
of the traveller in question. The studies sug- information. It is also important to know the
gest that culture plays a signicant role in major components of the search process and
determining which external information how they t together. With this understand-
sources a traveller utilizes. Therefore, ing, marketers can design communication
understanding the cultural variations in strategies aimed specically at different
each market and revising the communica- stages in the information search process,
tion strategy based on those differences may which will lead to efcient use of resources
prove to be crucial for destinations targeting and more success in attracting tourists to
travellers in international markets. It is their specic destinations.

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6 Experiential Consumption
and Destination Marketing

Andrew R. Walls and Youcheng Wang

Introduction purchased is the right to use the product for a


period of time. This interaction between tour-
The purpose of this chapter is to examine con- ists and the tangible place, as well as the
sumption experiences and the role they play interaction between local inhabitants and fel-
in destination marketing. A proper under- low tourists, provides the core of tourist expe-
standing of consumption experience and des- riences. Tourist interactions, at their core, are
tination marketing is needed to develop and auto-responsive and instinctual (Titz, 2007)
project the right message to the consumer. As and comprise consumer behaviour that can
a result of this relationship, it is argued that relate to cognitive and emotional values
the role of tourism organizations is not only (Sheth et al., 1991; Bitner, 1992; Naylor and
the development and promotion of the desti- Kleiser, 2002). This topic is important because
nation product but also the manufacture of it suggests that before gaining a comprehen-
imagery of tourist experiences, including the sive understanding of consumer behaviour in
indigenous physical and cultural environ- a destination marketing context, it is essential
ment and human interactions with destina- to understand the role of consumption expe-
tion hosts and fellow tourists. riences in order to manage and promote tour-
Tourists, it has been argued, generally ism destinations. Further, it is posited that
possess little direct experience of places meanings associated with a destination are
before their visits, and by the very nature of created from the interaction with the physical
tourism involving travel to a destination, and human connections made at the destina-
they are unable to try or test the destination tion. The strength of those meanings emerges
before purchase. Tourism, like many other from the nature of the interaction between
examples in the service industry, is character- those relationships (Trauer and Ryan, 2005).
ized by purchases of the intangible along The chapter begins by dening the
with heterogeneity and the inseparability of nomenclature associated with consumption
production and consumption (Parasuraman experiences. Particular attention is paid to
et al., 1985). concepts that give support to our understand-
Experiences comprise purchased tangi- ing of consumer experiences and their
ble components such as hotel accommoda- applications to the destination marketing
tion and transportation. However, the eld. The review includes literature on expe-
tangible component is not actually purchased rience or experience dimensions, consump-
in the traditional sense; rather, what is tion and consumer experiences, and perceived
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
82 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Experiential Consumption 83

physical environment and human interaction. and multi-sensory aspects within psychology
Next, in order to simplify the conceptualiza- (Singer, 1966; Swanson, 1978; Hirschman and
tion of the hospitality and destination experi- Holbrook, 1982). Motivation research within
ence, a consumer experience framework is the marketing eld focuses on the emotional
introduced. Following this is a discussion of aspects of products/services, fantasies
destination marketing organizations and the aroused by products (Dichter, 1960; Zajonc,
role that consumption experiences play in the 1980) and product symbolism (Levy, 1959;
nature of destination image. Last, there is a Denzin, 1992). While these studies contributed
summary/conclusion and a discussion on to the paradigm shift and extended the tradi-
directions for future research opportunities. tional methods used in consumer behaviour
research by incorporating more phenomeno-
logical approaches, one of the challenges in
this stream of research is the diverse deni-
Background tions of consumer experience (see Table 6.1).
As demonstrated in Table 6.1, experience
The nature of experience and has been a part of studies spanning many
consumption experiences elds, demonstrating that there is a healthy
and broad application of this concept. From a
There is a plethora of research on experience sociological and psychological perspective,
and consumption experiences in the aca- Maslow (1964) dened peak experiences as
demic literature (e.g. Kaplan, 1987; Edgall those in which the individual transcends
and Hetherington, 1996; Carlson, 1997; Car ordinary reality and perceives being or ulti-
and Cova, 2003; Andersson, 2007; Knutson mate reality; they are short in duration and
et al., 2009). Although the term experience has accompanied by positive affect. Similarly,
existed and gained momentum for nearly Thorne (1963) dened peak experience as
two decades, many different meanings, inter- subjectively recognized to be one of the high
pretations and perceptions of it exist. The points of life, one of the most exciting, rich
concepts of consumer experience and experi- and fullling experiences which the person
ential marketing arose because the traditional has ever had. Peak experience can be
benets and features of marketing no longer contrasted with a nadir experience, which is
effectively met the needs of the consumer subjectively recognized to be one of the
(Schmitt, 1999). This deciency resulted from lowest points of life, one of the worst, most
ve simultaneous developments: (i) the unpleasant and harrowing experiences of life
omnipresence of information technology for (Thorne, 1963, p. 248). From an anthropo-
fuelling innovative experiences; (ii) the super- logical and ethnological perspective, an expe-
iority of the brand; (iii) a demanding con- rience is the way in which culture affects the
sumer base that grew more sophisticated and way an individual receives events into his or
afuent; (iv) an increasingly competitive ser- her consciousness (Car and Cova, 2003).
vices sector; and (v) the ubiquity of integrated Though an experience is perceived according
communications and entertainment (Pine to an individuals perspective, conceptually
and Gilmore, 1998; Schmitt, 1999; Knutson it is distinguishable from an ethnology
et al., 2006). These changes have resulted in an perspective, which involves experiences that
evolving marketplace, as demonstrated by a happen to others, society and the world
wide array of meanings, understandings and (Abrahams, 1986).
applications. Employing an economic and marketing
The theoretical origins of consumer expe- perspective, Schmitt (1999) declared that
rience may be traced back to several experiences are private, personal events that
specialized elds of behavioural science. occur in response to some stimulation and
These elds include cultural industry systems involve the entire being as a result of observ-
(Hirsch, 1972), aesthetics (Jaeger, 1945; Kaplan, ing or participating in an event. He postu-
1987), the psycholinguistics affective response lated that in order to stimulate desired
(Osgood et al., 1957), and fantasy, imagery consumer experiences, marketers must
84 A.R. Walls and Y. Wang

Table 6.1. A summary of denitions of experience.

Author Year Denition

Ray (2008) Experiences interrupt people from their lives and expectations to provide
something of interest that demands attention; experiences themselves
are incredibly involving.
Lashley (2008) Discusses tourism experiences from the perspective of creating hospitable
relationships between the host and guest; these experiences engage
emotions, which is essential to creating a memory.
Titz (2007) No single model of experiential consumption has emerged; experiential
consumption is central to a comprehensive understanding of consumer
behaviour in the hospitality and tourism context.
Mossberg (2007) A blend of many elements coming together and involving the consumer
emotionally, physically, intellectually and spiritually.
Oh, Fiore, and (2007) From a consumer s perspective experiences are enjoyable, engaging,
Jeoung memorable encounters for those consuming these events.
Andersson (2007) The tourist experience is proposed as the moment when tourism
consumption and tourism production meet.
Uriely (2005) The tourist experience is currently depicted as an obscure and diverse
phenomenon, which is mostly constituted by the individual consumer.
Berry, Carbone, (2002) The means of orchestrating all the clues that people detect in the buying
and Haeckel process.
Lewis and (2000) The total outcome to the customer from the combination of environment,
Chambers goods and services purchased.
McLellan (2000) The goal of experience design is to orchestrate experiences that are
functional, purposeful, engaging, compelling and memorable.
Schmitt (1999) Experiences are private events that are not self-generated but rather
occur in response to some staged situation and involve the entire
being.
Gupta and Vajic (1999) An experience occurs when a customer has any sensation or acquisition
of knowledge resulting from some level of interaction with different
elements of a context created by a service provider.
Pine and Gilmore (1998, A distinct economic offering that is as different from services as services
1999) are from goods; successful experiences are those that the customer
nds unique, memorable and sustainable over time, would want to
repeat and build upon and enthusiastically promotes via word of
mouth.
OSullivan and (1998) An experience involves the participation and involvement of the indi-
Spangler vidual in the consumption and the state of being physically, mentally,
emotionally, socially or spiritually engaged.
Carlson (1997) An experience can be dened as a constant ow of thoughts and
feelings that occur during moments of consciousness.
Merriam-Webster (1993) The fact or state of having been affected by or gained knowledge
through a direct observation or participation.
Arnould and Price (1993) Extraordinary experiences are those characterized by high levels of
emotional intensity.
Denzin (1992) Extraordinary experiences rupture routines and life and provoke radical
redenitions of the self. In moments of epiphany, people redene
themselves. Epiphanies are connected to turning-point experiences.
Csikszentmihalyi (1990) Flow is the optimal experience that keeps one motivated. This feeling
often involves painful, risky or difcult efforts that stretch the persons
capacity, as well as an element of novelty and discovery. Flow is an
almost effortless yet highly focused state of consciousness and yet the
descriptions do not vary much by culture, gender or age.

(Continued )
Experiential Consumption 85

Table 6.1. Continued

Author Year Denition

Mannell (1984) An experience, or state of mind, is uniquely individual and it is the quality
rather than the quantity of leisure in our lives that deserves attention.
Hirschman and (1982) Those facets of consumer behaviour that relate to the multi-sensory,
Holbrook fantasy and emotive aspects of ones experience with products.
Maslow (1964) Peak experience is the experience in which the individual transcends
ordinary reality and perceives being or ultimate reality; it is short in
duration and accompanied by positive affect.
Thorne (1963) Peak experience is subjectively recognized to be one of the high points
of life, one of the most exciting, rich and fullling experiences which
the person has ever had; a nadir experience may be described
operationally as a subjective experiencing of what is subjectively
recognized to be one of the lowest points of life, one of the worst, most
unpleasant and harrowing experiences of life.

provide the right setting and environment. intensity is maintained; (iii) a steady level of
Lewis and Chambers (2000) dened con- the hedonic process that continues as long as
sumer experience as the total outcome to the stimulus intensity is maintained; (iv) a peak of
customer from the combination of environ- affective after-reaction, which quickly follows
ment, goods and services purchased (p. 46). stimulus termination and whose quality is
Finally, most researchers attempting to dene hedonically very different from that of the
the experience overlook the operational pat- primary hedonic state; and nally (v) the
terns that are common to many consumer after state in which the experience decays and
experiences. For example, Solomon and Cor- subsequently disappears. This description is
bit (1974) described the standard pattern of helpful in understanding what a person
affective dynamics that can shed light on the undergoes during a prescribed consumer
many empirical commonalities in effective experience: the peak of primary affect reac-
and hedonic experiences. They describe this tion will be less intense, and the peak of affec-
pattern as follows (p. 120): tive after-reaction will be intense and
long-lasting. This concept has sensible appli-
First, following the sudden introduction of
cations to the hospitality and tourism setting.
either a pleasurable or aversive stimulus, an
affective or hedonic reaction begins and In a tourism context, for example, visiting a
quickly rises to a peak. It then slowly luxury oceanfront resort day after day, con-
declines to a steady level where it remains sumers may be less affected by the sights,
if the stimulus quality and intensity is smells, and sounds than they were during
maintained. Then, at the sudden their rst few visits.
termination of the stimulus, the affective An experience or experience dimen-
reaction quickly disappears and gives way sion(s) is a blend of many individual elements
to a qualitatively very different type of that come together that may involve the con-
affective reaction which reaches its own
sumer emotionally, physically, spiritually
peak of intensity and then slowly
and intellectually (Mossberg, 2007). Exam-
disappears with time.
ples of tourist experience dimensions may
According to Solomon and Corbit (1974), include physical surroundings, social sur-
the pattern consists of ve distinctive fea- roundings and other consumers or tourists.
tures: (i) the peak of the primary hedonic pro- Carlson (1997) postulated that an experience
cess or state, precipitated by the stimulus can be characterized as a steady ow of
onset; (ii) a period of hedonic or affective thoughts and feelings that take place during
adaptation during which the intensity of the moments of consciousness regarding experi-
hedonic state declines, even though stimulus ence dimensions. However, a destination
86 A.R. Walls and Y. Wang

cannot grant an experience to the consumer; longer engages in a consumer-related experi-


rather, destinations can only create the envi- ence but, instead, encounters experiences that
ronment and the circumstances in which con- are outside or beyond the market setting
sumers can have an experience. It is the (Car and Cova, 2003).
consumer or tourist who adds the nal link
to the production chain by putting together Consumption experiences
the resources in a consumption experience
that produces the tourism experience (Ander- Due to the broad range of experiences that
sson, 2007). In other words, the experiences tourists encounter when travelling to/from a
that consumers encounter occur inside them- destination, it is posited that tourists
selves, and the outcome or consumption encounter more than market-related experi-
experience depends on how the consumer, ences; rather experiences may include com-
based on a specic situation or state of mind, munal, household, state or citizen, and
reacts to the staged encounter (Csikszentmi- market-related experiences. For example,
halyi, 1990; Pine and Gilmore, 1999; Wang, tourists partaking in local cultural or ritual
2002; Mossberg, 2007). For the purposes of customs results in citizen experiences and
this chapter, when destination marketing these are typically outside market-related
organizations create and choreograph expe- experiences. Consequently, destination mar-
riences for tourists, it is called experiential keters should recognize the diversity of
marketing. experiences that tourists encounter and care-
fully craft their messages accordingly to
include both market- and non-market-related
Experience dened
experiences.
When examining experiences and consump-
tion experiences, it is tempting to consider
only market-related experiences. However, it Consumer experience and destination
is vital to understand that consumption marketing
experiences encompass more than just these
experiences (i.e. experiences linked with In the modern service industry, much atten-
economic transactions). Edgall et al. (1996) tion has been given to creating experiences
outlined four unique consumption experi- for customers. Why is this important for des-
ences. Their typology includes community tination marketing organizations? Some
experiences resulting from reciprocal rela- researchers have argued that, as the economy
tionships with friends or neighbours, house- offers an increasing number of commoditized
hold experiences resulting from obligatory products and services, companies must nd
relations with members of the family, state or new concepts and marketing strategies to dif-
citizen experiences resulting from relation- ferentiate themselves from their respective
ships with other citizens, and market-related competitors (Schwartz, 1990; Pine and Gil-
or consumer experiences resulting from more, 1999; Mossberg, 2007). Destinations are
encounters with businesses and other tour- no different and also have faced commoditi-
ists. They postulated that there is a distinction zation of destination resources. Consumers
between a consumption experience and a want more than the purchase of a product
consumer experience. For example, a com- and a service; they want the experiences, rela-
munal consumption experience involving a tionships and stories behind the transaction
dinner party with friends or fellow tourists is (Carlson, 1997). One way to achieve this is to
a friendship experience even though it is focus on the design and delivery of destina-
linked to the marketplace where the food was tion experiences in an effort to increase cus-
purchased. Similarly, a communal consump- tomer satisfaction and, ultimately, customer
tion experience involving conversation with loyalty.
friends is outside the realm of the market- Pine and Gilmore (1999), in their descrip-
place. Stated differently, if there is no product tion of an emerging experience-based
or service exchange, then the individual no economy, indicated that consumers desire
Experiential Consumption 87

more than just the production, delivery and construct and the cognitive construct. Con-
consumption of products and services; rather, sumers may place a value on their consumer
they seek unique occurrences that accompany experiences based on their cognitive and
products and services in order to create mem- emotive perceptions of their encounters with
orable experiences. Pine and Gilmore (1999) products and services (Mathwick et al., 2001).
argued that businesses must shift their atten- Throughout the consumer experience, con-
tion from a make and inventory goods sumers assess the overall utility of the prod-
economy and a delivery-focused service uct and service based on the perceptions of
economy that emphasizes high-quality prod- what is received and what is given. Con-
ucts and services to an economy that empha- sumer experiences, therefore, may induce
sizes staged experiences that ultimately certain consequences that are reected in con-
create memorable consumption encounters. sumers perceived cognitive and emotive val-
They dene experiences as events that ues. For example, experiences that include
engage individuals in a personal way (p. 12). economic value or efciencies may appeal to
A number of studies have shown that the consumer cognitive values. Likewise, con-
physical environment and human interaction sumer experiences that include positive
dimensions can have an impact on the experi- visual appeal, enjoyment or entertainment
ences of purchasing and consuming products encounters may induce positive emotive
and services in the service industry (Baker, values.
1987; Bitner, 1992; Carbone and Haeckel, Carbone and Haeckel (1994) and Oh et al.
1994; Pullman and Gross, 2004). From a mar- (2007) argued that consumer encounters,
keting services perspective, Mehrabian and good or bad, short or long, always include
Russell (1974) found that consumers have experiences. The consumption experience,
emotional responses to physical environ- however, does not operate in a vacuum and
ments. Kotler (1973) described how the atmo- can be subjected to a number of other factors
sphere of a store is often more important than that may inuence the outcome. For example,
its actual products. Milliman (1986) deter- some economic offerings tend to be more
mined that the consumption behaviours of experience oriented (e.g. cruises or movies),
bar patrons were inuenced by the rhythm and some tend to be less experience oriented
and tempo of music played in the bar. Bitner s (e.g. fast food or car rentals) (OSullivan
(1992) seminal research on servicescapes and Spangler, 1998). Belk (1975), Bitner (1992)
(i.e. the impact of physical surroundings on and Baker (1998), discussed how situational
customers and employees) created a signi- variables and individual characteristics may
cant conceptual typology of environmental affect perceived environmental and human
items that included ambient conditions, space interaction dimensions. In his seminal work,
and function, signs, artefacts, symbols and Belk (1975) discussed how a proper under-
social interactions. Positive consumer experi- standing of situational variables can substan-
ences, according to Pullman and Gross (2004), tially enhance a researcher s ability to explain
may result when employee behaviour is cho- and comprehend consumer behavioural acts.
reographed to identify and connect with Similarly, Bitner (1992) and Baker (1998), in
consumers. their examinations of retail store environ-
Drawing from research on physical envi- ments, found that factors such as consumer
ronmental and human interaction items, goals, product familiarity, whether the con-
other studies have also contributed to a better sumer purchases a good or a service, and
understanding of the consumer behaviour unique individual characteristics can inu-
construct by hypothesizing how these items ence a consumer s interpretation of and reac-
might impact the consumer s perceived val- tion to store-environment cues. According to
ues. For example, the studies of Lavidge and this work, consumer experiences are not uni-
Steiner (1961), Schmitt (1999), Sheth et al. versal among various economic offerings, nor
(1991) and Bitner (1992) determined that con- are they universal among various consumers.
sumer behaviour can be organized into two In addition to the commonly agreed-
broad constructs or dimensions the emotive upon concepts above, a number of areas of
88 A.R. Walls and Y. Wang

dissonance have also emerged. First, Schmitts cues? How does previous product or service
(1999) denition, which posited that experi- usage affect a consumer experience? Would a
ence is not self-generated but, instead, consumer choose to minimize or maximize
occurs in response to some staged event. This his or her experience during a service encoun-
contradicts a number of studies (e.g. Csik- ter? Many studies have assumed that con-
szentmihalyi, 1990; Arnould and Price, 1993) sumer experiences are received and absorbed
indicating that individuals can initiate the similarly by every consumer. In contrast, Rus-
process in which an experience can occur. For sell and Snodgrass (1987) found that some
example, the ow experiences of Csikszent- items may be totally undetectable (e.g. gases,
mihalyi (1990) or the extraordinary experi- chemicals, infrasound) yet profoundly affect
ences of Arnould and Price (1993) would not individuals, especially employees who spend
occur if the individual did not intentionally long hours in one environment.
partake in the occurrence in the rst place. Consumer experiences are commonly
These ideas do not, however, preclude the dened as orchestrated or staged (e.g. Pine
possibility of an experience occurring when and Gilmore, 1998; Schmitt, 1999) by an out-
an individual unintentionally encounters an side entity (i.e. people or businesses). Few
unexpected event, such as walking past a studies, however, have addressed the fact
quartet of chamber musicians on the streets of that experiences can exist only when consum-
Paris. Consequently, the literature is unclear. ers consume or participate in events, and that
Are experiences self-generated (i.e. can con- they must be willing and able to participate.
sumers control/choose whether they will Further, it is important to examine whether
have experiences or not), or are consumers experiences can occur without an orches-
blindly enrolled in experiences as they unfold trated or staged event. For example, a visit to
in front of them? This chapter proposes that the ocean is commonly believed to affect peo-
an experience can occur only when a con- ple emotionally, physically, intellectually and
sumer is willing and able to participate in that spiritually. Therefore, by denition (e.g.
experience. For example, an unwilling con- Hirschman and Holbrook, 1982; Csikszentmi-
sumer seeking a coffee to go (take away) in halyi, 1990; Arnould and Price, 1993;
the concierge lounge of a luxury hotel may OSullivan and Spangler, 1998; Mossberg,
choose to make his or her own coffee and 2007), this should be an experience, even
minimize or forgo the staged human interac- though it is not staged or orchestrated.
tion, and downplay or ignore the environ- Though the idea of consumer experience
mental cues. Conversely, a consumer who is is still emerging, this literature review illus-
on a leisure holiday may be more willing trates the considered views of what an experi-
and open to an experience and opt to savour ence is and how it might affect the consumer
a cup of coffee and examine and enjoy the and the consumption process. Many deni-
environment as he or she consumes the tional interpretations hinder a deeper under-
product. Regardless, each consumer, depend- standing of this concept. Because of this variety
ing on circumstances and individual charac- of denitions and views of consumer experi-
teristics, will determine his or her own ence, it is difcult for both researchers and
willingness and capability for the experience. practitioners to agree completely regarding
Secondly, Berry et al. (2002) dened expe- this concept. Although the diversity of deni-
riences as orchestrated cues that people tions and perspectives results in an interesting
detect. This raises the question of whether all and varied exchange, a precise conceptualiza-
consumers recognize orchestrated cues and tion of experience is difcult to nd.
whether consumers are affected equally by
every consumer experience. For example,
during a destination arrival or hotel check-in, A Framework for Tourism Experience
is it conceivable that two different customers,
undergoing nearly identical staged experi- Based on the above discussion, a framework
ences, can interpret and react to the same cues (Fig. 6.1) is proposed to depict the composi-
differently? Do all consumers detect the same tion of the tourism experience in a destination
Experiential Consumption 89

marketing context. It is posited that the core emotional/human interaction dimensions.


consumer experience comprises two axes The purpose of this connection is to foster
representing four components: ordinary, the customer s awareness or interest in order
extraordinary, cognitive and emotive. On the to create a meaningful and fullling con-
peripheral of the customer experience are a sumption/transaction experience that will
number of factors that have an impact on inuence perceived consumption values, sat-
customer experiences. It is further posited isfaction and repeat patronage. A customer
that customer experiences do not operate in a experience is the multidimensional take-
vacuum, void of external or internal effects, away impression or outcome, based on the
but are unique for each tourist. These inu- customer s willingness and capacity to be
encing factors may include: perceived physi- affected and inuenced by physical and/or
cal experience elements, perceived human human interaction dimensions, and to be
interaction elements, individual characteris- formed by peoples encounters with prod-
tics and situational factors. As depicted in ucts, services and businesses inuencing
Fig. 6.1, it is proposed that external factors consumption values (emotive and cognitive),
will play a diverse and ever-changing role as satisfaction and repeat patronage in relation
consumer experiences transpire. Each factor to the destination.
may have a modest or signicant impact
on the consumer experience components,
making each individual tourists experience
distinctively unique. Ordinaryextraordinary experience
The framework is based on incorporat-
ing both business and consumer perspectives The rst (ordinaryextraordinary) axis of
of experience. A destination attempts to con- experience represents the range of experiences
nect with a consumer by creating and choreo- from ordinary to extraordinary. Customer
graphing experiences for consumers via experiences are events or occurrences that
physical environment dimensions and/or happen outside the daily routine experience.

Individual
characteristics

Extraordinary Emotive
(subjective)

Human
interaction Consumer Situational
elements experience factors

Cognitive
(objective) Ordinary

Physical experience
elements

Fig. 6.1. A framework for tourism experiences.


90 A.R. Walls and Y. Wang

At the highest level, they are peak or transfor- encounters when buying a rental car or taxi
mative experiences (Smith, 1978; Cohen, service tend to be more product oriented in
1979). The qualitative work of Arnould and and of themselves (features and benets),
Price (1993) on a river rafting trip described while taking a cruise vacation is more experi-
deeply intense and positive experiences that ence oriented. Therefore, it is proposed that
provide life with meaning and perspective, or hospitality and tourism experiences range on
what they call extraordinary experiences. a continuum between ordinary and extraor-
Their work has inspired other researchers to dinary depending on the product or service.
move away from mere experiences to a new However, as explained later, even ordinary
realm of immersed, optimal, extraordi- or daily experiences can become peak or
nary, or ow experiences. These four analo- transforming experiences if inuenced by or
gous terms perhaps were conceptualized combined with appropriate physical experi-
originally by the work of Maslow (1964), in ence and/or human interaction factors. For
which he referred to peak experiences as sim- example, a father and daughter taking a walk
ilar to religious ecstasy, and the use of such at home may be an ordinary experience but
terms has gained momentum as researchers walking together through one of Californias
and marketers have run with the idea that redwood forests may prove to be an extra-
consumers want intense, positive experiences ordinary experience.
that ultimately provide meaning and per-
spective to their lives (Arnould and Price,
1993). Abrahams (1986) further developed
this concept, and differentiated between ordi- Cognitiveemotive experience
nary experience (i.e. everyday life, routines
and acceptance of events) and extraordinary The internal response is represented by the
experience (i.e. total immersion or ow expe- second event axis, demonstrating the range of
rience). Car and Cova (2003) consistently, experiences from cognitive (objective) to emo-
differentiated between ordinary and extraor- tive (subjective) experiences. This component
dinary experiences, with the latter being the signies that individuals can initiate the pro-
desired goal of those in the hospitality and cess in which an experience can occur. For
tourist industry. example, the ow experiences Csikszent-
Many researchers have agreed that con- mihalyi (1990) or the extraordinary experi-
sumers notice a perceived difference between ences of Arnould and Price (1993) would not
everyday or routine experiences and leisure occur if the individual did not intentionally
or tourism experiences (Boorstin, 1961; Mac- have them in the rst place. This does not,
Cannell, 1973; Smith, 1978; Cohen, 1979; however, preclude the notion that an
Quan and Wang, 2004; Uriely, 2005). The experience can occur by happenstance, but it is
tourism experience includes both peak postulated that the experience is self-generated
(extraordinary) and supporting daily experi- and that the consumer can control or choose
ences, such as sleeping, eating and playing whether he will have an experience or not
(McCabe, 2002), and can occur on a (including negative experiences). Conse-
continuum ranging from ordinary or daily to quently, all people are not equally affected by
transformative or epiphanic depending on every consumer experience, which contradicts
the product or service (OSullivan and Span- the denition of experiences given by Berry et
gler, 1998; Day, 2000; Quan and Wang, 2004). al. (2002) as orchestrated clues that all people
These experiences can range from exciting detect. To use an example already discussed,
positive experiences to unpleasant negative during a hotel check-in, it is conceivable that
experiences. The customer must not only be two different customers having nearly the
willing and able to receive an experience, same staged experience can have a different
as mentioned above, but the product or experience in their interpretation and reaction
service category may also lend itself to to the same clues. Therefore, it is assumed that
certain types of expected and delivered expe- consumer experiences are received and
rience dimensions. For example, experience absorbed dissimilarly by different people.
Experiential Consumption 91

Carlson (1997) proposed that an experi- witnessed in general consumer products, but
ence can be characterized as a steady ow of also can embody the perception formed when
thoughts (cognitive) and feelings (emotive) consumers coalesce the sensory information
that take place during moments of conscious- (sight, smell, touch, taste, hearing) formed by
ness regarding experience elements. Car consumers encounters with business prod-
and Cova (2003) suggested that an experience ucts and services (Carbone and Haeckel,
is an activity containing both cognitive and 1994). These intrinsically emotional and per-
subjective processes that allow an individual sonal experiences, however, are inuenced by
to develop a means to construct reality. Simi- factors that are out of the control of manage-
larly, Oh et al. (2007) insisted that hospitality ment (Pullman and Gross, 2004). These factors
and tourist settings are satiated with may include multi-sensory physical experi-
experiences that include both cognitive and ences, human interactions, cultural back-
emotional components. Earlier research grounds and personality traits, and other
investigated the following general types of situational factors (Belk, 1975; Hirschman and
experiences: the epiphanic experience Holbrook, 1982; Bitner, 1992; Schmitt and
(Denzin, 1992), the ow experience Simonson, 1997; Schmitt, 1999).
(Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) and the extraordi- The work of Domenico and Lynch (2007)
nary experience (Arnould and Price, 1993). entitled Commercial Home Enterprises found
These experiences, whether ordinary or that participants are not mere bystanders, nor
extraordinary, transform lives and contain are the physical environment and human
processes that allow an individual to develop interactions static. Rather, the consumer expe-
a means to construct reality (Car and Cova, rience is multidimensional and evolving, with
2003). Regardless of ones academic eld or often spontaneous interaction between the
industrial perspective, experiences employ a physical environment dimension and the
unique combination of cognitive and emotive human dimension consisting of the hosts and
processes (Abrahams, 1986; Csikszent- guests. In other words, the staged situation or
mihalyi, 1990; Denzin, 1992; Arnould and environment involves physical dimensions
Price, 1993; Car and Cova, 2003). It is postu- that affect the ve senses of consumers. Bitner
lated, for example, that a business executive (1992) directed organizations to think in terms
who checks in to a resort hotel for business of environmental dimensions, participant-
purposes may cognitively limit the experi- mediating or internal responses (cognitive,
ences in order to achieve her stay goals. emotional and physiological), and employee
However, the same executive traveling on and customer behaviours that result in express-
her honeymoon may cognitively maximize ing commitment, loyalty, spending money and
(choose to engage) the experiences owing to extending stays. That is, consumers who wil-
the purpose of the trip. fully involve themselves in positive physical
and relational aspects of their consumer expe-
riences are more inclined to engage in positive
emotion and behavioural outcomes.
Physical experience and human Businesses, in an effort to have an impact
interaction factors on the consumer, stage and enhance the phys-
ical environment in order to appeal to the ve
Hospitality and tourism companies can senses of that consumer and create a physi-
enhance consumers experiences through cally appropriate environment that meets
managing physical and human interaction their marketing objectives. These elements
elements. Bitner (1992) argued that environ- may, for example, include items such as a
mental and internal responses (cognitive, fresh-smelling hotel environment, warm and
emotional and physiological) had a direct welcoming colour schemes, and a properly
impact on consumer and employee experi- designed environment that is both practical
ences, resulting in higher levels of satisfaction. and visually appealing. Businesses also may
Consumer experiences are not necessarily enhance human interaction experience ele-
related only to the tangible items usually ments by training employees and targeting a
92 A.R. Walls and Y. Wang

specic type of consumer in order to create a multidimensional construct comprising a


socially engaging and appropriate environ- number of external and internal factors that
ment. These elements may include employee shape and inuence consumer experiences,
behaviours such as wearing sharp uniforms, which can exist only if the participating con-
having a good body posture, making eye con- sumer is willing and able to participate.
tact and smiling at customers. Experiences
also may be affected by consumer interac-
tions with other guests, which may include
the expected behaviour of fellow guests or Tourism Experience Applications
visitors, respect of personal space or socio-
economic expectations. Destination tourism activities and objects, by
their very nature, are experience based.
Because the tourist experience occurs within an
individual and is a blend of many individual
Individual characteristics and situational elements, no two individuals will have the
factors same experience because experience elements
are interpreted individually. A tourist experi-
The last two elements, situational factors and ence is not necessarily related only to the tan-
individual characteristics, are usually outside gible items usually witnessed in general
the control of the business entity. The con- consumer products; instead, the tourist expe-
sumer experience may vary because not all rience is referred to as the total combination
tourism products and services at a destina- of goods, services and the environment that is
tion are created or performed equally. Conse- purchased and/or experienced (Lewis and
quently, the consumer experience in a Chambers, 2000). It can also embody the per-
destination context is not conned to one ception formed when consumers coalesce the
type of transaction or response but is affected sensory information formed by their encoun-
by the type and stage of consumption experi- ters with business products and services
ence and also by the characteristics of the (Carbone and Haeckel, 1994). These charac-
individual. Likewise, consumer experiences teristics make tourist experiences distinc-
could conceivably be very different if their tively unique and powerful.
reactions to a fast food experience and a lux- As already noted, Domenico and Lynch
ury cruise ship experience are compared. (2007) found that participants are not mere
Day (2000) and OSullivan and Spangler bystanders, nor are the physical environment
(1998) referred to a transaction or experience and human interactions static. Rather, the tour-
spectrum wherein the product/service and ist experience is multidimensional and evolv-
the consumer determine the type and degree ing, often spontaneous interaction between the
of consumer experience encountered. This physical environment dimension and the
can be due to each consumer s individual human dimension consisting of the hosts and
characteristics and to situational factors. The guests. These results are very much in line with
situational factors such as trip-related char- Urielys (2005) description of the tourist experi-
acteristics in a tourism context often inu- ence. His description includes: (i) the distinc-
ence the nature of the trip. These factors tiveness of tourism from everyday life; (ii) the
include the purpose of trip, travel compan- tourism hospitality experience, which includes
ions and the nature of destination, all of a multiplicity of interacting dimensions; (iii) a
which inuence the traveller s willingness to shift from statically displayed items to subjec-
recognize staged experience elements. Like- tive interpretations of physical and human
wise, individual characteristics, such as dimensions; and (iv) consumer experiences
personality type and sensitivity to the envi- that tend to be relative and not absolute. As
ronment, also may inuence the traveller s destinations engage tourists on a multiplicity
willingness or ability to recognize staged of levels, including emotional, physical, intel-
experience elements. Therefore, the hospitality lectual, spiritual and memorable, it makes
and tourism consumer experience is a sense to focus on these areas and to recognize
Experiential Consumption 93

that the tourist is an active participant engaged how these two destinations provide an envi-
in his or her own production of the consump- ronment that creates enduring and memorable
tion experience. consumption experiences. In both campaigns,
It has been demonstrated above that the the message focuses on the personal connec-
consuming tourist is a complex being who, tions and emotions resulting from the destina-
for example, seeks more than good deals but, tions distinct offerings. The visual images
in preference, to varying degrees, seeks both show how people being together (e.g. father
cognitive and emotive connections through and son, sisters and brothers, friends) are
the physical environment and human interac- enjoying the unique features of the destina-
tions. In addition, it has been recognized that tions. For example, one Orlando Convention &
tourists are actively involved in the produc- Visitors Bureau (CVB) video clip shows a
tion of their own experiences (Domenico and happy little girl swimming in a pool. The cap-
Lynch, 2007; Hosany and Gilbert, 2009). Some tion reads today with dad and then tomor-
researchers have even gone so far as to sug- row with dolphins, the former referring to
gest that the quality of experience is based spending time with family and the latter refer-
primarily on the intimacies that exist between ring to family time in dolphin encounter at
people at that place, especially those existing Orlandos SeaWorld or Discovery Cove.
between visitors (Trauer and Ryan, 2005, Joe Terzi, interim president and CEO of
p. 481) and that the location is secondary. the San Diego CVB, stated (Polikarpov, 2009):
Consequently, the destination provides
meanings as a contextual backdrop to the Our new branding platform reects our
evolving relationships that occur between fel- regions unique ability to elevate our
visitors moods and positive outlook.
low tourists and indigenous peoples.
Happy Happens has the power to deliver
Accordingly, destination resources, by greater destination demand as it taps into
their very nature, offer a multitude of envi- and delivers on a national trend of what
ronmental and social contexts in which to travelers and meeting delegates are looking
engage the individual tourist. These encoun- for in a visitor experience namely, a
ters, by engaging tourists on a physical and positive outlook.
human level, can create an enduring and
memorable connection. If these resources are The Orlando CVB also tapped into this
recognized for their potential, and marketed theme with its Orlando Makes Me Smile
in a positive and respectful manner (in order campaign. This marketing effort was
to preserve the dignity of the destination), designed to utilize the destination environ-
then a destination can embark upon a sus- ment and interpersonal relationships to
tainable competitive journey. encourage memorable moments that may
The advertising campaigns of two Califor- lead to deepened personal relationships for
nian destination marketing organizations, the visitors (Martin, 2008).
San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureaus Orlando Makes Me Smile is a campaign
Happy Happens and the Orlando/Orange that is all about the fostering of these
County Convention & Visitors Bureaus Makes relationships and the joyful experiences
Me Smile (see Figs 6.2 and 6.3) demonstrate that can be found in Orlando. The popular

A4-

Fig. 6.2. San Diegos 2009 Happy Happens campaign image (Used with permission from the San
Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc.).
94 A.R. Walls and Y. Wang

6or
Gotting away at
gro.t pnco r AA&N 0' G.lbrig

,to my husband

.1

ORLAND
SPWW ftm loggew MW x0drs.4"o
KS ME SMILE'
Won 11. W:- sn." G. to V,40 .. 0.'F.A-N
do com FS00"M dsommft m "wt.

VisdOrlando.com/Fal*eals

Fig. 6.3. Orlandos 2009 Makes Me Smile campaign image (Used with permission from the Orlando/
Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc.).

destinations many attractions and instance, that evolves into the lasting impres-
entertainment options bring about the most sion. For example, it is not solely the ocean,
endearing and universal sign of happiness, mountains or Pacic breezes that make Hawaii
the smile, which is the focal point of the a worthy destination in and of itself; rather, it
campaign. From the rst moment of
is the evolving relationships or personal dis-
planning an Orlando vacation to the lasting
memories that follow, visitors are brought
coveries that occur while discovering these
closer to one another. destination treasures that create memorable
and sustainable destination experiences. Con-
These two examples provide an excellent sequently, the destination provides meanings
demonstration of the understanding of tourist as a contextual backdrop to the evolving rela-
experiences. In both campaigns, the destina- tionships that occur between fellow tourists
tion provided meaning as the contextual set- and indigenous peoples.
ting for the evolving relationships that occur.
This demonstrates the perspective advanced
by Trauer and Ryan (2005) that the quality of
the consumption experience is in the intima- Conclusions and Implications
cies between people, followed by the location.
In other words, it is the shared consumption The purpose of this chapter has been to exam-
experiences between people spending time at ine consumption experiences and the role
a destination in San Diego or Orlando, for they play in destination marketing. It has
Experiential Consumption 95

been determined that consumption experi- relationships. Recent literature has shown a
ences comprise a complex, multidimensional shift from destination image to destination
construct that lends itself to a better under- branding (e.g. Trauer and Ryan, 2005), but
standing of consumer behaviour. The tourism marketers should also monitor and integrate
experience is rich in terms of the experience- tourists consumption experiences into their
scape (i.e. physical environment, human campaigns. This, in turn, will allow destina-
interaction, cognition and emotion) and tions to better meet the needs of tourists,
tourists are actively engaged in the produc- resulting in satised guests and intention-to-
tion of their own consumption experiences. recommend behaviours.
Having an understanding of this and of how
tourists can benet from emotional connec-
tions in particular will allow destination
marketing organizations to formulate appro- Directions for Future Research
priate marketing strategies (segmentation,
positioning and communication) (Hosany As noted above, the main objective of this
and Gilbert, 2009). chapter was to examine the concept of con-
The chapter has looked at the composi- sumption experiences and the role they play
tion of consumption experiences and found in tourist destination marketing. Though
that they involve both the physical environ- careful attention was paid to dening the
ment and human interaction dimensions. tourist experience, it was assumed that all
The individual elements may involve the encountered items carried equal weight in the
tourist emotionally, physically and intellec- guests minds. Further research could be con-
tually. Interpersonal connections are created ducted to determine whether these items are
within the destination through interaction indeed equally experience enhancing, and
with locals, and second, relationships and whether the use of a weighting system could
meaning associated with the destination be employed in which guests would weigh
emerge from the nature of the interaction how important each item is to their experi-
between the visitors and the people at the ence. For example, do some destination attri-
destination (Trauer and Ryan, 2005). This is butes (e.g. endowed versus created resources)
particularly true when the interpersonal rela- lend themselves to more memorable and sus-
tionships are meaningful. However, a con- tainable destination experiences than others?
sumption experience does not just happen This would provide important managerial
because one is at a destination; instead, desti- implications as to where to focus limited
nations can only create the environment and resources in order to create the most positive
the circumstances in which consumers could destination experiences.
have an experience. Previous research in the retail and con-
From a practical standpoint, tourism sumer behaviour elds (e.g. Bitner, 1992; Car-
providers, such as destination marketing bone and Haeckel, 1994; Baker et al., 2002) has
organizations, travel agents and tour opera- indicated that there is a direct link between a
tors, should attempt to engineer positive positive physical environment and friendly
encounters through the promotion of positive human encounters, and customer satisfaction
emotions through creative imagery and pro- and loyalty. It would be interesting to exam-
motional videos. It is no longer sufcient to ine if this link exists in a tourism setting as
promote destination image alone, especially well. For example, will consumers be more
amid the intense competition among destina- satised and loyal if the destination environ-
tions. Therefore, the relationship between ment is physically appealing and the local
consumption experiences and destination citizens generate positive encounters? Intui-
marketing organizations is necessary to not tively, the answer would be yes, but which
only develop and promote the destination factors have the most inuence on satisfac-
but also to recognize the emotionally driven tion and loyalty?
tourist who is interested in nding a destina- From a managerial point of view, it
tion to discover or to enhance important would be interesting to investigate destination
96 A.R. Walls and Y. Wang

marketing managers perspectives of tourists Finally, this study makes little mention of
stay experiences. Are there differences in the impact of marketing or brand initiatives
what destination marketing managers believe and brand equity. For example, what impact do
are important guest experiences compared brand initiatives have on tourists experiences?
with what the guests say are important stay It would be interesting to investigate the impact
experiences? Finding potential gaps or incon- of well-known brands (e.g. Las Vegas) com-
gruences may prove useful for proactive des- pared with those of lesser known brands (e.g.
tinations looking to understand and enhance Reno) to determine whether tourists perceive
tourist experiences. their destination stay experiences differently.

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7 Destination Marketing Research:
Issues and Challenges

Muzaffer Uysal, Rich Harrill and Eunju Woo

Introduction point of view. The following section briey


discusses the tourism system, the phases of
This chapter examines destination marketing travel experience and the new value chain.
research and its attendant issues. It briey An understanding of the elements of the fully
covers the tourism system and phases of functioning tourism system is a prerequisite
travel experience to provide a framework of for identifying and understanding appropri-
departure for identifying destination market- ate and timely research issues and concerns.
ing research issues, and then focuses on Such comprehension can enable destination
destination marketing research itself. The managers to better allocate their limited
chapter concludes by discussing challenges resources to maintain a sustainable competi-
to destination marketing research. tive edge in the marketplace.
Tourism takes place in destinations, and
individuals travel to destinations to visit
attractions, to participate in leisure activities The Tourism System
and to form vacation experiences resulting
from their interactions in the places they visit. Several scholars have proposed models of the
Over time, destinations also go through differ- tourism system (Leiper, 1979; Mill and Mor-
ent cycles of development, and consequently rison, 1985; Gunn 1988). However, the essence
the nature of their appeal and their markets of all those models is that the tourism system
may change. Places whether a city, state, consists of an origin and a destination. An
county or region in a given country may have origin represents the demand side of tourism,
the desire and marketing goal to become a the source of visitors. A destination, on the
popular destination. To become such a recog- other hand, refers to the supply side of tour-
nized destination presents a difcult market- ism, part of the system with drawing power
ing challenge. To maintain a sustained positive tourism activities meeting the needs of visi-
image in the minds of visitors may prove tors and creating a total vacation experience
even more difcult. Small states and island of the place. Tourists, service providers and
nations may have to deal with different chal- tourism attractions are the central aspects of
lenges from those faced by big destinations. the system. The transportation and informa-
To fully understand the issues that sur- tion (marketing) components are linkages
round destination marketing and research, one that enable the tourist to decide where to go,
needs to examine tourism from a systems how long to stay and what to do. These
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 99
100 M. Uysal et al.

linkages, however, also enable the industry constitute their main reasons for travel. There-
through promotion, product development fore, the elements of tourism supply resources
and pricing strategies to directly affect the are not mutually exclusive, but rather are com-
decisions of prospective customers (Fesen- plementary. Each element of supply resources
maier and Uysal, 1990; Uysal, 1998, Sirakaya is of great importance in creating and con-
and Woodside, 2005). The interaction between suming tourism experiences. To fully under-
demand and supply is reciprocal and affects stand how supply elements respond to demand,
the creation of a total vacation experience destinations must generate and maintain data
in which the simultaneous production and and information on the elements of supply
consumption of goods and services take resources.
place.
Travellers shape attractions and services
by being in the particular destination for Phases of travel experience
some period of time. The amount and quality
of time spent at a destination affect ones vaca- An important explicit and implicit assump-
tion experience and service encounter greatly. tion of the fully functioning tourism system
The very existence of tourism and sustained and phases of travel experience is that travel-
competitiveness depends on the availability lers usually go through different phases of
of resources and the degree to which these decision making as they consider factors
resources are bundled to meet visitor expecta- likely to inuence the vacation decision. At
tions and needs at the destination. The resources the individual level, the operation of the tour-
that typically attract tourists are numerous and ism system must be tied to the different
varied in distribution and degree of develop- phases of tourism/travel experience. Claw-
ment, and in the extent to which they are son and Knetsch (1971) provide ve phases of
known to the tourist market (Pearce, 1987). a travel experience: pre-trip (planning and
On the market side, producers of transport, information gathering), travel to site, on-site
accommodation, and catering and entertain- activities, return trip and post-trip (Fig. 7.1).
ment services are involved with travel mar- Interactions between the traveller and the ser-
keting intermediaries such as tour operators vice provider (the industry) may occur with
and travel agents. On the supply side, leisure each phase of travel. Pre-trip activities may
and recreational activities at destinations are include nding motivation for the trip, search-
the concern of diverse tourism suppliers, ing for trip-relevant information, making pre-
including local and state agencies, private busi- trip arrangements, and so on. Next, tourists
ness owners, tourism destination organizations use some form of transportation en route to
(DMOs), and the providers of infrastructure the selected travel destination. Often, tourists
and other supporting services of tourism. turn to travel and tourism service providers
The supply side of tourism can be divided (e.g. airlines and bus companies) to help them
into three elements: tourism-oriented prod- reach their destination. Subsequently, when
ucts, resident-oriented products and back- tourists reach their destinations, they often rely
ground tourism elements (Jafari, 1982, 1983). on travel/tourism service providers to supply
Tourism-oriented products include accom- the accommodation, restaurants, entertain-
modation, food services, transportation, travel ment and encounters of the traveller at the
agencies and tour operators, recreation and nal destination. Then, tourists make their
entertainment, and other travel trade ser- return trip, during which they may interact
vices. As tourists extend their stays at desti- with travel carriers and personnel. After the
nation sites, they may increase their use of travel experience is over and the travellers
resident-oriented products, which include have returned to their homes, they often
hospitals, bookshops, barber shops, and so reect upon their trip experiences (Neal et al.,
forth. When utilizing the products, tourists 1998). Destination marketers should be aware
are also exposed to or experience background of the travel experience phases so that they
tourism elements such as natural, sociocul- can create value and also provide information
tural and man-made attractions that frequently and services as needed.
Destination Marketing Research 101

Post-trip Return

Origin Destination
The linkage

On site
Pre-trip

Travel to site

Fig. 7.1. The phases of travel experience.

The new value chain vacation experiences and demand for travel?
Marketing and research efforts of destinations
The different phases of a travel experience by different organizations, including partner-
also imply that it is not only possible but also ship between the public and private sectors,
feasible to create value-added dimensions at should be geared towards the creation of val-
any point of the process. It is important for ues to potential visitors at any point of the
destinations to know that the phases of the ve phases of vacation experience. Today, the
process can act as sources of revenue genera- use of information technology can make
tion, satisfaction and dissonance. The simul- value creation easier, linking the tourism
taneous production and consumption of most product and the consumer in real time and, as
tourism services adds a unique challenge to a consequence, limiting the time devoted to
the creation of customer values. Creation of planning and logistics and creating more time
customer values in tourism can occur through- for relaxation and leisure. The nature of tour-
out the different phases of the travel experi- ism as a system makes it ideally suited to the
ence, ranging from the pre-trip planning and increasing applications of information tech-
anticipation stage, to on-site experience, to nology in destination marketing (Buhalis,
the post-trip reective stage. Braithwaite 2004; Mistilis and Daniele, 2005). The new
(1992) discusses the importance of value cre- value chain then combines the functioning
ations in relation to information technology. tourism systems where the linkage takes on a
He presents a framework called the value new meaning and becomes knowledge facili-
chain that stretches across the different sub- tators (Fig. 7.2). As a result of the structural
sectors of the travel and tourism industry. and functional linkage, destination suppliers
Each link on the value chain represents an can have both direct and indirect lines of
experience point. The value that each experi- access to their potential customers. The digi-
ence or travel phase creates may range from tal linkage allows destination promoters to
high, to moderate, to low. Each point has have control over the amount and content of
the potential to produce value for the cus- information to be delivered at desired inter-
tomer. Each offering of service-oriented tech- vals (Palmer and McCole, 2000).
nology may affect the value that a customer As seen from the nature of the tourism
receives at one or more experience points. system, a destination manager or decision
The question is then, how do destina- maker has numerous, valuable research items
tions inuence the phases or processes of from which to choose. The main challenge is
102 M. Uysal et al.

Services/
experiences Value
Customers Origin

Knowledge The linkage


facilitators

Destination
Suppliers

Fig. 7.2. The new value chain in the travel and tourism industry.

to fully understand and appreciate how the changes to provide goods and services that
tourism system works in relation to sustain- will create extraordinary and memorable
ing the systems functions and elements. experiences for visitors. So destinations have
a signicant role in stimulating and creating
demand, and need to know whether their
Destination Marketing Research marketing and management efforts are reach-
ing their target markets and whether their
We have now discussed the elements of the targeted customers are responding in the
tourism system and the phases of the travel desired way (Fyall and Leask, 2006). Without
experience, and can focus more on destina- research, destinations will not have the neces-
tion marketing research. The major goal of sary knowledge to have meaningful online
destination marketing research is to under- presence, position themselves strategically
stand the nature of the interaction between and compete effectively in the leisure travel
visitors and tourism providers at the destina- market.
tion. This interaction naturally represents both To fully understand destination market-
the demand and supply sides of tourism. In ing research, one has to know something about
todays highly competitive leisure travel mar- destination marketing. Wahab et al. (1976)
ket, the need for accurate, timely and relevant provided one of the commonly cited denitions
information is essential for both emerging of destination marketing in the 1970s. They
and established destinations to stay competi- dened destination marketing as the man-
tive and also increase their share of the leisure agement process through which the National
travel market (Mihalic, 2000; Enright and Tourists Organizations and/or tourist enter-
Newton, 2004; Kayar and Kozak, 2010). Under prises identify their selected tourists, actual
resource constraints, destinations will con- and potential, communicate with them to
tinue to rely on research that will help them to ascertain and inuence their wishes, needs,
utilize their limited resources efciently and motivations, likes and dislikes, on local,
effectively to meet and serve the ever-changing regional, national and international levels and
needs of visitors. As the expectations of visi- to formulate and adapt their tourist products
tors change and further specialization occurs accordingly in view of achieving optimal
in the leisure market, destinations will have tourists satisfaction thereby fullling their
to realign themselves with these trends and objectives (p. 24). Since then, a signicant
Destination Marketing Research 103

number of books have been written on mar- continuous, requiring constant support from
keting tourism goods and services, and most everyone involved; and in an increasingly
of them have echoed a similar denition of competitive tourism industry with newly
destination marketing (Gartrell, 1994; Morri- emerging places as destinations a key chal-
son, 2002; Pike, 2008). Destination marketing lenge for destination marketers is to blunt,
is then an amalgamation of individual or col- mufe or replace the message of the competi-
lective efforts and activities created to form a tion brand and attract the attention of travel-
total experience of a visited place (Murphy lers (Pike and Lyan, 2004).
et al., 2000). The main goal of destination marketing
The focus of destination marketing has research, then, is twofold: (i) to increase
shifted away from primarily concentrating on demand for the destination while maintaining
a place as a destination to a focus that includes a sustainable competitive edge in the minds
both the setting and how visitor experiences of actual and potential visitors; and (ii) to
are created and formed with that setting. Thus, facilitate effective destination management.
destination marketing has become an integral Thus, the prime function of destination mar-
part of developing and retaining the essence keting research is that it provides information
of the tourism macro-product (Vukonic, 1997) and intelligence that improve the effective-
and a level of sustained competitiveness ness of the decision-making process in the
(Richie and Crouch, 2000). Todays destina- desired direction of destination marketing
tion marketing and its product are, therefore, and management goals and objectives consis-
not necessarily conned to a physical place as tent with the overall strategy of the place as a
a destination. However, the challenge remains destination. The fully functioning tourism sys-
as to how and to what extent tourism market- tem should be the frame and source of refer-
ing can be a tool for destination management ence from which the research agenda emerges.
(Blumberg, 2005).

The destination marketing


Importance of destination research process
marketing research
A generic research process is often presented
The activities of destination marketing efforts and explained in the literature as a linear and
naturally form the content of research activi- sequential. For the sake of simplicity, we
ties to the extent that destinations need to follow a process proposed by Destination
understand the market dynamics and adapt Marketing Association International (Harrill,
their offerings to market needs and expecta- 2005) and briey explain each of the steps
tions. Understanding the dynamics of the involved. The process consists of the follow-
marketplace is essential for managing a desti- ing seven steps.
nation and creating a total experience of the
place. Hence, destination marketing research IDENTIFY THE ELEMENTS OF A DESTINATIONS
may cover almost any exploratory effort by APPEAL The most important parts of a des-
any organization to understand the market, tinations appeal are those elements that
promote the place, or enhance and augment the create a deep emotional or psychological
existing tourism goods and services through response in visitors. For example, many desti-
positioning strategies that support the sus- nations now have identied heritage tourism,
tainability of tourism business. The research cultural tourism and nature-based tourism as
process also involves collecting data and gen- potential lucrative markets. In fact, many des-
erating information. Using this intelligence we tination brands use the adjectives historic or
can answer research questions and identify natural so frequently that the marketplace
effective solutions to destination problems and has become overcrowded with these brand
concerns. In todays highly competitive tour- descriptors. In a highly competitive market-
ism market, destination marketing research is place, destinations should also evoke emotions
104 M. Uysal et al.

and feelings such as romance, adventure, and (iii) the economic potential of the asset or
mystery or spirituality. A destination can attraction. Overall visitor experiences, good
carefully combine these elements to produce or bad, can be effectively evaluated using
a total vacation experience and a compelling simple scaled surveys, individual interviews
brand associated with it. However, it is worth or focus groups. With this basic, external infor-
emphasizing great destinations offer great mation, a destination can begin an internal
experiences that transcend a mere list of attrac- discussion about branding and marketing.
tions and attributes. Destination marketing
researchers have a host of both quantitative DEVELOP OR ENCOURAGE DESIRED ATTRACTIONS AND
and qualitative research tools at their disposal SUPPORT SERVICES The steps previously
to identify destination perceptions and mentioned may lead a destination to develop
appeals. Destinations must know how their new attractions or upgrade existing attractions
offerings are perceived and to what extent and relevant support services. For example, a
they are valued beyond their physical beauty. destinations attractions might be landscaped
and appealing, but are they accessible to visi-
DO AN INVENTORY OF CURRENT DESTINATION tors of all ages, and do they meet the disabil-
OFFERINGS Asset inventory and evaluation ity standards required by the relevant
are perhaps the most important (and often legislation (in the USA, the American with
overlooked) step in the destination marketing Disabilities Act, or ADA)? Based on the afore-
research process. This step allows a destina- mentioned asset inventory and evaluation, new
tion to identify gaps in what it offers tourists. tourism products might be created, but then a
Often, signicant differences exist between destination must decide where to locate the
the ways a destination views itself and the new product, which generates further ques-
way a visitor sees it. For example, many com- tions. Who will benet from the location of a
munities consider themselves potential tour- new tourism product? Who may encounter
ism destinations based on attractions that negative impacts from the location of a new
appeal only to locals. In addition, a destina- product? Destination ofcials must then con-
tion might view itself as family oriented, but sider appropriate support services at the new
has few attractions that appeal to families. location. Like residents, visitors need food,
Also, destinations need to be aware of tradi- water, parking, rest areas and toilet facilities.
tions or histories that may appear exclusion- It is a common mistake for many destinations
ary to some market segments. Communities to consider marketing before considering
wishing to capitalize on tourism dollars when and where the destination is ready for
should realize that, in effect, that they are put- visitors. Destinations should also strive to
ting the doormat out for everyone, and they remove psychological barriers to make them
need to constantly monitor the gaps that may accessible on all fronts.
exist between what they offer and how their
offerings may be viewed and valued. USE THE EFFECTIVE IMAGE, IDENTITY, OR
MOST
BRAND A destinations capital is composed
ASSESS PRODUCT QUALITY AND OVERALL VISITOR of the values and meanings as expressed in
EXPERIENCE The next step in the destina- the cultural, social, natural and economic
tion marketing research process is quality dimensions of a persons life (Gnoth, 2007).
control and visitor perceptions. Perhaps the From the capital of a destination, destination
most serious challenge facing tourism world- marketers and researchers attempt to develop
wide is lack of or confusing signage and inter- the destinations brands. The branding process
pretation. Many visitors may not know how is essentially a consensus-building process in
to get to a destinations attractions, nor do which a destination including its residents,
they know what they are looking at once they businesses and community leaders identify
arrive at the attraction. Simple research tools the most appropriate and appealing image,
can be used to assess product quality, such as identity or brand. Ideally, these decisions are
developing a matrix that rates (i) the develop- made based on previous research about
ment potential, (ii) the marketing potential how the destination is perceived by potential
Destination Marketing Research 105

visitors and how this perception matches the of reaching a diverse audience, have replaced
attractions offered. The process itself is often many traditional media, particularly news-
undertaken by marketing or branding profes- papers and magazines (Pan et al., 2007). How-
sionals. This step can be quite contentious, ever, many desirable market segments, for
but very satisfying once consensus has been example baby boomers, still prefer to receive
reached. However, all parties must realize information about a destination from print,
that there are no overnight successes in the television and radio. In addition, these tradi-
branding process it can take up to a decade tional media outlets allow for pinpoint target-
before a community completely adopts a ing, which continues to hold some marketing
brand and that brand gains high recognition advantages. Once an appropriate ratio of tra-
from potential and repeat visitors. The most ditional to social media has been determined,
common outcomes of the branding process are a destination must ensure that a consistent
themes, colours, designs, logos and slogans brand image and message is conveyed, no
that form the basis of an integrated marketing matter which medium it uses. At this point,
campaign. conversion research and return-on-invest-
ment (ROI) can show which media provide
COMMUNICATE TO PRIORITY TARGET MARKETS A the best results.
brand is most effective when it reaches a tar-
get market. Market segmentation is necessary IMPLEMENT RELATIONSHIP AND DATABASE MARKETING
to identify those visitors who are most likely FOR DESTINATIONS Finally, many destinations
to respond to the destination brand and prod- invest great sums of money to obtain infor-
ucts (Dolnicar, 2004). Without market seg- mation that they already have. For example,
mentation research, destinations may miss visitor inquiries are a great source of informa-
their target markets. For example, it may be tion about visitors most interested in coming
widely assumed that the visitors most likely to a destination. As they provide personal
to visit a destination live in a nearby city. This information to destinations in exchange for
assumption may be correct, but it is too nar- information or bookings, privacy and security
row a geographic scope to guide marketing are very important to potential visitors and
efforts, and the destination could lose pre- destinations must be extremely careful with
cious market dollars. After investing in mar- this personal data. However, even when gath-
ket segmentation research, the destination ered with privacy and security, these rich data
may nd that the visitors most likely to visit are often misused by destination researchers.
that destination live in selected suburban It is a major misconception among US destina-
communities on the perimeter of the nearby tions that a ZIP code supplies a great amount
urban area, or even in other states. Other of information. Typically, however, many dif-
examples of misplaced markets include incor- ferent market segments may live in a single
rect assumptions about the media sources ZIP code, therefore making street address the
and product preferences of potential visitors. most desirable available data in that it can be
Once a detailed visitor prole is developed tied to US census data. Today, very accurate
through market segmentation, planners/pro- geographical information system (GIS) map-
viders can design appropriate branding and ping can be used to aid ongoing brand and
marketing vehicles to reach these audiences marketing efforts. Based on the notion that
effectively and efciently, thereby conserving birds of feather, ock together, this kind of
limited budgetary resources. system can produce geographically and
demographically specic data which can be
INTEGRATE TRADITIONAL AND ELECTRONIC PROMOTIONAL used to identify and target other individuals
TECHNIQUES Knowing its market through who may be interested in visiting the same
market segmentation research can help a des- destination. Finally, websites are also impor-
tination select an appropriate mix of tradi- tant to destinations for both marketing and
tional and electronic promotional techniques. sales, and in-house website staff are preferable
Social media such as Facebook, LinkedIn and for those destinations that can afford it. Well-
Twitter, which are cost-effective and capable designed websites can be used to gather and
106 M. Uysal et al.

disseminate large amounts of data. For many their projects. In the USA, some destinations
larger destinations, information is available with established Convention and Visitors
regarding everything from weather to trafc Bureaux (CVBs), local chambers of commerce
conditions to events, but it must be updated and other DMOs also conduct in-house
daily. Destination research staff, marketing research. The availability of funding, avail-
staff and website managers must work ability of secondary data and the level of
together to collect and disseminate accurate, institutional support, either independently or
timely information that can then be used to collectively, seems to dictate the nature and
effectively promote a destination. One result type of research projects to be funded and
can be a larger market share (Wang and completed by the different types of tourism
Russo, 2007). In the competitive world of des- entities.
tination marketing, integrated relationship In the USA, CVBs and state tourism
and database management is no longer ofces have historically played a signicant
optional, but necessary. role in destination marketing research. Their
In practice, researchers may not always research activities have covered such areas as
follow a sequential process. For example, the visitor prole studies, conversion studies and
time spent on each step varies, and overlap tourism impact studies, with all of this involved
between steps is common. In some cases, in tracking and monitoring tourist activities and
researchers may omit steps or backtrack or disseminating information through welcome
change the order of the steps. Within each of and visitor information centres (Perdue and
these broad research steps, destination mar- Pitegoff, 1990). Almost every destination now
keting researchers usually develop a research has an online presence with varying capabili-
project topic for which a more detailed and ties to promote its respective locations, share
specic set of steps would be outlined to meet information with actual and potential or
the specic objectives of the particular study. interested visitors, and create and distribute
intelligence (Gretzel et al., 2006).

Who does destination Destination marketing research areas


marketing research?
The scope of destination marketing research
Generally speaking, the answer is DMOs. areas is broad and varies from place to place
Pike (2008, p. 31) denes a DMO as the entity depending on the economic signicance of
that is responsible for the marketing of an the tourism business, level of tourism devel-
identiable destination. In this sense, he opment and institutional support for tourism
intentionally excluded government entities in the community. The rest of this section
responsible for planning and policy. The briey covers selected areas of destination
range of DMOs is rather extensive and may marketing research, and Table 7.1 provides a
include four categories: (i) national, provincial list of possible research areas in ve general
and state tourism ofces; (ii) regional tourism categories. These categories, neither necessar-
organizations; (iii) local tourism administra- ily mutually exclusive nor exhaustive in
tions and associations; and (4) private foun- their coverage, consist of ve broad research
dations and business groups. The roles and domains: (i) visitor information; (ii) behav-
levels of engagement in marketing and research ioural information; (iii) product development,
activities may vary from place to place marketing and management information; (iv)
depending on their size and the markets they consequences of travel behaviour informa-
may target (Harrill, 2005). tion; and (v) policy-and investment-related
Owing to the fact that most tourist service information.
providers are highly fragmented and opera- The rst research category the visitor
tionally small, destinations use marketing information category, usually involves
rms, consultants and universities to help with generation of information on the socio-
their research needs and in implementing demographic characteristics of visitors. This
Destination Marketing Research 107

Table 7.1. Examples of destination marketing and management research areas.a

Visitor information Age, Gender, Marital status, Level of education, Occupation, Household
income or individual income, Cultural subgroup, Ethnicity, Social class,
Country of origin, Time budgets, Family life stage, Type of tourist
(leisure/business) (domestic/international)
Behaviour Expectation, Motivation pull and push, Interests/preferences/benets sought,
information Preferences, Satisfaction, Loyalty, Activities/experiences, Destination image
formation, Destination quality, Demand behaviour types of demand for
attractions, Lodging preference, Perception/Knowledge of risk and safety of
destination, Destination choice process, Vacation decision making,
Previous experiences/awareness/familiarity, Importance of destination
attributes, Perceived competitive advantages, Market segmentation,
Behavioural intentions, Complaints, Consumer dissonance, Tourist attitudes/
involvement, Types of destinations, Information resources, Travel-related
expenditure, Psychological inuences, Barriers to travel and participation,
Spatial travel ows, Types of visitors (leisure/business travellers), Constraints
and obstacles, Modes of travel, Quality of vacation experience
Product development, Destination product development, Product planning and development,
marketing and Destination marketing mix, Competitiveness, Attractiveness, Benchmarking,
management Crisis management, Capacity management, DMOs (destination
information management organizations), CVBs (convention and visitors bureaux),
Virtual tourism destination organizations, Welcome centres/visitor
information centres, DMS (destination marketing systems, Alliances/
collaborations/partnerships between stakeholders private and public
sectors, Role of electronic media in market development (Internet, websites,
travel blogs), Destination marketing programmes, campaigns, Brand/image
identity, building and positioning process, Environmental resources
management/sustainability (natural and cultural), Building social capital,
Conversion studies, Promotion/advertising, Destination personality,
Destination accessibility and amenities, Destination efciency, Destination
strategy, Destination life cycle, Destination potential, Destination country
prole analysis, Destination policy, Image of intermediaries (tour operators/
travel agents), Dispersion of supply resources, Use of supply resources,
Quality of community life
Consequences of Cultural impacts, Physical impacts, Economic impacts, Environmental and
travel behaviour ecological impacts, Monitoring research, Resident attitudes and perceptions,
information Destination marketing evaluation, Image and brand measurement, Brand
effectiveness evaluation, Brand strategy and tracking, Rebranding/re-imaging
post-disaster, Critical success factors, Competitive methods and strategies,
Managing crisis, Post-evaluation of disaster management, Advertising effect
tracking, Destination success factors, Quality of life in destination
Policy and investment Policy development research, Return on investment, Investment and capital
related information budget decisions, Conversion studies, Future issues/challenges
aNote that categories and items are not necessary mutually exclusive, nor exhaustive in their coverage. The table simply

provides a list of commonly used research topics in destination marketing/management research.

type of information is collected from partici- graphic composition of the market. Descrip-
pants (individuals or groups) regarding age, tive demographic information, along with
gender, marital status, level of education, behavioural information, is almost always
occupation, household income or individual used. Nearly every data collection instrument
income, ethnicity, social class, origin, time and research plan should include questions
budgets and family life stage. Researchers use that would yield visitor information.
the information generated from such variables The second category of information cov-
to prole, describe and understand the demo- ers research that provides data on visitor
108 M. Uysal et al.

behaviour and quality of vacation experience. tracking, rebranding/re-imaging post-disaster,


A wide range of research domains could help critical success factors, competitive meth-
destinations understand the travel behaviour ods and strategies, managing crises, post-
of visitors. This category may include such evaluation of disaster management, quality of
areas as expectation, motivation, interests/ life and so on.
preferences/benets sought, satisfaction, loy- The fth research category covers such
alty, activities/experiences, destination image, research areas as policy development, return
service perception, types of demand for attrac- on investment, capital budget decisions, con-
tions, lodging preferences, safety of destina- version studies, the effects of tax policies and
tions, the destination choice process, vacation regulations, and future plans and challenges.
decision making, awareness/familiarity, the The use of research methods whether
importance of destination attributes, perceived they be quantitative, qualitative or hybrid
competitiveness, market identication and to examine issues surrounding destinations is
segmentation, behavioural intentions, com- also a function of the nature of the research
plaints, consumer dissonance, tourist atti- problems and the topic in hand. Researchers
tudes/involvement, information resources, in destination marketing research need to
travel-related expenditure behaviour, psycho- develop an eclectic attitude towards compet-
logical inuences, barriers to travel and par- ing techniques and tools for generating and
ticipation, spatial travel ows, constraints and disseminating knowledge (Uysal, 2004), that
obstacles, and modes of travel. is, using what works for a research issue, not
These two categories of research domain what is fashionable. Demand-oriented research
mostly reect the demand side of tourism. The of general visitor and behaviour information
third category the product development, may necessitate the use of survey research
marketing and management research domain (cross-sectional or longitudinal) with appro-
is usually a research attempt to respond to priate data collection devices such as inter-
the demand side of tourism from the perspec- views, focus groups and online surveys.
tive of the supply side (providers) of tourism. Supply-oriented research may utilize different
This category of research mostly includes areas data-generating devices using focus groups, a
such as product development, product case study approach, Delphi methods and man-
planning, destination marketing mix, competi- agement science techniques. The challenge for
tiveness and attractiveness measures, bench- the researcher is to choose the best method(s) to
marking, crisis management, capacity and use conduct the planned research to meet the
management, welcome centre/ visitor infor- goals of the study and generate solutions to
mation centre research, destination marketing solve destination problems and concerns.
programmes, brand/image identity building
and the positioning process, promotion/
advertising, destination accessibility and ame-
nities, destination efciency, the destination Conclusions and Destination
strategy and life cycle, dispersion of supply Marketing Research Challenges
resources, use of supply resources and the like.
The fourth category of research focuses Tourism as a system has long been recognized
on the consequences of travel behaviour. This and studied by researchers who represent
area of research usually stems from the inter- different disciplines. The study of tourism
action of demand and supply elements. is complex and nds itself positioned at the
Research may be conducted on different types intersection of many different areas of research.
of impacts of tourism and its resultant activi- Among its many components, tourism
ties (cultural, physical and economic impacts, research is studied from the perspectives of
and environmental and ecological impacts), political, sociological, psychological, ecological,
monitoring research, resident attitudes and managerial and planning to gain a full under-
perceptions, destination marketing evalua- standing of its meanings and implications.
tion, image and brand measurement, brand When rst looking at destination marketing
effectiveness evaluation, brand strategy and research, one may be drawn to the sociologi-
Destination Marketing Research 109

cal and psychological reasoning behind travel that include consumer marketing, psychol-
behaviour. This is an important aspect of des- ogy and economics. Together, these subjects
tination marketing research: to understand address three of the most important topics to
the needs and expectations of actual and destination competitiveness: motivations,
potential visitors, and to understand how preferences and loyalty to a destination brand
well destinations can create an environment resulting in a signicant economic impact. At
conducive to the creation of a total experience the same time, destination marketing and
of the place as a destination and can also branding can be hotly contested by stake-
respond appropriately to the specic needs holders representing diverse social, cultural
and expectations of visitors. This type of des- and political groups, and therefore making
tination marketing research can also help in sociological and cultural studies important
discovering trends in and attractive aspects of topics as well. Theoretical frameworks such
travel to different market groups. Destina- as growth machine theory, social exchange
tions certainly need in-depth information on theory and critical theory can be used to
visitors and their travel behaviour. understand the urban and national context
However, in studying travel behaviour, for destination marketing and brand devel-
destination marketing researchers are only opment. Ultimately, however, intense global
tackling the demand side of tourism. Although competition driven by advances in technol-
it is vital to understand tourists and what moti- ogy, communications and infrastructure will
vates them to travel to different destinations, drive destination marketing research, favour-
those within the industry cannot implement ing those researchers and topics that explic-
changes to their practices without a full under- itly link consumers (tourists) with destinations
standing of the destination environment in (products). While the future of destination mar-
which they operate. Tourism is affected by the keting research must be grounded in strong
political and cultural climate, the ecological theoretical foundations, applied research agen-
environment, managerial practices, and the das will be crucial to destination success.
destinations ability and consistency in plan- Much has been written about tourism and
ning; but it, in turn, affects those aspects. With- consumer loyalty, but less is known about des-
out thorough research, those in decision-making tination brand loyalty, thus there looms a chal-
positions will not completely understand the lenge to understanding the processes by which
fully functioning tourism system. Their deci- consumers form brand images from initial
sions may be faulty and may upset the future of awareness to complete involvement through
a specic destination or region. Also, as tourism target marketing. Another challenge for
to a destination increases, the vitality of that researchers is to understand how brand
place becomes threatened. Without proper conrmation and disconrmation based on
planning and market alignment research, tour- consumer psychology can be applied to desti-
ism to that area may permanently damage the nation marketing. Because consumer expec-
destination environment and its quality of life. tations vary greatly, brand promises and
This also could affect future tourism to that des- positioning must be specic enough to evoke
tination as the level of attractiveness of the place positive psychological and emotional respon-
weakens and the destination loses its competi- ses in potential visitors but also be sufciently
tiveness edge. Destination marketing research broad enough to appeal to multiple market
should tackle not only demand issues but also segments (Yuksel et al., 2007). Once these
supply issues, and the consequences of the markets have been targeted, research into
interaction between travel and behaviour and marketing effectiveness is necessary to mea-
the place visited in order to remain sustainable sure, monitor and improve these campaigns.
and maintain the desired level of quality of life. Although marketing campaigns can
As destination marketing continues to prove costly, new social media have reduced
evolve and emerge as an important subeld outlays and increased the capacity for partici-
of tourism studies, so too will destination patory marketing in which visitors themselves
marketing research emerge as a distinctive contribute directly to marketing messages and
focus, drawing on several elds of inquires even perhaps inuence branding. For example,
110 M. Uysal et al.

many travel websites enable opportunities for may also play an active role in destination
visitors to evaluate amenities, attractions and development, as marketing research can pro-
destinations. As a result, destination market- vide behavioural clues that in turn can guide
ing researchers are using these new vehicles land use and attraction development. To con-
to collect vast amounts of qualitative data rm and full brand promises, extraordinary
about consumers and products. Encouraging and memorable vacation destinations must
visitors to blog about their motivations and induce high and consistent consumer spend-
preferences is one way to gather information ing. Hospitality research is also important
about brand image and loyalty. There are a part of destination marketing research, as
growing number of travel blogs, and more consumers must perceive the service offer-
and more of them cater to a wider travel audi- ings of the destination as trustworthy and
ence and provide useful information. Travel reliable. Visitor feedback should include ame-
blogs are a collection of travel journals, dia- nities such as lodging and food service, but
ries and photos from around the world. Trav- also destination-level services, such as roads,
ellers can upload photos and also share their security and health care. Thus, destination
travel experiences with other bloggers. Blogs marketing research is somewhat distinctive
provide new ways for individuals to learn from general tourism studies in that it is com-
about destinations, their products and services prehensive, iterative and participatory within
from other tourists. social, political and economic contexts.
Through these travel blogs, destination Finally, owing to intensied competition
marketers not only can gather tourists authen- across geographic scopes and markets, destina-
tic opinions about their travel but also adver- tion marketing research is by nature collabora-
tise their destinations to the virtual communities tive. Increasingly, public, private and non-prot
with blog ads. Moreover, destination marketers sectors must act in partnership to establish a
can also create their own blogs and motivate unied, integrated brand adopted throughout
travellers to provide their opinions. These a community. For example, a university might
blogs offer opportunities for constant measure- conduct the initial destination marketing
ment and analysis of the results of destination research. Next, a non-prot group might prove
marketing because marketers can continuously instrumental in providing public support for
track tourists responses, wants and needs. the brand. Then a government agency might
Also, marketers can monitor the competitive promote the brand as ofcial for the destina-
environment of a destination (Pan et al., 2007; tions economic development purposes. These
Schmallegger and Carson, 2008; Wenger, 2008). partnerships also must think local-to-global
Before-and-after blogs and journals can iden- as many local brands may exist in support of
tify gaps in brand image, marketing and devel- and complementary to a national or regional
opment. Positive responses can form the basis brand. Also, because of competition, human
of e-marketing campaigns and broadcast on and scal resources for destination marketing
the latest wireless technologies. Collectively, research must be shared among many partners
this data can be used to alter a destinations and end users. Because destination marketing
brand in real time, addressing consumers and management is an economic development
tastes, wants and needs, and forming the basis tool, public involvement is important not only
for interactive destination branding. to support the brand, but also to ensure that the
However, marketing is not the end of this benets of destination development are shared
iterative brand-to-market process. Visitors through all sectors and levels of society.

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Yuksel, E., Sirakaya-Turk, E. and Baloglu, S. (2007) Host image and destination personality. Tourism Anal-
ysis 12, 433446.
8 Destination Branding and Positioning

Asli D.A. Tasci

Introduction ample amount of academic literature on place


branding (including country branding, nation
A brand is a shortcut for consumers, a symbol branding, destination branding or smaller
that identies products in a differentiated level city branding) as well. This has recently
way; more specically, it is a name, term, resulted in a plethora of terminologies used
design, symbol, or any other feature that in the framework of destination management
identies one seller s good or service as dis- and marketing to confuse avid readers. The
tinct from those of other sellers (American framework shown in Fig. 8.1, with the follow-
Marketing Association, 2011). Branding is a ing short discussion, is intended to clarify the
strategic business choice rooted in ancient picture by organizing the complex relation-
times, manifested as such actions as burning ships among some of the concepts relevant to
(marking) livestock and marking crafts and destination branding.
guilds, the purpose evolving from a mere
sign of ownership and protection against
stealing, forgery, counterfeiting and fraud, to
identication and differentiation with the Different Terminologies of Place
promise of certain qualities (Keller, 2003). The Branding
contemporary marketplace rendered brand-
ing a strategic option in many industries, Within the framework of place branding are
which host almost perfect competition, with holistic approaches of nation branding and
multiple suppliers of the same or similar country branding that aim to create a com-
products, thus pushing the limits of those petitive vision for the future of the nation and
suppliers in attracting and converting con- country, both of which are rather difcult and
sumers. The most strategic way of attracting complex due to the abstract and uncontrolla-
consumers is considered to be distinguishing a ble nature of the subject matter (Anholt,
product by branding, thereby differentiating 2005). Increased economic competition
the product among many similar others (Aaker, among countries resulted in their need to
2001; Keller, 2003). So, branding has been a brand themselves, especially in the domains
focus of attention, especially for tangible of exports, direct foreign investment and
consumer product companies aiming to gain tourism (Kotler et al., 1993; Anholt, 2002,
a sustainable competitive advantage (Aaker, 2005; Kotler and Gertner, 2002). Depending
2001). Although relatively new, there is an on their competitive advantages, nations or
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 113
114 A.D.A. Tasci

Place branding

Nation branding

Country branding

Tourism
destination
branding

Destination management and marketing

Product: natural, historical, heritage and cultural resources; sociocultural, political,


legal and economic setting; climate; man-made structures, architecture,
infrastructure, superstructure, etc.
Price: premium prices, value prices, seasonal discounts, package
prices, segmented prices, differential prices, etc.
Place: tour operators, travel agents, global
distribution systems (GDS), Internet, etc.
Promotion: advertising, sales promotion,
personal selling, public relations, etc.
through
Integrated marketing
communication
(IMC)

Destination brand
(name, logo (symbol), colour, slogan,
personality, character, identity)

Destination brand Destination brand Destination brand


Position 1 Position 2 Position 3

Destination brand equity

Consumer-based brand equity Financial brand equity

Brand awareness Tourism revenues based on:


Brand image and associations Number of visitors
Brand quality Visitor stay
Brand value (price premium) Visitor spending
Brand value (for money)
Brand loyalty (trust, liking, visits, revisit
intention, recommendation, word of mouth)

Fig. 8.1. A framework of concepts relevant to place branding.


Destination Branding and Positioning 115

countries focus on one or more of these dimen- (DMOs). In line with a nations and countrys
sions, which are, indeed, complementary and vision of development, destinations are mar-
interdependent, and therefore need to be han- keted as products with certain mixes of mar-
dled in such a manner that they reinforce each keting elements, namely the product itself,
other. When a nation or country becomes a the price, the place and promotional factors.
competitive, unique and strong brand, it The ideal result of destination marketing is
reaches success in exports, direct foreign the provision of a consistent and strong desti-
investment and tourism (Kotler and Gertner, nation brand with a name, logo and colour,
2002), hence becoming a producer of superior which encompasses identity, character and
goods and services and a desirable place for personality directed at one or more target
residents, expatriates, immigrants, workforce, markets, with a distinctive position that
visitors, factories, corporate headquarters, translates into strong consumer-based brand
new businesses, investors, foreign direct equity and, thereby, high tourism revenues.
investors and entrepreneurs. Such country As the main focus of this chapter is on tour-
brands stand for a number of qualities; includ- ism destination branding, the concepts rele-
ing power, wealth, and superiority Anholt vant to this level of place branding will be
(2005, p. 1), which can be acquired from quali- discussed in the following sections.
ties such as music, philosophy, trust, wisdom,
beauty and peace. For example, France is
known for fashion, Japan for electronics and
Germany for its automotive industry. Different Levels of Destination
Tourism destination branding is rela- Branding
tively easier than both nation and country
branding because it is more focused on the Destination branding is already a complex
purpose of increasing tourism revenues, and matter to apply and manage, with different
dealing with more controllable factors levels of destination accentuating this com-
through the management and marketing of a plexity even further. Destinations are geo-
destination (Laws, 2002). As tourism became graphic locations with resources, attractions,
a more promising economic activity, with infrastructure, superstructure and facilities
exponentially increasing economic impact that attract people to visit and stay temporar-
worldwide, more destinations emerged ily for diverse reasons (Pike, 2004). A tourism
to gain a share from travellers. Many destination can be dened in multiple layers of
destinations from villages to countries geographical entities, as illustrated in Fig. 8.2,
recognizing tourism as an important eco- and these range from small-scale, public or
nomic activity, have been marketing their private, operational tourism products such as
assets to diverse tourist markets. The increas- hotels, restaurants, resorts, or cruise ships, to
ing number of tourist destinations, coupled the bigger scale geographical entities of coun-
with advances in information technology, tries and even multi-country regions or conti-
and the use of the Internet to inform markets nents with the potential to be global
about available destination choices, have destination brands.
accelerated intense competition for the same Generally speaking, a bidirectional inu-
tourists (Bramwell and Rawding, 1996; Chen ence can be expected among destination
and Kerstetter, 1999). layers from the inside out and the outside in,
However, except for a few signicantly as shown in Fig. 8.2. In other words, the
attractive destinations, such as Disneyland or branding of operational-level tourism prod-
the Grand Canyon, all destinations have ucts such as hotels, restaurants and resorts can
some form of natural, historical, cultural or both inuence and be inuenced by the
recreational attractions that are substitutable branding of encompassing layers of geo-
to some extent (Bramwell and Rawding, graphical entities. Therefore, for successful
1996). Therefore, tourism destination brand- destination branding, there has to be a consis-
ing has also been realized as a strategic option tency among branding of these different
for destination marketing organizations layers. The bigger the entity, the harder to
116 A.D.A. Tasci

Opreational level destination brands


(hotels, restaurants, resorts, cruise ships)

Single-governance local destination brands


(attraction sites, villages, towns, cities,
provinces)

Multi-governance local destination brands


(regions, states, countries)

Global destination brands


(countries, multi-country regions, continents)

Fig. 8.2. Destinations dened at multiple layers of geographical entities.

apply branding principles and reach success and economic situation at the destination,
owing to the complexity of the ingredients of which are either static and uncontrollable or,
the destination product, its tourism opera- to some extent, semi-dynamic and semi-
tions and its stakeholders, i.e. all of the vari- controllable. Destination marketing authori-
ous issues involved. When the branding of ties have to use this capital and gain leverage
individual layers is consistent and integrated, by applying appropriate strategies in their
the result is assumed to be a synergy, with the marketing mixes, particularly in promotions
whole being greater than the sum of its parts. aiming to develop a successful (strategic, dif-
ferent and strong) position in target markets.
In this endeavour, some uncontrollable fac-
tors, such as news media and movies, can
Destination Brand Management also have an inuence on the outcome, espe-
cially when they depict negative information
A destination as a product to brand is differ- about the destination or its residents.
ent from tangible consumer products in many Management of destination brands
ways. To start with, when the destination needs to involve activities of comprehensive
product is a larger geographical entity com- research, attraction development, event man-
prising a human habitation, its existence agement, integrated marketing communica-
starts even in absence of any marketing tion (IMC) and continuous monitoring
efforts for branding. So, from the global per- (Kotler and Gertner, 2002; Tasci and Denizci,
spective, countries, along with their names, 2009; Tasci and Gartner, 2009). However,
ags and related symbols, historical and cur- there is no one-ts-all type of branding strat-
rent political relationships, policies, and egy for destinations to apply and become
unique and common features represent global brands because every destination is unique
destination brands. As Tasci and Gartner in its features. Therefore, before the applica-
(2007) delineate, marketing issues such as tion of any branding activities, extensive
image and branding of a geographical entity research is needed to dene subsequent steps.
starts with capital at hand, including the his- Branding a destination requires more than the
torical, sociocultural, physical, political, legal mere promotion of attractions. Infrastructure
Destination Branding and Positioning 117

(transportation, water, electricity and tele- these suppliers. Apart from all these industry
communications networks) and superstruc- partners, the news media and private citizens
ture (the legal and institutional structure of are also stakeholders of destination branding,
health, safety, security and civil rights, and of which poses many challenges, as they have
environmental, heritage and cultural preser- different characteristics, interests, abilities,
vation) have to be in place to ensure the roles, perspectives, values, agendas,
satisfaction of both the basic and higher level resources, actions and reactions concerning
human needs that are required for the the destination branding process (Gnoth,
enjoyment of touristic attractions. If the 2002; Klooster et al., 2004). Stakeholder
infrastructure and superstructure are not up involvement and support in all phases of
to the expected level, no matter how attractive research, brand idea development, imple-
the destination assets and the promotion are, mentation, evaluation and control are neces-
the result of branding is doomed to failure. sary for successful destination branding
Besides, signicant structures symbolizing a (Morgan et al., 2002; Tasci and Gartner, 2009);
destination (e.g. the Eiffel Tower) and special however, this collaboration may not be war-
events and activities (e.g. the 2008 Olympic ranted owing to the problem of lack of own-
Games in China) may be needed for effective ership of the destination brand (Mundt, 2002).
brand development. Besides having limited money, time and
Destination branding is challenging as a labour resources to contribute to destination
result of several factors, including the unique branding endeavours, some stakeholders
characteristics of the tourism industry: mul- may act disconnectedly and in ignorance of
tiple stakeholders that usually lack unity of others, as well as engage in friction, unneces-
purpose or authority, the politics involved, sary competition and even hostile attitudes
the lack of control over all messages about a (Gnoth, 2002; Klooster et al., 2004).
destination, the lack of monetary and dedi- Nevertheless, the destination brand is a
cated professional human resources, the common good, and because governments are
amorphous nature of destination products expected to be concerned with the greater
(which have diverse tangible and intangible good of the society more so than other
attributes), the lack of hard and fast ways of stakeholders and as governments hold the
measuring the effectiveness of branding, and power and control over resources, they can
diverse types of segments and changing play a signicant leader role in collaboration
market preferences (de Chernatony and for destination branding (Olins, 2002). Gov-
DallOlmo Riley, 1999; Buhalis, 2000; ernments need to act as facilitators and to use
DHauteserre, 2001; Cai, 2002; Jensen and a bottom-up approach instead of a top-down
Korneliussen, 2002; Morgan et al., 2002; approach, to not only empower local commu-
illiams et al., 2004; Skinner, 2005; Baker, 2007). nities but also to reveal authentic brands
truthful to local identities (Go et al., 2003;
Klooster et al., 2004). Klooster et al. (2004) rec-
Stakeholders in destination branding ommend harnessing the fruits of information
technology to connect all stakeholders,
Tourism industry organizations are extremely including the local communities, using Inter-
fragmented, dispersed and heterogeneous, net tools such as chat forums, discussion
and include: local government (at the boards, e-mail and websites. Similarly, Tasci
national, regional, state, county, provincial and Gartner (2009) provide a comprehensive
and municipality level); tourism ofces, research framework to develop the informa-
departments, commissions and convention tion basis for such an authentic and truthful
and visitors bureaus (CVBs); tourism devel- destination brand. In this framework, all
opment councils or commissions; chambers relevant stakeholders are researched using
of commerce; and public and private suppli- appropriate data collection techniques, such
ers (tour operators, travel agents, attractions, as surveys, focus groups, in-depth interviews,
transportation bodies, accommodation, res- online polls of local stakeholders, importance
taurants), associations and organizations of performance analyses with international and
118 A.D.A. Tasci

domestic visitors, and content analyses of Therefore, the rst step of positioning a
current marketing materials and other media destination brand is the assessment of the
to nd the most strategic destination brand image of destination attributes in current and
elements of colour, symbol, slogan, identity, potential target markets, preferably in com-
character, personality and position to reveal parison with close competitors. This assess-
the highest consumer-based brand equity, ment reveals the competitive advantages or
and hence nancial brand equity. core competencies of a destination in differ-
A very important and instrumental ent target markets. These are the destination
stakeholder is the local community, which attributes with strong and favourable images
plays a dual role in branding, as part of both and the potential to differentiate the destina-
the supply and demand side of the market tion from the competition and to satisfy mar-
(Henderson, 2000; Gnoth, 2002; Klooster et al., ket needs and wants and, thereby, provide
2004). Therefore, public diplomacy, in accor- benets in a superior manner. A destination
dance with international relations and for- brand, especially in the case of countries, can
eign policy, is a very important aspect of have multiple positions because a tourism
destination branding (Hart, 2003). The atti- destination usually receives visitors from
tude of the public is an important factor that multiple tourist-generating markets with dif-
needs to be managed strategically by careful ferent characteristics, needs and motivations
assessment and social engineering when and (Joppe et al., 2001). Countries can apply multi-
if necessary. Public diplomacy should be uti- product branding, viz. branding each tourist
lized to increase awareness and support attraction as a stand-alone brand with its own
among the general public through the news brand identity targeted for different tourist
media, training programmes, festivals and markets. However, for a long-term brand
conferences. Effective public diplomacy moti- vision, a multi-product branding strategy
vates locals to volunteer as destination needs to be coupled with the parent brand
ambassadors in the end. name of the country, all products being asso-
ciated with this parent brand name. In this
strategy, an explicit positioning strategy,
Positioning which is usually delivered with a catchy slo-
gan, helps to target markets to get a mental
A vital step in successful destination brand- x on the product that may otherwise be
ing is positioning, namely, establishing and amorphous (Lovelock, 1991). Successful posi-
maintaining a favourably distinctive place in tioning provides a destination with a com-
the minds of target market segments that sets petitive edge, although it can be a failure
the destination apart from others (Crompton when the position is similar to that of a stron-
et al., 1992; Echtner and Ritchie, 1993; Gartner, ger competitor, or when it is blurry as a result
1993; Alhemoud and Armstrong, 1996; Kotler of trying to be all things to all people or
and Armstrong, 1996; Baloglu and McCleary, when the image of destination attributes is
1999; Chen and Kerstetter, 1999; Kotler et al., non-existent or negative (Lovelock, 1991).
1999). Thus, the positioning concept is con- Destination differentiation can be based
cerned with three issues, market segments, on physical attributes people, location or
the image of the destination brand in differ- image (Kotler et al., 1999). The literature on
ent segments and strong destination brand tangible consumer product brands leans on
features, i.e. competitive advantages to the proposition that brand differentiation can-
emphasize in each segment (Aaker and not be solely based on the objective functions
Shansby, 1982; Kotler et al., 1999). Ample of a product; hence, it must involve the use of
studies stress the role of the destination image subjective and intangible aspects, such as
in positioning destinations in target markets symbols, logos, names and designs (Poiesz,
(Calantone et al., 1989; Crompton et al., 1992; 1989). Destination image researchers, how-
Echtner and Ritchie, 1993; Alhemoud and ever, have an essentialist approach toward
Armstrong, 1996; Baloglu and McCleary, destination differentiation, proposing that
1999; Chen and Kerstetter, 1999). destinations can be differentiated by offering
Destination Branding and Positioning 119

unique benets that can meet the needs and co-branding potential with those competi-
motivations of target markets better than com- tors.
petitors could (Bramwell and Rawding, 1996;
Baloglu and McCleary, 1999; Murphy, 2000;
Joppe et al., 2001). That is why destination
positioning studies have focused on compar- Promotion
ing competitors on a number of predominantly
cognitive attributes, such as natural resources, Promotion is signicantly important in estab-
accommodation facilities and transportation lishing, maintaining, reinforcing and chang-
(Gartner, 1989; Crompton et al., 1992; Botha ing a destination brand and its position(s)
et al., 1999; Chen and Uysal, 2002). because promotional efforts represent the
Destination position should be desirable, destination until the actual visitation takes
important, relevant, memorable and believ- place (Gunn, 1972; Hunt, 1975; Goodrich,
able for the target segment; it must be dis- 1978; Reilly, 1990; Bojanic, 1991; Fakeye and
tinct, superior, unique, special and Crompton, 1991; MacKay and Fesenmaier,
pre-emptive within the competitive set; and it 1997; Sirakaya and Sonmez, 2000). Promotion
must be deliverable, affordable and protable plays roles in creating awareness, generating
for the destination marketers (Kotler et al., interest and stimulating desire, and, ulti-
1999, pp. 264265). The position is usually mately, in resulting in action (Fakeye and
crystallized in a short, clear, meaningful and Crompton, 1991; Selby and Morgan, 1996;
attractive proposition or slogan directed at Court and Lupton, 1997; MacKay and Fesen-
the target market. Destination positioning maier, 1997, 2000). Therefore, a myriad of pro-
can be based on reasons for the visit (e.g. motional sources with verbal and visual
Cancn, Mexico: The meeting place for sun messages are used in destination branding.
worshipers), a product class (e.g. Israel: If The role of advertising, especially the visual
you are looking for an ideal meeting place, aspects, is of utmost importance in destina-
heres one thats close to heaven), users or tion branding as it represents the actuality of
class of users (e.g. Hong Kong: When theyve the destination and illustrates the dimensions
reached the top, send them to the peak of the destination (Bojanic, 1991; MacKay and
referring to Victoria Peak for the incentive Fesenmaier, 1997, 2000). The promotional
travel market), or price value (e.g. Malaysia materials have to be favourable, but realistic
gives more natural value) (Chacko, 1996). as well, because unrealistic advertising can
For tourism destinations, positioning on have adverse effects on visitors perceptions
price value may not be a strategic decision of the destination brand, or on their satisfac-
because lower prices are usually associated tion, when they actually visit the destination,
with lower quality. Also, when price is the as well as on the sociopsychological state of
dening factor for a travel decision, then the the residents (Britton, 1979).
destination of concern is a commodity rather In promoting a destination, information
than a strong brand. The cheaper destinations sources are more diverse than those of tangi-
usually get more visitors. However, large vis- ble products; they include public relations,
itor numbers are not desirable for sustainable lobbying activities, media campaigns, road-
tourism owing to the potential pressure on shows, tourism fairs, events, celebrity testimo-
environmental or sociocultural carrying nials, international media trips, direct mailing,
capacity. Malaysia effectively overcame this personal sales, advertising (videos, posters,
obstacle by connecting price value with natu- roadside boards, direct mailing), online adver-
ral attractions: Malaysia gives more natural tising (websites, podcasting, photo sharing,
value (Chacko, 1996). Another positioning travel blogs, newsletters, e-mails), window
option, that of positioning against competi- displays of tour operators and travel agents,
tion, may involve aggressive tactics of attacks brochures of hotels, and co-branding and
on close competitors (Chacko, 1996), and so brand partnerships with other products such
may not be a strategic option for destination as airlines or credit cards. For successful
branding, especially considering the future branding, all of these sources have to deliver
120 A.D.A. Tasci

unidirectional, concerted and consistent mes- Things Look Different Here. campaign was
sages about the umbrella brand theme, which launched in 1987 to unify the Oregon Brand
can be achieved by using integrated market- by marrying tourism and economic develop-
ing communication (IMC). Thus, the same ment under the umbrella message that
brand theme, with its colour, logo, slogan, Oregon has a unique lifestyle, natural envi-
identity, character and personality should per- ronment, and sense of place; the plan was to
meate the messages coming from all the infor- attract tourists, entrepreneurs, future work-
mation sources directed at a target market. force, and business investments, and to help
The goal of IMC is to inuence peoples per- market Oregon products both within and
ceptions and behaviours regarding a product beyond Oregon (Oregon Business Plan.org.,
by using a strategically planned communica- 2010). This campaign required all tourism
tion approach (Holm, 2006). Therefore, an regions supported by the states lottery funds
IMC approach presents a strategic tool for to use in their travel advertising materials the
destination authorities in an endeavour to dif- same Brand Oregon look developed by the
ferentiate and position their brands. Tourism Commission and its advertising
agency (Wieden + Kennedy); it also coordi-
nated the states business development efforts
Destination brand monitoring by requiring use of the same Brand Oregon
look in all state-supported business develop-
ment materials (Oregon Business Plan.org.,
Destination brands are living entities with
2010). Brand Oregon campaign messages
high potential to change and evolve over time,
aimed to communicate the high quality of
just like tangible consumer product brands, if
life, excellent workforce capacities, competi-
not more so. That is why they have to be man-
tive business climate and superior products
aged continuously. They have to be moni-
and services of the state and to portray Ore-
tored, evaluated, maintained, modied and
gon as a destination for visitors, a desired
tailored to t changes in the environment
site for business investment and relocation, a
changes such as changing consumer tastes, a
great place to live for current residents and
changed economic situation or new competi-
the future workforce, and a producer of high
tion because they are vulnerable to these
quality goods and services (Oregon Business
changes (Baker, 2007; Tasci and Gartner,
Plan.org., 2010).
2007). One environmental factor in particular
This top-down or autocratic approach
that has a dramatic impact on destination
resulted in resistance from the tourism
brand image, especially at the country level,
regions to using the Brand Oregon look in
is a crisis caused by natural or human-caused
travel advertising materials. It taught the
disasters such as earthquakes and terrorist
authorities that successful branding can
attacks (Milo and Yoder, 1991; Sonmez et al.,
be facilitated by: (i) developing marketing
1999). In case these events should occur, an
messages that build on core destination val-
effective crisis management plan has to be in
ues that include community pride, environ-
place with an open, honest, consistent, speedy
mental stewardship, progressive thinking,
and accurate response to the related stake-
and innovation and quality; (ii) providing
holders for the destination brand not to be
data, guidelines and resources to the private
damaged irreparably.
sector, to businesses or to regional tourism
marketers rather than by forcing a branding
campaign with rules and regulations that can
Application and examples of tourism be perceived as restrictive and bureaucratic;
destination branding (iii) staying the course to achieve success in
establishing brand name recognition, aware-
Branding is a trial and error endeavour, and ness and image development, rather than
many communities fail and try again until making changes frequently; and (iv) coordi-
they nd the right branding decisions. nating local initiatives and programmes
Oregon Tourism Commissions Oregon. rather than enforcing them, and acquiring
Destination Branding and Positioning 121

reasonable funding and commitment from a branding. For example, in applying the steps
variety of stakeholders (Curtis, 2001; Oregon of a strategic destination brand development
Business Plan.org., 2010). research process, Gartner et al. (2007) found
In the case of countries, every country that different colours, symbols, attributes and
has a name and cannot change that for the personalities stand out for Macau SAR, China
sake of branding, although country name as a tourist destination in the minds of the
changes have occurred (e.g. Sri Lanka was supply and demand side of the tourism
formerly known as Ceylon, and Myanmar as industry in Macau.
Burma). The name of a place, especially in
case of a country, evokes certain images in Destination brand logos
peoples minds, and so can be expected to
amount to the destination brand (Laws, 2002). Some examples of country brand logos are
However, a strong destination brand is more provided in Fig. 8.3. Some countries use the
than just a name. A destination brand can be colour of their ags; in fact, some use their
dened as a place perceived with certain ags as the destination brand symbol or logo
identiers such as name, logo (symbol), (e.g. Britain, Sweden and the USA). Some
colour and slogan that distinguish it in the chose culturally signicant symbols, such as
minds of consumers as having a certain char- the red dragon symbol of the Hong Kong
acter, personality and identity that promise SAR, China. Some prefer displaying attrac-
pleasurable and memorable experiences. tion assets, such as sun and nature (e.g. Spain,
Strong destination brands provide functional, Ecuador, Poland and Australia). Some desti-
emotional, economic and psychological val- nations already have a recognizable and read-
ues and benets to consumers; thus, there ily available symbol with potential for use in
exist meaningful, strong, effective and lasting destination brand logos (e.g. Australias
bonds and relationships between the destina- Sydney Opera House or Kangaroo) to high-
tion brand and its consumers. light the potential experience. Yet other coun-
To create consumer awareness and lik- tries prefer abstract symbols, such as the
ing, visual symbols or logos are used to stand water colour symbol of Brazil.
for destination brands. In the case of multiple Some destinations end up using the same
brand positions, an umbrella logo and slogan, symbol, either accidentally or purposely. Both
and different positions (with different logos Holland (the Netherlands) and Turkey use
and slogans) coherent with the umbrella the symbol of tulip. The tulips motherland
brand, can be used. As most destinations use was historically Turkey; in fact, an era of the
consulting companies that do not reveal the Ottoman Empire, between 1718 and 1730,
phases of destination brand development, it was named as the Tulip Era owing to the
is usually not known how colours, symbols, ubiquitous use of tulip gures in arts and
slogans and features are dened for a specic crafts during this period. It is speculated that
destination brand theme. Only a few studies the Dutch authorities who visited Turkey
have investigated these aspects of destination took some tulip bulbs back home, and that

jo 0

dp 10 " &A
Sweden
KONCS =1
1, .. .... ;..,

Portugat

Fig. 8.3. Examples of some country brand logos and slogans, taken from diverse information sources.
122 A.D.A. Tasci

Dutch tulip growers later turned this plant Destination brand identity, character and
into an important economic commodity by personality
scientically improving the tulip species over
the centuries. Today, Holland is known glob- Consistent communication of distinctive
ally for its tulips, so that countrys use of a logos, symbols, colours, features and slo-
tulip gure as its brand logo seems only ratio- gans to target markets through IMC results
nal. However, Turkey has also been consis- in a certain brand image, identity, character
tently using the same symbol, trying to and personality in the minds of target mar-
reclaim itself as the motherland of tulips. This kets; namely, the identity, character and per-
can be seen as a good strategy from one per- sonality that the destination brand would
spective, although it may also be viewed as a have if it were a human being (Keller, 1993;
waste of scarce marketing resources to regain Aaker, 1997). The sociodemographic and
something that has been long lost, and as psychographic characteristics of a brand
doomed to fail eventually. characteristics such as age, gender, personal-
ity and religion, as if the brand were a
Destination brand slogans person, as well as brand personality reect-
ing the set of human characteristics (Aaker,
As can be seen from Fig. 8.3, some country 1997, p. 347), such as, stable, dependable,
brand logos come with a brand slogan (e.g. expert, friendly, etc., represent the success of
Brazils Sensacional! Sensational). The brand destination branding. Brand personality, in
slogan delivers the position of the destination terms of the perceptions of consumers, ser-
brand, therefore has to deliver a meaning that vice providers and residents, of the brand
is clearly understood by the target market(s). traits in delivering promised experiences, is
Some examples of destination brand slogans considered to be important. It is postulated
are provided in Table 8.1. Uniqueness and that this personality enhances brand equity
difference are prerequisites in destination by creating unique and favourable associa-
branding, but they are not warranted just by tions in consumer memory (Keller, 1993),
articulating them in slogans or messages. and a strong brand personality can lead to
Brand slogans have to deliver clear messages strong emotional ties between consumers
as to how a destination is unique and different. and a brand (Fournier, 1998), thereby poten-
A few destinations do still use these elusive tially affecting consumption decisions (Lau-
concepts in their brand slogans (e.g. Uniquely rent and Kapferer, 1985).
Singapore and Australia. A different light).
However, these words are used so often that
they are now denuded of any special connota- Benets of Strong Destination
tions for any target markets. Brands
Furthermore, because destinations
attract multiple tourist markets with different
A brand represents a network of positive
expectations and characteristics, they use dif-
meanings to consumers. A successful desti-
ferent slogans for different target markets.
nation brand differentiates products, repre-
For example, Turkey had a general brand slo-
sents a promise of value, quality, trust and
gan in 2008 that said Turkey, open for every-
assurance, evokes anticipation, expectation
one!; but in 2009, it used different slogans for
and emotions, incites beliefs, prompts
different markets as listed below:
behaviours, and reduces costs and perceived
What is your next Turkey? for Israel risk for consumers (Kotler and Gertner, 2002;
Live your dreams for the Middle East Morgan et al., 2002; Williams et al., 2004;
Its glamour of European and Asian variety. Its
Blain et al., 2005). Brands can be expected to
Turkey. for the Far East
play a more signicant role in tourism con-
Unlimited Turkey for the USA
Cradle of civilizations, center of love, dreamland sumption owing to their potential to offset
for Russia several risks that can be perceived with
Unforgettable for Germany and Austria, with travel products. A tourist product may
the sub-slogan Turkey...... my Holiday. in visuals not perform at the level of expectations
Destination Branding and Positioning 123

Table 8.1. Slogans used by different countries and their signicance.

Region Country slogans Signicance

Asia Uniquely Singapore No specic message


Malaysia Truly Asia Geographical signicance
Incredible India
Dynamic Korea
Naturally Nepal
Wow Philippines No specic message
Thailand Happiness on Earth
Vietnam The Hidden Charm
Asia Pacic Maldives The sunny side of life
Samoa The treasured island of the South Pacic Geographical signicance
Australia So where the bloody hell are you? Humour, fun
USA Ohio so much to discover Everything for all
Arizona Grand Canyon state Specic and focused
Alaska B4UDIE
Europe UK OK
Spain Everything Under the Sun
Your own Ireland
Croatia The Mediterranean as it once was Geographical signicance
Latvia Land that Sings
Hungary Talent for entertaining
Panama The Road Less Traveled
South America Jamaica One Love Fun
Nicaragua A country with heart
Dominica The Nature Island of the Caribbean Geographical signicance
Grenada Spice of the Caribbean Geographical signicance
Uruguay Natural
Africa Ethiopia 13 Months of Sunshine
Zambia Experience the Real Africa Geographical signicance
Rwanda Discover a New African Dawn Geographical signicance
Tanzania Authentic Africa Geographical signicance
Magical Kenya
Kenya creations most beautiful destinations. Everything for all
All in one country
South Africa It is possible

(functional risk), thus leading to nancial prices, the convenience of close distance, a
and time risks, and even the potential risks more favourable climate and ancestral roots.
of harming a tourists physical, social and They assert that a successful destination
psychological well-being (physical risk, brand exists when visitation of large number
social risk, and psychological risk). Because of people is induced by a positive relation-
brands signal quality, they reduce these per- ship with it because it provides values not
ceived risks and reassure the consumer found in other places (p. 154). A successful
about satisfaction (Blain et al., 2005). destination brand is manifested in a long-
Tasci and Gartner (2009) differentiate term memorable bond or an emotional link
between a successful destination brand and between consumers and the destination.
well-known or popular places receiving large In other words, the consumer develops
numbers of tourists for reasons such as cheap topophilia (a love of place), in this case an
124 A.D.A. Tasci

affective bond mental, emotional and cogni- Table 8.2. Sample scales used to measure desti-
tive ties to a destination (Rossides, 2010). nation brand equity in Macau SAR, China (adopted
The meanings that brands deliver to con- from Gartner et al., 2007).
sumers are crystallized as consumer-based
(Image) Macaus a
brand equity for marketers, viz. the total of
Variety of natural resources
meanings of a brand for consumers, the value Scenic beauty
of a brand, based on the level of strong and Beaches/water resources
positive image and associations, name aware- Availability of tourist information
ness and familiarity, high quality, value and Amount of cultural/heritage attractions
Variety of outdoor activities
loyalty that it has which are all interrelated
Weather conditions
with one another (Aaker, 1991, 1996; Keller, Taste of local cuisine
1993, 2003; Kotler and Armstrong, 1996; Kot- Peoples ability to speak in your language
ler et al., 1999). In a manner similar to that of Peoples friendliness/hospitality
tangible products, a destination products Uniqueness of culture/customs
brand equity also includes: Shopping opportunities
Exciting features
1. Awareness and familiarity about the Nightlife and entertainment opportunities
Modern lifestyle
destination.
Overall impression
2. Associations and images comprising
(Quality) Macaus quality in a
knowledge about destination attributes and Eateries
feelings generated by this knowledge. Services in restaurants
3. Quality of service and tangible aspects of Accommodation facilities
the destination. Services in hotels
4. Value in terms of the difference between Services by tour guides
Local transportation
costs and benets of visiting the destination. Services in local transportation
5. Brand value in terms of price premiums Cleanliness of the environment
that can be charged for the destination prod- (Value) A vacation in Macau is b
ucts compared with competitors who have Money well spent
similar products. Too far from home
6. Loyalty manifested in not only behav- More of a hassle than a vacation
Very inexpensive
ioural indicators such as repeat visitation but Good value for money
also in attitudinal indicators such as desire (Loyalty) Macau is b
and intention to revisit the destination, and A preferred destination for me
word of mouth and recommendation (Gart- The destination for my next vacation
ner et al., 2007). The only vacation destination for me
In my future vacation plans
Of these brand equity dimensions, brand The destination I recommend to my friends
image has received much attention since the and relatives
early 1970s before branding came to the The destination I least enjoyed
The destination I like more than other places
focus of destination marketers (Gunn, 1972;
(Familiarity) Attractionsc
Hunt, 1975; Crompton, 1979; Echtner and
Senado Square
Ritchie 1993; Gartner, 1993; Milman and Ruins of St Pauls
Pizam, 1995; Baloglu and McCleary, 1999; Cathedral
Chen and Kerstetter, 1999; Tasci and Gartner, Sam Kai Vui Kun Temple
2007; Tasci et al., 2007a). The complete brand Lou Kau Mansion
equity concept, including image and other St Lawrences Church
dimensions, has recently been the focus of aImage and Quality Scales: 1 = Extremely poor, 2 = Very

scholarly research. Like image, other dimen- poor, 3 = Poor, 4 = Fair, 5 = Good, 6 = Very good,
sions of brand equity are also measured using 7 = Excellent.
bValue and Loyalty Scales: 1 = Strongly disagree,
both quantitative surveys with Likert-type 2 = Disagree very much, 3 = Disagree, 4 = Neither agree
scales, as well as with more qualitative meth- nor disagree, 5 = Agree, 6 = Agree very much,
ods, such as in-depth interviews and focus 7 = Strongly agree.
cFamiliarity Scale: Visited it, Heard about it, Dont know.
groups studies with current and potential
Destination Branding and Positioning 125

visitors, service providers and residents of a those of a tangible product brands, both a
destination (Gartner et al., 2007). Table 8.2 destination brand and its equity are also more
provides details of the sample scales used by fragile than those of tangible product brands.
Gartner et al. (2007) to measure the brand Denizci and Tasci (2010) assert that this weak-
equity of Macau. ness of destination brands can be over-
Although brand equity is an abstract whelmed by investing in a very critical
concept, when it is strong and positive, the element of destination brands: the human
result is expected to be high tourism rev- component, namely, the labour force in the
enues. Therefore, visitation and resultant tourism industry. They suggest that invest-
tourism revenues can be viewed as a proxy ment in human capital can inuence and
for destination brand equity. When a destina- enhance the strength of a destinations brand
tion becomes successful in branding itself in a equity; thus, they provide a model of relation-
domain, this success can also have a halo ships between human capital and destination
effect in other domains; in other words, brand equity, along with measurement scales
becoming a strong brand in nature tourism to guide future research to empirically test
can also lead to perception of superior prod- the proposed relationships.
ucts in natural-resource based industries and An important void in the destination
sectors such as arts and crafts, agriculture and branding literature is the inuence of current
cuisine. Besides monetary benets, successful and previous marketing activities on the suc-
destination branding is expected to result in cess level of the destination brand. Without
high morale, national pride and team spirit, the documentation of such inuences,
as well as high living standards and quality of destination branding endeavour would be a
life for the locals. not-actually-proven to be useful but a taken-
for-granted task. For example, Crompton
et al. (1992) developed a positioning strategy
for the Rio Grande Valley in Texas with a six-
Directions for Future Research stage process. It would be interesting to see if
this positioning has caused any change in the
There are a few relevant concepts concerning Rio Grande Valley brand in their three mar-
destination branding that need attention from kets repeat visitors, rst timers, and non-
researchers to enhance destination branding visitors over a period of almost two
theory. One is co-branding, also known as decades. Another consideration is that
joint branding, composite branding and branding a destination through research,
brand alliance; co-branding is simply two or development and communications usually
more brands joining sources to become stron- results in high marketing-related expenses,
ger. It has already been used as a strategic busi- which calls for questions related to return on
ness option for the hospitality industry, and investment (ROI). Tasci and Denizci (2009)
can also be used for destination brand enhance- suggest a series of brand productivity evalu-
ment. Tasci and Denizci (2010) argue, for exam- ation techniques, including both quantiable
ple, that co-branding between retail brands and unquantiable brand inputs and brand
and hotel brands can enhance the Brand Hong outputs for DMOs, so that they can deter-
Kong as a strong shopping destination. In mine the return on their branding invest-
addition, co-branding between destinations ments. Displaying the productivity of
with similar products, such as Hong Kong, branding endeavours by numbers can facili-
South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Thai- tate the optimal allocation of resources in line
land, can be a strategy for strengthening both with objectives and opportunities; this needs
a destination brand and a region brand, to be tackled by future research in order to
which poses several opportunities for future legitimize the use of scarce resources for des-
research. tination branding.
As the factors involved in dening, Although developing strong destination
developing and managing a destination brands requires empirical studies involving
brand are more diverse and versatile than both the supply side and demand side so that
126 A.D.A. Tasci

appropriate brand characteristics (such as branding is tourism destination branding for


colour, logo, slogan and personality) can be the purpose of increasing tourism revenues.
found, there is a lack of research describing Effective management of tourism destina-
any such endeavour. Gartner et al. (2007) tion brands involves the activities of compre-
demonstrated empirically that these brand hensive research, attraction development,
characteristics can be different for the demand event management, integrated marketing com-
and supply sides. More studies are needed on munications (IMC) and continuous monitor-
these aspects, which calls for greater collabo- ing. A destination brand can be dened as a
ration between DMOs and academia. There place perceived with certain identiers such as
are also other aspects that need attention. For name, logo (symbol), colour and slogan that
example, Tasci et al. (2007b) showed, also distinguish it in the minds of consumers as hav-
empirically, that brand bias is an essential ing a certain character, personality and identity
characteristic of destination branding that that promise pleasurable and memorable expe-
DMOs need to measure and manage. Also, riences. Strong destination brands provide
Tasci et al. (2009) argued that even a seem- functional, emotional, economic and psycho-
ingly unrelated factor, such as a widely used logical values and benets to consumers; thus,
colour for employee uniforms by the hospi- there exist meaningful, strong, effective and
tality industry at a destination, can have an lasting bonds and relationships between the
inuence over the destination brand. Hence, destination brand and its consumers.
several aspects of destination branding Aside from government agencies, individ-
remain in the dark and in need of attention ual rms and organizations, industry associa-
from researchers. tions and non-prot organizations can play
important roles in tourism destination brand-
ing; however, success is achieved when it is a
concerted activity with government playing the
Summary and Conclusions leadership role, planning the direction by con-
sulting with all stakeholders, delegating tasks
Increased economic competition among coun- and facilitating actions among stakeholders.
tries has resulted in their need for nations to Although challenging, destination branding is
brand themselves, especially in the domains a strategic option for generating strong brand
of exports, direct foreign investment and tour- equity dimensions, including a strong and pos-
ism. When a nation or country becomes a itive image and associations, name awareness
competitive, unique and strong brand, it and familiarity, high quality, value and thereby
reaches success in exports, direct foreign consumer loyalty, which, in the end, translates
investment and tourism, and so becomes a into higher tourism revenues. Besides the mon-
producer of superior goods and services and a etary benets, successful destination branding
desirable place for residents, expatriates, also results in high morale, national pride, team
immigrants, the workforce, visitors, factories, spirit, and high living standards and quality of
corporate headquarters, new businesses, life for the locals. Therefore, more research is
investors, foreign direct investors and entre- needed to further develop destination brand-
preneurs. In line with nation and country ing theory and practice.

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9 Destination Image Development
and Communication

Amir Shani and Youcheng Wang

Introduction Substantial efforts are being directed towards


exploring the travellers image, as well as the
Since its emergence in the mid 1970s, dominant factors that inuence it, as this
destination image (DI) has become one of the understanding is critical for developing effec-
most important concepts in tourism destination tive planning, development and marketing
marketing. The rapid growth of the tourism strategies (Snmez and Sirakaya, 2002; Tasci
industry, combined with the global trends of et al., 2007). For that purpose, it is essential for
globalization and worldwide accessibility, has tourism managers not only to be concerned
led to a situation where contemporary travel- about the image of their own destinations,
lers are faced with endless destinations to but also about those of key competitors
choose from. In order to compare destinations (Ahmed, 1991; Bonn et al., 2005). Moreover,
of which they often have only limited recognition of the signicance of DI has
knowledge travellers are assisted by the exceeded the boundaries of the tourism
mental representation they have with regard industry, as many destinations also have non-
to each destination (OLeary and Deegan, touristic goals in promoting themselves, such
2003). Images serve as a means to differenti- as improving their national image as a whole,
ate between destinations, and have been and leveraging their international standing
shown in numerous studies to play a key role (Shani et al., 2010). Consequently, DI is being
in the tourists decision-making process highly prioritized in relation to many destina-
(Pearce, 1982; Sirgy and Su, 2000; Yksel and tions around the world, in both underdevel-
Akgl, 2007). Creating a positive DI is a com- oped and developed countries.
plex and challenging task, as images are gen- The goal of the current chapter is to pro-
erated from fragments of information about vide a comprehensive overview of critical
the destination that are derived from a wide issues in the development and communica-
variety of sources, while only a few of them tion of DI. The chapter reviews prominent
are under the direct or indirect control of des- works and studies that have greatly advanced
tination marketing organizations (DMOs) or our understating of DI, while outlining mana-
other destination promoters (Gartner, 1993; gerial and marketing implications that have
Baloglu and McCleary, 1999). been drawn from the extensive research on
Nevertheless, today more than ever, the subject that has been conducted for over
DMOs invest considerable resources in order 30 years. The chapter begins with the concep-
to achieve and maintain the desired image. tualization of DI, including its meaning and
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
130 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Destination Image Development and Communication 131

composition, which has attracted much Despite the differences between the vari-
attention in the tourism marketing literature. ous denitions and conceptualizations that
The discussion then moves on to prominent have been offered to explain the meaning of
methodologies that have been presented, in DI, it is generally agreed that it refers to the
order to operatively assess DI and its congru- tourist-based image rather than the marketer-
ence with the image that is projected by the based image (Li and Volgelsong, 2006). The
destination itself. growing interest in this eld of study derives
As the effective communication of DI from the recognition that what people think
requires a thorough understanding of the about a destinations image is strategically
mechanism that generates DI, the formation more important than what a marketer knows
process of DI is discussed, including the about the destination (Ahmed, 1991, p. 25). A
information agents that affect the mental rep- wide variety of denitions have been offered
resentation that people have in regard to des- to describe DI throughout the years. One of
tinations. Because it has been recognized that the earliest comprehensive denitions that is
DI is a dynamic rather than a static concept, akin to the current understanding of DI was
the chapter also presents evidence on the suggested by Lawson and Baud Bovy (1997;
change of image over time, while outlining in Jenkins, 1999, p. 2): the expression of all
opportunities to manage and correct nega- objective knowledge, impressions, prejudice,
tive images. The chapter ends with conclu- imaginations, and emotional thoughts an
sions and suggestions for future research on individual or group might have of a particu-
this critical facet of tourism destination lar place. The challenge faced by DMOs
marketing. and other destination promoters is to bring
the image that people have in mind as close
as possible to the desired image of the
destination.
The Nature of Destination Image

The study of product image has a long his- The three continuum model
tory, yet it has been acknowledged that the
unique characteristics and complexity of the One of the seminal works on the subject of DI
tourism product require the development of was done by Echtner and Ritchie (1991), who
specic conceptual frameworks and method- offered a conceptual framework for under-
ologies to inquire into the nature of DI. While standing the components of DI. It consists of
a wide variety of denitions have been three image continuums: (i) attributeholistic;
offered to describe DI, Gallarza et al. (2002) (ii) functionalpsychological; and (iii) common
stated four main characteristics that represent unique. The rst continuum ranges from indi-
the nature of DI: vidual attributes to holistic impressions of a
DI. The extensive review of the literature on
1. Complex DI is a controversial concept image given by Echtner and Richie (1991)
with no universally agreed-upon denition reveals that some denitions and interpreta-
or accepted components. tions of image emphasize the individual attri-
2. Multiple DI consists of manifold fea- butes of image, while others regard image as a
tures that represent its identity; in addition, holistic impression. An example of attribute-
various interrelated information agents are based denition of image is ones perception
involved in the formulation of DI. of attributes or activities available at a destina-
3. Relativistic DI is highly subjective and tion (Gartner, 1986), and an example of the
tends to change from individual to individual; holistic denition is the sum of beliefs, ideas
moreover, DI is usually not assessed in itself, and impressions that people have of a place
but rather in comparison to other destinations. (Kotler et al., 1993). Tasci et al. (2007) state that
4. Dynamic DI is not static but rather like- the attribute-based denitions assume high-
ly to change over time and space (e.g. as a involvement and piecemeal-based processing
result of physical proximity to the destination). on the part of the consumer, who assesses
132 A. Shani and Y. Wang

destinations based on attributes and activities. and price, fall in the grey area between the two
In contrast, holistic denitions assume low- ends of the continuum.
involvement and category-based processing The third and last continuum in the con-
on the part of the consumer, who does not ceptualization presented by Echtner and
have the mental capacity to examine the DI Ritchie (1991) ranges from common image
attribute by attribute, and instead has a gestalt attributes, according to which all destinations
impression of the destination, based on can be evaluated and compared, to unique
selected criteria that are relevant to the specic image attributes, which are exclusive to the
situation. Nevertheless, Echtner and Ritchie specic destination. Either common or unique
(1991) concluded that both dimensions should attributes can consist of both functional and
be incorporated in a conceptualization of DI in psychological traits. Examples of common
order to represent its complexity more accu- functional attributes often given include
rately and comprehensively. transportation, infrastructure and accommo-
The second continuum ranges from the dation, while frequently used psychological
functional attributes of an image, which can be attributes include residents friendliness,
directly observed or measured, to its psycho- safety and quality of service. Illustrations of
logical attributes, which cannot be directly unique functional attributes are the Taj Mahal
measured. Each can be based either on specic for India, the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro for
traits that are directly observable or on a gen- Brazil and the Eiffel Tower in Paris for France.
eral impression that represents feelings or aura. Unique psychological attributes might include
Gallarza et al. (2002) summarized the most examples such as the image of romanticism
common image attributes that were utilized in for Paris, of sacredness for Israels Jerusalem
selected DI studies conducted between 1979 and of mysticism for India.
and 1999, and found that the most used attri- To conclude Echtner and Ritchies (1991)
butes were resident receptiveness and land- approach, DI consists of both attribute-based
scape and/or surroundings. The researchers and holistic impressions, each of which can
described the traits studied as a spectrum from be based on both functional and psychologi-
the most physical (functional) attributes (e.g. cal traits. In addition, specic DIs are also dif-
activities and nature) to the most abstract (psy- ferentiated from those that are common to all
chological) attributes (e.g. service quality and destinations. This scheme is illustrated as a
safety), while some attributes, such as climate three-dimensional gure in Fig. 9.1.

Functional characteristics
Common

Attributes Holistic
(imagery)

Unique

Psychological characteristics

Fig. 9.1. The three-dimensional components of destination image (DI) (Adapted from Echtner and
Ritchie, 1991).
Destination Image Development and Communication 133

The hierarchical model

Other conceptualizations have also been sug- IC (OVERA


LIST LL
gested to describe the components of DI. HO )
Gartner (1993), based on the work of Boulding CONATIVE
(1956), stated that DI comprises three hierar-
chical interrelated components: cognitive,
affective and conative. The cognitive compo- MMO

NITIVE

AFFECTIVE
nent refers to knowledge and beliefs about a O

N
E C
destination, and focuses mainly on its physical

COG

U
NIQU
attributes. The affective component relates to

S
AT
TRIBUTE
feelings and emotions about a destination,
which are generally neutral, favourable or
unfavourable (Pike and Ryan, 2004). Lastly, the
conative component indicates the behavioural
intentions in relation to the destination.
Together these three components take in what
we know about an object (cognitive), how we
feel about what we know (affective), and how Fig. 9.2. Interactive system of destination image
we act on this information (conative) (Tasci (DI) components (Adapted from Tasci et al., 2007).
et al., 2007, p. 199). There is a general agree-
ment in the literature, which is supported by
empirical evidence, that the affective compo- destination and the affective response
nent is a mediating factor between the cogni- toward those attributes. With the interac-
tive component and the holistic DI. In other tion between the knowledge of unique and
words, the cognitive component is an ante- common attributes and feelings toward
cedent to the affective component, while both them, a composite image (holistic or
inuence the overall image of the destination overall) is formed and used by the decision
(Beerli and Martn, 2004; Lin et al., 2007). maker to simplify the task of decision
While most studies on DI tend to focus on making. Assuming the knowledge of
common and unique attributes is fact based,
cognitive image attributes, it should be
the more detailed the core is, the less
stressed that the affective image component
stereotypical the holistic synthesis is. This
has been found to have a substantial impact on is a dynamically interactive and reciprocal
travellers assessment and selection of tourism system in which every item could be both
destinations (e.g. Yksel and Akgl, 2007), and cause and effect at any time, and factors
should, therefore, be incorporated as an inte- cannot be comprehended in isolation;
grative element in the conceptualization of DI. therefore they should be studied in an
Moreover, as was noted by Tasci et al. (2007), integrated manner. Thus, a destination
the conative component is also missing in image is an interactive system of thoughts,
many denitions of DI, yet it is vital in order to opinions, feelings, visualizations, and
intentions toward a destination.
capture the action element in peoples percep-
tions. Consequently, these researchers offered
an interactive system of DI components that
takes into consideration its cognitive, affective Measurement of Destination Image
and conative components, as well as other
dimensions that were suggested in other stud- In order to generate effective managerial and
ies, that is to say holisticattributive and marketing implications regarding a destina-
commonunique (see Fig. 9.2). Tasci et al. tions positioning and promotion, its image
(2007, p. 200) described their model as follows: must be accurately assessed. Naturally, the
At the core of this interactive system of methodology used to measure DI depends
components, there is cognitive knowledge on the way the term is interpreted and
of common and unique attributes of conceptualized. Generally speaking, DI can be
134 A. Shani and Y. Wang

measured by applying structured techniques, The consecutive approach


in which respondents rate a list of image
attributes that are specied and incorporated When adopting the consecutive approach,
into a standardized instrument (usually on a the qualitative phase is initially conducted to
Likert-type or semantic differential scale), but elicit the relevant DI attributes, after which
unstructured techniques, in which the respon- the quantitative phase is applied to measure
dents freely express their perceived images of these attributes in a structured manner
the destination (Echtner and Ritchie, 1991), (Jenkins, 1999). As an illustration, in a study
can also be used. By their nature, structured conducted by Bonn et al. (2005), in order to
techniques rely on quantitative procedures develop a list of destination attributes to mea-
and statistical analysis, while unstructured sure the image of the Tampa Bay region of
techniques are based on qualitative methods Florida, the preliminary stage included three
such as content analysis, discussions with qualitative methods: (i) using answers from
experts, in-depth interviews, focus groups, open-ended questions employed in an earlier
integrating questions from a survey, and survey among visitors to the region; (ii) form-
others (Gallarza et al., 2002). ing an expert panel to assess whether the
As noted by Echtner and Ritchie (1991), responses from the previous step were appro-
traditionally the structured approach was priate to represent the image dimensions; and
dominant in DI studies, most likely as a result (iii) holding panel and focus group discus-
of its obvious advantages; the studies were sions with industry and community leaders
easier to administrate, had simpler data cod- to gain their perspectives on important image
ing, and offered the ability to apply sophisti- attributes. Based on the results of this process,
cated statistical analyses. In addition, the researchers nalized a list of ten attributes
structured methods allow the comparison of that were included in a questionnaire and
various destinations across a variety of image used in the subsequent quantitative phase. A
attributes included in the survey. However, factor analysis revealed two underlying
the structured approach focuses on general image dimensions: the service factor (ease of
image attributes pre-specied by researchers, getting there, friendliness of residents,
and so does not enable the respondents to level of service, signage, value of the dol-
state their own impressions regarding the des- lar, and ground transportation) and the
tination. As a result, important holistic and/or environmental factor (variety of things to
unique characteristics of the destination might do, clean environment, climate, and per-
be neglected. As unstructured methods mea- ception of safety). The quantication of the
sure DI using free-form descriptions, they DI allowed the researchers to conclude that
minimize the researchers bias in selecting overall the participants rated the environ-
image attributes and yield rich information; mental factor higher than the service factor. In
hence, they are preferable for capturing the addition, international visitors rated both fac-
unique and holistic dimensions of a DI. Con- tors lower than did domestic visitors, indicat-
sequently, it is generally agreed upon that a ing that they had higher service and
comprehensive investigation of DI should environmental standards, thus providing
apply a mixed-methodology approach, that is important implications for the destination
to say, it should incorporate both quantitative marketers regarding the improvement of
and qualitative techniques (Echtner and these dimensions and emphasizing them in
Ritchie, 1993; Hanlan and Kelly, 2005; Tasci their international marketing campaigns.
et al., 2007). None the less, in his review of 142 In using the consecutive approach, only a
DI papers published from 1973 to 2000, Pike small number of studies did not limit them-
(2002) found that most of the papers (79) did selves to identifying the most prominent
not involve any qualitative methods at any image components of destination, but also
stage of the investigation. Broadly speaking, aimed at identifying the relative importance of
there are two schools that call for applying these components in affecting behavioural
mixed-methods in DI studies: the consecutive intentions. As noted by Lin et al. (2007), more
and the complementary approaches. attention should be focused towards
Destination Image Development and Communication 135

discriminating between the roles of the The complementary approach


different image components, as they have a
different impact on tourists selection of desti- The second mixed-method approach in exam-
nations. For example, Shani et al. (2010) ining DI refers to the qualitative and qualita-
recently investigated the DI of China in the tive phases as complementary rather than
eyes of young international employees in the consecutive. According to this view, the two
USA. Following the consecutive approach, in methods complete each other and both are
order to develop the main study instrument, necessary for capturing the entire scope of the
the researchers conducted several focus components of DI. This approach attributes a
groups sessions to identify both important higher degree of importance to the qualitative
common and general image attributes (e.g. methods than the consecutive approach,
pleasant weather and safety) and attributes which utilizes it only as a means to generate
that are unique to China (e.g. unique historical the main research instrument. In the case of
and cultural attractions, exotic oriental atmo- the complementary approach, the qualitative
sphere, big and heavily populated). To elicit methods provide insights into image aspects
induced DIs of China, the respondents also that the quantitative method is unable to
viewed a promotional video that was pro- reveal, owing to its structured nature. Echtner
duced to promote the image of the country. A and Ritchie (1993) suggested one of the most
total of 28 attributes were included in the ques- popular research frameworks for measuring
tionnaire that was used in the quantitative DI, using combined structured and unstruc-
phase. Additionally, a series of behavioural tured methods that aim to capture the afore-
intentions towards China were also investi- mentioned holistic, attributive, functional,
gated, specically the awareness, desire, likeli- psychological, unique and common charac-
hood of and interest in visiting China in the teristics of DI. According to their suggestion,
future. This can be seen as the conative compo- a list of image items is used to quantitatively
nent of DI, which Tasci et al. (2007) stated as measure the common attributes of DI, both
missing from most studies on DI. Overall, the functional and psychological. Additionally,
results of the study indicated that China was open-ended questions are included in the
perceived as an attractive destination, exhibit- survey to capture the holistic and unique
ing both cultural and natural qualities, in addi- components of DI, again along both the func-
tion to representations of mixed aspects on tional and psychological dimensions.
the one hand, traditional oriental images of Several researchers have utilized the
enormousness and exoticism, and on the other methodology framework suggested by
hand, modern images of progress and innova- Echtner and Ritchie (1993) to investigate DI
tion. Nevertheless, the factor of culture and (e.g. Murphy, 1999; Chen and Hsu, 2000;
nature tourism was found to have the most Pawitra and Tan, 2003). In one instance, Choi
signicant impact on participants behavioural et al. (1999) assessed the DI of Hong Kong
intentions. Consequently, the researchers con- (HK) among visitors to the island using three-
cluded that natural and cultural attributes are dimensional image components. The study
the main attractors for visiting the country, instrument utilized by the researchers
and thus should be the focus of promotional included two main sections. First of all, the
campaigns. Despite Chinas rapid moderniza- participants were asked to state their level of
tion, accompanied by the establishment of agreement with regard to a series of attribute
Western accommodation facilities, shopping statements (e.g. Many places of interest to
facilities and other tourism infrastructure, the visit, Local people are friendly). These
results indicated that emphasizing these attri- statements were analysed using statistical
butes is not expected to increase the likelihood procedures, which pointed to the dominant
of visiting the country. These ndings common functional and psychological
strengthen the suggestion of Lin et al. (2010, attributes. The second part of the question-
p. 10) that destination managers must develop naire included three open-ended questions
marketing strategies specic to the character of (as specied by Echtner and Ritchie, 1993), in
their specic destinations. which the participants were asked to state the
136 A. Shani and Y. Wang

images or characteristics associated with HK, written information (e.g. guidebooks, news-
to describe the atmosphere or mood they papers) and visual information (e.g. photos in
expected to nd in HK, and to list the unique promotional material). As an illustration, a
tourist attractions in HK that they knew of. content analysis was conducted by Xiao and
The qualitative information was used to Mair (2006) on articles from 19 English news-
assess the holistic images of HK, both func- papers in order to analyse Chinas represen-
tional and psychological, as well as the tation as a tourist destination in the
unique attributes and impressions from the international media. The researchers stated
destination. A graphic illustration of the DI of that China has a paradox of images, as it was
HK, based on the results of the study, is depicted with mixed and contrasting images.
shown in Fig. 9.3. As can be seen, HK was The negative images of China were associ-
evaluated positively with regard to the shop- ated with issues such as the countrys prob-
ping and tourist information, albeit with neg- lematic international relations and safety, and
ative images of crowdedness and stress. the positive images were related to its rich
Among the unique images of HK were the culture and tourist attractions. Based on the
Peak, the Star Ferry and the night market. results from the study, the researchers sug-
Choi et al. (1999) concluded that the integra- gested marketing implications for Chinas
tion of quantitative and qualitative methods DMO, specically to emphasize its most posi-
in a complementary approach provided a tive image dimensions (e.g. culture and out-
comprehensive DI of HK that could be highly standing attractions). In addition, it was
helpful for its destination promoters in suggested that in order to correct the more
understanding its market position. negative aspects, marketing campaigns
should highlight the countrys growing
openness to the outside world and its socio-
Alternative qualitative methods economic and technological advancements.

It should be noted that when either the con- Free elicitation and photo-elicitation
secutive or the complementary mixed method
is applied, researchers can employ a wide Another qualitative method that has been
variety of qualitative methods to elicit DIs. used to assess DI is free elicitation, which
Moreover, in some cases, qualitative methods refers to word association. Reilly (1990) dem-
are utilized as the main technique to assess onstrated the usefulness of this technique for
DI, although for the most part they are com- DI studies, arguing that it constitutes a fairly
bined with some form of quantitative investi- simple method that can be used in a variety of
gations (Gallarza et al., 2002). While the survey types (e.g. mail, telephone and face-
typical qualitative methods used in DI are to-face interviews). Essentially, free elicitation
described above, Jenkins (1999) suggested involves asking participants questions such
and described other alternative qualitative as What three words best describe X as a des-
methods for the elicitation of image con- tination for vacation or pleasure travel?
structs: content analysis, free elicitation and (Reilly, 1990). The recorded responses are
photo-elicitation, and triad elicitation. Other then categorized based on similarity, and the
techniques that were used in research include frequency of types of responses is assessed to
visitor-employed photography and sketch identify the dominant images. This method
maps. These techniques are elaborated below, was advocated by Reilly (1990, p. 22) because
with examples from DI studies. the responses are sensitive to the subjects
own dimensionalities for constructing an
Content analysis image of the stimulus, in addition to the
techniques ability to reect the lack of a
Content analysis is a method in which textual coherent image when participants cannot
information is screened and systematically respond with clear descriptions. A similar
analysed to identify patterns and categories. method is photo-elicitation, which also
DIs can be inferred from sources such as involves presenting photographs of the
Functional characteristics

Destination Image Development and Communication


Functional characteristics

Metropolis/skyscrapers The Peak, the Peak Tram and Wide variety of products Metropolis/skyscrapers
Good shopping place the night view from the Peak Shopping is convenient Good shopping place
Good transportation The Star Ferry Good tourist information Good transportation
Shopping and the night market

Common Holistic
Unique Attributes
(imagery)

Friendly and helpful Busy/crowded/traffic Safe place to visit Busy/crowded/traffic


people Fast pace of life Many interesting places Friendly and helpful people
Mixed culture and people Everything is different Fast pace of life
Political issues and fascinating

Psychological characteristics Psychological characteristics

Fig. 9.3. The functionalpsychological, attributeholistic, and commonunique image components of Hong Kong (Adapted from Choi et al., 1999).

137
138 A. Shani and Y. Wang

destination to the participants to investigate For instance, Pike (2003) applied the
their perceptions. RGA to identify important destination attri-
Reilly (1990) empirically investigated the butes for domestic travellers in New Zealand,
images of the State of Montana, as a whole, when they consider going by car on a short
among US and Canadian residents, and the vacation. Nine prominent domestic holiday
Montana Mountain ski area, in particular, destinations were selected and displayed to
among skiers, using free elicitation. The the participants in series of three. It was
results indicate that the most common found that the most salient attributes were
descriptors of Montana were its scenic beauty lots to do, within a comfortable drive, the
and its large size, while the skiing area eli- sea/beach, water sport and good weather.
cited descriptions of physical beauty, spa- As the participants perceptions were akin
ciousness and enjoyableness. The ndings neither to the views of local tourism practi-
also revealed variations based on the partici- tioners, who were interviewed for the study,
pants origin, resulting in different marketing nor to attributes used in the literature, Pike
implications for different market segments. (2003) concluded that it is essential to gain the
Accordingly, it was found that respondents consumers input directly when dening
from distant areas lacked a clear representa- salient destination attributes in image studies.
tion of Montana compared with residents
from closer areas. Consequently, Reilly (1990) Visitor-employed photography
recommended integrating more informa-
tional content into promotions targeting dis- The use of visitor-employed photography
tant areas. (VEP) was advocated by MacKay and
Couldwell (2004) as an effective method to
Triad elicitation communicate the representations of a desti-
nation. They stated that the technique
The triad elicitation concept was initially for- involves distributing cameras to respondents
mulated by Kelly (1955) for use in psycho- and asking them to photograph aspects of the
logical studies, and was adapted for site that relate to the research objectives
application to DI studies. On the basis of (p. 390) which, in this case, refers to DI elicita-
Kellys theory, it is assumed that individuals tion. Because most advertisements and pro-
appraise certain phenomena using constructs motions entail the use of pictorial elements, it
that are nite and bipolar in nature. For is suggested that DI studies also incorporate
instance, a tourist might apply the construct the visitors visual perceptions of the destina-
good value for money to potential destina- tion, as this can substantially increase the
tion A, whereas the contrast too expensive validity of the research. Additionally, under-
might be applied to destination B (Coshall, standing the appealing visual elements of a
2000, p. 86). The technique developed to oper- destination in the eyes of visitors can help to
ationalize Kellys theory is known as the rep- assess the pictures currently used in market-
ertory grid approach (RGA), in which ing campaigns and to design future projected
elements represented by names or other images.
symbols are presented to participants in a This method was applied by MacKay
series of triads, usually using cards. In the and Couldwell (2004) in an image study on a
context of tourism, these elements are for the national historic site in the Canadian prov-
most part tourism destinations or specic ince of Saskatchewan. A sample of visitors
attractions. As noted by Jenkins (1999), the was asked to take photos that best repre-
participants are asked to evaluate and com- sented the site either positively or nega-
pare three destinations, and state in what tively. They were also requested to state in
meaningful way two of these destinations are their diaries the main theme of each photo,
similar and dissimilar from the third. Combi- the main motive for taking the photo and
nations of three destinations are presented to whether the photo represented a positive or a
the participants until no new construct is negative image. The analysis revealed two
revealed. consistent themes that accounted for why
Destination Image Development and Communication 139

respondents took their pictures: aesthetics, Destination Image Formation


which refers to the tangible facets of the site
(e.g. exterior buildings, farming equipment), It is essential for DMOs and tourism manag-
and nostalgia, which refers to the intangible ers not only to understand the existing image
elements (e.g. display of a past way of life, of their destination, but also to explore the
personal memories). The researchers con- critical factors that inuence that image. Such
cluded that the ndings provide evidence understanding provides valuable information
that VEP is sensitive tool to the multidimen- as to the degree of effectiveness of marketing
sionality of DI because it captures both the and/or publicity, and assists in decision mak-
sites attributive and its holistic images. ing with regard to future marketing cam-
paigns. Owing to the abundance of potential
Sketch map information sources that combine to form a
DI, various attempts to classify these sources
The goal of the sketch map methodology is to appear in the literature. To name a few exam-
comprehend peoples mental maps, which ples, information sources have been catego-
refers to their knowledge with regard to what rized as: (i) symbolic stimuli (a destinations
is found at a particular location. As noted by promotional efforts) and social stimuli (word-
Son (2005, p. 280), Mental maps are useful in of-mouth communication, including recom-
predicting where people will want to go and mendations from friends and relatives); (ii)
what they will want to do when they get informal (personal) and formal (corporate-
there . Investigating how well tourists based) sources; and (iii) commercial, advisory
know the areas that they visit, what roads and social sources (see Choi et al., 2007). Simi-
and landmarks they come to know, which larly, Phelps (1986) differentiated between pri-
areas they want to visit and which areas they mary images, which are based on past
consider to be unpleasant, is essential for bet- experiences, and secondary images, which are
ter understanding of tourists behaviour and based on external sources.
perception. One of the most detailed and cited typol-
This information is necessary in order to ogies of information sources was offered by
gain a proper appreciation of travellers Gartner (1993), based on previous work con-
behaviours and perceptions. Son (2005) ducted by Gunn (1972). The typology (see
applied the sketch map technique to assess Table 9.1) is presented as a continuum of
international students mental maps of the information agents that act autonomously or
Australian cities of Sydney and Melbourne. jointly to form a DI. The continuum ranges
The participants were asked to draw a sketch from sources that are in the full or partial con-
map of the downtown areas of these cities as trol of destination promoters (overtly and
they remembered them, providing as many covertly induced) to sources that are much
details (i.e. paths, districts and landmarks) as harder to inuence (autonomous and
possible. Examples of sketch maps of other organic). Gartner (1993) also stated that the
locations were provided for illustration. eight formation agents are differentiated by
Other sections, aimed at identifying the affec- their credibility, market penetration and des-
tive and holistic images of the cities, were also tination costs. For example, advertising is
included in the questionnaire. The analysis often expensive and is characterized by the
revealed that both destinations are fairly leg- lowest level of credibility, but also has the
ible cities, while Sydney is perceived as a spa- ability to reach wide segments of consumers.
tially dominated city and Melbourne as a Conversely, autonomous and organic sources
path-oriented city. The results also provided enjoy high credibility and only imply indirect
useful information concerning dominant expenses on the part of the destination, yet
landmarks (i.e. buildings, attractions and market penetration is relatively low as these
monuments) for each city, such as the Sydney sources rely on individual communication
Opera House and Queen Victoria building for rather than on mass media.
Sydney, and the Nike building and Parliament The growing recognition of the signi-
House for Melbourne. cance of DI formation has led to studies that
140 A. Shani and Y. Wang

Table 9.1. Gartners typology of destination image formation agents (Adapted from Gartner, 1993).

Information
sources Description Examples

Overt induced I Traditional forms of advertising that are Radio, television and print media,
generated by destination promoters commercials, brochures and billboards
Overt induced II External sources that have a vested Travel agents, tour operators and
interest in marketing the destination wholesalers
Covert induced I Well-known spokesmen who are paid to Celebrities such as lms stars, athletes
endorse the destination and partici- and fashion models
pate in advertisement
Covert Seemingly unbiased sources that are Offering familiarization tours for travel
induced II actually inuenced by destination writers and other media representa-
promoters to endorse the destination tives to project the desired image of the
destination
Autonomous Genuinely independent sources, mainly News reports and articles, documentaries,
news and popular culture books and movies
Unsolicited Individuals who visit or claim knowledge Voluntary information about vacation
organic of the destination attributes who destinations generated from
provide unrequested information conversation with friends or business
colleagues
Solicited Knowledgeable sources without vested Word-of-mouth information generated
organic interest in promoting the destination from friends and relatives who visited or
provide information on its attributes, heard about the destination
in response to explicit requests
Organic Personal experience Previous visit/s to the destination

investigate the effectiveness of various infor- that the most effective media for reaching the
mation sources to convey the projected image. target market were newspapers and maga-
Investigation of the effectiveness of market- zines.
ing efforts is critical in monitoring whether Nevertheless, more recent studies indi-
marketing efforts to enhance DI bear fruit, cate that overt induced I (traditional forms of
and in providing stakeholders with reason- advertising; see Table 9.1) information sources
able transparency as to the success of the mar- are not necessarily the ones with the most
keting strategies of DMOs (Govers and Go, inuence on DI. A study by Beerli and Martn
2003). As noted by Shani et al. (2010, p. 3), (2004) revealed that organic and autonomous
because DMOs are often operated and sources (e.g. guidebooks), as well as overt
nanced through government support, they induced II sources (i.e. travel agency staff)
are increasingly being held accountable by had positive effects on DI, while induced
their stakeholders and selected ofcials to sources such as brochures and advertising
provide evidence of adequate returns for the campaigns did not have such an effect. Simi-
often costly marketing expenditures. For larly, Govers et al. (2007) found that advertise-
example, in an early study that was con- ments have relatively little importance in the
ducted with an American sample, Bojanic formation of DIs, while autonomous and
(1991) found that as the level of exposure to covert-induced information agents, such as
advertising increased, the attitudes of the television, magazines, the Internet, books and
respondents towards a certain south Euro- movies, and organic sources (both solicited
pean country were more favourable. Respon- and unsolicited) were the most important
dents who reported high frequency of sources. Finally, Mercille (2005) also discov-
exposure to advertising also expressed a ered that before their trips, a substantial
higher likelihood and interest in visiting that number of travellers to Tibet consulted a vari-
particular destination. Further, it was noted ety of autonomous sources, such as books,
Destination Image Development and Communication 141

magazines and travel lms (ction and non- or the cinema screen (Hudson and Ritchie,
ction) on Tibet. 2006, p. 387). Indeed, various studies have
These ndings call for destination mar- demonstrated a signicant increase in tourist
keters to strengthen their ties with critical dis- arrivals to destinations which were at the cen-
tribution channels (such as travel agents), as tre of lms and television programmes (Tooke
well as to focus their attention on generating and Baker, 1996; Riley et al., 1998). For exam-
positive word-of-mouth (WOM) communica- ple, in the rst year after the movie Close
tion. Although WOM is regarded as an Encounters of the Third Kind was released
organic source, Hanlan and Kelly (2005) point (1977), visitation rates to the Devils Tower
to radically new tactics, such as whisper mar- National Monument in north-eastern Wyo-
keting (or in its Internet form, viral market- ming, where one of the main scenes in the
ing), in which opinion makers plant positive lm was set, increased by 74% compared
messages about a destination within specic with the previous year. In the following years,
target markets to exploit the high credibility visitation rates dropped, although not to the
of WOM communication. The contemporary pre-lm rates (Riley et al., 1998). Connell
shift of focus from word-of-mouth to word- (2005) attributed the capability of lms in
of-mouse has led Shani et al. (2010, p. 118) to inuencing DIs to their perceived reliability
predict that the Internet can be expected to and trustworthiness in comparison with
play an important role for DMOs in the near overt induced agents.
future, especially in light of the increasing Owing to the signicance of lm tourism
popularity of blogging and online social in DI formation, Hudson and Ritchie (2006)
networks. offered a variety of marketing activities for
Furthermore, the recognition of the exploiting lm opportunities, both before and
importance of autonomous agents has led after the lm is released, implying that lms
researchers to suggest that destination pro- may not be as autonomous as it may seem
moters allocate resources and marketing (see Table 9.2). Although the usefulness of
efforts to inuence these sources, despite these and other methods should be further
their seemingly independent nature. In an explored, it is clear that they seriously chal-
experiment-based study, Loda et al. (2005) lenge the conventional assumption of WOM,
found that publicity (dened as editorial non- and of autonomous agents such as popular
paid space in the printed and broadcasted culture, news and other forms of mass media,
media) had a signicantly higher impact than as sources that are behind the inuence
advertising on participants attitudes towards exerted by destination promoters.
a destination. In addition, publicity received
higher credibility and generated stronger
intentions to visit the destination. Conse-
quently, it was advocated that publicity Destination Image Change
should be an important element in the desti-
nations marketing mix in the form of desti- Most DI studies focus on measuring image in
nation promoters developing and nurturing a certain point in time. None the less, as noted
relations with journalists and other key g- by Gallarza et al. (2002), image is not static but
ures in the media in order to have a positive tends to change over time. Moreover, in most
impact on the coverage of the destination in cases, people do not formulate a whole new
news broadcasts and articles (Lubbers, 2005). DI, but evaluate information they receive
Other signicant image factors in the from image agents based on existing percep-
mass media are lms and television shows, tions they have on the destination. As noted
which have been attributed with having a sig- by Tapachai and Waryszak (2000, p. 38), it is
nicance impact on DI and, consequently, on well accepted that an individual does not
a travellers decision to visit a destination. face each new stimulus as a completely novel
Film tourism is dened as tourist visits to a experience but compares the incoming data
destination or attraction as a result of the des- with prior information or schema stored in
tinations being featured on television, video, memory. Understanding the mechanisms of
142 A. Shani and Y. Wang

Table 9.2. Potential marketing activities to exploit lm promotion opportunities (Adapted from Hudson
and Ritchie, 2006).

Before release After release

Appointing an ofcial destination representative to Inviting media representatives to a special


directly deal with studios screening of the lm
Actively marketing the destination to lm studios and Placing signs and interpretation at the location
producers of the lm
Offering grant and/or tax benets to studios to select Offering lm memorabilia for sale
the destination as a lm setting
Recruiting the lm star to endorse the lm location Promoting accommodation facilities (e.g. hotels,
guest houses) and restaurants that were used
in the lm
Negotiating the reference of the destination in the Producing tourist maps with references to
end credits of the lm locations from the lm
Providing images of the destination to media and Hosting events to maximize the exposure of
tour operators for use during promotion a wide audience to the lm and the destination
Ensuring that the media coverage of the lm refers Offering special lm tours with local and inbound
to its location tour operators
Offering direct sponsorship of the lm Posting electronic links to promotional materials
on the lms websites

image change is crucial for monitoring it and authors raised several potential causes for the
adjusting marketing strategies in response to image change, while recognizing the dif-
changing circumstances. Furthermore, desti- culty in assessing the exact inuence of each
nation promoters should not accept the cur- cause. More generally, it was suggested that
rent image as a xed state, and should apply in the absence of any catastrophic impact of
various activities to improve its weaknesses international importance, image(s) will con-
and maintain its strengths. It should be tinue to evolve at a rate contingent on the
stressed, however, that an image is slow to relative strengths of an areas induced (i.e.
change as a result of the activities of induced advertising or secondary endorsement
image agents, especially when large entities efforts, etc.) and organic (incidence of travel)
such as countries or states are considered. factors (Gartner and Hunt, 1987, pp. 1819).
Therefore, attempts to alter an image require However, owing to the perceived credi-
substantial resources and must be planned in bility of autonomous agents, dramatic events
the long term. In addition, promoters should that receive wide coverage in information
ensure the consistency of the desired image sources, such as news broadcasts, are more
throughout the various information sources prone to generate prompt and drastic change
that are used (Gartner, 1993). in a DI, at least in the short term. For example,
Several studies have been conducted in Gartner and Shen (1992) compared the DI of
order to investigate images of the same desti- China among US respondents before and
nation over a period of time. For example, after the Tiananmen Square protests in June
Gartner and Hunt (1987) investigated the 1989, in which violent confrontations between
image of Utah over a 12-year period, and dis- students and the military resulted in hun-
covered improvements in many of the states dreds of dead protestors. The results demon-
attributes. Similarly, Tasci and Holecek (2007) strated that the incident, which received high
found improvements in the majority of the attention in the West, led to the deterioration
image attributes of Michigan between 1996 of most touristic attributes of the country, not
and 2002 among US respondents, and thus just the perceptions of safety and security but,
concluded that its overall image had surprisingly, also unrelated attributes such as
improved. Nevertheless, in both studies, the service and natural resources.
Destination Image Development and Communication 143

Note that other studies have also showed unsympathetic and problematic coverage.
the harmful impact of negative reporting that For example, the State of Israel has suffered
covers undesirable facets of a destination. from negative reporting because of violent
Such situations can include both human- conicts with its Arab neighbours and terror-
induced security threats (e.g. terrorism and ist attacks since its establishment in 1948. As
wars) and natural security threats (e.g. hurri- a result, the Ministry of Tourism, as well as
canes and diseases) (Timothy, 2006). In the other Israeli and Jewish organizations, have
past decade, natural disasters such as the used a series of marketing strategies to
Asian tsunami, and the SARS (severe acute improve its image through attempts to
respiratory syndrome) and the foot-and- inuence media outlets and/or utilizing
mouth disease outbreaks, as well as man- alternative outlets to convey the desired DI.
made disasters such as the political unrest in Table 9.3 presents selected media-focused
Nepal and terrorist attacks in Bali and Egypt, strategies for improving the negative
all received wide media coverage and coverage of Israel.
subsequently led to a decline in the number
of travellers to these destinations (Bhattarai
et al., 2005; Henderson, 2007; Uriely et al., Conclusions and Future Research
2007). Ahmed (1991) suggested six marketing
steps to correct a negative image, which can Image is highly complex and complicated to
be applied by using advertising and/or manage, yet it is one of the most critical fac-
publicity: tors that determine the competitiveness of
tourism destinations; thus, destination image
1. Capitalizing on the positive images of
DI should receive high priority on the part
the component parts identifying the image
of destination promoters. Generating and
components of the destination and emphasiz-
maintaining an appealing DI is more impor-
ing the most favoured ones.
tant than ever, as consumers have a wide
2. Scheduling mega-events organizing
variety of destinations to choose from. The
special events (e.g. cultural festivals, sport
worldwide acknowledgement of the eco-
contests, food fairs) that attract media atten-
nomic and other benets from the tourism
tion, for public relations purposes.
industry has led even unknown destinations
3. Organizing familiarization tours invit-
to seek tourism development, creating erce
ing key opinion makers that inuence tour-
competition over the hearts and minds of
ists decisions, such as travel writers and tour
tourists. Remote and developing countries,
operators, to experience the destination.
which are increasingly seeking recognition as
4. Using selective promotion highlighting
legitimate tourism destinations, have a par-
the destinations strengths and downplaying
ticular interest in raising awareness and
its weaknesses, in advertising and other pro-
appreciation as to their qualities among
motional campaigns.
potential tourists. Moreover, destinations that
5. Bidding to host international travel and
share similar attractors (e.g. sun, sea and
tourism conventions with destination repre-
sand) struggle intensely to differentiate them-
sentatives persuading leading travel and
selves from their competitors, especially in
tourism organizations (e.g. International Ho-
cases where the costs of visits are comparable.
tel and Restaurant Association; World Asso-
These challenges require not only the recogni-
ciation of Travel Agencies) to conduct future
tion of the importance of DI, but also the allo-
conferences at the destination, for the main
cation of adequate resources to manage and
purpose of getting the industrys attention.
monitor it.
6. Taking advantage of a negative image
This chapter has emphasized that the
in certain cases destination promoters can
complexity of DI calls for adoption of a theo-
spin problematic images into assets.
retical framework in order to grasp the
Recognizing the critical impact of auton- essence of DI and properly measure it. While
omous sources, destination promoters have most DI studies focus on the common cogni-
applied other media strategies to deal with tive and psychological image attributes of
144 A. Shani and Y. Wang

Table 9.3. Media-focused strategies to improve negative coverage: the case of Israel (Adapted from
Avraham, 2009).

Purpose Practice Examples

Inuencing the media


Cooperation and Establishing constructive and Observing free press, carrying out press
developing media open relations with journal- conferences, issuing press releases,
relations ists and media decision granting interviews with government and
makers military ofcials, allowing journalists to join
military operations, etc.
Putting pressure on the Exerting pressure on media Israeli ofcials have issued complaints
media outlets to alter the negative against newspaper and news channels
reporting of the country about allegedly biased and distorted
coverage
Blocking the media Preventing the media from The Israeli army occasionally denies right
having access to certain of entry to war zones and areas of violent
events with potential nega- clashes, such as during the Gaza conict,
tive effect on the destina- in the winter of 2009
tions image
Replacing the media
Using the lm industry Using local lms as national Governmental organizations sponsor and
ambassadors, which con- promote Israeli lms internationally, and
stitute an alternative to the these in many cases present different
traditional media facets of the country from those portrayed
in the media
Using celebrities and Utilizing the credibility of Israel hosts at least 2000 opinion makers
opinion leaders celebrities to convey the annually; additionally, visits of celebrities
desired messages (e.g. Madonna) have been utilized for public
relations
Come see for yourself Inviting target audiences to Israel issued a campaign with the slogan
experience the destination come see for yourself, inviting people to
themselves so that they can see for themselves that the destination is
see that the destinations not as dangerous as it is depicted in the
stereotypes are false media
Using the Internet as Reaching the target audience Employing informative websites, posting
an alternative to the directly through various video clips and advertisements on
media Internet outlets video-sharing websites, and launching
home pages on online social networks

destinations, theoretical models that depict of an image that quantitative methods fail to
image components, such as the three contin- project. Several qualitative methods described
uum model (Echtner and Ritchie, 1991, 1993) in the chapter can be used either solely or
and the hierarchical model (Gartner, 1993) jointly with quantitative methods. The review
highlight the signicance of taking other presented has demonstrated the unique con-
aspects into consideration, such as unique tribution that alternative techniques such as
and holistic images, and/or the affective and triad elicitation can bring to the understand-
conative components of DI. Integrating these ing of DI, and shown that these should, there-
elements into image measurements provides fore, be considered as a complementary
a more accurate and comprehensive picture methodology in future studies. In particular,
of the representation of the destinations that visual methods such as visitor-employed
people have in mind. Note that such investi- photography can be highly effective in
gations should also incorporate qualitative designing and selecting effective images to be
research methods to shed light on the aspects used in marketing campaigns.
Destination Image Development and Communication 145

The valuable marketing implications of changes in DI should be incorporated as an


that can be derived from measuring and important component in the examination of
understanding images of destinations have the effectiveness of marketing activities.
been clearly demonstrated in the chapter. DI is conventionally understood to be
Additionally, destination promoters should the tourists mental representation of the des-
not only measure and monitor DI, but also tination. This has also emerged in the abun-
inuence it both directly and indirectly. Nev- dance of empirical investigations that target
ertheless, formulating the desired DI is actual or potential tourists as their study pop-
expected to be more difcult than ever, as a ulation. None the less, there is a growing
wide range of information agents have an recognition that the examination of other des-
impact on DI. Evidence that the sources that tination stakeholders perspectives can also
are not under the direct control of the destina- provide useful information for destination
tions are those that have the most impact on promotion. This is particularly relevant to
tourists DIs (e.g. news media, popular cul- local residents, which have been found in
ture and word-of-mouth communications) previous studies to have a considerable
requires the formulation of innovative and impact on tourists en route decision making
creative techniques to effectively manage DI. and behaviours, as a result of the formal
The chapter has described several prominent informal contact between the two sides (e.g.
means of image formation, including sugges- DiPietro et al., 2007; Walls et al., 2008). Conse-
tions for correcting negative images during quently, the organic image held by non-
and after crises and disasters. However, residents could be impacted by their general
future studies should focus on measuring the communications with residents (Hsu et al.,
effectiveness of these techniques; this is 2004, p. 125). More research attention should
expected to be a considerable challenge therefore be focused towards understanding
owing to the difculty of isolating the impact the local residents images of the destination,
of a single information agent from the rest of as well as towards its impact on that of the
the sources that are used by consumers. tourists images.
As previously noted, contemporary To conclude, this chapter provides a com-
trends in the destination marketing literature prehensive review on the conceptualization,
call for directing more efforts towards measurement, formation and modication of
understanding the process of image change. DI. Marketing implications that are derived
This is particularly crucial in light of the con- from key studies on DI have also been
siderable resources that are invested by depicted. Prominent current issues and trends
destination promoters on various types of have been discussed, such as the implementa-
promotional campaigns. Although the need tion of media strategies to improve DI during
to measure the effectiveness of these cam- crises, and the rising inuence of Internet out-
paigns has been well recognized, techniques lets on DI. DI is clearly a crucial element in the
to evaluate marketing effectiveness have con- marketing mix of tourism destinations, and its
centrated for the most part on measuring the impact on the competitiveness of the destina-
increase in tourist arrivals and/or receipts tion, as a whole, is also widely acknowledged.
that were generated by the campaign (e.g. The main challenges faced by destination pro-
conversion studies). While intuitive and use- moters in effectively managing and communi-
ful, these approaches have also been criti- cating DI are to design and implement
cized for providing a partial picture, as they comprehensive image assessments, despite
ignore other relevant advertising objectives the considerable resources that are required,
and effects such as increased awareness and and to effectively monitor and manage the
image and positive attitude change (Schoen- processes of image formation and change.
bachler et al., 1995, p. 4). Such positive image Although image study in tourism is relatively
change can be manifested in a visit in the long young, the review given in this chapter dem-
term, which is not reected in studies that onstrates the wide variety of tools and impli-
focus on the short-term effects of advertising cations that are being generated from the
and publicity. Consequently, the measurement extensive research on the subject.
146 A. Shani and Y. Wang

As a nal note, despite the growing solve a countrys problem but only serves as a
importance that is attributed to DI among nal touch, to add icing on the cake. If eco-
many nations and destinations worldwide, it nomic development in a country is like com-
should be stressed that promoting the desired pleting a gigantic jigsaw, nation branding is
image is not a substitute for honest efforts to probably the last piece. This is a good advice
cope with actual political, economic, social to keep in mind, especially during times
and cultural challenges that a destination when it seems that reality is overrated and
might be facing. As we have been reminded that image is the most important consider-
by Fan (2006, p. 13), nation branding will not ation for individuals and destinations alike.

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10 The Evolution of Tourism Products
in St Andrews, Scotland: From
Religious Relics to Golng Mecca

Richard Butler

St Andrews, they say that thy glories are different products and images of the town
gone, that have emerged over time, culminating in
That thy streets are deserted, thy castles the image and product being promoted at the
overthrown, current time (Butler, 2005). It concludes that
If thy glories be gone, they are only,
these products are likely to continue to remain
methinks,
As it were, by enchantment, transferred to
effective in attracting tourists to the town for
thy Links the foreseeable future.
(Carnegie, 1813) The most widely used model of destina-
tion development has been the TALC model,
rst proposed some three decades ago (But-
ler, 1980). This model, based on the classic
Introduction business life cycle model, argued that desti-
nations proceed through a recognizable and
The development process of tourist destina- common pattern of development. The origi-
tions has been well studied and is the subject nal conception of the model was based on the
of many individual case studies. In most argument that tourist destinations should
cases, discussion has focused on the nature of be thought of as products, and as such, could
the changes in destinations rather than on the be expected to follow the traditional product
product or products that the specic destina- life cycle model (Butler, 2006a). In the case of
tion is offering and promoting to its potential tourist destinations, the TALC model sug-
markets. In the case described here, the gested that many such locations lacked the
emphasis is on the different products that element of overall control normally present
have become the selling point for a tourist when a company is creating a product and
destination and the way in which one prod- that, therefore, a destinations growth path
uct has been superseded by another over might be lacking overall direction and
time. The chapter begins with a discussion of management. This could be expected to be
the Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) model of particularly true for destinations originating
destination development and then introduces before the establishment of destination man-
the specic example of the destination of agement organizations (DMOs) and similar
St Andrews, Scotland, and the context behind bodies charged with creating, maintaining
the emergence of this community as a tourist and renovating a destinations image. The
destination. Discussion then moves on to the pattern and process of development of most
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 149
150 R. Butler

tourist destinations was argued to be depen- if not in growth of visitor numbers, and
dent on the overall appeal or attractiveness of reduced levels of investment.
the destination to its markets, so without pro- In the absence of effective management
tection and maintenance of its key attributes intervention, it is then argued that the desti-
(unique selling points, or USPs), this appeal nation would enter a decline stage, no longer
would be expected to decline over time. Loss being as attractive to its markets or as com-
of appeal could be caused by a number of fac- petitive as it had been. In some cases, this
tors, including changes in market tastes and might lead to a partial or even complete with-
in socio-economic and demographic charac- drawal from tourism (Baum, 2006); in other
teristics on the demand side, and problems cases it might lead to a search for new or ren-
such as overuse, crowding, high prices and ovated products, resulting in an interim
loss of environmental quality on the supply period of restructuring and new growth
side in fact, many of the problems now sub- (Agarwal, 2006). Depending on the success of
sumed under the rubric of sustainability. such measures, there may be a stage of reju-
The TALC model put forward a series of venation and the beginning of a new cycle, or
stages of development reecting the amount a relapse into ever deepening decline, repre-
and type of development that tourist destina- sented by a negative spiral of reduced visitor
tions experience. The general pattern was numbers, reduced expenditure and reduced
characterized as beginning slowly, through a investment, and further environmental
period of rapid growth and expansion of decline (Russo, 2006). The key either to avoid-
facilities, culminating in a period of little or ing a decline phase or to a successful response
no growth, often followed by a decline, with a to decline was argued to be management
range of subsequent paths, ranging from con- intervention, which could be seen in the form
tinued decline and abandonment of tourism, of maintenance of the quality of key attri-
to rejuvenation and resumed growth. The butes, of investment and of resident support
rst of the six stages identied was that of for tourism. Without such intervention, and
exploration, characterized by a small number when appropriate, the introduction of new
of tourists travelling independently, using products and attractions, it was argued that
existing facilities and causing little if any destinations would almost inevitably face
change in the community. The second stage, decline at some point in their development
involvement, would see the early emergence cycle.
of a tourist product with some local residents This model has been used in many situa-
providing services and facilities for visitors. tions and received wide application and some
By the third stage, development, the encour- modication (Lagiewski, 2006). It is clear
agement and growth of services and facilities from the research that has been done using
would be undertaken on a larger scale, tour- the TALC model (Butler, 2006a, b) that the
ism would be regular, often with a dened emphasis has been on the nature of the desti-
season, external investment would occur nation and the quality of its environments
along with some loss of local control, and (both ecological and social); however, it is
physical changes in the destination would be equally clear that destinations can, unlike
visible. By the fourth stage, consolidation, the leopards, change their spots, i.e. change the
destination would be clearly identiable as a nature of their attraction(s) and attributes.
tourist centre and the economy would be Many destinations attempt such changes,
dependent on tourism. Labour would proba- generally to increase their potential markets
bly have to be imported, and initial local and to prolong their life cycles, particularly as
delight in tourism would be declining as dis- they approach or enter the decline phase of
enchantment appeared (Doxey, 1975). Tourist the TALC model, but relatively few are suc-
numbers would be likely to have exceeded cessful. This failure is partly due to the great
resident numbers signicantly and have difculty of changing overall destination
reached their maximum growth rates. The image, which is generally a combination of
fth stage, stagnation, as its name implies, both induced and organic images (Gunn,
would see a decline in visitation growth rates, 1993), and partly due to the cost of major
Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews 151

changes in physical infrastructure and mar- in its early centuries by being known as the
keting that would be required. Also, there resting place of the relics of Scotlands patron
may be resistance from residents of a commu- saint, St Andrew, from whom the town took
nity to changes in the nature and image of its name. The cathedral, which was built
that community (Doxey, 1975; Martin 2006). almost a millennium ago, became the ecclesi-
Attempts to maintain a long-term product astical centre of (Catholic) Christianity in
image are difcult when a destination is Scotland, and remained thus until it was
attempting to compete in a dynamic global sacked in the Protestant reformation of the
market, and developments such as the World 16th century (Putter and MacLean, 1995). It
Wide Web in recent decades have made such remains today as an impressive ruin, along
a task even more problematic. Potential visi- with the also ruined bishops castle. Com-
tors can easily compare the attractions, acces- bined with this historic religious and built
sibility and cost of any specic destination heritage is a medieval streetscape which has
with almost every other destination at the changed little in morphology over a period of
global level, to the point that success or fail- 500 years. The town also possesses two mag-
ure in securing and keeping a market or a nicent beaches (albeit washed by a cold
market segment may depend more on infor- North Sea), one of which featured in the
mation on a website than on physical reality. opening sequence of the Oscar-winning lm
Be that as it may, the quality of the attributes Chariots of Fire. Of most relevance in the
of destinations, which is essentially the prod- present day is the fact that the town also has
uct being sold, is of crucial importance to the the most iconic and famous golf course in the
market. In the case of St Andrews, it will be world The Old Course, the oldest golf course
shown that most of this destinations key in the world (Staachura, 2000), and is also the
attributes are not replicable and could be home of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club
described as unique to the town. What makes (The R&A), which sets the rules of golf for
St Andrews of particular interest in this con- most of the world (excluding only the USA
text is that while its key attributes or products and Mexico). Along with the Old Course
have changed signicantly over its 1000 year are some ve additional courses in public
history of attracting tourists, these changes ownership, and a considerable number of
have been organic, even accidental, and gen- other courses belonging to clubs and hotels
erally not introduced with tourism in mind. which are open to non-members. Combined
with the practice facilities available, they
make the town the global centre of golf, with
Context the town justiably claiming the enviable and
highly marketable title of The Home of Golf
In this chapter, a specic example of a tourist (Burnet, 1990).
destination is examined, namely, one that has This combination of attractions for cul-
maintained its appeal over a number of cen- tural and religious tourism, for sun and sand
turies, but has found that its products, and (if not sea for all visitors) tourism, and for golf
hence its image, have evolved and changed tourism, has provided the town with the basis
signicantly over that period, often without for a tourist product of considerable signi-
the conscious or deliberate intent of the com- cance. The same combination of features,
munity itself. The result has been problems along with the presence of Scotlands oldest
with product denition, with acceptance of university, founded in 1413 (Cant, 1992), also
the need for change in the product, and with present a number of problems in the way that
the manner in which the product has been the tourist product has evolved and has been
promoted. The product or the destination promoted. There are diverse attitudes within
being discussed in this chapter is the Scottish the community about the tourism product
town of St Andrews. St Andrews is a historic that should be marketed, how the attractions
market town of around 18,000 permanent should be utilized, and the degree to which
residents, located on the east coast of Scotland. they should be conserved or preserved. As
It is an ancient settlement, beneting greatly will be discussed, the evolution of the tourist
152 R. Butler

product of St Andrews has, until relatively the cathedral was ransacked and ceased to
recently, been primarily an organic process, function, with its monks being expelled. After
and the role of tourism (and golf) in the these events few pilgrims came to St Andrews,
development of the town is still an item of and the appeal of the religious buildings and
considerable controversy and sometimes dis- their associated history disappeared as a visi-
agreement, as will be illustrated below. tor attraction or tourist product for three cen-
turies. The aftermath (of the reformation) was
serious. Like Canterbury, St Andrews had
become dependent on the pilgrims who for
Early Product Evolution centuries had journeyed across Europe to the
Shrine where miracles were wrought
The religious product (Willshire, 2003, p. 11). The attraction of these
features drew only a few visitors during the
The rst tourists to St Andrews were easy to 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries, and it was
identify, being Christian pilgrims coming to not until the increasing popularity of Scotland
worship at the shrine, and later cathedral, of to Victorian-age travellers that St Andrews
St Andrew. The supposed relics of St Andrew reappeared on the tourist map of the country
were brought to the town around 761, and to any degree. The physical manifestation of
St Rules church was built to house them in the medieval streetscape and the ruined eccle-
about 1130. The pilgrims made their way gen- siastical buildings, however, have remained a
erally by land from the west along the south major factor in the morphology of the town
coast of Fife or by boat to the local small har- and are highly visible, dominating the skyline
bour, and provided a consistent and rather of the town, as shown in an old railway adver-
lucrative source of revenue for the town and tisement (Fig. 10.1).
for the Church. There is little record of their
numbers or origins, but Willshire (2003, p. 12)
notes that they numbered 33,000 in 1337. The The educational product
sale of souvenirs, accommodation and food
to these early tourists was very similar to the After the Reformation, the only real attraction
sale of products to contemporary tourists. of St Andrews for outsiders was the univer-
Such was the income generated from the reli- sity. Established by a Papal Bull of 1413,
gious tourist product that the great cathedral St Andrews University has maintained its
was begun in 1160, ultimately being com- position as one of the leading universities in
pleted in 1318. This religious product and the Scotland and regularly ranks in the top 20
image which accompanied it remained an universities in Britain in terms of research
effective and unique selling point for and teaching league tables (Cant, 1992).
St Andrews for several hundred years. When the religious product declined in the
The importance of the Cathedral as an 16th century, the educational attraction was
ecclesiastical centre can be judged by the fact the only attribute available to replace it.
that King James IV (of Scotland) married Whether one considers students to be tourists
Mary of Lorraine there in 1538, the wedding is open for debate, although many countries
being attended by many of the nobles of do so classify foreign students at least. The
Scotland (Putter and MacLean, 1995). This establishment of the university stemmed in
importance ended with the Reformation of part from the pre-existing religious tradition
the 16th century, a typically bloody affair in of education and learning, and it was an
Scotland, culminating, in the case of St ecclesiastical initiative which founded the
Andrews, with the burning of several Protes- institution via the Papal Bull noted above.
tant martyrs (commemorated by a monument The university was granted large areas of
still standing on the hill behind the R&A club- land within what are now the town boundar-
house) and the subsequent retaliatory murder ies, with various rights relating to these prop-
of the Catholic bishop in 1546. Following a erties, and as the church declined in
sermon in St Andrews by John Knox in 1559, importance, the university assumed a major
Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews 153

6
4 46

dOO

ST-ANDREWS
Fig. 10.1. The medieval heritage of St Andrews as shown in an old railway advertisement.

role in the image and development of the along with a sizeable number of visitors from
town, a role which still exists today. Students England. The drier and sunnier, if cooler, east
came from a wide catchment area, including coast climate gave St Andrews an advantage
other countries than Scotland, a feature mak- over the west coast of Scotland, and the
ing St Andrews University somewhat differ- beaches provided a high standard of amenity,
ent from its later Scottish counterparts, many accompanied by the historic heritage of the
of whom attracted primarily local students, a town. The railway companies built a spur line
pattern emphasized in the 20th century. Thus, to St Andrews from the main London
the university kept St Andrews on the map EdinburghAberdeen route in 1850, and hotel
as it were, being one of the few places in accommodation to serve their customers,
Scotland in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries culminating in the Old Course Hotel in 1964,
to which visitors came. the largest and only ve-star hotel within
St Andrews. It has been enlarged and
upgraded several times since its opening, but
The sand product the rail service and the spur line were closed
at the time of the massive national rail-line
The emergence of the third strand of the tour- reduction programme of the 1960s. In the
ist product, specically, that based on beach post World War II period, the town was still
tourism, took place primarily during the being advertised as a place for traditional
inter-war period (19191939), and remained beach holidays by the railway companies.
strong until the 1960s. St Andrews experi- In the interwar and immediate postwar
enced considerable summer tourist visitation, periods, St Andrews was in competition with
mostly by rail, especially from the Glasgow many small coastal towns on both the east and
Clydeside conurbation and elsewhere in west coasts of Scotland, those on the west
Scotland during the peak summer months, coast relying on spectacular scenery and boat
154 R. Butler

services to attract clientele (e.g. the Clyde bridges, so there is little sign of the spur lines
coastal resorts of Dunoon and Rothesay), and former existence (Fig. 10.2).
those on the east coast (e.g. Elie, Stonehaven)
relying on small harbours, often extensive
beaches and sunnier weather to attract visi- The golf product
tors. All of these resorts relied on the railway
companies to carry tourists, and in the case of The nal and most important contemporary
the west coast and insular settlements, a com- tourism product of St Andrews is the golf
bination of railway and steamer (sometimes facilities, particularly The Old Course and the
combined) companies. The east coast resorts iconic reputation of the town among golfers.
suffered more heavily from the reduction in Golf has a long history in St Andrews. The
rail services in the 1960s, although St Andrews game was a source of annoyance to King
suffered less than many of its competitors as James II and there is a record of his remon-
the main line from Edinburgh to Aberdeen stration at students from the university over
remained open and was upgraded; but it did their playing of golf rather than practising
lose its direct link via the spur line from archery. Willshire (2003, pp. 3233) notes that
Leuchars, necessitating a road journey of in 1457 James II decreed that the futball and
around 8 miles. Summer beach tourism the golfe be utterly cripit downe and not usit
declined rapidly from the 1960s, reecting the football and the golfe we ordane it to be
more the general decline in market appeal of punyst be the baronye unlawe (original
UK resorts (Shaw and Williams, 1997) com- spelling). Jarrett (1995, p. 13) records that
pared with mainland European competitors James III repeated the prohibition on golf in
than the specic loss of rail service. The rail- 1471, as did his successor in 1492. In 1502, the
way station site is now a bus station and the royal animosity ended when James IV
track has been removed, as have several acquired golf equipment, and by 1502 he had

ANDPEWS "am as mm 4'0-6-0

Fig. 10.2. The emergence of the tourist product based on beach tourism in St Andrews.
Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews 155

become an enthusiast, a practice followed by situation came about from the time of the
Mary, Queen of Scots (Lewis et al., 1998, p. 2). establishment of the rst formal course in
This was of some importance to St Andrews St Andrews (Mackie, 1995).
which was already noted as a place of golf, The development of golf at St Andrews
with Willshire (2003, p. 31) recording that the has been extensively documented and it is
earliest mention of golf in St Andrews exists clear that its early growth had little to do with
in the form of a parchment held in the univer- tourism. The appeal of St Andrews to golfers
sity library which is a licence dated 25 January is not recent, as Lord Cockburn wrote in 1844
1552 granted by John Hamilton (Archbishop in Circuit Journeys:
of St Andrews):
the locals have a pleasure of their own,
to the inhabitants of the city in return for which is as much the staple of the place as
permission to plant and plenish cuniggis old colleges and churches are. This is
(rabbits) with the north part of their golng, which is here not a mere pastime
common Links next adjacent to the water of but a business and a passion and has for
Eden, convenants with the City to accept ages been so, owing probably to their
the communitys rights inter alia to play at admirable links. This pursuit actually
golf, fuball, schuting at all gamis with all draws many a middle-aged gentleman
uther maner of pastime as ever thai pleis whose stomach requires exercise and his
(original spelling) purse cheap pleasure, to reside here with
his family (cited in Willshire, 2003, p. 23).
Local residents had played a version of
golf on the links that are now the site of the For many years, the number of visiting
current courses for many years, often creating golfers was small, and even after the Open
problems with the rabbit production on the tournament was held at St Andrews for the
links that was a major source of income for rst time in 1860 (Mackie, 1997) few people
individuals in the town. The problem was came to St Andrews specically to play the
resolved when the then Bishop granted the game. This situation came about partly
right to play golf over the links to the town, because those responsible for golf in the town
thus ensuring the preservation of the game in saw little reason to encourage additional
the town and the links as the site to be used players on the courses. Through the 19th cen-
and developed for it. Such sentiments were tury, pressure from local golfers was increas-
reinforced by the town insisting that when ing steadily on the existing (Old) course,
permission was given in 1726 for an individ- resulting in a second course, The New Course,
ual to rear rabbits on the links, it was on con- opening in 1895, subsequently followed by
dition that the links are not to be spoiled the Eden (in 1914) and the Jubilee (in 1946)
where the golng is used (Jarrett, 1995, p. 14). courses and a practice course (the Balgrove)
It is the fact that the actual morphology of the in 1993.
sand dune area has not been modied signi- Throughout the golng era there has
cantly which makes the Old Course so much been considerable disagreement over the rel-
the epitome of a links golf course (Price, ative importance of visiting versus resident
1989), i.e. a course on level or gently undulat- golfers, the latter having been given priority
ing sandy ground near a seashore, with turf, and free access to the courses, rights that were
coarse grass. What has and still makes the zealously guarded until the last quarter of the
St Andrews golf product unique is that the 20th century. The relinquishment of these
courses within the town are publicly owned rights has caused anger and opposition
(by the local authority) and thus open for all among some residents of the town that still
to play. They are not owned by a club, continues. The R&A for example, opposed a
although the courses themselves are man- licence for the then Grand Hotel as they did
aged by a Links Trust, which has representa- not want people to come to St Andrews or to
tion appointed by the local authority and by have facilities granted to them. The Town
the R&A. Local residents have historically Council wanted people to come to St Andrews
been given certain priorities in terms of access to boost the economy; the R&A wanted them
to the courses and reduced playing fees. This to stay away because their presence took up
156 R. Butler

starting times and larger numbers on the established by the second half of the 19th
course meant bigger maintenance bills century, as at least ten hotels were established
(Jarrett, 1995, p. 34). The establishment of the in the town between 1850 and 1900, many still
Royal and Ancient Golf Club and its rise to operating today, although often under differ-
prominence in the golng world, along with ent names.
the fact that the Old Course became the most
frequent host of the Open tournament,
increased the importance and visibility of
St Andrews as a major golng centre. Crowds Contemporary Issues
increased markedly for the Open tourna-
ments (Burnet, 1990), further drawing atten- The location
tion to the town, as did the popularity of the
town with celebrities, some of whom played One might expect that St Andrews would see
golf (e.g. the Duke of Windsor, Captain of the itself as rather fortunate to have a multiplicity
R&A in the 1930s). Fig. 10.3 shows the clear of what might be termed secondary tourist
predominance given to golf, the principal products existing alongside a very positive
subject of the advertisement, instead of being tourist image stemming from its primary
one of several elements as shown in Fig. 10.2, product (golf), and that this would make the
and not clearly visible at all in Fig. 10.1. Thus promotion of those products and the devel-
by the inter-war period, golf had become a opment of a clear image of the destination to
signicant attraction and a key tourist prod- be relatively straightforward. In reality, the
uct for the town (Joy, 1999). situation is rather different, owing in part to
The attraction of the combination of the nature of St Andrews and its population,
these four elements religious, educational, and in part to external developments and
sand and golf products to tourists was well intrusions. In this, St Andrews is like many

-Me

/I

ST. ANDREWS 464P.FacO


Fig. 10.3. The emergence of the tourist product based on golf tourism in St Andrews.
Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews 157

tourist destinations which, although heavily such opposition. The university also has an
involved in tourism, rarely have complete inuence by virtue not only of the number of
control over their development and equally its employees who live in the town but
rarely have homogeneity when it comes to particularly because of the number of stu-
resident attitudes about their community dents, some of whom are eligible to vote in
and its relationship with tourism (Johnson local elections and can be a strong lobby and
and Snepenger, 2006; Martin, 2006). The interest group, although they are most often
St Andrews population is unlike that of other likely to nd themselves castigated as the
small market towns in Scotland, primarily as source of problems rather than the solution.
a result of its history and its physical situa- As one of the only two sizeable commu-
tion. It is relatively isolated at the end of the nities in the north east of Fife (along with
Fife peninsula, with quite difcult access. The Cupar some 8 miles away), St Andrews is also
nearest rail station, as noted earlier, is 7 miles a local retirement centre for former rural resi-
away, while the nearest airport of note is dents and others. Finally, some 7 miles away
Edinburgh (50 miles away), although Dundee is the Royal Air Force base at Leuchars, one of
(11 miles away) has limited air services; road the few remaining substantial active bases in
access, also, is not by any major highway the UK, playing a major role in air defence
(Jura Consultants, 2006). This has perhaps and operational training, as well as being an
occasioned a rather introverted view of the airsea rescue base. A number of personnel
world, despite St Andrews historic links with live off base, some in St Andrews, providing
Europe through its limited harbour, the uni- another segment of the towns population
versity and its former ecclesiastical position. whose origins are almost all out of the region
and often out of Scotland. Thus, the town has
a disproportionate number of its population
Town population who originated elsewhere and might be
expected to have different views and beliefs
Of most inuence in the outlook of the town from the native or indigenous population.
is the university. Most contributors to and The presence of a truly international univer-
readers of this chapter will probably agree sity means that the percentage of people liv-
that university academics are not representa- ing in St Andrews, even if for only part of the
tive of the population at large. If nothing else year (September to June), who originate out-
they are generally better educated and side the UK, is much higher than might other-
informed, more articulate and condent and, wise be expected. One effect of the above
in many cases, perhaps somewhat out of inuences is that the cost of accommodation
touch with the common man, often being in St Andrews is signicantly higher than for
more liberal and extrovert in their beliefs and equivalent communities in the country as a
more inclined to take action, particularly of a whole, and house prices are perhaps as high
political bent, if they disagree with decisions as 30% more than those in neighbouring com-
such as local developments. As St Andrews is munities in Fife. This situation is aggravated
a very attractive town in which to live, pos- by the limited physical space within the town,
sessing a live theatre as well as a high ame- which restricts further new residential
nity value and attractive landscape, it attracts development, and has the effect that a high
a considerable number of retirees, including proportion of people employed in lower
many who have worked at the university. paid occupations cannot afford to live in
This segment of the population, as in many St Andrews and have to commute each day
high-amenity locations, is zealous in defence from outlying communities. All of these fac-
of the inherent attractions that drew them to tors contribute to a distinctive and unique
the location, and is often prepared to oppose composition of the resident population of the
any and all developments which are seen as town and help to explain some of the views
threatening to that amenity and quality of towards the still-evolving tourist product,
life. In some cases, as will be noted later, uni- which is often seen as responsible for some of
versity developments are not exempt from the local problems noted above.
158 R. Butler

Local government a non-prot making body, was to include four


members chosen by the R&A and four nomi-
A complex situation has been aggravated over nated by the council. Despite this arrange-
time by other developments affecting the ment, many residents appear to feel they
town. One of the major inuences was local have suffered from the process, with the R&A
government reorganization in the 1970s. This members and out-of-town golfers beneting
could have been expected to be of little rele- more from the changes than the locals. The
vance to tourism, as tourism has never been distrust of St Andrews citizens with the polit-
given great importance in the UK at either ical powers outside the town is not conned
national or sub-national level. However, in to golf; frequent criticisms are published in
St Andrews it had the potential to have a the St Andrews Citizen about a perceived lack
major effect. Until 1975, planning and devel- of concern by Fife District Council with
opment issues were handled by the then Fife respect to issues such as road maintenance,
County Council, with the local level of gov- ood prevention, trafc and parking schemes,
ernment being St Andrews Burgh Council. and planning decisions, especially those
During discussions of forthcoming changes it related to the approval of development pro-
became likely that Fife would disappear as an posals and general service provision. The
administrative entity, and be subdivided into feeling is that St Andrews generates large
West and East Fife, the latter, including amounts of money for Fife Council that are
St Andrews, to come under the control of based heavily on tourism and the university,
Tayside and the town of Dundee. This caused but receives little in return.
great concern as residents viewed the loss of
local control to be a serious problem, and com-
ing under the control of Dundee to be even
worse. Scottish local politics can be a complex Image and popularity
and heated almost tribal affair with marked
political divisions along major party lines at The rather fortunate clustering of attractions
the local level, and Dundee was seen as indus- in St Andrews has meant that the town is
trial and labour (left wing) dominated, com- regularly listed as being among the most
pared with middle of the road or slightly right popular communities in Scotland in terms of
of centre rural interests. Of greater concern to tourist numbers, sometimes just behind
St Andrews residents was the fact that the Edinburgh and Glasgow, especially in years
golf courses, owned by the local authority, when the Open golf tournament is held there
would then fall under the control of bodies (2000, 2005, 2010 in recent years), and it is
outside St. Andrews, along with the fear that rarely out of the top ten Scottish tourist attrac-
local playing privileges might be lost (Jarrett, tions. Despite this, the marketing and promo-
1995). Even when the decision was made to tion of the town has not been as successful as
maintain Fife as an entity at the regional level, its potential would suggest, if success is mea-
local feeling was (and still is, based on opin- sured in terms of visitor spend and tourist
ions expressed in the local newspaper, the numbers. This is primarily the result of the
St Andrews Citizen) that coming under the con- numbers of differing viewpoints about the
trol of West Fife (the industrial towns there role and importance of tourism to the town
having the majority of Fifes population and and the image of the town that should be
hence voting power) would be as bad as being marketed, and considerable variation in opin-
under the control of Dundee, and for the same ions about the part that should be played by
reasons. golf in such promotion and in visitor attrac-
The result was that the St Andrews Town tion. Attempts to promote the town more
Council obtained an Act of Parliament estab- aggressively have met with opposition (Ben-
lishing the St Andrews Links Trust, ensuring nett, 2008), partly because of poor communi-
that the control and management, if not the cations and partly because promotion of
ownership, of the golf courses remained in tourism, especially golf, is seen as threatening
the town. The composition of the Links Trust, local privileges and likely to result in further
Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews 159

physical development in an already con- associated with St Andrews Day celebrations


gested and expensive small town. (30 November). There are also other build-
At the present time, St Andrews has a ings associated with the religious function of
multifaceted image that is appreciated at dif- St Andrews located in the vicinity of the
ferent scales by different elements. It is a tra- cathedral, but these are not open to the pub-
ditional market town serving its rural lic, although they form part of the attractive
hinterland. It is close to and inuenced by a medieval south end of the town at the conu-
major military establishment, with some ence of the three streets running west to east.
minor issues of noise pollution. It is a major At the west end of South Street is the West
academic centre with one of the most success- Port, the original western entrance to the
ful and respected, albeit small, universities in town, dating from the 1580s, one of the best
Britain, being ranked 6th in the UK in 2010 examples of a fortied town port (gate)
(St Andrews Citizen, 2010). It is a site of signi- remaining in Scotland, and still functioning
cant cultural and historic built heritage. It as the main entrance to the town for vehicles
possesses two magnicent beaches and a pic- under three tons. The religious heritage is
turesque harbour. Finally, and of global sig- currently a major part of the amenity and
nicance, it is The Home of Golf, possessor of appeal of the town to visitors and a key
the most iconic golf course in the world, host element in the tourist product of St Andrews.
of the ruling body for golf in most of the
world, and equipped with golf courses and
related facilities more extensive than
anywhere else in Europe, if not globally The University
(St Andrews Links Trust, 2008). Not surpris-
ingly, therefore, because these different The University of St Andrews is clearly a
images receive approval and disapproval by major player in the development and image
various segments of the residents of the town, of the town, and hence the tourist product of
its tourist product is complex and somewhat the town. Its popularity with potential stu-
divisive within the community. dents is high, and it attracts a higher propor-
tion of overseas students to its undergraduate
courses (37%) than any British university
apart from Oxford and Cambridge. Its appeal
Contemporary Tourist Products increased dramatically in the early years of
this century when Prince William became a
The religious product student there, with student applications
increasing by 44% in the year he enrolled.
The ruins of the cathedral and the bishops This product has steadily increased in
castle are major cultural and historic heritage strength in proportion to the increasing enrol-
features of St Andrews, and often feature in ment of the university, currently standing at
publicity material for the town. They are 7200 students (St Andrews University, 2010);
managed by Historic Scotland, which oper- it is reected not only in the numbers of stu-
ates a visitor centre at the castle, and a small dents enrolled at the university, but the result-
charge is made for the entry of non-residents. ing visitation from parents, other family
Historic Scotland is an agency of the Scottish members and friends, which, although
government, and looks after over 300 proper- unmeasured, is considerable, particularly in
ties across Scotland; it is charged with safe- late September when students start their
guarding nations historic environment and studies, and even more so in June when they
promoting its understanding and enjoyment graduate. Almost all hotels, many of the
(Historic Scotland, 2010). The ruins of the smaller accommodation establishments and a
cathedral and the bishops castle also serve as high proportion of self-catering establish-
a backdrop for medieval re-enactments sev- ments are fully booked at this latter time
eral times during a year, and in 2009 were the (Brown, E., real estate agent, personal com-
setting for a series of son et lumire events munication, 2003). In addition, there are visits
160 R. Butler

from prospective students, and those seeking The university is therefore a major player
accommodation for their study years, and in the development of the town and its prod-
also many visitors to the university such as ucts for the visitor. In total it employs over
invited speakers and presenters, delegates to 2000 staff and its annual income is in excess of
conferences using university accommodation 129 million (St Andrews University, 2010).
and other academics. Interestingly, and perhaps surprisingly, the
As the major employer in the town and university has no history of involvement in
thus a major factor in economic input, the tourism in the context of education. It hosts a
university cannot be said to have had a highly number of conferences each year and its halls
benecial impact on the planning and devel- of residence are available to tourists during
opment of St Andrews from an amenity point the summer when students are not on cam-
of view. Some of the worst examples of pus. Other than that, its role in the tourist
unsympathetic physical development in the product is passive rather than active. Tourists
town belong to the university, partly reect- are allowed to walk through the quadrangle
ing its inuence and its recent (post 1960s) on North Street, and the garden behind St Sal-
focus on its budget, and partly reecting the vators College on South Street, and several
development focus of the district planning other buildings are highly photogenic and
element of Fife Council which has allowed frequently photographed. Thus it is more as a
the structures to be located in inappropriate part of the historic heritage and the source of
locations with what are generally perceived several thousand educational tourists that
to be unattractive exterior appearances. The the university continues to play a part in
main road entrance to St Andrews passes the tourism in the town.
science campus on the North Haugh, which
appears to compete with the Old Course
Hotel across the road to provide the least
appropriate visual backdrop for entering a The beach product
medieval town. Other unattractive and
unsuitable buildings exist in St Andrews St Andrews has two beaches, the East Sands
apart those belonging to the university, so the and the West Sands, the latter running along-
university is not alone in detracting from the side the Old and the Jubilee Courses from the
amenity of the town, but one might have Scores to the Eden Estuary. The West Sands
expected that an institution which has been are backed by dunes, the front line of which
an integral part of the community for almost provides the links over which golf is played
600 years, with departments such as Art His- on the four main courses. The West Sands
tory, would have been a more considerate stretch for some 2 kilometres, and their gradi-
member of the community when proposing ent is such that their width ranges from
new developments. This pattern continues, around 80 metres to 400 metres depending on
with the university being part of a consor- the tide. They have featured in a number of
tium putting forward a large-scale housing lms, most noticeably Roman Polanksis
and related development on the outskirts of Macbeth and, as already noted, most famously
the town in the ongoing planning consulta- in the opening scenes of the Oscar-winning
tion process, a proposal which has received lm, Chariots of Fire, in which the cast run
substantial opposition on amenity and trafc along the sands and cross the disguised rst
grounds by bodies such as the St Andrews tee of the Old Course to enter what is sup-
Conservation Council. In the very recent past posed to be a hotel in Broadstairs in Kent,
(February 2010) the university has received England, but in reality was Hamilton Hall, a
favoured status in being conrmed as future former hall of residence then belonging to the
owner of the Madras College (high school) University. The East Sands extend for several
campus in the heart of the town, in exchange hundred metres from the old harbour on the
for a much less attractive and central site, as southern edge of the town, and have a similar
the location of a to-be-constructed replace- attractive gradient for beach users as well as
ment school. quite often having waves that attract surfers.
Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews 161

It is the West Sands that attract most visi- one overnight stay, and involves walking
tors, partly by virtue of their greater length around the town, visiting the historic core
and the familiarity resulting from their movie and buildings of the town and the West
coverage, but more because they have a Sands, along with the Golf Museum and
greater range of visitor services. The road Aquarium. A considerable number of coach-
running behind the dunes allows easy access borne visitors come to the town in the sum-
and parking for cars and coaches, and to the mer months, with many fewer coach trips
provided toilet facilities and snack bars, a taking place at other times throughout the
superb putting green and the golf visitor cen- year. In general such tourism is important to
tre, and is reached easily from the centre of retail outlets and food and beverage suppli-
town. The fact that the West Sands are adja- ers, but provides a relatively small part of the
cent to the rst tee of the Old Course and the total annual spend of tourists in the town.
British Golf Museum, and several hotels, and
can also be accessed by walking across the
fairways of the rst and eighteenth holes of
the Old Course, make them a natural centre Golf tourism
for many visitors as well as for those actually
intending to use the sands for beach activities As the Home of Golf (VisitScotland, 2008)
and bathing. and possessor of the most iconic golf course
Beach-dominated tourism in St Andrews in the world, St Andrews is regarded as the
began following the opening of the railway in Mecca of golf and as such attracts many
1852. The line originally ran alongside the pilgrims each year (Tobert, 2000; MW
Old Course and had to be diverted to avoid Associates, 2006). Such is the difculty of
the seventeenth green, and trains were a getting to play on the Old Course (see
source of annoyance and disturbance to golf- below) that some visitors have to be content
ers because of their proximity and noise. with simply being photographed standing
Some 7000 tourists visited St Andrews, most on the rst tee with the R&A clubhouse
travelling by rail in 1914 (Willshire, 2003, behind them. To others, being able to walk
p. 22). The loss of the railway line in 1969 the Old Course on Sundays, when it is
affected this segment of the market, but by closed (except for the Open and a very few
that date most tourists in Britain had begun to other tournaments) is enough. It is to play
travel by car. Since then, St Andrews, like golf at St Andrews, however, that most golf-
almost all UK coastal resorts (Shaw and Wil- ers come to the town, and its lure is not con-
liams, 1997), has suffered from competition ned to ordinary golfers alone. Many of
from continental European resorts and those the icons of the game, from Bobby Jones to
further aeld as air travel has replaced rail Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, have com-
travel. Most tourism relating to the beaches mented on the unique experience of playing
now is by private car and heavily concen- (and especially winning) at St Andrews, and
trated at the summer weekends. The addition regular media coverage of the Open and
of an aquarium has added slightly to the other international tournaments not only
appeal of the town to family groups, but the adds to the image of St Andrews, but also
market is a shadow of what it was half a provides a massive but immeasurable
century ago. There is still a reasonable tourist amount of free publicity to a global audi-
market for self-catering accommodation, par- ence of golf enthusiasts and others.
ticularly of the higher quality student ats, The preservation of the courses as pub-
which would otherwise be vacant during licly owned facilities with control being
the summer months (Brown, E., Real Estate vested locally did not come easily. It has taken
Agent, personal communication 2004), but no less than six Acts of Parliament over the
this has declined noticeably over the last years (Jarrett, 1995) to secure the creation of
three decades (personal observation). For the Links Trust which, as noted above, has
many non-golng visitors to St Andrews, management control over the courses in con-
their visit is of one days duration or at most junction with local authority ownership of
162 R. Butler

the courses. Even these arrangements have years ago in return for their management of
resulted in the loss of considerable privileges the Old Course, and some starting times have
once enjoyed by residents of the town, includ- been sold under an agreement with a private
ing free golf over the courses. Now they have group which offers golf packages that guar-
a limited number of guaranteed starting antee a starting time on the Old Course. As
times on the Old Course, but only children part of this latter agreement, golfers have to
resident in the town under the age of 18 can take a 4 day package, and pay, even if they do
play all courses except the Old free of charge. not play, for a round on another course in
There has been continuous friction between St Andrews and also for golf on other Scottish
the R&A and the town residents over man- courses. Some hotels have also secured start-
agement issues of the courses, not over the ing times. To long-term residents who can
quality of management but over charges, pri- still recall when citizens had privileges closer
orities and privileges. The development of a to those which existed a century ago, such
seventh course in 2008, costing several mil- arrangements are a source of constant
lion pounds, was another source of contro- frustration and annoyance.
versy, particularly as that course, the Castle, The friction between local golng resi-
is several miles out of town, is not a links dents, the Links Trust, and the R&A is often
course, being created out of farmland, and is visible in letters to the editor of the local
not expected to relieve pressure on the Old newspaper. In general, however, there is little
Course in particular. annoyance apparent over the complicated
Irrespective of these issues, the manage- arrangements and the restrictions that are
ment and ownership of the primary courses enforced when the Open is played at
in St Andrews, and particularly of the Old St Andrews, which normally involve not only
Course, is undoubtedly what attracts so many the other links courses being closed for play
visitors to the town. During the summer for several days, but also severe restrictions
many of the courses are operating at or near being imposed on access to the town, and on
capacity (St Andrews Links Trust, 2009). The parking, even for residents. Shopkeepers
result is that over 150,000 rounds of golf are claim to receive little benet from the Open
played on the courses in the town annually, of being staged in the town, everyone is down
which around 40,000 are on the Old Course. at the links and no one comes to the town
The time between starts on the Old Course (shopkeeper, personal communication, 2009),
has been reduced to 10 minutes, the mini- but restaurant and bar owners, taxi drivers,
mum time period considered safe, and thus, and residents and other landlords making
as the maximum size of each group is four, their properties available for rent to visitors
and the course is open for a maximum of and players, gain very handsomely (personal
10 hours as day, only approximately 240 observation).
people can be accommodated on the Old Golf shows no signs of declining in pop-
Course each day. Demand is far in excess of ularity and the attraction of St Andrews is
this, and thus a ballot is in operation whereby increased by the regular presence of leading
those desiring to play enter their names the golfers and celebrities (including among oth-
day before they wish to play, and by late ers, Prince Andrew, ex-President Clinton, and
afternoon a list is produced of those who Samuel L. Jackson) in the town. The town
have won a starting time the next day. The benets greatly also from the fact that over-
odds are against any particular individual seas visitors to St Andrews on average spend
being successful in the ballot, so visitors may more per day than foreign visitors in any
stay a week in the town and be unable to play other town (St Andrews Citizen, 2009). The
the Old Course (Woodcock, M., St Andrews development of other courses in the vicinity
Links Trust, personal communication, Sep- of St Andrews, and another ve-star hotel a
tember 2009). This does not seem to deter few miles out of town, have made the golf
golfers. A proportion of starting times are product even more attractive in the last
reserved for locals, and more for members of decade, and by far the dominant tourism
the R&A under the agreement made many product of the town.
Evolution of Tourism Products in St Andrews 163

Conclusion the product has been evolutionary in nature,


with one set of attractions declining in popu-
St Andrews has had a remarkably long time as larity to be replaced or superseded by another,
a tourist attraction and its life cycle as a desti- and in many respects the products have
nation is far longer than that of most commu- emerged devoid of specic designation as
nities. The tourism product has changed in tourist products per se. The town did not
priority and focus several times throughout market itself as a religious site, although the
the history of the town, over the 1000 years or Church did, and the University in its early
so during which it has been visited by travel- centuries at least did not see its students as
lers. Its life cycle over this time has seen a tourists. The town did, and still does, encour-
number of uctuations and does not represent age summer visitors to its beaches, and
the typical asymptotic curve of a products actively promotes the town as The Home of
growth, but rather a series of waves as the dif- Golf but the development of the latter attrac-
ferent products have appeared and gained in tion in particular has been undertaken pri-
popularity. In this, St Andrews pattern of marily by other agencies. Vestiges of all four
development as a tourist destination is per- types of product are still visible today; there
haps closer to that of the retail wheel dis- are a few religious tourists each year, includ-
cussed by Coles (2006) than to that of a ing religious camps of young Christians; the
destination relying on a single product. It is university is larger and more international
interesting to note that three of the four prod- than at any other time in its 600 year history;
ucts that have attracted tourists to the com- the beaches still attract several hundred peo-
munity (the religious features, the university ple on summer weekends in particular; and
and, most lately, the golf courses) have bene- golfers continue to arrive in ever-increasing
ted from strong and effective management, numbers, which likely to increase yet again
while the attribute most typical of tourism after the 2010 Open tournament. It appears
(the beaches) has suffered somewhat from unlikely that the tourism product of
uncoordinated management and promotion. St Andrews will change appreciably in the
The religious and beach attributes have both future, but a person writing in 1387 when
declined over the years, the former being con- 33,000 pilgrims visited the town, or in the
verted mostly to built heritage, but the univer- 1400s after the university had been founded,
sity and golf products are both continuing to would never have imagined that people
grow with little evidence of a reduction in would be coming to sunbathe on the beaches
demand likely over the medium term. or to play golf on the as-yet-incomplete set of
From those seeking religious salvation to holes in the links. One can reasonably expect
those seeking an education, followed by those that the relative importance of the four com-
wishing to use its beach resources, to those ponents of the tourism product of St Andrews
desirous of testing their abilities on the Mecca will continue to evolve in the future, but that
of golf, St Andrews has modied its image the addition of signicant new products
and offerings to visitors. The development of seems unlikely.

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11 Distribution Channels in Destination
Marketing and Promotion

John Kracht and Youcheng Wang

Introduction participants, and a more complex industry


structure (OConnor and Frew, 2002; Buhalis
A tourism distribution channel is a system of and OConnor, 2005; Granados et al., 2008;
intermediaries, or middlemen that facilitates Longhi, 2008).
the sale and delivery of tourism services from Information and communication tech-
suppliers to consumers (Buhalis and Laws, nology advances have introduced complexity
2001). Tourism distribution channels have to the tourism distribution system with vari-
attracted a tremendous amount of attention ous permutations: adding additional layers
in the last decade owing to the important role of intermediation, disintermediating certain
that they play in the tourism industry (Pearce players by bypassing the traditional interme-
and Schott, 2005). Specically, distribution diaries owing to the possibility of direct com-
channels can serve as part of the marketing munication between suppliers and consumers
mix that makes the products available to con- that is provided by technology, and the emer-
sumers, as the link between the suppliers of gence of reintermediation processes whereby
tourism products and their end consumers, as existing players, by adapting to the changing
well as the bridge between supply and market environment and embracing new
demand (Gartner and Bachri, 1994). The technology, provide value-added intermedia-
structure of the tourism industry distribution tion services (Buhalis and Law, 2008). While
system not only affects the choices available this technology-induced structural change
to the consumer, but also the business models offers more choices to consumers, it also fos-
and marketing strategies adopted by the vari- ters an environment of ercer competition for
ous channel participants (Pearce et al., 2004). channel participants (Pearce et al., 2004).
The impact of information technology since This chapter provides insights into the
the advent of the World Wide Web has sig- change of the structure of tourism distribution
nicantly changed, and even transformed, that has not been extensively explored. The
the structure of tourism distribution (Buhalis complexity of the tourism distribution struc-
and Laws, 2001; Wang and Qualls, 2007). This ture has, however, been diagrammatically
evolution and transformation of tourism dis- depicted multiple times (Werthner and Klein,
tribution channels, particularly facilitated by 1999; Anckar and Walden, 2000; Chircu and
information and communication technology, Kauffman, 2000a; Alamdari, 2002; Buhalis and
has resulted in greater choice for the con- Licata, 2002; OConnor and Frew, 2002; Ma
sumer, increased competition for distribution et al., 2003; Buhalis and OConnor, 2005;
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 165
166 J. Kracht and Y. Wang

Bowden, 2007; Granados et al., 2008; Longhi, advent of the Web; and (iii) examine the role
2008), and each depiction has contributed to a of information and communication technol-
fuller understanding of the body of knowl- ogy in the evolution and transformation of
edge by focusing on different aspects of that tourism distribution channels.
structure. This study builds upon those
valuable knowledge contributions by focus-
ing on the evolution of the structure over The Intermediation Terminology
time, and systematically and diagrammati-
cally revealing the progressively larger num- In order to provide a clear framework for the
ber of intermediation layers, in spite of discussion of the structure of tourism distri-
concurrent disintermediation and reinterme- bution channels, it is useful to dene some of
diation activity. In the process, the study does the most important terminologies associated
not focus on every action of every participant with the intermediation process. In the litera-
in detail, but rather on categories of interme- ture, there are a variety of terms derived from
diaries, looking at pioneering examples of the root word intermediate, which means to
each. Likewise, the comparative rates of tech- act as a middleman. Different researchers use
nology adoption in different regions of the various derivations of the term in different
world are not investigated. ways. For example, the term disintermedia-
From a practical perspective, the effec- tion is commonly used to refer to the partial
tive use of distribution channels depends on a or complete replacement of an intermediary
sufcient understanding of the evolution and or the functions it performs. The term rein-
transformation of such channels in the tour- termediation is used to refer to the process in
ism industry. However, a review of previous which intermediaries that have been disinter-
literature on tourism distribution channels mediated rst are reasserting their inter-
reveals that research in this area has been mediary role (Giaglis et al., 1999; Chircu and
fragmentary in nature, limited in scope and Kauffman, 2000b; Golden et al., 2003; Tse,
narrow in perspective. While there are stud- 2003; Walden and Anckar, 2006; Bowden,
ies dedicated to consumers use of distribu- 2007; Granados et al., 2008). However, varia-
tion channels in information searching for tion exists in different studies by different
and consumption of tourism products and researchers. For example, some researchers
services (Pearce et al., 2004; Pearce and Schott, use reintermediation to describe only the
2005), the majority of research in this area has entrance of new intermediaries into the
largely focused on issues from a supply-side travel distribution system (McCubbrey, 1999;
perspective by giving emphasis to suppliers McCubbrey and Taylor, 2005), whereas others
and intermediaries as well as the relation- use reintermediation to include both the re-
ships between these intermediaries in their entrance of disintermediated intermediaries
efforts to reach consumers (Buhalis and and the entrance of new ones (Palmer and
Licata, 2002; Choi and Kimes, 2002; OConnor McCole, 1999; Gharavi et al., 2007).
and Frew, 2002; Buhalis, 2004). In addition, In referring to intermediaries that per-
most of these studies have adopted a static form their middleman activity in the elec-
and cross-sectional approach in examining tronic realm, researchers use a wide variety of
the structure and use of tourism distribution terms. Sarkar et al. (1995, 1998) use the term
channels without considering their historical cybermediaries to refer to those electronic
evolution and progression, which is not only intermediaries that are new to the industry;
important in understanding where we are other authors have followed their lead by
now as an industry, but also in understanding using the term cybermediaries in a similar
where we came from and where we are head- manner (Giaglis et al., 1999; McCubbrey, 1999;
ing. Hence, the purpose of this study is to: McCubbrey and Taylor, 2005; Walden and
(i) examine the evolution of tourism distribu- Anckar, 2006; Granados et al., 2008; Weaver and
tion channels from a historical perspective; Lawton, 2008). Some authors include other
(ii) understand the major structural changes words in place of cybermediaries, such as
of tourism distribution channels since the e-intermediaries (Anckar and Walden, 2000;
Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing 167

Anckar, 2003) and e-mediaries (Dale, 2003; to the introduction of the web browser
Ma et al., 2003; Daniele and Frew, 2004). The which makes the communication between
term e-mediaries is usually used to encom- suppliers and consumers possible into the
pass not only new electronic players, but also marketplace.
traditional ones, such as computer reserva- Before 1993, the traditional tourism dis-
tion systems (CRSs), global distribution sys- tribution system consisted of consumers, tra-
tems (GDSs), and videotex systems. Buhalis ditional retail travel agents, traditional
and Licata (2002) further extend the deni- corporate travel agents, traditional tour oper-
tion to include suppliers, such as airlines and ators, GDSs, incoming travel agents, switches,
hotels, who utilize the Internet to facilitate destination marketing organizations (DMOs),
commerce directly with consumers. Some and suppliers (Fig. 11.1). GDSs, which started
researchers (Chircu and Kauffman, 1999, as airline CRSs, are technically electronic
2000b) even subdivide electronic intermedi- intermediaries (Buhalis, 1998; Buhalis and
aries into two subcategories. These subcate- Licata, 2002). In the airline sector, traditional
gories are electronic commerce-able and travel agents enjoyed the benets of interme-
electronic commerce-only intermediaries, diation as a result of their relationships with
with shortened versions of EC-able and EC- GDSs (Malone et al., 1987, as cited in McCub-
only, respectively. Electronic commerce-able brey, 1999).
(EC-able) intermediaries conduct business The launch of the rst GDS, Sabre, by
not only in traditional ways, but also by American Airlines in the 1960s (Sabre Hold-
means of electronic commerce. In contrast, ings, 2009) resulted in major competition in
electronic commerce-only (EC-only) interme- this area from other players: Amadeus, Gali-
diaries begin their participation in the indus- leo, Abacus and Worldspan. Later, hotel CRSs
try by means of the Internet and continue to were connected to the GDSs, a process that
participate primarily by electronic means. was facilitated by switches (Sheldon, 1997;
Palmer and McCole, 1999; Choi and Kimes,
2002). The switch providers had provided
another layer of intermediation insofar as
The Evolution and Transformation hotel bookings were concerned.
of the Intermediation Process Adding yet another layer of traditional
intermediation are incoming travel agents.
The tourism distribution system has wit- Incoming travel agents can also be referred to
nessed not only the incremental evolution but as incoming agents, inbound agents,
also radical transformation since the advent incoming tour operators, ground opera-
of the Web. In this process of progression and tors, handling agents, or receiving agents
change, the commercial application of the (Buhalis and Laws, 2001). Incoming travel
Internet in 1993 serves as a milestone, owing agencies primarily serve as intermediaries

Supplier call centre or retail outlet

Traditional Destination
Incoming marketing
corporate agent
agent organization

Traditional Traditional
Consumer retail tour GDS Switch Supplier
agent operator

Fig. 11.1. Structure of tourism distribution channels: pre-World Wide Web era (before 1993) (GDS,
global distribution system).
168 J. Kracht and Y. Wang

between tour operators and suppliers. That the World Wide Web, which was made freely
is, tour operators put travel packages available to the public in 1993 (CERN, 2003)
together, and those packages are usually han- (Fig. 11.2).
dled by incoming travel agencies. According Besides the Internet, there have been
to Buhalis and Laws (2001), there has not other computer networks online services
been much research in the area of incoming such as America Online (AOL), CompuServe,
travel agencies. Also, there appears to be no Microsoft Network (MSN) and Prodigy. There
documentation of this category of intermedi- have also been videotex networks available to
aries suffering from disintermediation. consumers, linking terminals that consist of
Before commercial usage of the Internet, video displays and keyboards. Examples of
airlines, hotels, and tour operators pursued the latter include Bildschirmtext (Btx), Prestel
the disintermediation of other channel par- and Tltel. Online services and videotex ser-
ticipants with direct sales to consumers, vices have both been involved in the distribu-
including using retail outlets (Anckar and tion of travel services (Krcher, 1996; Krcher
Walden, 2000, 2002; McCubbrey, 1999). They and Williams, 1996); however, only one of
also used toll-free call centres to facilitate dis- them, Tltel, has had a very large base of
intermediation (McCubbrey, 1999; Palmer subscribers. In 1993, Tltel had more than 6
and McCole, 1999). While this pre-Web era million subscribers using its Minitel termi-
was not as complex as the current environ- nals, with approximately 2000 services avail-
ment of distribution, the use of multiple dis- able, while CompuServe and Prodigy, for
tribution channels had taken root. example, each had about 1 million subscrib-
Granados et al. (2008) explain that the ers and 2000 services (Cats-Baril and Jelassi,
major GDSs had enjoyed signicant power in 1994). Bildschirmtext had about 250,000 sub-
an oligopolistic distribution environment scribers and 3500 services at that time, and
until technological advances reduced the bar- Prestel had approximately 150,000 subscrib-
riers to entry for substitutes. The major tech- ers and 1300 services (Cats-Baril and Jelassi,
nological advance in that regard was the 1994). In 1993, all of the online services and
Internet, which had begun operating in 1969, videotex services were about to be dwarfed
mainly for military and research purposes by the user base and accessible services facili-
(Werthner and Klein, 1999). The commercial tated by the Web. It is the networking imple-
usage of the Internet became signicant in the mentation of the latter that has brought about
1990s, as companies began leveraging the the major structural changes to tourism distri-
benets of the communication protocol of bution that have evolved to this day.

Supplier call centre or retail outlet

Traditional Incoming Destination


corporate marketing
agent
agent organization

Traditional Traditional
Search
Consumer retail tour GDS Switch Supplier
engine agent operator

Supplier website

Fig. 11.2. Structure of tourism distribution channels: early World Wide Web era (19931998) (GDS,
global distribution system).
Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing 169

After the public debut of the Web, suppli- Online travel agents joined the fray in
ers began establishing websites to connect 1995, when the Internet Travel Network (ITN)
directly with customers, thereby beginning became the rst such online agent to attempt
the disintermediation of traditional retail to disintermediate traditional travel agents
travel agents. For example, airlines were then (Chircu and Kauffman, 1999, 2000a,b) (see
able to practise disintermediation via multiple Fig. 11.3). In 1996, Sabre, a GDS owner,
channels, including call centres, retail outlets debuted Travelocity (Sabre Holdings, 2009).
and the Web (McCubbrey, 1999). In addition, Also in 1996, Microsoft launched the online
even though traditional travel agents have travel agent Expedia (Chircu and Kauffman,
been useful to hotels, hotels also tried disinter- 1999). Priceline was launched in 1998; it
mediating travel agents by selling directly to began by selling airline tickets using a
customers via the Web (Tse, 2003). demand collection system in which demand
At about the same time that suppliers is collected from consumers and communi-
started disintermediating travel agents, cated to suppliers (Priceline.com, 1998, 2009).
another layer of intermediation began to Currently, Priceline offers that system, as well
grow. The rst automated search engines, as offering the traditional retail method of
also called robots or spiders, appeared in disclosing prices (Priceline.com, 2009). ITN
1993, and the rst to index the entire content was eventually rebranded as GetThere, which
of web pages, instead of just titles and Uni- was later acquired by Sabre in 2000 (Chircu
form Resource Locators (URLs) (i.e. web page and Kauffman, 2000a).
addresses), appeared in April 1994 (Farrelly, The online travel agent lastminute.com
1999a,b; Pinkerton, 1994, 2000), which led to was founded in 1998 with the purpose of sell-
the intermediating role and search services of ing airline seats and hotel rooms that were
Google in 1998. By facilitating the inception otherwise likely to go unsold (Anderson and
of this category of intermediaries, Web tech- Earl, 2000; Buhalis and Licata, 2002). It had an
nology set in motion a structural change that initial public offering (IPO) in March 2000
has shifted power to a new centre: the search (Anderson and Earl, 2000), right around the
engines. time that many stock market investors real-
Pegasus Systems, Inc. and several hotel ized that Internet rms werent as valuable as
chains made the TravelWeb.com portal avail- they had seemed, and that some had no pros-
able to the general public in March 1996 pects of generating prots. Despite the resul-
(TravelWeb, 1996), a few months after the tant burst of the Internet bubble, and the
October 1995 founding of TravelWeb (Pega- associated plummeting correction of share
sus Systems, Inc., 1997). Pegasuss switch prices, lastminute.com and other online travel
service, the Hotel Industry Switch Company agents with sound business models survived.
(THISCO), had been facilitating the linkage of In fact, lastminute.com went on to buy a num-
hotel CRSs to GDSs since 1989, but the debut ber of other companies during the 20002004
of TravelWeb provided consumers with Web time frame (Salzburg Research Forschun-
access to the central reservation systems of gsgesellschaft, 2006). This included the
hotels (Pegasus Systems, Inc., 1997; Werthner August 2000 acquisition of Dgriftour, a suc-
and Klein, 1999). This disintermediated GDSs cessful, pioneering French electronic travel
by avoiding the paying of GDS fees (Werth- agency which had utilized the Tltel net-
ner and Klein, 1999). In 2004, Priceline work of Minitel videotex terminals since its
obtained full ownership of TravelWeb, buy- founding in 1991, and later used the Web as
ing the stakes held by several hotels and well (Alzon, 2000). Lastminute.com was in
Pegasus Solutions (Priceline.com, 2004). Now, turn purchased by Travelocity in 2005 (Salz-
Pegasus, via its Utell brand, provides hotels burg Research Forschungsgesellschaft, 2006).
with access to consumers directly via the Sabre had introduced Travelocity while
Web, to traditional travel agents via GDSs, the former was owned by American Airlines.
and to another category of intermediaries, Later, other airlines targeted the GDSs for dis-
online travel agents (Pegasus Solutions, intermediation, introducing the Opodo and
Ltd., 2009). Orbitz online travel agencies. Despite this
170 J. Kracht and Y. Wang

Supplier call centre or retail outlet

Traditional Destination
corporate Incoming marketing
agent agent organization

Traditional Traditional
Search retail tour Switch
Consumer engine GDS Supplier
agent operator

Online
travel
agent

Supplier website

Fig. 11.3. Structure of tourism distribution channels: online travel agents (19952002) (GDS, global
distribution system).

threat, the GDSs proved their resilience and Dolnicar and Laesser, 2007; Clerides et al.,
importance in the distribution chain. Follow- 2008). Regarding the Web, tour operators
ing the example of Sabre in having a stake in became Web-able by selling to consumers
an online travel agency, other GDS owners directly via their own websites (Barnett and
formed relationships with online travel Standing, 2001; Anckar and Walden, 2002;
agents, just as they had with traditional Harris and Duckworth, 2005; Buhalis and
agents in the past (Longhi, 2008; PhoCus- Law, 2008) (see Fig. 11.4). This is an attempt at
Wright, as cited in Hospitality Net, 2002). For disintermediating traditional travel agents
example, Opodo associated with Amadeus, and GDSs, as well as reintermediation in rela-
and Expedia did likewise with Worldspan tion to the online travel agencies and supplier
(Longhi, 2008). With these relationships, the web portals. Buhalis and Law (2008) note that
GDSs had reintermediated themselves (see traditional travel agents, in turn, try to disin-
Fig. 11.4). termediate tour operators by selling tour
Another group of traditional intermedi- packages. Dgriftour became involved in
aries, tour operators, also participate in disin- such an aggregating activity in dealing with
termediation and reintermediation efforts, airlines and hotels directly (Alzon, 2000).
including those facilitated by the Web. Tour Small, traditional retail travel agents
operators perform an aggregating function, have not fared as well as larger travel agents,
consolidating travel services into packages tour operators and the GDSs in dealing with
(Werthner and Klein, 1999). They are threat- disintermediation. The number of small
ened by disintermediation from airlines that travel agents has been declining (McCubbrey
vertically integrate into tour operations, as and Taylor, 2005). Interestingly, McCubbrey
Qantas has done (Dolnicar and Laesser, 2007). and Taylor (2005) found that the number of
Tour operators themselves have engaged in travel agencies in the USA with annual airfare
vertical integration, becoming suppliers of air sales in excess of US$10 million had actually
travel with charter airlines on one end of the increased. This number was at 457 in 1993,
chain and owners of retail travel agencies on dipped down to 394 in 1997, and rose to 485
the other end (Harris and Duckworth, 2005; by 2002 (McCubbrey and Taylor, 2005). While
Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing 171

Supplier call centre or retail outlet

Web-able Destination
Host Incoming marketing
corporate agent agent
agent organization

Web-able Web-able
Consumer Search retail tour Switch Supplier
engine GDS
agent operator

Online
travel
agent

Supplier website

Fig. 11.4. Structure of tourism distribution channels: reintermediation efforts (ongoing) (GDS, global
distribution system).

the number of these larger volume agencies relationships with host agencies benecial
increased, the smaller ones had been suffer- (see Fig. 11.4). Bowden (2007) observes that
ing disintermediation. small retail travel agents are reintermediating
Statistics from the Travel Industry Asso- themselves by becoming home-based travel
ciation of America (as cited in Grossman, agents associated with the larger host agen-
2006; see also Travel Industry Association of cies. For example, host agencies can provide
America, 2004) indicate that, from 1998 to the smaller travel agencies with access to
2004, the number of accredited travel agen- GDSs (NACTA, Inc., 2009). Through aflia-
cies in the USA fell from 32,000 to 21,000. tion with the International Air Transport
According to Travel Weekly (2006), the number Association (IATA), and by means of the com-
of Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) munication technology that it facilitates,
travel agents declined from 33,593 in 1995 to small travel agents have been able to enjoy
20,003 in 2005. Quinby (2008) indicates that closer relationships with airlines and resul-
traditional travel agents had 38% of the mar- tant reintermediation (Gharavi et al., 2007).
ket in 2007, and that this gure was expected Corporate travel agents, or travel man-
to drop to 33% by 2009. The 2007 gure itself agement companies (TMCs), have also been
was a drop from the 2006 gure of 41% (Pho- the targets of Web-facilitated disintermedia-
CusWright, 2008). tion. In 2002, Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity
Alamdari (2002) reveals ways that small began attempts to disintermediate TMCs
traditional travel agents can reintermediate (Michels, as cited in McCubbrey and Taylor,
themselves; he notes that some smaller agents 2005) (see Fig. 11.3). Major TMCs have resisted
are merging with larger players or becoming such disintermediation efforts. For example,
franchisees. This is consistent with the Carlson Wagonlit Travel had US$25.5 billion
ndings of McCubbrey and Taylor (2005) in sales in 2007, a 30% increase over the
concerning the increase in number of agen- US$19.6 billion gure of the year before, and
cies with sales in excess of US$10 million per the culmination of a steady increase from
year. Similarly, Weaver and Lawton (2008) US$8.9 billion in 2003 (Carlson Wagonlit
note that home-based travel agents nd Travel, 2008). Similarly, the American Express
172 J. Kracht and Y. Wang

Global Corporate Travel division enjoyed airlines again tried such a gambit by partner-
US$20.5 billion in sales, an 11% increase over ing with GDS New Entrants, also known as
the US$18.5 billion gure of the year before Global New Entrants, or GNEs (Longhi,
(American Express Company, 2008). 2008) (see Fig. 11.5). These GNEs include
In 2000, an additional layer of interme- Farelogix, G2 Switchworks and ITA Software.
diation arrived in the form of a new category ITA Software had developed the search tech-
of cybermediaries, meta-search engines, nology for Orbitz (Granados et al., 2008). The
when SideStep launched its meta-search web- GNEs offered the promise of replacing the
browser toolbar plug-in product; SideStep services provided by GDSs at a much lower
later launched its meta-search website in 2005 price (Citrinot, 2005; Travel Technology
(SideStep, 2000, 2005) (see Fig. 11.5). Meta- Update, 2005).
search engines search the online travel agency The GDSs survived this threat too,
sites, as well as supplier sites, thereby adding negotiating contracts with the airlines,
an additional level of intermediary function although it is possible that the airlines were
(Granados et al., 2008). One of them, Kayak, able to use the GNEs as a bargaining tool
was conceived by founders of the online (Field, 2007; McDonald, 2007) (see Fig. 11.6).
travel agencies Expedia, Orbitz and Traveloc- Perhaps spurred by the impetus of such
ity (Kayak.com, 2009). Kayak now owns Side- new-entrant threats, GDSs have continued
Step (Kayak.com, 2007). Other meta-search the technological overhauls that had begun
engines include Bing Travel, Dohop, before the arrival of the GNEs. Travelport
FareCompare, Mobissimo, Momondo and GDS even acquired the intellectual property
Skyscanner. and software of one GNE, G2 Switchworks
While small, traditional travel agents (EyeforTravel, 2008b). Regarding ITA Soft-
have recently enjoyed closer relationships ware, while it continues to offer its airline
with the airlines, the GDSs have faced another seat distribution system as a low-cost alter-
challenge that involved those suppliers, native to GDS services, its list of airline
which started in 2005. After their rst unsuc- customers does not include references to
cessful attempt to disintermediate the GDSs, them using that seat distribution system

Supplier call centre or retail outlet

Web-able Destination
corporate Host Incoming marketing
agent agent agent organization

Meta- Web-able Web-able


Consumer Search search retail tour
engine GDS Switch Supplier
engine agent operator

Online
travel GNE
agent

Supplier website

Fig. 11.5. Structure of tourism distribution channels: meta-search engines and GNEs (20002005)
(GDS, global distribution system; GNE, global new entrant).
Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing 173

Supplier call centre or retail outlet

Other Web-able Destination


search corporate Host Incoming marketing
engine agent agent agent organization

Meta- Web-able Web-able


Consumer Google search retail tour GDS Switch Supplier
engine agent operator

Online
travel GNE
agent

Supplier website

Fig. 11.6. Structure of tourism distribution channels: GDSs and Google web browser (20052009)
(GDS, global distribution system; GNE, global new entrant).

(ITA Software, 2008). Instead, ITA Software which was launched in September 2008, has a
has obtained a client base for other travel- feature that reects an understanding about
related software solutions. These include a such web-surng behaviour. The text box that
system for the pricing and shopping of air- is normally used for typing a URL can be
fares, work on a new reservation system and used both for that purpose and also for typing
customer rewards implementations (ITA search keywords (Google, 2009).
Software, 2009b,c,d). ITA Software has Googles introduction of the Chrome
added a layer of intermediation by provid- web browser could serve to disintermediate
ing its solutions to various travel entities, other search engines by guiding search trafc
including the online travel agent Orbitz, the to the Google website (see Fig. 11.6). It could
meta-search engines Bing Travel, FareCom- also disintermediate the developers of other
pare, Kayak and SideStep, and even another web browser products, depriving them of
GNE, Farelogix (ITA Software, 2009a). Fare- revenues generated by searches initiated
logix itself, while still providing suppliers from their browsers (Dignan, 2007). In that
with solutions to connect directly to custom- sense, the developers of web browser soft-
ers via the Web, also now provides solutions ware have also become intermediaries, to
that connect travel agents to multiple GDSs whom other intermediaries, search engines,
(Farelogix Inc., 2009). The GNEs have not must pay revenue. Finally, the lack of sepa-
disintermediated GDSs, but instead have rate text boxes for typing URLs and search
contributed to the increasing layers of inter- keywords in Googles web browser could
mediation in the travel industry. lead to consumers using keywords instead of
In travel distribution, power is shifting to precise Web addresses in that box. Such usage
search engines. When a consumer does not of the browser directs web trafc through
know a precise website URL, does not have a Googles search engine services, rather than
particular website in mind, or does not know straight to a website via a URL, thereby
how to use a URL to go directly to a website, increasing the amount of search engine inter-
that consumer is likely to use a search engine. mediation. Of course, if a consumer directly
The Google web browser named Chrome, visits a supplier website by typing its URL,
174 J. Kracht and Y. Wang

then the various intermediaries, including of intermediation (see Fig. 11.1); however, the
search engines, are bypassed. arrival of the Web brought technical capabili-
While the World Wide Web makes the ties that fostered the introduction of more and
simple, direct link of a consumer to a supplier more layers of intermediation. The structure
website possible, the Web has also facilitated did not change from a simple one to a com-
a multitude of other channel congurations plex one, nor from a complex one to a simple
(OConnor and Frew, 2002; Buhalis and one with solely direct supplier-to-consumer
OConnor, 2005; Granados et al., 2008). It is contact; instead, it transformed from a com-
interesting that this complex web of channel plex one to a very complex one. As a result,
networks is a result of the complex web of the consumer is faced with a multitude of
networks that is the Internet. As the pendu- choices (Buhalis and Law, 2008), even almost
lum of inuence swings back and forth, the bewilderingly so. This makes price-compari-
participants struggle for relevance, some- son shopping challenging and time-consum-
times competing, and sometimes cooperating ing (Walden and Anckar, 2006). In fact,
(Buhalis and Licata, 2002; OConnor and Walden and Anckar (2006) noted that the
Frew, 2002; Dale, 2003; Buhalis, 2004). The challenges of self-booking travel had
resultant push and pull manifests itself with increased in comparison with such challenges
efforts at intermediation, disintermediation at the time of their previous study (Anckar
and reintermediation. Even while disinterme- and Walden, 2000, 2002), which had been
diation has occurred, the entrance of new conducted in 1999.
cybermediaries and the reintermediation of For the consumer, technology has
traditional intermediaries have resulted in brought increased challenges. These chal-
more layers of tourism intermediation since lenges are related to the distancing of the con-
the debut of the Web. sumer from human interaction. Regarding
human interaction and the absence thereof,
Grau (as cited in Wilkening, 2008; see also
Grau, 2008) notes that frustration with online
Discussion and Implications travel agencies has recently led to a decrease
in online bookings. This is consistent with the
This study demonstrates the evolution and observations of Meyronin (2004), who notes
transformation of the tourism distribution that consumers can become dissatised with
system from a simpler system to a complex, Internet-based intermediation. He explains
web-like network. Consistent with Palmer that many non-technophiles prefer human
and McColes (1999) observation and the pre- interaction, and that dealing with cybermedi-
diction by Sarkar et al. (1998), the advance of aries can cause feelings of helplessness.
information and communication technology The issue of human interaction affects
has not reduced the number of intermediaries practitioners too, who could be well served to
in the distribution channel, but rather has add value for consumers by heeding the
resulted in an increasingly complex array of observations of Meyronin (2004). For exam-
intermediaries. This complex, multi-channel ple, the need for human interaction provides
network has implications for consumers. It an opening for the infomediary role of con-
also has implications for the practitioners of sulting services. This is one area in which tra-
tourism distribution. For the former, the ditional travel agents might be able to enjoy
implications involve the complexity of the reintermediation. Dolnicar and Laesser (2007)
purchasing process and the potential indicate that traditional travel agents need to
distancing from human interaction. For the change into infomediaries in order to survive.
latter, the implications involve the need for Alamdari (2002) explains that some agents
human interaction, adding value, consumer are adjusting by focusing on the infomediary
trust, branding and advertising revenue. role of consulting.
Tourism distribution did not have an Another way that value can be added is
utterly simple structure before the debut of by conducting Internet searches for custom-
the Web. There were already plenty of layers ers in order to save them time. Cheyne et al.
Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing 175

(2006, p. 55) noted that travel agents can add the tourism distribution system. Also, Buhalis
value by consolidating and synthesizing the and OConnor (2005) noted that distribution
information on the Internet, making it mean- participants should consider the benets of
ingful to their clients. Meta-search engines cooperating with other participants who
attempt to do the same in an automated fash- might otherwise be considered competitors,
ion. In that regard, Granados et al. (2008) look and that suppliers can effectively become
to a new generation of meta-search engines to intermediaries by selling complementary
add value by providing consumers with tar- products and services of partners. Buhalis
geted information and personalized offers and Law (2008) call the collaboration with
based on an analysis of consumers click- competitors co-opetition. Other authors (e.g.
streams (i.e. records of what web surfers Bengtsson and Kock, 2000; Gnyawali and
click) and search keyword usage. Despite Madhavan, 2001; Wang and Krakover, 2008)
such technological prospects, Meyronin have used a variant of this term: coopetition.
(2004) has indicated that technology is often For example, lastminute.com partnered with
an insufcient substitute for human contact a potential competitor, Expedia (Anderson
in providing personalized attention. and Earl, 2000), as well as also purchasing
Findings from the research conducted by other companies and eventually being pur-
Cheyne et al. (2006) indicate that travellers chased itself.
value the following offerings from travel When there is competition among the
agents: personalized service, building lasting intermediaries, branding plays an important
relationships, providing options that suit the role for competitive advantage (Palmer and
needs of the traveller rather than the needs of McCole, 1999). With price transparency and
a commission, having local knowledge, and low switching costs facilitated by the Web,
the aforementioned saving of travellers time consumers have more choices, necessitating
by searching the Internet for them. Harris and a reinforcement of brands to counter the
Duckworth (2005) frame some similar nd- effects of commoditization (Buhalis and
ings within the context of the constancy of Law, 2008). With regard to such commoditi-
marketing principles; the authors state that zation, Egger and Buhalis (2008) indicated
differentiation and segmentation remain that meta-search engines can destroy the
valid. In that vein, they indicate that travel brands of suppliers by encouraging consum-
agents can add value by forging relationships ers to focus solely on price. Regarding
with niche tour operators, focusing on mar- defending against brand erosion, Gidman
kets where the staff has expertise, and utiliz- (2008) revealed that Expedia, Orbitz, Price-
ing dynamic packaging technology to line and Travelocity are trying to distinguish
assemble travel components in a personal- themselves with their website content and
ized manner. Similar to the observation made unique features. She explained that those
by Cheyne et al. (2006), Mason (2002) noted companies are using such branding so that
that management fees for value-added ser- consumers will not perceive them as merely
vices, instead of commissions, will give cor- database repositories with almost identical
porations condence that the agent is working data (Gidman, 2008).
in their best interests, and not merely trying The branding battle nds its way into the
to obtain the highest possible commission. application of technology, particularly with
Of course, tourism distribution partici- regard to perusing the Web. Palmer and
pants not only need to add value for consum- McCole (1999) observed that consumers can-
ers, but also to add value to other participants not make unlimited searches, and that con-
with whom they have relationships (Giaglis sumers are likely to trust particular brands.
et al., 1999). For example, suppliers would not They noted that a trusted brand will encour-
continue to work with GDSs if the latter no age repeated visits to a website, thereby
longer provided any value to the suppliers. enabling an intermediary to benet from the
The simultaneous coexistence of multiple cat- limited search behaviour exhibited by con-
egories of intermediaries is a manifestation of sumers. Regarding trust and return visits,
the differentiating value that each brings to results of research conducted by Bauernfeind
176 J. Kracht and Y. Wang

and Zins (2006) indicated that trust inuences In addition to observations about the
consumers satisfaction with a website which, characteristics of a website, Chens (2006)
in turn, affects whether the consumer will research included insights related to cus-
return for another visit or recommend the site tomer service quality and consumer trust.
to others. The results of his research indicated the
Lynch et al. (2001) found that consumer importance of forging long-term relation-
trust regarding a website affects brand loy- ships with customers, timely responses to
alty. To engender trust, the authors recom- customer inquiries, personalized attention,
mended adding the following to websites: the ability to track purchases via the website,
customer-service guarantees, certication of monitoring the satisfaction of visitors through
the websites credibility by third parties and communications after a purchase, and explic-
testimonials by former customers. Interest- itly communicating, in a clear manner, how
ingly, research by Chen (2006) indicates that consumers private information will be han-
those three elements, which he includes in a dled. These ndings are consistent with those
list of tangible cues of a trusting infrastruc- of Meyronin (2004) regarding the need for
ture (Chen, 2006, pp. 203204), do not signi- human attention.
cantly affect a consumers trust of a website. Buhalis and Law (2008) indicated that
Although his research indicated that trusting consumers are increasingly trusting their
infrastructure did not signicantly inuence peers rather than the content of marketing,
trust, Chen (2006) did nd that building and as a result, the inuence of virtual com-
brand recognition for tourism industry web- munities in tourism is gradually growing.
sites is essential. The results of his research Wang et al. (2002) noted that the brand build-
indicated that, among the factors that he ing associated with virtual communities can
investigated, the reputation of a brand was lead to brand awareness and brand loyalty.
the most important factor inuencing trust. Buhalis and Law (2008) also referenced the
He noted that companies new to the Internet effects of virtual communities on brand
sector can build brand awareness and a good awareness, and the authors suggested moni-
reputation by means such as having a good toring virtual communities as social media to
domain name (i.e. a website name) and estab- better understand customers, as well as to
lishing strategic relationships with existing make corrections that mitigate the damage of
well-known e-commerce rms. He also cate- negative word of mouth.
gorized website characteristics that can affect To drive trafc to their websites, the vari-
a consumers sense of the trustworthiness of ous travel industry players must either enjoy
the site, calling them functionality, usability, brand awareness about their domain names,
efciency, reliability, and likeability (Chen, or ensure that their websites are ranked high
2006, p. 211). Particulars encompassed by in search engine output results. The top links
those categories include the appearance ele- listed in search engine results are often inter-
ments of the website, such as colour, graphics mediaries (McGrath, 2007). OConnor (2009b)
and layout; the stability, consistency and noted that the position in search results is
speed of the websites purchasing system; the essential for success in electronic commerce,
ease of website navigation; the richness of and that many companies have chosen paid
information; whether the information is up to search-result placements with search engines
date; and the availability of the website for their online marketing strategy. Search
(Chen, 2006). This has parallels with the engines offer such sponsored links promi-
brick-and-mortar retail environment that pre- nently displayed in search engine output
dated the online era. A shabby storefront results. Companies must bid for keywords,
appearance could negatively affect consum- and in the USA, and now the UK, they must
ers impressions about a rm. Chen (2006, even bid for those keywords for which they
p. 208) even uses the metaphor of a store- own trademarks (Goad, 2008a; OConnor,
front in referring to an online presence as the 2009b). Failure to bid high enough can result
source of a consumers rst impression in web trafc being directed to another party
about a company. that had bid higher. This could result in lost
Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing 177

sales and brand dilution. OConnor (2009b) from 4.2% the year before (Expedia, Inc.,
indicated that such infringement signicantly 2008). The rst quarter of 2008 revealed a con-
threatens companies brands. Also, the need tinuing upward trend, with advertising at
to bid higher leads to greater expenses for the 9.3% of the total, up from 6.7% in the rst
various travel players, and increased prots quarter of 2007 (Expedia, Inc., 2008). Harvest-
and inuence for the search engines (Goad, ing advertising revenue is an attractive prop-
2008b). OConnor (2009a) performed research osition, for cybermediaries face the peril of
on this issue in relation to hotels, and he dis- having their transaction revenue disinterme-
covered rampant trademark infringement diated by web surfers who peruse their web-
using paid keyword search-result placement. sites, but then buy services directly from sup-
In addition to revenue from sponsored pliers (Travel Ad Network, 2008).
links in search results, it appears that Google
is considering an advertising revenue model
related to tourism. While Google does not
currently have plans to sell airline tickets or Conclusions
hotel rooms online, it has stated plans to offer
the means for web surfers to conduct travel The World Wide Web has changed things dra-
research by reading user reviews and view- matically, but the underlying theory and
ing photos and videos (Holahan, 2008). Steer- functions of tourism distribution remain the
ing clear of a transaction model suggests that same. Indeed, there are new categories of
Google expects to gain from the advertising intermediaries forming a complex web-like
revenue model. distribution structure with many layers, and
Not only has Web technology provided this has had an impact on the complexity of
an advertising revenue opportunity for the purchasing process. Power has shifted to
search engines, but it has also opened the a new category of intermediaries, search
door for other tourism distribution partici- engines, and a revenue model based on
pants to earn such revenue (McCubbrey, advertising has grown in importance. In spite
1999). Wolf (2008) noted that intermediaries of those changes, the issues of human interac-
are starting to become involved with adver- tion, adding value, consumer trust and
tising. Four of the big online travel agencies, branding remain important, just as in ages
Expedia, Orbitz, Priceline and Travelocity, are past. Participants in tourism distribution
looking to expand revenue sources beyond would be well served to heed both the
transactions to include advertising revenue changes and constants that have manifested
streams (Luzadder, as cited in Travel Ad Net- in the Web era.
work, 2008). The meta-search engine Kayak is Customers should realize that while Web
planning on doing likewise, having estab- technology gives them the capability to com-
lished an advertising network (EyeforTravel, parison shop, this comes at the cost of time
2008a). Kayaks SideStep subsidiary obtains and effort in wading through the complex
advertising revenue by means of the SideStep structure of alternative distribution choices.
website, email newsletters and the SideStep They should consider that interaction with a
web-browser toolbar plug-in (Egger and Buh- human being might add value to their experi-
alis, 2008). Expedia signed a deal with Inter- ence by saving time. If they choose to com-
Continental Hotels Group (IHG) in order to parison shop, they should keep in mind that
obtain revenue, not only from booking trans- meta-search engines and online travel agents
actions, but also from web surfers clicks on might not always provide the lowest possible
IHG properties at Expedia.com or Expedia- price. Their investigation would not be com-
owned Hotels.com (Expedia, Inc., 2007). This plete if they did not investigate pricing
represents Expedias new two-part revenue offered from other sources, such as supplier
model, for which IHG is serving as the launch websites, supplier telephone numbers, travel
partner (Expedia, Inc., 2007). agent telephone lines and, when convenient,
Expedias advertising revenue, as a per- even travel agent ofces, airline and car rental
centage of total revenue, was 6.9% in 2007, up ticket counters, and hotel reservation desks.
178 J. Kracht and Y. Wang

Also, price shoppers should bear in mind that Larger suppliers and intermediaries can
different meta-search engines might use dif- also benet from human interaction. They need
ferent search algorithms, and that different to provide a means for human contact in case
online travel agents might have differing sup- challenges related to automated services result
plier relationships; therefore, they should in frustration for customers. Even cybermediar-
consider foraging via multiple meta-search ies should utilize this human element as a
engines and online travel agents. means of adding value. Suppliers and interme-
Gazzoli et al. (2008) found pricing dis- diaries should not expect that new technology
parities for hotel rooms at particular proper- in and of itself adds value. The disappearance
ties when checking for prices at those of many Internet start-ups when the dotcom
locations using the websites of four major investment bubble burst illustrates that fact.
online travel agents and the websites of the Reinforcing that reality is the example of the
hotels themselves. For properties in the USA, GNEs, in which the prospect of new technology
the prices of rooms found on hotel-chain as a substitute for GDSs did not come to frui-
websites were lower than the prices found at tion. Participants in tourism distribution need
the websites of Expedia, Orbitz, Priceline to address the issue of consumer trust. They
and Travelocity (Gazzoli et al., 2008). For must have reliable websites that are easy to
rooms at internationally located properties, navigate and that facilitate the expeditious
the hotel-chain websites had prices higher fetching of database content. They must also
than those at two online travel agents web- utilize robust secure communication protocols
sites, but lower than the prices at the web- for the transmission of private customer data.
sites of the other two (Gazzoli et al., 2008). Tourism distribution rms need to pro-
Knowledge of such pricing differences could tect their brands from third parties. Search
be valuable to consumers. Also, future engines have become central to these issues.
research can involve similar comparisons, Firms must purchase search engine place-
but with additional pricing sources added to ments so that web surfers will not be directed
the mix, such as meta-search engines, and to the sites of third parties who make bids to
even other alternative sources mentioned use keywords that include the rms brands.
before in this chapter. Search engines are intermediaries that are dif-
Suppliers and intermediaries should not cult to bypass. Future research could explore
abandon all human interaction in an attempt the level of this difculty by investigating
to save costs with technology. Instead, they how likely consumers are to type a URL to go
should utilize technology to enhance human- directly to a particular website or use a key-
to-human communication. For example, a word search to eventually arrive at the same
small cybermediary named yourGreece uses location. Firms should consider developing
Internet technology to automate customer software such as search box add-ons or
requests, which are then followed up via plug-ins that would give consumers the
e-mail or telephone (Salzburg Research Forsc- choice of directly searching their websites
hungsgesellschaft, 2006). This cybermediary from a browser search box, instead of con-
not only differentiates itself by focusing on a necting to a search engine with that same
specic Greek hotel market niche, it also does search box. Similarly, they should consider
so by utilizing personalized electronic com- desktop widgets and mobile apps to per-
munication. Small travel agents can do like- form the same function, but launched from a
wise, carving niches for themselves by small application on a computer desktop or
segmenting the market, and utilizing Internet mobile device, respectively rather than from a
technology to enhance personalized services. browser. In addition, when advertising their
Of course, such agents must become Web- brands, rms need to make their URLs mem-
able in the rst place. Martin (2004) found orable, to increase the likelihood that con-
that doing so is not altogether too difcult, as sumers will go directly to that URL. They also
some small rms that she studied had lever- need to promote the bookmarking of their
aged their personal Web experiences to gain websites to increase the likelihood of repeated
Web insights applicable to their businesses. direct connections in the future.
Distribution Channels in Destination Marketing 179

Participants in tourism distribution also presented herein, illustrate how the changes
need to protect their brands from commoditi- have taken the form of increasing layers of
zation. The price comparison of meta-search intermediation. As new technology appears,
engines and online travel agents contributes there could be other changes in tourism distri-
to consumers focusing on price rather than on bution. If the trends of the past are any indica-
brands, thus threatening the latter. Customer tor, industry participants should be prepared
reward programmes that require logging into for additional forms of intermediation.
a suppliers website with a username and
password could help suppliers evade such
price comparisons. Future research could Acknowledgement
explore the willingness of customers to utilize
such reward programmes in place of price- This chapter has been adapted and updated
comparison shopping. from the following article: Kracht, J. and
The issues of human interaction, adding Wang, Y.C. (2010) Examining the tourism dis-
value, consumer trust and branding remain tribution channel: evolution and transforma-
relevant in spite of the changes wrought by tion. International Journal of Contemporary
the Web. The conceptual models of evolution, Hospitality Management 22(5), 736757.

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12 Destination Marketing Systems:
Critical Factors for Functional Design
and Management

Youcheng Wang

Introduction perspectives. As a matter of fact, many factors


may contribute to the success of a DMS,
World Wide Web-based destination market- although the complexity of destination mar-
ing systems (DMSs) have been widely used keting and promotion makes it difcult to
as distribution channel and marketing tools identify the key factors for the successful
by destination marketing organizations functional design and management of such
(DMOs) at different levels (e.g. nation, region, systems (Werthner and Klein, 1999; Buhalis,
city or other recognizable geographical 2003; Wang and Fesenmaier, 2006). Recent
entity) in the promotion and management of years have witnessed tremendous efforts
tourism destinations (Anckar and Walden, undertaken to build comprehensive informa-
2001; Buhalis, 2003; Yuan et al., 2003; Wang tion systems to market a destination, many of
and Fesenmaier, 2006). A DMS is a system which have either failed or fallen short of the
using computer and communication technol- intended goals.
ogies, especially the Internet and the World In contrast to the commercial sector,
Wide Web, to full the function of a DMO in DMOs have been slow to adopt information
its primary objective: the promotion of tour- technology (IT) in their operational, market-
ism businesses within geographically dened ing and promotional activities (Hudson and
areas, most importantly, the provision of Lang, 2002). Previous research has indicated
comprehensive tourism information and a that great variations have been observed
selection of tourism products to potential vis- in the sophistication, interactivity and quality
itors (Frew and OConnor, 1999; Buhalis and of the DMSs operated by these DMOs (Tier-
Laws, 2001). ney, 2000). With the interactive ability to facili-
However, in todays competitive market- tate two-way communication, the Web can
place and technology-driven society, just serve as a useful marketing tool. However,
having a Web presence no longer brings marketing on the Internet is not limited to
visibility and accessibility to the destination, information provision and distribution only,
thus the success of the Web marketing efforts even though this is the commonly observed
of DMOs. Successful web marketing requires form of DMOs web-based marketing systems
an articulated and systematic approach in (Ozturan and Roney, 2004). Research results
understanding key factors supporting the indicate that by using the Internet in this way
management and implementation of the mainly as a digital brochure presence DMOs
DMS from both business and technical have not taken advantage of the Web as an
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
184 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Destination Marketing Systems 185

enabler for facilitating the structural, manage- little research currently exists that identies
rial or commercial reorganization of their the various components and the functions of
online business processes (Wang and Russo, DMSs, and that examines the relationship
2006). With the maturity of Internet users that between DMS sophistication and Web mar-
there now is, DMOs conducting online mar- keting success, and the impact of organiza-
keting and promotion have to understand tional factors on the level of sophistication
that simply providing information about and success of DMSs. Using the particular
products and services is not sufcient; they example of CVBs in the USA, this chapter
have to engage customers in the communica- intends: (i) to propose a conceptual frame-
tion, respond to their requests quickly, and work for a DMS in relation to its functions;
build long-term relationships with them by (ii) to evaluate the sophistication level of
understanding their needs and preferences DMSs operated by DMOs in the USA; (iii) to
(Hudson and Lang, 2002). All of this has to be examine the relationship between the sophis-
achieved by making DMOs more interactive tication level of DMSs and the success level of
and sophisticated. the online marketing efforts of DMOs; and
The variation of functional design that is (iv) in an application of the ndings from the
found, as well as the level of sophistication investigation already described, to assess the
and interactivity of DMOs, support the obser- impact of organizational factors on the
vation of Poon and Swatman (1999) that as sophistication level of DMSs and the success
companies gain experience with Internet level of the online marketing efforts of DMOs
technologies, their websites move from a in a sample of US CVBs.
static presence through increasing levels of
interactivity to a dynamic site. This evolution
of website development can lead to the fol-
lowing two arguments. First, based on the Functions of Destination Marketing
capabilities associated with different levels of Systems
website development, DMO website charac-
teristics such as sophistication and interactiv- The primary function of a CVB is to sustain
ity have an impact on the success of their and improve the tourism industry in a com-
online marketing activities. Secondly, DMOs munity by presenting a unied image that
are motivated to adopt more sophisticated effectively markets a citys attractions, restau-
and interactive technologies in their DMSs in rants, hotels, meeting facilities, and amenities
an attempt to achieve a competitive advan- (Gartrell, 1993). According to Destination
tage (Nyheim et al., 2004; Wang and Russo, Marketing Association International (DMAI),
2006). Yet in the attempt to attain a competi- formerly the International Association of
tive advantage through technology, not all Convention and Visitor Bureaus (IACVB),
DMOs start with the same foundation of DMOs (often called CVBs in the USA) are
technology understanding and expertise, dened as primarily not-for-prot organiza-
resources, or support from innovative man- tions that represent a specic destination
agement styles. These organizational factors such as a city or region. CVBs serve as the
may not only determine how sophisticated ofcial contact point for a destination for
DMOs can make their marketing systems, but meeting professionals, tour operators and
can also dene how successful their web- individual visitors (DMAI, 2011). CVBs act as
based marketing efforts could be. both leaders and mediators in their destina-
Though relevant research efforts have tions when partnering with various private
been made in this area, such as the evaluation and public organizations. They are tasked
of destination websites (Wober, 2003; Wang with developing marketing strategies for
and Fesenmaier, 2006), online DMOs (Prideaux numerous stakeholders, including hotels and
and Cooper, 2003; Ritchie and Ritchie, 2002; motels, attractions and convention centres,
Sheldon, 1994) and web-based marketing sys- among others. In essence, CVBs are destina-
tems used by convention and visitors bureaus tion developers, marketers, advocates,
(CVBs) (Feng et al., 2003; Yuan et al., 2003), researchers, partners and economic catalysts
186 Y. Wang

(Gartrell, 1993; Morrison et al., 1998; Presenza, the competitiveness of a travel destination
Sheehan, and Ritchie, 2005). For this very rea- (Ritchie and Ritchie, 2002). A recent study
son, CVBs tasks are not only dynamic and comparing the online marketing systems of
complex in nature, but they are also presented DMOs between the USA and China (Feng
with the challenge of developing strategic et al., 2003) revealed that the Internet is con-
destination marketing systems to serve the sidered to be one of the developments with
various business constituents, predominantly the most signicant impact on destination
the individual consumers. marketing in the past 15 years, and that the
In describing the systems used by CVBs websites of DMOs developed mainly in the
to provide online information, marketing and mid 1990s are still in their infancy. However,
communications at the destination level, the study only focused on the technical
many researchers have coined their own aspects of DMO websites by adopting a site
terms and there appears to be little consensus evaluation approach, and fell short of provid-
as to the naming convention. In Austria, ing insights as to what a DMS should be com-
Wober (2003) denoted TourMIS as the national posed of, and what major functions a DMS
tourism marketing information system; Tour- should serve.
MIS has the primary objective of supplying A review of the related literature appears
information and decision support for the to lead to the conclusion that different terms
potential consumers. He argued that a mar- have been used to describe the key function/
keting decision support system (MDSS) is a purpose of DMSs, such as communication,
necessity in the tourism industry as com- information, marketing, transactions and
pared with other industries owing to the customer relationship management. These
complexity and vast amount of information observations have also been partially sup-
that is involved. As a result, Wober (2003) ported by Ritchie and Ritchies (2002)
highlighted the importance of information argument that the deployment of a DMS
needs in tourism destination management, encompasses not only the informational
and the signicance of collecting, storing, aspects of a destinations products, but also
processing and disseminating information. the marketing and communication compo-
The research of Sheldon (1993) focused on the nents. Similarly, the extended model of Inter-
distribution of destination information, and net commerce adoption (eMICA) by Burgess
the supply and demand of facilities in a desti- and Cooper (2000) consists of three stages,
nation. She looked particularly at how incorporating three levels of business process:
individual national tourism ofces (NTOs) Web-based promotion; provision of informa-
utilize information systems to market and tion and services; and transaction processing.
promote their respective countries as tourism The three levels of business processes are sim-
destinations. She used the term destination ilar to those proposed by Ho (1997) and Liu
information system (DIS) to refer to these sys- et al. (1997). However, it should be noted that
tems (Sheldon, 1993). While this term may be the development of the functions of a com-
appropriate for describing the functional mercial website is not linear; rather it tends to
level of the online systems used by specic demonstrate a hierarchical structure progress-
NTOs, it fails to evolve into anything more ing along with the level of complexity and
than a tourism information repository, interactivity of each of the functions. It is eas-
neglecting the need for communication and ily conceivable that as sites move through the
relationship building capabilities. stages of development from promotion of
Research conducted by Ritchie and company to provision of consolidated infor-
Ritchie (2002) helped to establish guidelines mation to processing of business transactions,
for the implementation of a destination mar- layers of complexity and functionality are
keting information system (DMIS) at the state added to the site (Dutta and Segev, 1999;
and provincial levels. Using a more holistic Palmer and McCole, 2000; Walsh and Godfrey,
approach, the study pointed out the need for 2000). This addition of layers is synonymous
sophisticated DMISs to support the market- with the business moving from a static Inter-
ing process and thus maintain and enhance net presence through increasing levels of
Destination Marketing Systems 187

interactivity to a dynamic site incorporating level of technology complexity and interac-


value-chain integration, and innovative appli- tivity which implies that the effective imple-
cations to add value through information mentation of a higher level application has to
management and rich functionality (Quelch be built on the successful deployment of its
and Klein, 1996; Timmers, 1998). lower level application(s).
Based on the multifaceted tasks of CVBs, As online DMSs are virtual spaces for
it is argued in this study that a successful CVBs to conduct various marketing activities,
DMS depends on the integrative application the four functions of DMSs identied above
of four components as its major function: (i) are accordingly termed: (i) virtual information
timely and accurate representation and provi- space (VIS); (ii) virtual communication space
sion of destination information; (ii) effective (VCS); (iii) virtual transaction space (VTS);
and constant communication with consum- and (iv) virtual relationship space (VRS). As
ers; (iii) reliable and seamless electronic trans- has been argued above to be the case for suc-
action deployment; and (iv) appropriate and cessful DMSs for CVBs, the relationships
sustainable relationship-building mecha- between the four functions just delineated
nisms (Fig. 12.1). It is also argued that the (VIS, VCS, VTS and VRS) are dynamic rather
relationships between the four functions are than static, and each of the components dem-
dynamic rather than static, and that each of onstrates a hierarchical level of technology
the components demonstrates a hierarchical sophistication which implies that effective

Low Technology competence High


High

High
Personalization
and
recommendation
(Relationship)
14%

Online booking
Level of sophistication and payment
systems
(Transaction)
21.1%
Absorptive capacity
Innovativeness

Advanced capabilities
offering interactive
queries and request
forms
(Communication)
51.8%

Information broadcast
and e-brochure Level of success
(Information)
88.6%
Low

Low

Low Financial commitment High

Fig. 12.1. A conceptual model of the impact of organizational factors on CVB (Convention and Visitors
Bureau) website sophistication and Web marketing success (adapted from Wang, 2008).
188 Y. Wang

implementation of a higher level application Successful tourism websites should pro-


has to be built on the successful deployment vide content in both information and services
of its lower level application(s). that cater to travellers needs (Ghosh, 1997)
though content alone does not guarantee suc-
cess. The traditional CVB website provided
Virtual information space (VIS) xed content information such as attractions,
transportation and accommodation. Unlike
Most people visiting CVB websites are look- other industries, where data may be updated
ing for information, but the information need on a weekly or monthly basis, the task of
varies signicantly from individual to indi- updating data can be more problematic in the
vidual (Feng et al., 2003). Internet users fall tourism industry. CVBs are presented with
into two categories, surfers and shoppers, the challenge of ensuring that all events,
with the former using the Internet for recre- schedules, rates and hours of operations of all
ation and the latter for a directed purpose of the represented businesses are accurate. In
(Abramson and Hollingshead, 1999). While fact, the DMS information function is highly
surfers may enjoy general information about dependent on providing the most up-to-date
a destination, shoppers want more detailed information, and its credibility might be com-
information about hotels, restaurants, attrac- promised if information is found to be inac-
tions, transportation, car rentals and travel curate or misleading (Sheldon, 1993).
agents (Bender 1997; Born et al., 1998). The The role of information provider has
diversity of information in the travel industry shifted within the DMS since the inception of
and increasingly discerning consumers mean the Internet. The information provision is
that the quality and efciency of information now more focused on functional search
provision is becoming a differentiating factor needs, which can be dened as motivated
for destinations (Sheldon, 1994). Consumer efforts directed at or contributing to a pur-
utilization of the Internet to plan some aspect pose (Vogt and Fesenmaier 1998). This
of a future trip, whether for business or plea- approach allows the search for information to
sure, continues to rise, according to YPB&Rs enable reduction of the uncertainty level and
(now Ypartnerships) National Leisure Travel enhancement of trip quality (Fodness and
Monitor (YPB&R, 2004). The rate at which Murray 1997). A DMS also affects nal pur-
consumers now use the Internet to actually chase decisions by acting as a portal of infor-
book travel services is growing even faster, mation for local tourism businesses which, in
suggesting that consumers are likely to use turn, adds value to destination tourism prod-
the Internet to assist in travel decision mak- ucts (Palmer and McCole, 2000). This com-
ing and purchase travel services with even forting factor also allows consumers to begin
greater frequency in the months and years bonding with the DMS, cursory though this
ahead. Many consumers demand specialized may be. However, Martin (1997) argues that
and in-depth presentation of the information information provision alone will not make an
to facilitate their decision making. In order effective and successful destination market-
to address their needs, proper levels of ing website, appropriate communication
information need to be accessible to the right mechanisms have to be provided to enhance
consumers in order to initiate and generate a the understanding between the consumers
purchasing interest (Bieger and Laesser, and suppliers which ultimately assures the
2004). This situation is also mandated by the delivery of the various components of prod-
fact that CVBs have been constructed upon ucts and services.
the solid foundation of information provision
and the ability to carry this out in a timely
and consistent manner. Information should Virtual communication space (VCS)
be the bread and butter of a DMS,
and understanding how customers acquire Once the information function of the DMS
information is important for marketing has been sufciently implemented, a destina-
destinations. tion can then move to the next hierarchical
Destination Marketing Systems 189

functional level communication which persuasive information is transmitted, partici-


allows marketing efforts to be targeted. Com- pative decision making is fostered, and com-
munication is the human activity that links mitment and loyalty are encouraged.
people together and creates relationships. It is Unfortunately, communication difculties are
at the heart of meaning-making activities, not often a prime cause of marketing problems.
only in marketing, but also in a wide range of Many current problems in marketing could be
political, economic and psychological areas. resolved by developing appropriate strategies
It serves as a way to develop, organize and for communication between marketers and
disseminate knowledge (Duncan and Mori- consumers (Smith and Taylor, 2004).
arty, 1998). For destinations, this interactive The role of communications in DMSs is
phase helps in building partnerships, and to share the meaning of a destinations total
goes beyond the initial irting stage of the product offering with its customers in such a
VIS to the courting stage. It is at this level way as to attain their goals and, at the same
where communication is conducted through time, move the destination closer to its cus-
various channels and transforms the trust ele- tomers. To a large extent, the effectiveness of
ment between the DMO, its stakeholders and destination marketing depends signicantly
individual consumers. on communications effectiveness because the
In the marketing area, there has been a tourism industry is energized by information
recent focus on using direct communications ows. Destinations are striving to harness
induced by advances in technology, changes DMSs as a platform to communicate their
in market information, the need for better tar- marketing messages and to generate cus-
geting and the declining effectiveness of tra- tomer interaction. Many are using added-
ditional media (Evans et al., 1996). A value information and resources on their
communication approach in marketing has websites as a means of both attracting visitors
several advantages: (i) well designed com- and easing their business processes (Wang
munications can be highly targeted, which and Fesenmaier, 2006).
affords organizations the opportunity to
build dialogue with their customers and
through this dialogue to build strong rela-
tionships (Blattberg and Deighton, 1991); (ii) Virtual transaction space (VTS)
some direct communications methods (e.g.
direct mail, e-mail newsletters, search func- The transaction function proves to be a suc-
tions and interactive tools) can be individual- cessful step towards a solid relationship. A
ized and personalized, helping to overcome commitment to a nancial transaction is a
the clutter that is inherent in traditional mass- reection of trust, a sacred line to cross within
media communications (Patterson, 1998); and the business world. This engagement between
(iii) through the initiation of a dialogue with the destination and the consumer is based
customers, communication can play a more upon previously strengthened trust built
useful role in building customer loyalty from a quality exchange of information and
(Hoffman and Novak, 1996). timely communication. The successful opera-
Communication can provide the means tion at this stage needs a secure as well as a
by which the organization and the consumer navigable online system for the transaction to
can interact in a meaningful way, can develop occur. The electronic marketplace is only pos-
a rapport which binds them together in a rela- sible with the integration of software and
tionship (Patterson, 1998). Such a situation is hardware which allows the system to initiate
made possible through the initiation of a transactions with consumers. In this new role,
meaningful dialogue between a destination the DMS not only becomes the collective mar-
and its visitors. Dialogue also helps to build keting vehicle, but also a one-stop shopping
bonds between destinations and visitors, to centre for visitors (Barker, 1993; Wang and
bring them together in a relationship which is Fesenmaier, 2006). With the new transaction
mutually benecial. Communication in mar- function, a CVB can, for example, assist a
keting can serve as the process by which convention or meeting planner with hotel
190 Y. Wang

availability, distribute meeting specications maintaining, enhancing and commercializing


to hotels, solicit bid proposals, conduct per- relationships.
sonalized site inspections, set up spouse The misunderstandings and misuse of
programmes and activities and provide trans- VRS only mystify the process and prevent its
portation and other logistical needs, with all full utilization in the tourism industry
the associated nancial transactions being (Prideaux and Cooper, 2003). While it is nec-
conducted through the DMS, thereby elimi- essary for an organization to collect massive
nating the need for multi-layer contacts amounts of data on their consumers prefer-
between consumers and suppliers. ences and buying habits, how they truly gain
The efforts to ingratiate the consumer by an understanding of these data and miracu-
making transaction functions available via lously transform them into meaningful
the CVB have been questioned by some. The information is still a challenge. Before imple-
history of the CVB is to be an agent, or inter- mentation of the technology applications for
mediary, between tourism/convention con- relationship building, consumer data (includ-
sumers and the local businesses that provide ing data acquired from e-mails, market
the services needed by those consumers. research efforts, online surveys, commercial
CVBs are considered to be intermediaries and transactions, etc.) must be maintained in a
thus should not be competing for sales and marketing database (Gartrell, 1993; Min and
services with other tourism suppliers within Emam, 2002). However, in the tourism indus-
their own destinations. This issue can be fur- try, only 5075% of DMO websites have been
ther compounded by the strategy that CVBs found to offer certain aspects of this function
take to position themselves: whether they (Feng et al., 2003).
want to be perceived as a marketing organi- The ultimate goal of the VRS is to inte-
zation or a sales organization, or both at the grate technology, processes and business
same time. However, it should be argued that activities to allow organizations to respond to
DMOs as marketing organizations might lose and target behaviour-driven market seg-
their signicance if they do not provide value ments that truly focus on, and around, the
by adding more knowledge, personal service, customer (Feinberg and Kadam, 2002; Ritchie
customization and one-stop-shopping to and Ritchie, 2002; Munhall, 2004). Develop-
commit the ever-more-sophisticated travel- ment and enhancement of new and existing
lers into a continuing relationship. segments, such as leisure and business travel-
lers, should be fully explored. The DMS
should incorporate all the principles of mar-
Virtual relationship space (VRS) keting segmentation, partnership and rela-
tionship marketing. At the same time, the
At the core of a DMS is the virtual relation- VRS should provide a means of predicting
ship space (VRS). It is at this stage where the consumers informational, marketing, trans-
relationship between the consumer and the actional and relationship needs and wants
CVB is in full bloom, where open communi- (Min and Emam, 2002).
cation and commitment provide the qualities As travellers become more knowledge-
essential for a marriage. It is a process able and technologically knowledgeable, they
whereby marketers come to truly know and demand to be differentiated and come to
understand the various aspects of their con- expect products and services that will be
sumers. VRS entails a dynamic exchange of tailor-made to their liking (Lau et al., 2001).
communication with consumers at all levels. Through the use of new technologies, CVBs
Buhalis (2003) expounded further on cus- should be able to know and understand their
tomer relationship management (CRM) by consumers needs, and to target them indi-
focusing on the information and communica- vidually with the right message at the most
tion technology used in the tourism industry. appropriate time (Lau et al., 2001; Ritchie and
He noted that CRM is the one-to-one market- Ritchie, 2002). The VRS should continuously
ing system that enables the management of nurture the relationship and reassess the
customer relationships through establishing, CVBs consumers changing behaviours. The
Destination Marketing Systems 191

development of an emotional relationship based on technology features used in the web-


with the consumer through choreographed sites and the communication style between
and focused communications campaigns company and potential customer. Using these
holds the key to destination differentiation criteria, he observed three major website
(Morgan et al., 2004). development stages: (i) publishing; (ii) data-
As the umbrella organization (Morrison base retrieval; and (iii) personalized interac-
et al., 1998) representing many stakeholders tion. A publishing website only provides
in the destination, CVBs have the ability to information to the customer; the website is
work with their partners in harnessing valu- used as an information medium with limited
able visitor information and fully exploiting interaction between customer and company.
the VRS. By sharing the multitude of cus- A database retrieval website combines the
tomer data now existing in marketing data- ability to provide information and the ability
bases (Chathoth and Olsen, 2003), and to retrieve information in response to a cus-
bringing together the myriad of technologies tomers request. At the third, personalization,
and expertise within their destinations, CVBs stage, the website uses applications/features
can truly meet their strategic marketing objec- catering to a specic individual preferences,
tives of developing market segments, and dif- with the main focus on relationship building.
ferentiating the products and services their The research of Contractor et al. (1999)
destination has to offer based on their full supports the same pattern of web technology
understanding of their visitors needs (Buha- implementation by examining the alternative
lis, 2003). Implementation of the VRS will not usage patterns as organizations adopt tech-
only benet CVBs, it will also enable them to nology. They found that organizations use
develop a symbiotic relationship with con- technology at three levels/stages: substitu-
sumers to achieve their targeted goal of pro- tion, enhancement and transformation. Sub-
moting their destination and enhancing their stitution involves simple replacement of
competitive and economic positions. This existing technology with new technology to
process, as Buhalis (2003) states, should be accomplish the very same organizational
ongoing for the future success of the tourism tasks as before adoption of the technology. At
industry. this stage, technology provides tools, infor-
mation and capabilities to directly support all
types of tasks. This can result in improved
responsiveness and precision of individual
Destination Marketing System work in that individuals gain better access to
Sophistication and Web Marketing a wider pool of information and are able to
Success effectively exchange information and enhance
communication. Enhancement involves rede-
Previous research has revealed that organiza- signing an existing process to make the best
tions implement Internet technology, particu- use of the new technology, improve product
larly Web-based technologies, in stages which quality and provide additional and related
usually follow a hierarchical progression of services. At this stage, better utilization and
technology sophistication, interactivity and coordination of physical and human resources
complexity (Hanson, 2000; Sharma, 2002). enable organizations to function as a whole,
Models have also been proposed to demon- to do more of the same tasks, and to speed up
strate that the level of sophistication and task performance. Organizations, thus,
interactivity of web technology implementa- become more responsive to customers needs
tion has a positive relationship with the value by being able to improve information
creation process, as well as with the success of exchange, reduce the cost of transaction and
the overall Web marketing efforts (Ditto and coordination, and generate completely new
Pille, 1998; Dutta and Segev, 1999; Wang and services (Morone, 1989; Tapscott, 1996).
Fesenmaier, 2006; Wang and Russo, 2006). Transformation involves taking a system
For example, Hanson (2000) argues that perspective on the role of the process within
commercial websites can be categorized the organization as a whole. In other words,
192 Y. Wang

the technology adopted has been integrated knowledge, conversations, relationships and
into the routine business practices of the e-commerce. The ve stages demonstrate the
organization. progress and increased complexity of the
On the same line of reasoning, Wang and Internet functions and how they are used to
Fesenmaier (2006) revealed that in the tour- create value for the customer. Sharma (2002)
ism industry, DMOs such as CVBs use web- proposes that as an organizations Internet
based technologies in different ways and functions evolve through the ve stages they
with varying intensity owing to different provide greater value to the customer. Dutta
technology capabilities, nancial resources and Segev (1999) divide organizations Inter-
and marketing objectives. They conclude that net activity into three stages: (i) publishing
the majority of American CVBs are at a pre- corporate information; (ii) conducting elec-
liminary stage of utilizing web technologies tronic commerce; and (iii) business transfor-
for marketing activities. That is, the website is mation. They also argue that these three
used only for broadcasting purposes by pro- stages represent increasingly more sophisti-
viding brochure-like information about the cated usage of technology by taking advan-
destination. However, at the second stage, tage of the interactive potential of the Internet.
with an increased level of acquaintance and Several researchers have proposed mod-
comfort with technology use, more CVBs els to explain web technology implementa-
are moving forward to engaging in more tion with various levels of sophistication and
advanced and sophisticated technology interactivity from a relationship marketing
applications. These CVBs take advantage of perspective, arguing that the progression of
web technologies to make business activities customer relationship building and manage-
more effective and efcient by providing ment requires the support of more sophisti-
e-commerce-related features as well as more cated technology capabilities in the digital
advanced capabilities, such as interactive environment. For example, Kotler et al. (2003)
queries and request forms, to facilitate com- proposed that there are ve basic levels of
munication with potential travellers. At the relationship that can be formed with a cus-
third stage, some bureaus have been able to tomer online: (i) basic (a company sells the
re-engineer their whole business practices product but does not follow up in any way);
through integrating technology systems into (ii) reactive (a company sells the product and
the overall business processes of the entire encourages the customer to call at any time
organization. For these CVBs, as their exist- with questions or problems); (iii) accountable
ing scope and reach expand, the interactive (a company contacts the customer before and
and integrated technology applications during the service encounter requesting sug-
enable them to recreate and maintain their gestions for improvement); (iv) proactive (a
business relations with various stakeholders company contacts the customer from time to
by providing personalization and recommen- time with suggestions, improvements or cre-
dation capabilities (Yuan et al., 2003; Wang ative suggestions for the future); and (v) part-
and Fesenmaier, 2006). nership (a company works closely with
Ample evidence can be found in numer- customers to discover ways to deliver better
ous other studies in the generic business area value).
to support these observations and ndings. This relationship perspective helps to
For example, Forman (2005) found that orga- explain the focus of relationship marketing
nizations implement website functions in and the different levels of technology applica-
different stages by rst implementing basic tions implemented within an organization.
and relatively inexpensive-to-adopt Internet The goal of any company is to use more
applications such as information broadcast- sophisticated and interactive technology
ing oriented websites and basic communica- applications to reach a partnership with their
tion mechanisms such as e-mail, and then customers because it is at this stage where the
move on to higher level applications. Sharma relationship is most protable (Grnroos
(2002) states that an organizations Internet 1990, 1994; Zablah et al., 2004). CVBs seek to
presence evolves in ve stages: information, create partnerships with customers in which
Destination Marketing Systems 193

the relationship becomes benecial for both Goode and Stevens, 2000; Scupola, 2003; Zhu
parties involved. This partnership can be et al., 2003; Wang and Qualls, 2006), and con-
achieved by the organization having technol- sidering the unique nature of the technology
ogy systems in place to provide a customized climate facing CVBs, four factors are identi-
experience for the customer (e.g. to provide ed as having signicant impact on CVB
information catering to their needs) which website sophistication as well as on the
can translate into increased customer success of their web marketing efforts: nan-
satisfaction and repeat visitation (Wang and cial commitment, technology competence,
Fesenmaier, 2006). innovativeness and absorptive capacity.
These models and their associated propo-
sitions seem to suggest the following themes.
First, an organizations implementation of Financial commitment
technology applications usually demonstrates
a transitional pattern by progressing incre- Research has shown that technology projects
mentally from the basic to more complex are usually constrained by resources avail-
applications. Secondly, as the technology is able to the organization, especially the budget
used for higher order purposes, the sophistica- to support the adoption. Previous research
tion and interactivity of the technology appli- has demonstrated that nancial commitment
cations increase, together with the increase in represented by the technology budget has a
complexity of business processes. Thirdly, to great impact on whether organizations can
compensate for the increase of technology eventually adopt the technology, irrespective
sophistication and interactivity as well as the of how benecial it might be to the organiza-
complexity of business processes, organiza- tion. Thus, it has a positive effect on the over-
tions will witness a higher level of value cre- all technology implementation behaviour
ation and higher potential returns from their (Ariss et al., 2000; Goode and Stevens, 2000).
Internet presence. This will in turn lead to This proposition has been widely sup-
more successful web marketing strategy exe- ported by other researchers who have argued
cution. Thus, it could be argued that there is a that having adequate resources is a necessary
positive relationship between a CVBs website rst step towards the decision to adopt infor-
sophistication and web marketing success. mation systems as well as affecting the extent
of usage (e.g. Thong, 1999; Zhu and Kraemer,
2005). Earlier studies have suggested that
businesses that budget for IT acquisition and
Determining Factors of Website maintenance are likely to be technology
Sophistication and Web Marketing adopters and constant users (Goode and Ste-
Success vens, 2000). The existence of an IT budget
indicates that the business considers IT to be
One important argument of this chapter is that important for its operations (Grover and
CVBs strive to maximize value creation and Teng, 1992). It is easy to conceive that imple-
achieve successful web marketing through the menting e-business functions within an orga-
use of sophisticated and interactive web-based nization requires investment to obtain
technology applications in their websites. Yet hardware, software, system integration and
in the attempt to attain a competitive advan- employee training (Zhu and Kraemer, 2005).
tage through more sophisticated use of tech- Sufcient business resources dedicated to
nology, not all of these DMOs are necessarily e-business allow the organization to obtain
created equal and with the same implementa- the IT necessary resources and develop them
tion capacities. This occurs because not all of into superior e-business functionalities (Zhu
them start with the same foundation of tech- and Kraemer, 2005). Therefore, only those
nology understanding and expertise, resources businesses that have adequate nancial and
and other associated capabilities. Further organizational resources would consider
to an extensive and critical review of the rele- implementing technology solutions as a
vant literature in this area (Thong, 1999; viable undertaking (Thong, 1999).
194 Y. Wang

Though there are research ndings products and/or processes through the use of
which indicate that nancial resources are new technologies (Srinivasan et al., 2002).
important but not determinant for e-commerce Technology competence can be broadly
adoption and usage (e.g. Scupola, 2003), the understood as the quality of an organiza-
dominant theme revealed from this stream of tions human IT resources. The quality of
research suggests that IT budgets are good human IT resources in this study refers to the
indicators of technology adoption and usage capacity of IT professionals possessing the
behaviour, including the use of the World knowledge and skills to implement Internet-
Wide Web (Goode and Stevens, 2000). This is related applications (Zhu and Kraemer, 2005).
especially true for CVBs that are predomi- Human IT resources provide knowledge and
nantly small and medium-sized enterprises. skills to develop e-business applications.
As a matter of fact, such technology capacity Studies have found that the development of
within a CVB will not only facilitate (or technical and management skills are vital to
hinder) the implementation process, but also the successful implementation of web-based
affect the ultimate result of the implementa- solutions (Adebanjo, 2003).
tion. CVBs with greater resources and Zhu et al. (2003) studied electronic busi-
nancial commitment towards web-based ness adoption by rms and the factors that
technology development are more likely to facilitate its adoption. The study found that
achieve a greater extent of usage, and integrate the companys technology competence is
more sophisticated and interactive technology signicant to adoption facilitation. The results
applications which, in turn, leads to more of the study suggest that rms must pay great
successful implementation of e-marketing attention to their capability to adopt e-business
(Wang and Fesenmaier, 2006). In other words, and keep in mind that technology competence
a DMOs technology budget will have impact constitutes Internet skills and e-business
on its website sophistication and web market- know-how. However, as an organizations
ing success. Internet technology spreads, and becomes a
necessity for that organization to stay in busi-
ness, technology and managerial skills for
e-business management become more signi-
Technology competence cant. The necessity of managerial and technol-
ogy skills urges top managers to promote the
It is believed that the presence in an organiza- retention of employees and staff with manage-
tion of a higher degree of technological com- rial and technological e-business skills (Thong,
petence, represented by the knowledge and 1999; Scupola, 2003; Zhu et al., 2003).
skills of the management team and employ- The results of the study by Zhu and Krae-
ees as a whole, may lead to more extensive mer (2005) indicate that technology compe-
use of technology to achieve business goals. tence has a signicant inuence on the extent
This position can be supported by several of the use of e-business, with rms possessing
arguments. First, organizations with a high higher levels of technology competence tend-
level of technology competence may encoun- ing to achieve a greater extent of e-business
ter less resistance to innovation and thus are use with better business value. In addition, as
more open to embrace technology for busi- technology competence within an organiza-
ness solutions. They might be more receptive tion is inuenced by its employees technol-
to technological change, and be more willing ogy expertise, it is important to address
to adapt and integrate technology into their employees IT knowledge. Employees who
daily business operations. Secondly, previous are more knowledgeable about IT are more
research has shown that organizations with likely to adopt IT functions (Thong, 1999).
higher levels of technology competence Scupola (2003) states that once e-commerce
develop unique cultures around their ability had been adopted, the employees knowledge
to accept new technology and change. These and relative resistance to change is considered
organizations are more willing to deviate key to its diffusion in the company and, in
from existing practices in creating new turn, its use within the company.
Destination Marketing Systems 195

The same observation has been made levels of innovativeness are associated with
among small and medium-sized enterprises cultures that emphasize learning, develop-
in the context of Internet commerce adoption ment and participative decision making.
and usage. For example, Scupolas (2003) Porter (1985) recognizes innovation as an
study found that an organizations overall essential driver of competition in industry
technology environment is a necessary condi- and a powerful competitive weapon of the
tion for the adoption and implementation of individual rm.
e-commerce activities; he claimed that tech- On a global scale, the information revo-
nology competence is the second most signi- lution has created a business environment
cant organizational characteristic that with shorter product cycles, increased seg-
determines the extent of technology use. In ment fragmentation, blurring industry
addition, Thong (1999) found that small busi- boundaries, breaking corporate hierarchies
nesses with employees possessing greater IT and increased interdependence of global
knowledge are likely to use IT more exten- markets. Such increased environmental dyna-
sively. With regards to the use of the World mism increases the need for innovation the
Wide Web, IT experience was associated with ability of a rm to introduce new products
World Wide Web adoption and use (Goode and production processes, especially through
and Stevens, 2000). Therefore, CVBs with a the use of technology, in order to capitalize on
higher degree of technology competence tend marketplace opportunities (Zahra and
to enjoy greater readiness to use e-business George, 2002).
and e-commerce activities in their web mar- There are many ways in which innova-
keting efforts (Zhu and Kraemer, 2005; Wang tiveness can be examined and measured. Fol-
and Fesenmaier, 2006). As a result, these lowing Miller (1993), Ozsomer et al. (1997)
CVBs would be more likely to achieve a argued that a rms strategies, structures and
greater extent of web-based technology culture embody the purposes and goals of the
usage. Thus, it can be argued that there is a organization as well as the organizations
positive relationship between a DMOs tech- actions and decisions toward innovation.
nology competence and its website sophisti- They also argued that dominant themes in
cation and Web marketing success. innovative rms are invention and pioneer-
ing (Miller, 1993). These innovative organiza-
tions centre their strategies around the
Innovativeness novelty and technological sophistication of
their product(s), and adapt their strategies to
Another factor affecting the effective utiliza- the requirements of the environment (Porter,
tion of Internet technology is the organiza- 1985). A rm can choose an aggressive,
tions innovativeness. Innovative rms are proactive posture, or a passive, reactive one.
more willing to experiment with new things, In broad terms, an aggressive strategic pos-
which is a facilitating factor towards the ture is marked by strong emphasis on
adoption and application of information tech- technological leadership, radical new prod-
nologies. Innovation is an important function uct innovation, and a preference for high-risk,
of management because it is linked to organi- high potential reward projects over safer
zational learning and business performance, projects on the part of management (Corin
as has been demonstrated in many studies. In and Slevin, 1988).
the general business environment, it appears Wang and Fesenmaier (2006) argued
that the ability to innovate has begun to that, from a CVBs perspective, the develop-
eclipse more traditional contributors to orga- ment of an effective web marketing strategy
nizational learning (Hamel, 1998), and will that markets and promotes the destination as
be the key determinant of competitiveness a comprehensive experience requires innova-
over the long term. Hurley and Hult (1998) tive organizational approaches. Indeed, CVBs
found that higher levels of innovativeness in are increasingly struggling with the abun-
the rms culture are associated with a greater dance and complexity of issues they have to
capacity for adaptation. In addition, higher face when trying to establish a concerted
196 Y. Wang

online presence, and only those CVBs that are Evidence can be found in previous
innovative and exible enough are able to research which supports the proposition that
achieve their online marketing goals. It can be a rms absorptive capacity derives from
proposed that the relationship between a stocks of knowledge both within and outside
DMOs innovativeness and its website the rm (e.g. Cohen and Levinthal, 1990;
sophistication and web marketing success Zahra and George, 2002). For example, a
should be positive. rms absorptive capacity can be developed
through the managers active involvement
in building knowledge stocks through
Absorptive capacity investment in internal research and develop-
ment and by creating linkages to external
Pioneered by Cohen and Levinthal (1990), knowledge sources such as universities and
absorptive capacity refers to, in an organiza- consultants.
tional context, a rms ability to evaluate the In the context of CVB businesses, where
technological and commercial potential of the majority of the organizations are small
knowledge in a particular domain, assimilate and medium sized, a CVBs absorptive capac-
it and apply it to commercial ends. In the ity probably depends more on its Director/
tourism context, a higher absorptive capacity CEO, who stands at the interface of either the
helps a CVB to comprehend technology CVB and the external environment or at the
developments taking place in the area of interface between various departments/units
web-based marketing, and to incorporate within the organization. Such Directors/
new knowledge into its own innovation CEOs are more likely to assume relatively
which, in turn, leads to sustainable competi- centralized gatekeeping or boundary span-
tive advantage (Barney, 1991). Sigala et al. ning roles (Nyheim et al., 2004). Such a gate-
(2001) argued that the adoption and diffusion keeper both monitors the technology
of innovations in the tourism industry are environment and facilitates the selection and
limited by the ability of tourism organiza- implementation of the right combination of
tions to recognize the value of new informa- technology applications to achieve and sus-
tion and put it into commercial application, tain success in the organizations web mar-
an argument which is very close to the con- keting efforts. Thus, a DMOs absorptive
cept of absorptive capacity and organiza- capacity should have positive impacts on its
tional learning capacity. website sophistication and Web marketing
Absorptive capacity is a limit to the rate success.
or quantity of scientic or technological infor-
mation that a rm can absorb. Conceptually,
it is similar to information processing theory,
but at the rm level rather than at the indi- Applications, Discussions
vidual level (Cohen and Levinthal, 1990). The and Implications
ability to efciently discover, assimilate and
exploit new practices is a critical element of In order to assess the status of DMSs, as well
sustained competitive advantage (Teece and as the impacts of organizational factors on
Pisano, 1994). With the increasing competi- their sophistication and success, CVBs at
tion in the contemporary business environ- three levels (regional, county and city) in the
ment, all rms in the industry are likely to be USA were used to apply the ndings
aware of the importance of know-how regen- from the investigation that has been carried
eration, and will try to renew their knowl- out in this chapter. The sample was drawn
edge resource base as best as they can. Besides from a database constructed from the inte-
generating the required knowledge in-house, gration of various sources. Specically,
they are always engaged in tasks of looking names of CVBs were obtained through sev-
out, and make judgements on what knowl- eral searches of the Internet using a keyword
edge to acquire and how to acquire it (Cohen search including the names of each state (e.g.
and Levinthal, 1990). Indiana, New York, Wyoming, etc.), tourism,
Destination Marketing Systems 197

travel and visitor centres. In addition, the base in this area (Prideaux and Cooper, 2003).
websites for each state were searched for up- Munhall (2004) states that its relationship
to-date lists of CVBs. The results of these management strategy dictates how an organi-
efforts were combined with a membership zation will build and leverage capabilities to
list provided by the IACVB (now DMAI). A target and interact with customers.
total of 1200 CVBs were identied and then For ease of understanding, the function
contacted using a brief telephone call to con- of each of the components of a DMS can be
rm the address and the name of the CEO/ likened to a marriage relationship. The rst
Director of each. A survey questionnaire was stage of VIS attempts to lure potential con-
developed and mailed to the CEOs/Direc- sumers to behold their presence, and
tors of the CVBs, together with a cover letter behaves in a tempting manner. This irting
explaining the purpose of the survey and stage is elusive and merely exhibits visual,
seeking assistance and support from the verbal or written attributes. Next, the VCS
tourism organizations. This section briey allows destinations and consumers to become
reports the key ndings of the study, and familiar with each other through the commu-
includes major efforts to provide discussion nication process. At this point, an acquain-
on and assess the implications associated tance has been made and leads into the
with the study results. courting stage. For most organizations, this
It is proposed, as already recounted, that phase may be lengthy, allowing adequate
a DMS should be composed of four interre- time to build up the elements of trust and
lated components: virtual information space commitment. It is only after this stage has
(VIS), virtual communication space (VCS), been sufciently nurtured that the relation-
virtual transaction space (VTS) and virtual ship can develop to the engagement stage
relationship space (VRS). The sophistication and lead to a transaction (VTS). Elements of
of CVB websites was assessed by rst asking trust and security have been fully recognized
them what functions are performed on their when dealing with transactions in the VTS. At
sites. The results indicated, as presented in the most intimate and advanced level in a
Fig. 12.1, that CVBs demonstrated different relationship is the function of the VRS, which
capabilities in implementing each of the four can only be attained after all the previous
website functions: information orientation stages have been implemented well. This
(88.6%), communication orientation (51.8%), stage of the relationship, the marriage stage,
transaction orientation (21.1%), and relation- comes together with commitment, loyalty
ship orientation (14%). and open communication. As with any mar-
At the most fundamental level, a DMS riage, this stage must be continually nurtured
must provide tourists with up-to-date and respected to prevent a partner from going
information about the destination. Once the elsewhere, thereby ending the relationship
information level has been sufciently imple- and entering the devastating divorce stage.
mented, CVBs should then consider the Therefore, it is the contention of this chapter
communication function, which takes into that the VRS is the most critical function of a
account all areas of promotion and marketing DMS in developing long-lasting, meaningful
research. At this stage, e-mail and contact relationships with its consumers. Although
information are disseminated, allowing for a implementation of the VRS is perhaps largely
direct exchange of information between the misunderstood and still in its infancy, it
DMS and consumers, which paves the way would behove CVBs to strategically align
for future relationship building. The imple- their objectives to meeting this level of sophis-
mentation of the transaction function enables tication in developing their DMSs.
CVBs to generate revenue both internally and The analysis presented here of the appli-
externally for their stakeholders. At the very cation of the four components of a DMS
core of this system is the relationship manage- seems to suggest that these systems are still in
ment component, which is probably the most the preliminary stages of development, and
difcult to implement given the required tech- show a hierarchical progression of usage and
nological expertise and lack of knowledge sophistication. It appears that CVBs are
198 Y. Wang

performing well in providing and incorporat- means to gather customer information such
ing information-oriented applications related as demographic and psychographic charac-
to attractions, activities and accommodation, teristics. Research of this type enables a CVB
but that the performance becomes weaker in to strengthen its destinations marketing plan
relation to application for communication in targeting the visitors needs and purchas-
purposes. The weakest areas of application of ing behaviours (Ritchie and Ritchie, 2002),
all are demonstrated by two functions but requires tremendous knowledge and
transaction and relationship building with skills in information gathering, analysis and
only a small percentage of CVBs being able to utilization.
function in these two areas. According to While the data collection process is an
Yuan et al. (2003), this lack of development extremely important aspect of the VRS, many
appears to be a manifestation of the inability tourism organizations fail to utilize the infor-
of CVBs to effectively adopt and manage the mation when developing their marketing
IT necessary to support more sophisticated plans. The study by Ritchie and Ritchie (2002)
operations and business processes. This calls validated this point by stating the fact that
for CVBs to move to a higher level in terms of though a great deal of research is being con-
the sophistication and interactivity of their ducted in tourism, it is inefciently used and
technology use in order to provide a more rarely exploited to its full potential. Research
balanced and wider array of features and conducted by Wober (2003) conrmed this
functionalities in their DMSs to accommodate argument, noting that while there is an over-
the diverse needs of their potential visitors. abundance of market research data in the
It is demonstrated that DMSs are gener- tourism industry, many entrepreneurs still do
ally weak in providing e-commerce transac- not have the proper tools and knowledge,
tion-related capabilities. CVBs are umbrella especially in terms of market segmentation or
marketing organizations representing the market positioning, to fully understand their
local tourism community without actual customer base.
products at their disposal. Therefore, they The complex nature of CVBs in working
should provide e-commerce functionality with many different levels of stakeholders
through closer and seamless cooperation and presents them with the ever-increasing chal-
coordination with the actual tourism provid- lenge of developing and maintaining a deli-
ers and suppliers. In other words, under the cate relationship that promotes commitment
more competitive market condition, it is not and trust (Williams and Palmer, 1999). With
sufcient for CVBs to interpret their mission the numerous players that represent a single
as only providing information and marketing destination, there will be a need for greater
the destination, and remain at arms length cooperation in order to minimize disagree-
from commerce and leave it to the private sec- ments and a divergence of interests (Prideaux
tor. Instead, CVBs need to extend their role and Cooper, 2003). Nevertheless, argues Gar-
into deeper product merchandising, thereby trell (1993), it is vital that CVBs maintain pos-
setting the stage for customers to develop a itive and productive relationships with all
deeper relationship with the destination. levels of stakeholders and consumers. In
Following the same trend, applications order to meet their strategic marketing objec-
of VRS in destination marketing systems are tives, CVBs must become procient in the
also weak and this has raised some serious administration and utilization of market
concerns given the consensus of the impor- research, and must also be able to effectively
tance among CVBs in this area. Their inability communicate and develop marketing buy-in
to operate successfully in this area might be opportunities with their stakeholders (Ritchie
hampered by the lack of technology expertise and Ritchie, 2002). The overall rate of growth
and management skills required. In order to by destinations will be inuenced as a result
effectively develop and manage the applica- of CVBs working closely with both private
tions in VRS, a CVB must have some knowl- and public sector stakeholders (Prideaux and
edge of its customers. For example, as a Cooper, 2003). Therefore, the VRS is critical
starting point, CVBs need to use various in helping CVBs strengthen their roles as
Destination Marketing Systems 199

communicators and marketers for their the interactive potential of the Internet for
destinations. effective marketing campaigns.
The study reported here also attempted Another interesting result of the study is
to understand the relationship between the that nancial commitment has a strong posi-
sophistication of CVB websites and their web tive effect on the sophistication of CVB web-
marketing success, as well as the impact of sites, but a non-signicant negative effect on
organizational factors (i.e. nancial commit- web marketing success. In other words, how
ment, technology competence, innovative- much money they allocate to web marketing
ness and absorptive capacity) on website development determines how far they can go
sophistication and Web marketing success. in terms of the level of interactivity and
The results demonstrated that the sophistica- sophistication of their websites. However, a
tion of CVB websites does have positive technology budget alone will not necessarily
impact on their Web marketing success, and lead to success. The negative relationship
that these two variables are in turn affected between the technology budget and Web
by most of the four organizational factors marketing success probably indicates that the
(nancial commitment, technology compe- CVBs have either high expectations or
tence, innovativeness and absorptive capac- attempt to implement multiple applications
ity). It is true that the higher level of at the expense of compromising the focus of
relationship building facilitated by the inter- the project. This leads to the conclusion that
active potential of the Internet allows market- what is important is not how much money an
ers to build strong, sustainable relationships organization can devote to Web marketing
with their customers and enhance loyalty efforts but, rather, how effectively the budget
(Walsh and Godfrey, 2000), and this has been is used. This is an encouraging message for
reected by the strong positive relationship CVBs with limited nancial resources that
between website sophistication and web mar- are usually associated with their small size. If
keting success found in the study. Unfortu- the CVBs have a good and comprehensive
nately, the research results also suggest that plan and the right and smart implementa-
American CVBs are making limited use of the tion of the plan, the limited resources, if uti-
Internets interactivity potential in that the lized in an effective way, can still produce
majority of the CVBs are using their websites promising and successful results in their
mainly for information provision rather than online marketing efforts.
utilizing their interactive capability to launch The research results also reveal that a
higher levels of applications to provide better CVBs technology competence, measured by
value to consumers. The most frequently the technology expertise of both the manage-
used function of the website is that of an ment team and employees, has a positive and
online brochure, and the transaction and rela- signicant impact on Web marketing success.
tionship building functions are rather weak. In the context of a CVB, the degree of technol-
Indeed, this nding supports previous ogy expertise may be reected by its past
research ndings which claim that existing experience of IT and the percentage of per-
rms tend to move from using the Internet as sonnel familiar with technologies. A work-
an informational tool towards transacting force with a higher degree of IT knowledge/
with the customer (Quelch and Klein, 1996; skills may become more receptive to techno-
Dutta and Segev, 1999; Arnott and Bridge- logical change; it is also easier if the work-
water, 2002). Perhaps the most signicant force has a higher level of adaptation to and
guideline for CVBs propounding the interac- integration of the technology into their work,
tive potential of the Internet is that this transi- thus reducing their resistance to the technol-
tion is taking place. Given the low percentage ogy.
of respondents using either relationship- As the major decision makers for Web
facilitating or online transactional applica- marketing strategies for the destination, the
tions, this progression will probably move CVB management teams average level of
slowly, which suggests that CVBs still have a knowledge of Web technology could be either
long way to go before they can really exploit a facilitator or a barrier to the execution of an
200 Y. Wang

effective Web marketing strategy. Owing to pointed out by Sigala et al. (2001) and Strass-
less complexity and fewer layers of organiza- mann (1990), CVBs need to be aware of the
tion structure in CVBs, top management, in balance between technology and informa-
most cases the Director, plays an important tion when they strive for innovation through
role in the decision-making process. The the use of information and communication
director not only runs the organization but technologies. They should realize that the
also provides direction in beliefs, vision, and impact of innovation is not restricted to tech-
day-to-day operating procedures in relation nology only, but that it also applies to how to
to technology strategies. Thus, managements collect, analyse, present and distribute infor-
technology understanding will be a crucial mation through the use of technological
factor in the adoption and utilization process means. While operating in an information
of technologies for CVBs (Wang and Fesen- intensive and complex and competitive busi-
maier, 2006; Yuan et al., 2003). In addition, ness environment, CVBs will be required
employees who are the frontline personnel more and more to demonstrate their capacity
implementing and operating the daily Web to create and manage knowledge from the
marketing activities are also vital to the exe- information gained by the technologies
cution of successful Web marketing efforts. It applied (Sigala et al., 2001). CVBs need to
is imperative that CVBs create favourable develop effective strategies for using innova-
organizational settings in which employees tive technology applications such as database
are able to constantly improve their IT knowl- and data mining techniques to generate valu-
edge and skills by, for example, providing able information and intelligence in order to
training programmes related to technology provide more sophisticated customer rela-
application and strategies. In other words, tionship management applications, such as
CVBs need to work to change their existing customized products and personalized
organizational climate at different levels in services.
order to be successful in their DMSs. The absorptive capacity of CVBs is
It has also been demonstrated that inno- found to have a positive signicant impact
vative CVBs tend to reach a higher level of on Web marketing success, but its relation-
sophistication/interactivity in their website ship with website sophistication is negative,
operations and are more successful in their although not statistically signicantly so.
Web marketing efforts. The results of the This result seems to suggest that the greater
study not only support previous research the organizations associated absorptive
ndings which claim that the development of capacity, the more likely it is to be sensitive to
a successful DMS requires innovative organi- emerging technological opportunities. In
zational approaches and a supporting organi- other words, CVBs with higher levels of
zation technology climate (Wang and absorptive capacity are more likely to dene
Fesenmaier, 2006), but also highlight the their technology aspirations in terms of per-
important and relevant organizational factors formance measures rather than in terms of
affecting the use of technology by CVBs. the pure opportunities present in the techni-
Being mostly SMEs (small and medium-sized cal environment. Thus, CVBs with higher
enterprises), CVBs are usually inherently con- levels of absorptive capacity will tend to be
strained by the technology capability and more proactive in exploiting technology
availability of nancial resources that are nec- opportunities present in the marketplace, but
essary in any technology initiatives. How- the focus will be on whether the technology
ever, compared with their larger counterparts opportunities can improve the bottom line
in the manufacturing industry, CVBs usually and performance of the organization.
have built-in exibility, a less rigid division of In summary, the study provides empiri-
work and a constant search for innovative cal evidence to support the notion that the
solutions, factors which can possibly lead sophistication level of DMSs does have a
them to developing a concerted and effective positive impact on the performance of the
marketing system for the destination given Web-based marketing efforts of CVBs. The
the right technology climate. However, as study also highlights the importance of
Destination Marketing Systems 201

organizational factors on the level of sophisti- implementation of DMSs warrants further


cation of DMSs and on the overall success of investigation. Furthermore, as the mission
Web marketing activities implemented by of the organization plays an important role on
CVBs. The results of the study show that the strategies implemented, further examina-
three organizational factors have the most tion on aspects of the mission of a CVB and its
impact on Web marketing success tech- impact on Web-based marketing would be an
nology competence, organizational innova- interesting topic to investigate.
tiveness and absorptive capacity, and that
two factors have signicant impacts on
website sophistication organizational inno-
vativeness and nancial commitment. How- Acknowledgement
ever, more research is needed in order to
provide comprehensive parameters on and This chapter has been adapted and updated
understanding of the web-based marketing from the following articles: Wang, Y.C. and
activities of CVBs. For example, based on the Russo, S. (2007) Conceptualizing and evaluat-
specic characteristics of this type of organi- ing the functions of destination marketing
zation, further research should include the systems. Journal of Vacation Marketing 13,
examination of management characteristics 187203; and Wang, Y.C. (2008) Examining
and their impact on the implementation of the level of sophistication and success of des-
web technology. In addition, because most tination marketing systems: impacts of
DMOs are non-prot organizations, the organizational factors. Journal of Travel and
aspect of nancial resources in the Tourism Marketing 24, 8198.

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13 eTourism: Critical Information
and Communication Technologies
for Tourism Destinations

Dimitrios Buhalis, Daniel Leung and Rob Law

Introduction Tourism organizations that have failed to


master the right information technology (IT)
Rapid technological progress and dynamic systems would nd it difcult to direct and
tourism developments have been going hand manage their information-intensive busi-
in hand for years (Poon, 1993; Sheldon, 1997). nesses without damaging their competitive-
Since the 1980s, information communication ness (Law and Jogaratnam, 2005). More
technologies (ICTs) have been transforming strategically, ICTs are reshaping the funda-
tourism globally, creating applications and mental structure of the industry and society
solutions that are often termed eTourism. (Buhalis, 1998, 2003). The signicance of cross-
Developments in ICTs have undoubtedly ing the new information threshold of ubiqui-
changed both business practices and strat- tous communication access has brought the
egies, as well as industry structures (Porter, entire tourism industry to the new levels of
2001). The establishments of computer reser- interactivity. Developments in search engines,
vations systems (CRSs) in the 1970s and of and in the carrying capacity and speed of net-
global distribution systems (GDSs) in the late works, have inuenced the number of travel-
1980s, followed by the development of the lers around the world that use technologies
Internet in the late 1990s, have transformed for planning and experiencing their travels.
best operational and strategic practices in the The Internet is rapidly becoming the number
industry dramatically (OConnor, 1999; Buha- one information source for travel and tourism.
lis, 2003; eBusiness W@tch, 2006). If the past ICTs have also radically changed the ef-
20 years have seen an emphasis on technol- ciency and effectiveness of tourism organiza-
ogy, then since the year 2000 we have been tions, the way that businesses are conducted
witnessing the truly transformational effect in the marketplace and how consumers inter-
of ICTs and the Internet in particular. act with organizations (Buhalis, 2003).
Tourism as an international industry and Tourism and hospitality are social phe-
as the biggest provider of jobs on the planet nomena, and the industries associated with
boasts a greater array of heterogeneous stake- them are largely application oriented. ICTs
holders than many other industries. The accel- thus play a critical role in the competitiveness
erating and synergistic interaction between of tourism organizations and destinations as
technology and tourism in recent times well as in the entire industry as a whole
has transformed the nature of tourism prod- (WTO, 2001). Not only do ICTs support
ucts, processes, businesses and competition. consumer centricity, with consumers being
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 205
206 D. Buhalis et al.

able to identify, customize and purchase tour- organizations, private enterprises and, more
ism products, they also support the globaliza- and more, by other users/consumers. Ever
tion of the industry by providing effective more new, experienced, sophisticated and
tools for suppliers to develop, manage and demanding travellers require interaction with
distribute their offerings worldwide (Buhalis, suppliers to satisfy their own specic needs
1998; Niininen et al., 2007). As investment in and wishes. eTourism empowers travellers to
and the adoption of ICTs are now an indis- undertake reservations in a fraction of the
pensable component of tourism and hospital- time, cost and inconvenience required by con-
ity business, researchers increasingly seek to ventional methods (OConnor, 1999). From
understand and communicate the signi- information search to destination/product
cance of the new technologies, investigate and consumption and post-experience engage-
interpret developments in eTourism, and ment, ICTs offer a wide range of tools to facil-
attempt to forecast the way ahead for both itate and improve the process so that
industry and technological development. customers are able to search for travel-related
More and more, destination management information, and make online air ticket book-
organizations (DMOs) use ICTs in order to ings, online room reservations and other
facilitate the tourist experience before, during online purchases themselves instead of rely-
and after the visit, as well as for coordinating ing on travel agencies to undertake this pro-
all partners involved in the production and cess for them (Morrison et al., 2001). Owing to
delivery of tourism (Buhalis, 1997). Thus, the popularity of Internet applications, most
DMOs not only attempt to provide informa- tourism organizations such as hotels, air-
tion and accept reservations for local enter- lines and travel agencies have embraced
prises and coordinate their facilities, they also Internet technologies as part of their market-
utilize ICTs to promote their tourism policy, ing and communication strategies and have
coordinate their operational functions, already generated signicant proportions of
increase the expenditure of tourists and boost their business online. ICTs place users in the
the multiplier effects in the local economy middle of this functionality and product
(Buhalis and Spada, 2000). Destination man- delivery, and so the Internet has changed
agement systems (DMSs) facilitate this func- tourism consumer behaviour dramatically
tion by handling a wide range of requests and (Mills and Law, 2004).
by providing information on an ever-increas- According to Kotler et al. (1999), no mat-
ing supply of tourism products, in an efcient ter whether a purchase is conducted online or
and appropriate way. DMSs are employed by ofine, consumers will go through the ve
many national and regional governments to stages in the buyers decision-making process
facilitate the management of DMOs, as well before any purchase is made. These ve
as for the coordination of local suppliers at the stages include need recognition, information
destination level. Increasingly the sophistica- search, evaluation of alternatives, purchase
tion of DMSs makes them a critical tool for the decision and post-purchase behaviour. The
marketing and communication of DMOs following ve subsections show how ICTs
(WTO, 2001; UNWTO, 2008). play an important role in each of these stages
Three main themes are identied as the of the buyers decision making process, and
main axes of eTourism research: consumer and that eTourism is in the centre of consumer
demand dimensions, technological innovation processes for purchasing tourism products.
and industry functions. These are discussed in
the next three sections of this chapter.
Need recognition

Consumer and Demand Dimensions A contemporary/connected consumer is far


less willing to wait or put up with delays, to
eTourism enables prospective travellers to the point where patience is a disappearing
access a much greater wealth of reliable and virtue. The key to success lies in the quick
accurate information provided by tourism identication of consumer needs and in
eTourism: Critical Information and Technologies 207

reaching potential clients with comprehen- Consumers of different gender, age,


sive, personalized and up-to-date products nationality, educational background and
and services that satisfy those needs. Under- lifestyle display different search patterns
standing consumer behaviour, and especially (Hallab and Gursoy, 2006). Gursoy and
information search behaviour, can help McCleary (2004) developed a comprehensive
industrial managers to develop, optimize (as theoretical model that integrated all psycho-
regards search engine function therein) and logical/motivational, economic and process-
customize their websites to meet the needs of ing approaches into a cohesive whole for
their customers. In this digital era, the Inter- understanding tourists information-seeking
net has become one of the most important behaviour. Kozak (2007) analysed travellers
sources of consumer information (Zins, 2007), from different countries to Turkey and con-
especially for young and better educated con- cluded that different nationalities require dif-
sumers (Beritelli et al., 2007). ferent information sources. Travellers also
However, mature and senior travellers required different information from the Inter-
still prefer printed brochures as their major net at different stages of travel. For instance,
information source (Lin, 2005), and many before departure, the availability of informa-
travellers use the Internet in conjunction with tion can affect travel planning, while later on
ofine information to plan a trip (Lee et al., they may seek reassurance from review sites
2007a). With the popularity of use of the that they have selected the right products
Internet as a medium for searching travel (Lehto et al., 2006).
information, most, if not all, tourism organi- According to Snepenger et al. (1990), the
zations have established websites to publicize four major factors that inuence information
their offerings as well as to collect consumers search in the tourism context are: (i) the com-
data. The proliferation of social networking position of vacation groups, (ii) the presence
also increases inspirational messages and the of families and friends at the destination, (iii)
ability of consumers to identify suitable prod- earlier visits to the destination, and (iv) the
ucts and services through their networks. Lin degree of novelty associated with the destina-
et al. (2006) used an online survey to examine tion. Buhalis (1998) stated that potential tour-
the perceptions of members of the online ists have become more independent and
community of specic destinations. sophisticated in using a wide range of tools to
arrange for their trips. These include reserva-
tion systems and online travel agencies (such
as Expedia), search engines and meta search
Information search engines (such as Google and Kayak, respec-
tively), DMSs (such as visitbritain.com),
Information search is a signicant part of the social networking and Web 2.0 portals (such
purchase decision process, and can reduce as TripAdvisor), price comparison sites (such
uncertainty and perceived risks, and enhance as Kelkoo), and the sites of individual suppli-
the quality of trips (Fodness and Murray, ers and intermediaries. In the Internet era,
1997). A well-informed consumer is able to search engines play an important role in
interact better with local resources and cul- information searching (Ho and Liu, 2005),
tures, to nd products and services that meet and the Google search engine in particular is
his/her requirements and to take advantage perceived to be the most important tool (Law
of special offers and reduced prices. eTourism and Huang, 2006). In addition, information
has also changed travellers behaviour. Previ- search is moving to online social networks
ous research showed that tourists who where people interact freely and exchange
searched on the Internet tended to spend information (Chung and Buhalis, 2008). To
more at their destinations than those who better understand the search patterns of cus-
consulted other information sources (Luo tomers using a search engine, researchers
et al., 2004). The more research undertaken on have analysed search query formulas (Pan
a trip and more information being found, the et al., 2007) and keywords. When searching
better customer needs can be met and served. for holiday destinations, tourist planning can
208 D. Buhalis et al.

be deconstructed into a series of episodes and Klein (2003), however, found that low-cost
chapters reecting the specic problem being airlines have high online booking ratios
addressed (Pan and Fesenmaier, 2006). because they offer simple products and are
Among all types of travel information, pursuing a direct sales strategy. Other airlines
pricing is a major issue in eTourism as many with complicated yield-management strate-
organizations use ICTs to communicate gies simply obstruct consumers in searching
directly to consumers on web-only fares and for ights efciently without expert assis-
rates, passing on discounts that are generated tance. Leading global online travel agents,
from saved commissions and distribution such as Expedia, Orbitz, Lastminute, Opodo
charges made in a short value chain. Prior and Travelocity, are mainly successful for
research shows that search costs decrease in their provision of a platform for one-stop
electronic markets owing to the diminishing shopping with signicant improvement in
cost of data exchange (Bakos, 1997, 1998). Pre- usability and interaction design (Klein, 2002).
vious studies found substantial price disper- Also, the Internet has enabled consumers to
sion for domestic airline tickets offered by engage directly with suppliers and challenge
online travel agents in the USA, where the the role of intermediaries. It has also allowed
average price was lower than that offered by consumers to interact dynamically with sup-
traditional travel agents (Clemons et al., 2002). pliers and destinations and often make
For customers searching on the Internet for requests that will enable them to customize
the lowest room rates, the websites of travel their products. It is critical, therefore, for tour-
agents and reservation agents are likely to be ism organizations and destinations to man-
the best choice (Law et al., 2007). However, age their online reputation and to project a
although tourists can locate travel informa- desirable image throughout all the different
tion on the Internet, Litvin et al. (2005) aspects of their online presence (Inversini
reported that only 3% of tourists surveyed ate et al., 2010).
at a restaurant that they had found on the Despite the existence of the ample
Internet. choices available on the Internet, online
shopping motivation differs according to the
complexity of the website, with variation
depending on the Internet skill levels of
Evaluation of alternatives users (Beldona et al., 2005). Besides these
variations in skill, psychological barriers
The emergence of ICTs has dramatically often prevent consumers from completing
increased the number of choices for consum- transactions online, resulting in lookers
ers. Until the emergence of the Internet, con- purchasing products ofine. According to
sumers could only access major brand names the ndings of Wolfe et al. (2004), the reasons
and also those organizations in their immedi- for consumers not purchasing travel prod-
ate vicinity. Travellers can now use the Inter- ucts online are the lack of personal service,
net extensively to evaluate alternative security issues, lack of experience and the
opportunities and to compare and contrast fact that online purchasing is time consum-
offerings. The choice available varies from ing. Weber and Roehl (1999) found that peo-
single products to the dynamical packaging ple who purchase travel products online are
of holidays. Using meta search engines, such more likely to have had online experience of
as Kayak and Kelkoo, potential travellers can 4 years or more, and trust can be built
identify and evaluate products according to between customers and online businesses
their preferences, lters and requirements through positive experience of past transac-
(Buhalis and OConnor, 2005). For example, tions (Bai et al., 2004; Bieger et al., 2005).
with the fast expansion of no-frills airlines Website owners should, therefore, pay more
such as easyJet and Ryanair, as well as with attention to making customers feel comfort-
the availability of holiday packages and hotel able and secure in completing their reserva-
rooms discounted at the last minute, travel- tions and to increasing trust in the online
lers can enjoy low-cost travel. Oorni and environment (Chen, 2006).
eTourism: Critical Information and Technologies 209

Purchase decision the characteristics of travellers online pur-


chase behaviour have been examined by
Depending on where consumers are located tourism researchers. Among the ndings
in the digital inclusion index (Minghetti and were that Chinese customers were less likely
Buhalis, 2010), more customers now purchase to rely on hotel branding when making online
tourism products through websites, and per- reservations, focusing instead on electronic
ceive that a websites image and usability word-of-mouth (WOM) information and
directly affect their purchase intentions online security if they were more experienced
(Chiang and Jang, 2006). As such, under- Internet users (Kim et al., 2006).
standing customer perceptions and their
online behaviour are crucial to the develop-
ment of a successful website (Benckendorff,
2006). When novice web users search for Post-purchase behaviour
travel information, they tend to browse
through multiple websites. This is often the After travellers have returned home, they
result of starting to seek information in a often like to share and exchange their travel
generic search engine such as Google. A experience. In this context, ICTs also provide
recommender (destination recommendation) a very effective mechanism for consumers to
system is of use here; this provides assistance air complaints. In the past, fewer than 5% of
in the social process of indicating or receiv- customers who were dissatised actually
ing indications about what options are voiced out their complaints (Albrecht and
better suited in a specic case for specic Zemke, 1985). In order to provide a channel
individuals (Gretzel et al., 2004). Ricci (2002) for customers to leave feedback and com-
further stated that a recommender system can plaints, tourism organizations should have
provide valuable information to assist in the an e-complaint handling section on their
consumer decision-making process. Further- websites so that there is a proper channel of
more, a recommender system can support communication between management and
travellers in a complex decision-making pro- unsatised customers. However, with the
cess by identifying better customer require- rapid development of the Internet, users at
ments and by correlating those with the present can easily spread their complaints
requirements of other consumers and their which, in turn, can signicantly affect a com-
preferences (Ricci and Werthner, 2002, 2006). panys image. TripAdvisor is leading the
Kaplanidou and Vogt (2006) demonstrated way as a review site for hotels and destina-
that website usefulness was a signicant pre- tions (Au et al., 2010). Electronic WOM is a
dictor of intent to travel to the destination. useful tool to disseminate complaints about
The motivating visuals factor was also a sig- brands via websites, chat rooms and con-
nicant direct predictor of intentions to travel sumer forums (Gelb and Sundaram, 2002).
to the destination, whereas trip information Shea et al. (2004) illustrated a real case Yours
functionality had an indirect inuence on is a very bad Hotel that made at least seven
intentions through website usefulness. newspapers and magazines report the
With rapid data transmission on the unpleasant experience. The inuential power
Internet, the expected response time from of the Internet, complaint forum and chat
organizations to customers has been greatly room were clearly shown in this study. More-
reduced. The reaction to online inquiries can over, in the Internet era, even individuals
thus inuence customer satisfaction and have sufcient power to take on powerful
booking behaviour. As a result, response organizations such as airlines (Buhalis, 2004).
behaviour becomes an essential factor for the To prevent the wide spread of e-complaints,
success of small and medium-sized tourism tourism managers should locate these
enterprises (Main, 2001). Understanding dif- complaint forums and try to handle them
ferent consumers online behaviour could professionally.
increase the possibility of online transaction In addition to the review sites, virtual com-
completion (Lee et al., 2007b). In view of this, munities are gradually becoming incredibly
210 D. Buhalis et al.

inuential in tourism as consumers increas- Risk management


ingly trust their peers better, rather than mar-
keting messages. The most cited denition of As payment is the most important item in
a virtual community was rstly given by Rhe- eCommerce, consumers are always con-
ingold (1993, p. 58) who stated that a virtual cerned about payment security. Such con-
community is a group of people who may or cerns are a possible outcome of computer
may not meet one another face-to-face, and crimes, which are one of the primary factors
who exchange words and ideas through the that prevent consumers from providing credit
mediation of computer bulletin boards and card information. Mills et al. (2002) listed sev-
networks. A virtual travel community (VTC) eral cybercrimes, such as auction fraud, vaca-
makes it easier for people to obtain informa- tion fraud, gaming fraud, spamming and
tion, maintain connections, develop relation- identity theft. Business organizations must
ships, and eventually make travel-related therefore pay more attention to protect them-
decisions (Stepchenkova et al., 2007). Vogt selves and their customers from losses due to
and Fesenmaier (1998) stated that participa- cybercrimes. These crimes, however, are not
tion and attitude are the primary dimensions likely to be completely prevented or easily
of consumer behaviour in these virtual com- detected by law enforcement alone (Mills
munities. Because many travellers like to et al., 2002). Furthermore, as the travel indus-
share their travel experiences and recommen- try gradually relies more heavily on IT, there
dations with others, VTCs have become one is also an increasing concern among consum-
of their favourite areas to post their travel ers about privacy (Brown et al., 2007),
dairies. Additionally, online travellers are although consumers do gradually accept that
enthusiastic to meet other travellers who they will have to sacrice privacy for better
have similar attitudes, interests and way of customer service. Research ndings have
life (Wang et al., 2002). As such, better under- shown that privacy issues also play a signi-
standing of VTC users behaviours and moti- cant role in inhibiting the purchase of travel-
vation can assist tourism practitioners and related products online (Kolsaker et al., 2004).
policy makers to establish, operate and main- This leads to the situation that many travel-
tain VTCs in a more efcient way. This, in lers use the Internet to search for information
turn, facilitates consumer-centric marketing but still purchase ofine. In order to encour-
or relationship marketing (Niininen et al., age more online travel shopping, policies on
2006). VTCs, however, may be at risk of losing customers privacy protection in relation to IT
members if their members are not satised usage should be stated explicitly.
with the content, design, security policies and
repercussions of non-compliance with com-
munity rules (Allison et al., 2005; Chung and Implications
Buhalis, 2008). The emergence of Web 2.0 or
Travel 2.0 brings together the concept of With less time spent on waiting and planning,
social networking/virtual communities and and more time on enjoyment, consumers
applies it to the tourism industry. By analys- have expressed their increasing interest in
ing the content of VTCs, travel organizations more convenience and choice, and in online
can understand their customers satisfaction travel shopping at home via travel websites
and behaviours, and undertake corrective (OConnor and Frew, 2001). At present, there
actions to improve their offerings. They can is a large increase in the number of customers
also increase brand awareness and strengthen who make reservations directly from hotel
brand association through the assistance of websites (Jeong et al., 2003). Customer satis-
VTCs. However, despite the large potential faction depends to a great extent on the accu-
impact of VTCs on the tourism industry, racy and comprehensiveness of specic
Preece (2000) stated that research on the tourism information and the ability of organi-
topic is still at an infancy stage when com- zations to react instantly to consumer
pared with other geographical and physical requests. Tourism organizations and destina-
communities. tions, therefore, need to recognize this change
eTourism: Critical Information and Technologies 211

and to develop personalized services to right information at the right time to the right
address individual needs. Personalized ser- user at the right cost. Staab and Werthner
vices driven by advanced customer relation- (2002) stated that interoperability is a major
ship management (CRM) systems should technical issue offering a realistic alternative
record customer preferences and require- to standardization. Jakkilinki et al. (2007) pro-
ments for present and future usage (Picolli posed an ontology-based eTourism Planner
et al., 2003). AuSTO that enables users to create an
itinerary in one single application by using
this intelligent tool that builds on semantic
Technological Innovation web technologies. Similarly, Maedche and
Staab (2003) showed that semantic web tech-
nologies can be used for tourism information
Rapid technological development paradoxi-
systems to provide useful information on text
cally means that the more powerful and com-
and graphics, as well as generating a seman-
plex that ICTs become, the more affordable
tic description that is interpretable by
and user friendly they become, enabling more
machines. The OntoMat-Service, introduced
people and organizations to take advantage
by Agarwal et al. (2003), can embed the pro-
of them. Strategically, constant innovation in
cess of web-service discovery. Travellers thus
the applications of hardware, software and
no longer need to search for information
network development means that only
among millions of websites to obtain the
dynamic organizations, which can assess the
desired information. To the degree that tour-
requirements of their stakeholders and
ism organizations need to interact dynami-
respond efciently and effectively, will be
cally with partners to develop and deliver
able to outperform their competitors and
tourism products, interoperability will be
maintain their long-term prosperity.
critical for their ability to work efciently
Technology emerges as an info-structure
with others.
of an organization that supports the entire
Multimedia is also becoming one of key
range of internal and external communica-
areas of development that inuences tourism.
tions and processes (Buhalis, 2003), and
Tourism information needs an extensive rep-
eTourism is spreading rapidly as a holistic
resentation of photos and graphics in order to
and integrated system of networked equip-
provide a tangible image or experience to
ment and software, which enables effective
travel planners. Unlike ofine information,
data processing and communication for tour-
which is unilaterally exposed to travellers,
ism organizations and destinations. Aspects
the Web allows people from around the world
of this discussed below are interoperability,
to virtually interact with a destination
website design and analysis and modelling,
through three-dimensional (3D) virtual tours
with a brief round-up of the implications of
(Cho and Fesenmaier, 2001). The experience
ITC complexity and development.
within a computer-mediated environment
can simulate real visits and virtual experience
and provide almost real-life experiences. This
Interoperability can lead to the creation and communication
of a destination image (Cho et al., 2002). The
Werthner and Klein (1999) dened interoper- result has been the adoption of 3D interactive
ability as the provision of a well-dened and websites by online marketers to attract online
end-to-end service which is in a consistent consumers, encourage online purchases and
and predictable way. This generally covers to create loyalty (Fiore et al., 2005). Interactiv-
not merely technical features but also, in the ity can be further enhanced by using multi-
case of electronic market environments, con- media. Abad et al. (2005) demonstrated how
tractual features and a set of institutional tourist attractions can be presented dynami-
rules. Interoperability enables partners to cally by virtual characters in real time, and
interact electronically with each other by the how this presentation is enhanced by multi-
most convenient method, and to deliver the media information about the items stored in a
212 D. Buhalis et al.

database. Using the system, visitors can ask different mobile devices, such as personal
for available attractions that correspond to digital assistants (PDAs) and 3G mobile
certain selection criteria with ranking based phones with GPSs, enable travellers to
on the travellers preferences. Interacting retrieve travel-related information without
with multimedia-enhanced websites can pro- any time or geographical constraints. In addi-
duce telepresence and allow people to expe- tion, mobile services now enable travellers to
rience products and destinations without book hotel rooms, air tickets and car rentals,
actually visiting a place. Telepresence uses a retrieve information about transportation
range of technologies to make users feel as if schedules, obtain travel guides for destina-
they were present at a location or situation tions and dining guides (Berger et al., 2003).
whereas, in reality, they are not (Steuer, 1992). Solon et al. (2004) developed TeleMorph,
The technique relies on how closely the which can determine the mobile network
computer-mediated experience simulates bandwidth to output presentations, and
real-world interaction with a product and is receive and interpret voice questions from
determined by the extent to which interactiv- tourists to show destination information. This
ity is achieved (Fiore et al., 2005). technology can prevent information delay
Destinations are, by denition, amal- when travellers retrieve information from
gams of tourism products. Dynamic package low bandwidth networks. Alfaro et al. (2005)
assembly helps individual customers to cre- implemented a multimedia museum guide
ate their own travel packages. However, on PDAs; each destination in the guide had
owing to the non-standardized data format infrared emitters installed in order to enhance
among the various available systems, there the tourist experience, so that when tourists
are difculties with interoperability (McGrath approach the destination, their PDAs will
and Abrahams, 2006; Cardoso and Lange, automatically display a multimedia presenta-
2007). One of the major challenges for the tion of that destination.
wide adoption of such package assemblies, In addition to mobile networks, wireless
however, is the language barriers (Chen and local area networks (WLANs) allow users to
Hsu, 2000); these barriers result in the mobile connect devices to the Internet through a
information provided not being the latest wireless radio connection (WiFi), while Blue-
available because of delays in translation. tooth connects PDAs, cell phones, computer
Although the act of standardizing for differ- mice and other peripherals over short dis-
ent players is a seemingly impossible mis- tances. The next technological evolution
sion, DellErba et al. (2005) set up a virtual emerging is WiMAX (Worldwide Interopera-
interoperable network that allows data bility for Microwave Access). WiMAX pro-
exchange through a system translation mech- motes conformance and interoperability of
anism in a seamless way to show how the IEEE 802.16 (wireless broadband) stan-
interoperability might be achieved. dard and provides wireless data over a long
Singh and Kasavana (2005) predicted distance (Patton et al., 2005). WiMAX sup-
that future ICT applications will probably ports the delivery of last-mile wireless broad-
rely on mobile and wireless technologies. band access as an alternative to cable and
Wireless is a term used widely to describe DSL (digital subscriber line, is a family of
telecommunications in which electromag- technologies that provides digital data trans-
netic waves (as opposed to wire) carry a sig- mission over the wires of a local telephone
nal. ICT developments have proliferated the network). WiMAX is expected to offer the
use of wireless applications and devices, highest possible coverage, up to 30 miles
including cellular (mobile) phones and pag- (Odinma et al., 2007), and provide Internet
ers, global positioning systems (GPSs), cord- broadband wireless access to entire destina-
less computer peripherals and telephones, tions. This will support users with Internet
and home-remote control and monitor sys- access while at the destination without hav-
tems. Mobile phones now have become a ing to pay expensive data-roaming charges.
necessity in this era of wireless communica- WiMAX is also predicted to have its largest
tion (Langelund, 2007). The proliferation of impact in developed countries or in rural,
eTourism: Critical Information and Technologies 213

remote locations characterized by low popu- barriers include low-vision users who will
lation density in which an adequate wired need large text or spatial adjustment, blind
infrastructure was never developed, or can- people who will require screen readers, users
not be developed for economic reasons with colour blindness who will need ade-
(WiMAX Forum, 2004). This development quate contrast of text and background
narrows the digital divide, favouring the colours, and deaf people who should have
transition to a new stage of information and visual displays rather than pure audio pre-
service providers (Ohrtman, 2005). Always- sentations. Han and Mills (2006) stated that
on (when users are connected to the Internet current website designs have nine themes
constantly) connectivity creates great oppor- that will affect screen reading for visual-
tunities for interactivity at the destination impaired users. In response, the World Wide
and the provision of personalized, contextu- Web Consortium has illustrated the require-
alized and location-based services (LBS). The ments for using websites and Web-based
four primary functions of LBS for the travel- applications, and has provided supporting
ler are: (i) localization of persons, objects and information for guidelines and technical
places; (ii) routing between them; (iii) search- work (The World Wide Web Consortium,
ing for objects in proximity, such as restau- 2005). Hence, by exploiting this knowledge
rants, shops, hotels, or sights; and (4) and following the web content accessibility
information about travelling conditions, such guidelines (Chrisholm et al., 1999) from the
as trafc-related data (Berger et al., 2003). W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), con-
tent can be presented in an accessible and
customizable way, and accommodate users
Website design and analysis needs and preferences.
Website performance can be measured in
Websites are incredibly important, mission- various ways, such as evaluating a websites
critical and cost-effective marketing tools for effectiveness by using the modied balanced
businesses. Good web design goes beyond scorecard approach (Choi and Morrison,
technology, design and layout. It includes a 2005; Law et al., 2010) or the ow experience
wide range of content, usability, navigation approach (Skadberg et al., 2005). Other mea-
and interactivity issues (Law et al., 2010). In surements that can be made include deter-
their study on customers weighting factors mining the adoption level of a website as an
on hotel website contents, Law and Cheung e-business tool through content analysis
(2005) found that reservation information was (Kster, 2006; Roney and Ozturan, 2006) and
the most important dimension. A successful identifying the factors that affect user satis-
website should, therefore, take customers faction by using protocol analysis (Essawy,
interests and participation into consideration, 2006). Problematic integration theory has also
in order to capture information about their been adopted to better understand online
preferences, and subsequently use that infor- marketing activities (Han and Mills, 2006).
mation to provide personalized communica- Previous studies have compared and con-
tions and services (Doolin et al., 2002). Hashim trasted websites between and among differ-
et al. (2007) consolidated 25 tourism and hos- ent geographic areas. For instance, Law and
pitality website studies from 1996 to 2006 that Liang (2005) compared China-based and
covered website quality and features analysis, USA-based hotel websites using a multi-
and generated 74 website features. Hoteliers criteria decision-making approach, and found
must therefore routinely evaluate their web- that the performance of the USA-based sites
sites in order to ensure that the sites are ef- was signicantly better than that of the
cient, appropriate and useful to customers China-based sites. Law and Cheung (2006)
(Baloglu and Pekcan, 2006). further selected 30 North America-based,
Related to usability is accessibility, which Europe-based, and Asia-Pacic-based travel
addresses the fact that web surng is still a websites and analysed their online hotel res-
barrier for people with disabilities (Micho- ervation services. The study showed that
poulou et al., 2007). Examples of physical North America-based websites performed
214 D. Buhalis et al.

signicantly better than websites from the networks, decision trees and rough sets, and
other two continents in certain attributes. found that the rough sets algorithm was the
In the context of website usability evalu- best forecasting tool among the three. Simi-
ation, four studies have found that ease of use larly, Kon and Turner (2005) compared the
is one of the most important determinants of forecasting accuracy of neural networks and
perceived website quality (Cho and Agrusa, the basic structural method (BSM), and con-
2006; Park et al., 2007). A good website should rmed that the BSM maintained a higher
be inclusive and should cater for the needs of accuracy in forecasting tourism demand.
different types of online users, including Bloom (2005) recommended that neural net-
visually impaired and disabled users (Shi, work applications be used to track the
2006; Han and Mills, 2007). The hospitality changing behaviour of tourists within and
and tourism industries should be aware of between market segments. Other research-
the fact that people with disabilities and the ers have proposed modied neural networks
elderly represent a growing market segment for modelling tourist arrivals (Pai and Hong,
(Buhalis and Michopoulou, 2011). Assistive 2005) and time-series forecasting (Palmer
technologies such as voice browsers can pro- et al., 2006). Similarly, Petropoulos et al.
vide certain assistance for these customers to (2006) introduced a technical analysis sys-
access web information (Phretmair, 2004). tem to forecast tourism demand. By using
Waldhor et al. (2007), for example, imple- association rule mining, tourism organiza-
mented an automated call centre agent tions can identify different types of tourist
(RESA) for a low-budget hotel, which enables proling behaviour (Emel et al., 2007). Wong
customers to use their own phones and their et al. (2006) adopted data-mining techniques
voices to reserve hotel rooms via RESA with- to analyse the travel patterns of Northern
out the need to go through any human agents. Taiwanese travellers and suggested that
RESA can automatically select a desired room DMOs in Asian countries should promote
on the basis of a customers voiced criteria. their destinations in Taiwan. As an alterna-
Rumetshofer and W (2004) introduced an tive to analysing numerical data, text mining
intelligent accessibility add-on that allows is another good choice for analysing tourist
users to create their own personal proles data. Lau et al. (2005) demonstrated three
with their special needs, and updating examples of how text mining can be used as
depends on the users input and action over a tool for online text analysis. In addition to
time. To attract business and provide conve- analysing tourist data, various researchers
nience to physically challenged customers, have proposed models to enhance the mar-
tourism web designers should consider the keting effectiveness of tourism websites. For
needs of every group of users and design instance, Law (2005) introduced an Object-
websites to address their inclusion. Moreover, Oriented Database Marketing (OODM)
web designers should also consider culture model for application in Asias hotel indus-
and language as factors affecting the success try to enhance its marketing effectiveness.
of a website (Kale, 2006). It is interesting to Likewise, Mills et al. (2007) introduced a
note that although Germany is the top- Modied Interactive Tourism Advertising
spending nation on international tourism, Model (MITAM ) that could improve a web-
many non-European DMOs do not include a sites advertising effectiveness.
German-language version of their websites The Internet, as the primary search
(Arlt, 2006). channel for tourists, naturally contains web-
sites in different languages. Multilingual
information-searching applications can thus
Modelling provide comprehensive search results for
people who need to search using a keyword
Various modelling methods have been pre- in one language and look for a search result in
sented for analysing tourist data. Delen and another language (Li and Law, 2007). Krieger
Sirakaya (2006) tested the three popular et al. (2005) used Internet-enabled conjoint
data-mining methods of articial neural analysis to examine customer wants on cruise
eTourism: Critical Information and Technologies 215

vacations, and identied WOM information Strategic management


and past experience as contributing to cus-
tomer perceptions and expectations. ICT developments have direct impacts on the
competitiveness of enterprises because they
determine the two fundamental roots of com-
Implications petitive advantage: differentiation and cost
advantage (Porter, 2001). Hence, tourism des-
tinations need to proactively incorporate ICTs
The technical complexity of modern systems
into their efforts to improve service quality, as
based on ICTs demands that all aspects of the
they enable organizations to dynamically dif-
innovation chain integrate their efforts. The
ferentiate and specialize their products and
concentration and coherence required to
services. This almost leads to a market seg-
achieve both signicant technological devel-
ment where consumers can build their tour-
opment and market impact necessitate
ism experience by bundling their products
engagement of both the research and busi-
dynamically (Buhalis and OConnor, 2005).
ness communities to integrate the rapid
Recently, Mazanec et al. (2007) argued that it
coevolution of technology, market, social
is necessary to develop a website when the
and administrative requirements. As such,
competitiveness of a tourism destination is
industry practitioners should apply well-
evaluated. ICTs also become instrumental to
developed data exchange formats to achieve
cost management in the industry, particularly
better intersystem communications, and
as regards distribution and promotion costs
should use centralized knowledge bases for
(Connolly et al. 1998), and redesigning pro-
tourists to use as a one-stop channel.
cesses and the elimination of repetitive tasks
With the development of ICT constantly
reduce labour costs and increased efciency
evolving with every passing day, it is also
(Buhalis, 1998). All this has empowered the
imperative for tourism organizations and
development of no-frills organizations that
destinations to develop internal in-house IT
use technology heavily for operations and
resources and expertise to facilitate the com-
distribution and, at the same time, it has put
munication between business managers and
incredible pressure on traditional organiza-
IT technicians. These professionals could col-
tions to re-engineer their operations. On sev-
lect, organize, and retrieve up-to-date and rel-
eral occasions, this has led to the outsourcing
evant technology information from the
of functions and process to external organiza-
technical area and relay this information to
tions (Paraskevas and Buhalis, 2002).
managers.
The Internet is changing the structure of
the tourism industry by altering barriers to
entry, minimizing switching costs, revolu-
Industry Functions tionizing distribution channels, and facilitat-
ing price transparency and competition,
Although the literature has been dominated while enhancing production efciency (Kim
by applications which explain how to auto- et al., 2004). Porter (2001) demonstrated how
mate rather than how to assist organizations the Internet has changed industry forces. The
to evolve to the new era, the importance and Internet has also enabled destinations to
necessity of ICT usage for both strategic and dynamically package their individualized
operational tourism management are gradu- products by combining different travel prod-
ally emerging in the literature (Marcussen, ucts (i.e. accommodation and transportation,
1999a,b; OConnor, 1999). Increasingly, ICTs etc.) (Daniele and Frew, 2005). Access to a
are being used to re-engineer all business greater range of available suppliers has also
functions and processes towards supporting increased the power of destinations. Intensi-
the organization in its entirety rather than just ed rivalry has led to increased difculty in
automating its operations. This section dis- creating and sustaining competitive advan-
cusses both the strategic management of tages through differentiation strategies (Go
DMOs and online tourism marketing. et al., 1999). Wber (2001) suggested that the
216 D. Buhalis et al.

identication of tourism destinations com- knowledge base to improve their management


peting for the same market can be assisted by and marketing functions (Fesenmaier et al.,
a Group Decision Support System (GDSS). In 1999). By using the Web and the Internet as
this way, decision makers can include their marketing tools, tourism organizations have
subjective and objective views for analysis as also gained some distinct advantages in cost
in traditional forms of competitive analysis. reduction, revenue growth, marketing
To conclude, the Internet forces tourism orga- research and database development, and
nizations around the world to change their customer retention (Morrison et al., 1999).
strategies dramatically (Buhalis and Zoge, Reaching worldwide customers in a cost-
2007). Constant innovations in both product effective way allows organizations to engage
and process supported by proactive and reac- in a direct dialogue with consumers (Buhalis,
tive strategies are some of the few sources of 1998; 2003). The Internet is generally emerg-
competitive advantage in the Internet era ing as a multi-promotion tool and distribution
(Buhalis, 2003). channel (Gretzel et al., 2000; OConnor and
In particular for destinations, DMSs Frew, 2004). Web marketing is therefore grad-
emerge as strategic tools for promotion, dis- ually becoming mainstream (Buhalis, 2003).
tribution and operations for both destinations Wang and Fesenmaier (2006) argued that a
and small and medium-sized tourist enter- successful web marketing strategy requires
prises (SMTEs) (Buhalis, 1997). They can the integration and coordination of website
assist developing a exible, tailor-made, spe- features, promotion techniques and customer
cialized and integrated tourism product. By relationship management programmes. Thus,
enabling users to search and select individual integrating technologies with relationship
tourism products, DMSs can support travel- marketing could help tourism organizations
lers in creating their own personalized desti- and destinations to maintain competitiveness
nation experiences. At the organizational and improve the management of business
level, DMSs provide the essential info- relationships with customers (lvarez et al.,
structure for DMOs to coordinate their activ- 2007).
ity and to provide sufcient information and In the pre-Internet era, tourism suppliers
direction to their overseas ofces to promote had no other choice but to use intermediaries,
a destination. DMSs emerge as the interfaces such as travel agents and tour operators, for
between destination tourism enterprises their distribution functions. CRSs and GDSs
(including principals, attractions, transporta- facilitated the intermediation process (Shel-
tion and intermediaries) and the external don, 1997; OConnor, 2003). Both intermedi-
world (including tour operators, travel agen- aries and end consumers are dependent on
cies and, ultimately, consumers). In some comprehensive, accurate and timely informa-
cases, such as in Britain, Singapore and tion to aid in their travel choice because of the
Austria, DMSs have been used for integrating intangible nature of the tourism products
the entire supply at the destination. Their (Poon, 1993). The Web has enabled organiza-
contribution to strategic management and tions to distribute their products not only
marketing is demonstrated by their ability to through direct distribution but also through a
integrate all stakeholders at destinations very wide range of channels (OConnor and
and also to reach a global market at a fairly Frew, 2002). Third-party intermediaries
affordable cost. include online travel agencies as well as meta
search engines, all of which are able to dis-
tribute both static and dynamic information,
Online marketing such as availability and pricing. Electronic
intermediaries are also emerging dynami-
Perhaps marketing and distribution are the cally, and increasingly challenge traditional
business functions most affected by the distributors. For example, Expedia and Last-
technological revolution (Go and Willams, minute.com are now challenging the business
1993; OConnor and Frew, 2002). Technology- models of Thomson and Thomas Cook,
supported organizations need to develop their forcing them to rethink their operations and
eTourism: Critical Information and Technologies 217

strategies. Auction sites such as eBay.com, signicant size in different geographical


price-comparison sites such as Kelkoo and locations. Hence, the Internet propels the
Kayak.com, price-reversing sites such as re-engineering of the entire process of pro-
Priceline.com, and price-prediction sites such ducing and delivering tourism products, as
as farecast.com also provide a great challenge well as boosting interactivity among partners
for the pricing of both suppliers and interme- that can design specialized products and
diaries. In addition, Web 2.0 or Travel 2.0 pro- promotions in order to maximize the value
viders such as TripAdvisor.com, IGOUGO. added provided to individual consumers
com and Wayn.com enable consumers to (Buhalis, 1998, 2003). Ultimately, ICT tools
interact and offer peer-to-peer advice. These reinvent the packaging of tourism to a much
changes all force all tourism players to rethink more individual-focused activity, offering
their business models and to take drastic great opportunities for both principals and
actions in redeveloping their value chains. intermediaries, and enhancing the total qual-
Tourism organizations aim to disintermediate ity (tness to purpose) of the nal product
all intermediaries that add cost to their pro- (Buhalis, 1998).
duction and distribution. For example, tour
operators aim to sell their packages directly,
thus bypassing travel agencies. They also dis- Conclusions
bundle their packages and sell individual
components. The technological revolution experienced
At the same time as tour operators are through the development of the Internet has
implementing these changes, travel agencies dramatically changed the market conditions
are dynamically packaging tour products for tourism organizations and destinations.
and supporting the development of custom- ICTs support interactivity among tourism
ized packages, thus disintermediating tour enterprises and consumers and, as a result,
operators. The web has therefore introduced they re-engineer the entire process of devel-
utter transparency into the marketplace oping, managing and marketing tourism
(Buhalis, 2003; OConnor, 2003), so that orga- products and destinations. Increasingly the
nizations have had to reinforce their brands impacts of ICTs are becoming clearer, as net-
online and ofine and to justify their posi- working, dynamic interfaces with consumers
tioning and pricing strategies. At the time of and partners, and the ability to redevelop the
a very volatile environment in the market- tourism product proactively and reactively
place, tourism intermediaries have also been are critical for the competitiveness of tourism
forced to readdress both their revenue and organizations and destinations.
cost bases as well as to re-evaluate all part- Increasingly, ICTs will provide the info-
nerships and value chains. Bennett and Lai structure for the entire industry and will
(2005) identied two principal ways for overtake all mechanistic aspects of tourism
travel agents to overcome disintermediation, transactions. It is evident, however, that the
namely repositioning themselves as travel future of eTourism will be focused on con-
consultants and becoming more technologi- sumer-centric technologies that will support
cally oriented. Some travel agencies have organizations in interacting with their cus-
formed strategic alliances to strengthen their tomers dynamically. Consumers are becom-
competitive advantages in the era of Internet ing incredibly powerful and are increasingly
(Huang, 2006). able to determine elements of their tourism
The Internet has transformed the distri- products. They are also much more sophisti-
bution function to an electronic marketplace, cated and experienced and, therefore, are
where access to information and ubiquity is much more difcult to please. Innovative
achieved, while interactivity between princi- tourism enterprises and destinations will
pals and consumers provides major opportu- have the ability to divert resources and exper-
nities. The Internet promotes the mass tise to servicing consumers and provide
customization of tourism products as it sup- higher value-added transactions. The devel-
ports the industry to target niche markets of opment of new and more powerful ICT
218 D. Buhalis et al.

applications empowers both suppliers and tool. They effectively provide the info-struc-
destinations to enhance their efciency and to ture at destination level and can network the
re-engineer their communications strategies. entire range of principals and operators on a
Innovative technologies will support interoper- neural network.
ability, personalization and constant net-
working. Hence, agile strategies are required
at both strategic and tactical management
levels to ensure that the ICT-driven opportu- Acknowledgement
nities and challenges are turned to the advan-
tage of tourism organizations in enhancing This chapter has been adapted and updated
their innovation and competitiveness. from the following articles: (i) Buhalis, D.
Destinations that embrace advanced (2007) eTourism and the digital government.
ICTs and DMSs, in particular, will be able to In: Anttiroiko, A.-V. and Malkia, M. (eds)
improve their strategic positioning, improve Encyclopedia of Digital Government. IGI Global,
their competitiveness and optimize their Hershey, Pennsylvania, pp. 749753; (ii) Buha-
benets from tourism. To succeed in the lis, D. and Law, R. (2008) Progress in informa-
future, DMSs will need to combine both tion technology and tourism management: 20
technological and management innovation years on and 10 years after the Internet the
and to develop suitable tools for satisfying state of eTourism research. Tourism Manage-
the entire range of stakeholders. ICTs and ment 29, 609623; and (iii) Law, R., Leung, R.
DMSs, then, emerge as essential tools for and Buhalis, D. (2009) Information technology
both tourism demand and supply, as they applications in hospitality and tourism: a
establish a exible and protable communi- review of publications from 2005 to 2007. Jour-
cation bridge and a strategic management nal of Travel and Tourism Marketing 26, 599623.

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14 Web 2.0, the Online Community
and Destination Marketing

Peter OConnor, Youcheng Wang and Xu Li

Introduction adapt to its evolving characteristics. This


chapter examines the developing Web 2.0
Just as the growth in the use of the World phenomenon, assessing its implications for
Wide Web in the mid 1990s had important destination sales and marketing. Initially, the
implications for commerce, the revolution importance of information for travel is exam-
currently in progress in the online environ- ined. How these information needs have been
ment, dubbed Web 2.0, is forecast to have satised in the past (and, it must be said, con-
similar effects. The Web is evolving from a tinue to be satised in parallel with the Web
push marketing medium to one where the 2.0 developments discussed here) is critiqued,
peer-to-peer generation and sharing of data and the effect of Web 2.0 and in particular
are the norm. Collaboration between individ- the virtual community is discussed. A con-
uals has come to the fore in a manner unimag- ceptual model for the denition of virtual
inable in the past, making it more and more community as one form of social media is
difcult for marketers to craft sales messages introduced followed by discussion of mem-
and position them in front of consumers. ber participation in and active contribution to
In particular what has become known as such virtual tourist community. Lastly, the
user generated content content created by implications of Web 2.0 and social media
consumers for use by their peers (Milan, developments for the future of destination
2007) has gained much credibility in the distribution are discussed.
eyes of the consumer as a relevant and unbi-
ased input into their decision making process
(Sweeney et al., 2008). As a result, consumers The Importance of Information
now have access to a vast pool of high- in Tourism Distribution
quality, topical, unbiased information, gener-
ated not by commercial interests but by other Information has often been called the life-
consumers just like them, to help in their blood of the travel sector, because in practi-
decision-making processes. Given the impor- cally no other industry is current, topical
tance of information in the travel distribution and relevant information so important in
process, this change has important implica- the consumer decision-making process.
tions. Destinations have only recently fully Without appropriate information, a poten-
embraced the Web as a marketing medium tial customers incentive and ability to book
and a selling mechanism, they must now is severely limited (Murphy et al., 2007).
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 225
226 P. OConnor et al.

Travellers typically need access to relevant increasingly blurred, intermediaries typically


information before going on a trip to help take different forms. Travel agents act as both
them plan and choose between options, and a search and book service and as an advisor
also need detailed information about the for the customer, relieving them of the burden
destination itself, during the trip itself as the of searching for suitable products, and also
trend towards more independent travel con- using their knowledge and experience to help
tinues (Poon, 1993). This need for informa- match customers with destinations (Palmer
tion is heightened by the intangible nature and McCole, 2000). Tour operators essentially
of the travel product, as unlike with manu- act as consolidators, packaging different
factured goods, pre-purchase trial is impos- travel components together and marketing
sible, making travel practically completely them as a single seamless product, thus
dependent on representations and descrip- helping to reduce the complexity of the
tions to help consumers make their purchase purchase decision. Some regional tourism
decision (Mazzarol et al., 2007). Travel prod- organizations also act as intermediaries, dis-
ucts are also diverse, and in many cases it is tributing information and brochures for tour-
this heterogeneity that makes them attrac- ism suppliers within their region (Laws,
tive in the rst place. In addition, travel 1997), while a variety of other organizations
products are rarely bought in isolation and (such as clubs, credit card companies, incen-
the endless combinations and permutations tive houses and religious groups) have
of alternative travel routes, transportation become involved in providing similar ser-
modes, time, and accommodation choices vices, albeit in a more minor way. However,
available from different suppliers make in all cases, the role of such companies is to
travel decisions complex (OConnor and facilitate a purchase by distributing relevant
Frew, 2004). and topical information to help consumers in
Recent changes in society have also their travel decision-making processes (Buha-
heightened the need for information lis and OConnor, 2006).
(Vaughan et al., 1999). In an increasingly busy While relatively efcient, information
world, travel represents an investment (both distribution through intermediaries suffers
nancial and emotional) that cannot be easily from a variety of challenges. Two of the most
replaced if something goes wrong. Time has signicant are the knowledge gap (Buhalis,
become a scarce commodity, with the annual 2000) and the credibility gap (OConnor,
holiday or even weekend break increasingly 2008b). In a rapidly changing world, the role
becoming associated with risk. As discussed of travel intermediaries as knowledge bro-
above, planning even the simplest trip means kers is being challenged by changing cus-
choosing between a bewildering array of tomer characteristics. Particularly as the
options. Research has shown that the greater move from mass tourism accelerates, travel-
the degree of perceived risk in a pre-purchase lers information needs are becoming at once
context, the more likely that consumers will individually more specialized and collec-
seek out information to help make their tively more diverse. Customers want to know
choice (Buhalis, 1997). Todays consumers are more and more about smaller, more specic
thus hunting for increasing quantities of topics. At the same time, consumers are
information in order to bridge the gap becoming increasingly knowledgeable,
between their expectations and experience, informed by specialist travel shows on televi-
making the fast, efcient distribution of infor- sion and by increased coverage of travel in
mation essential in the travel sector the print media, and able to research their
(OConnor, 2008a). interests in depth on the Internet. Increas-
Travellers can acquire information from ingly, consumers are walking into travel
a wide variety of sources, including directly agencies armed with highly specic ideas
from the travel supplier or through various about where to go, where to stay and what to
intermediaries, which essentially act as do. The value added from travel agents has
information brokers (Murphy et al., 2007). traditionally been their superior knowledge
Although the dividing lines are becoming and recommendations, but this is being
The Online Community and Marketing 227

challenged as the specicity of consumer An Introduction to Web 2.0


requests increases. In many cases, the con-
sumer is better informed about the area of The term Web 2.0 emerged in late 2004, origi-
interest than the generalist travel agency or nating in the work of Tim OReilly of OReilly
tour operator in effect putting an end to its Media (Tredinnick, 2006). However, despite
role as trusted travel advisor and information much media hype, a formal, agreed-upon,
broker. denition has yet to be developed, partly
Also, irrespective of whether travel because the term means many different things
information is distributed through an inter- to many different people. Although not an
mediary or directly from the supplier, it gen- empirical source, Wikipedia has dened Web
erally has one of two sources either from the 2.0 as a perceived second generation of web-
supplier itself or as editorial information in a based services that emphasise online collabo-
media publication such as a newspaper, mag- ration and sharing among users (Wikipedia,
azine or guidebook. Given that in both cases, 2008). Technically, Web 2.0 can be dened as a
the base information usually ultimately origi- new generation of Internet-based technology
nates with the supplier, its credibility is ques- (sites, applications, services and processes)
tionable. Information provided by suppliers that allow people to collaborate and share
is by its very nature marketing and advertis- information in ways that were previously
ing orientated and thus highly biased. To read unimaginable. However while the phenome-
many brochures, every travel experience is non is facilitated by technological develop-
unadulterated hedonism a sharp contrast to ments, most people agree that its growth has
the reality of travelling in todays over- had more to do with a fundamental shift in
crowded, under-delivering travel environ- user behaviour than with any particular tech-
ment. Herein lies the supposed added value nological development (Dearstyne, 2007).
of journalists and travel guides, whose role is Even Tim OReilly, the technology publisher
to cast an unbiased eye over such informa- who coined the term, prefers to describe Web
tion, ltering and consolidating it into recom- 2.0 as an attitude rather than a technology.
mendations that can be relied on by readers Although details vary, the common
to be objective. An entire industry has devel- thread throughout all Web 2.0 developments
oped around the production of such guides, is web-based information in the hands of
from global brands such as Fodors, Rough users, which they can use, create, share, edit
Guides, Lonely Planet, Michelin and Time and even sell if they so wish (Tredinnick,
Out, to more specialized publishers focusing 2006). Web 2.0 sites tend to be participatory,
on particular regions or experiences. How- encouraging contributions and feedback
ever, todays consumers are increasingly from anyone who is interested, thus blurring
questioning the impartiality of such sources, the line between the contents creator and the
driven in part by media reports of pay-to- contents audience (Dearstyne, 2007). They
play guides, whose editorials/rankings are also tend to be conversational, using two-
driven by kickbacks from suppliers, and glar- way interaction between participants rather
ing errors, such as the award of a Michelin than a broadcast approach (Nicholas et al.,
star to a Brussels restaurant that had not yet 2007). They are community focused, facilitat-
opened, that call into question the sectors ing the interaction of groups of people with
credibility. Here lies the quandary. Todays similar interests, and they are connected,
sceptical consumers have a need for detailed, amalgamating links and content from many
topical, relevant information as an input into different sources to add synergistic value to
their travel-planning process, but regard tra- the resulting service, product or message.
ditional sources of such information as being Therefore, the concept of Web 2.0 can be
less than trustworthy (Xue and Phelps, 2004). considered as a huge virtual community
Ideally, they need a more credible source a where people can participate and interact
need that is being serviced by the growth in based on commonality of interests.
the Internet phenomenon known as Web 2.0 A key issue to understand is that Web 2.0
(Yoo and Gretzel, 2009). is not just a new set of media outlets or
228 P. OConnor et al.

channels. It reects a fundamental shift in perspective, resulting in a substantial confu-


how the media work. Most Web 2.0 technolo- sion and fragmented conclusion.
gies are evolutionary when considered on
their own. However, the rapid convergence of
these technologies has resulted in revolution- Features and operational elements
ary change in consumer behaviour. Web 2.0 of the virtual tourist community
sites enable consumers to interact with con-
tent and with each other whenever and how- Considering the unique characteristics of
ever they like. As a result, individuals are virtual community and examining all
increasingly take clues from one another, discussions about the denition of online
rather than from institutional sources like community from different perspectives,
corporations, the media, political bodies or Wang et al. (2002) proposed a framework for
even religions. While in the past, consumers understanding the virtual tourist community
looked to such authorities for their informa- (Fig. 14.1). According to Wang et al.s concep-
tion, now they are increasingly looking at the tual model, place, symbol and virtual are
collective wisdom of their peers as the ulti- considered as the unique characteristics of
mate authority (Cox et al., 2008). virtual community. At an operational level,
Although predominantly a user phe- virtual community requires the presence of
nomenon, the growing importance of Web groups of people who interact with specic
2.0 has left most businesses, not least of all purposes, under the governance of certain
tourism destinations, struggling to work out policies, and with the facilitation of computer
how to take advantage of it. Wherever con- systems.
tent and community are gathered, a valuable
potential exists for commerce. At this point, Virtual community as place
however, most discussions of how to exploit
In an ofine world, a community is a physical
developments commercially are met with
venue where people can develop and main-
vacant nods and lots of head scratching.
tain social and economic relationships and
Most businesses do not really understand the
explore new opportunities. A community is
essence of the community and the funda-
formed based on certain commonalities such
mental needs of community members. The
as location, lifestyle, identity, character, etc.
successful operation of a virtual community
In a manner similar to the physical commu-
facilitated by social media lies in whether the
nity, a virtual community can be perceived as
businesses have a comprehensive under-
a social organization where like-minded
standing of the essence of a virtual commu-
souls meet. Although people cannot see it,
nity and to what extent they know their
it does exist in the hearts and souls of virtual
members in terms of who and what their
community members.
basic needs are in the context of virtual
communities (Wang et al., 2002). Virtual community as symbol
When creating a community, people tend to
attach a symbolic meaning to that commu-
Understanding the Virtual Tourist nity. It is the symbolic dimension of a com-
Community munity that provides meaning and identity
for the community members. As Calhoun
Considerable research efforts have been made (1980) addresses, community is a complex of
to dene online communities and grasp their ideas and sentiments. A virtual community
key features. Therefore, a range of denitions exists because participants dene it and give
emerge, reecting the viewpoints of different it meaning. A virtual community has its own
disciplines, such as sociology, technology cultural composition; it has its own collective
and e-commerce. However, researchers have sense and its own virtual ideology and sym-
dened the concept of virtual community bol. In this sense, a virtual community is a
from their own relatively narrow disciplinary very personal thing and only the members
The Online Community and Marketing 229

People Purpose
Place

Virtual

Symbol communtiy Virtual

Computer
Policy systems

Fig. 14.1. A conceptual model of the virtual tourist community (Adapted from Wang et al., 2002).

themselves can tell whether they feel a part of community. Active interactions among com-
the community. munity members distinguish online commu-
nities from web pages. People in online
Virtual community as virtual communities play different roles, and such
roles can have a positive or negative impact
In spite of similarities between online on a community. Some roles that have been
communities and ofine ones, being virtual is identied include: moderators and media-
one of the most important features that tors, who guide discussions and serve as arbi-
distinguishes them. The notion of virtual ters in disputes; professional commentators,
community is inherently unique because who give opinions and guide discussions;
computer-mediated communication (CMC) general participants, who contribute to dis-
creates the context within which social rela- cussion; and lurkers, who silently observe.
tions occur and affect our view of community,
especially in a virtual way. Because the term
virtual associates with unreal, it is argued PURPOSE A shared purpose, such as inter-
that what happens online is like a commu- est, information or service, indicates the rea-
nity, but isnt really a community. However, if son of existence for a community. The purpose
one agrees that communication is the core of of a virtual community helps it to understand
any community, a virtual community is real what it wants to accomplish, who is the target
no matter where it exists. audience and what benets its members can
Theoretical notions of virtual community obtain from participation. The purpose of the
can only be made feasible by four operational community also helps to dene both its struc-
elements: people, purpose, policy and com- ture, and what resources will be needed to
puter systems. Therefore, a more comprehen- run and maintain the community. A success-
sive and complete understanding of the ful community serves a clear purpose in the
virtual community requires an examination lives of its members and meets the funda-
of these four elements. mental goals of its owners. Hence, notifying
the purpose upfront will help to create a
PEOPLE People are the heart of the coherent, compelling and successful online
community and without them, there is no community.
230 P. OConnor et al.

POLICY Policy is needed in a virtual process of identifying and capturing the ben-
community to guide online behaviour. The ets can be complex owing to the great diver-
community needs policy to determine: require- sity of member characteristics and the nature
ments for joining that community, the style of of the tourist community. Wang and Fesen-
communication among participants, accepted maier (2004) take a social psychological
conduct, privacy policies, security policies and approach and conceptualize member partici-
repercussions for non-conformance. Unwrit- pation in and contribution to a virtual tourist
ten codes of conduct may also exist. The nature community as driven by the following bene-
of the policy that governs the community and ts they are seeking in that community: func-
how it is presented can strongly inuence who tional benets, social benets, psychological
joins the community and its character. benets and hedonic benets (Fig. 14.2).

COMPUTER SYSTEMS Computer systems can Functional benets


be regarded as the basis for virtual commu-
nity. It is through computer systems that mil- Tourist community members obtain func-
lions of people can have access to vast tional benets when they go online to full
quantities of information and communicate specic activities. The functional benet can
with each other. Computer systems support be a great amount of relevant information
and mediate social interaction and facilitate a needed to plan a trip. It is argued that
sense of community. exchange of information in the online envi-
ronment is more convenient and efcient
because online information can be accessed
Benets of virtual tourist community without concerns about time and geographi-
members cal limits. The functional benet can also
be transactions in which members buy and
The benets of participating in a tourist com- sell products or services (Armstrong and
munity are diverse and dynamic, and the Hagel, 1996).

Contribution incentives
Participation
benefits
Instrumental
Nature of
Functional participation

Level of Efficacy
participation
Social
Quality
control

Psychological Extent of
contribution
Gaining
status
Hedonic

Expectancy

Fig. 14.2. Participation benets and contribution incentives of a virtual tourist community (Adapted from
Wang and Fesenmaier, 2004).
The Online Community and Marketing 231

Social benets It should be noted that different virtual


communities will differ signicantly in terms
A virtual tourist community is socially struc- of relative focus on benets offered. Some
tured, conveys social meaning and brings address one benet over the others. For
social benets. These social benets are instance, Wang and Fesenmaier (2004) dem-
dened by the purposes of virtual tourist onstrated that social and hedonic benets
communities based on the tasks that the have more impacts on members participa-
members are involved in, and include pro- tion in a virtual tourist community than do
viding help and support, socializing formally functional benets. However, few communi-
through both synchronous and asynchronous ties will be successful if they emphasize one
communication, discussing and exchanging benet to the exclusion of the others, because
ideas, forming relationships and getting the strength of virtual communities lies in
involved with other members (Preece, 2000). their ability to provide multiple benets
Specically, the social benets of a virtual simultaneously.
tourist community are communication, trust
between members and community owners
and among community members, and rela-
Incentives to contribute to the virtual
tionship and interactivity among members
tourist community
(Wang et al., 2002).
For virtual communities to evolve and pros-
Psychological benets per and for all community members, as well
as community organizers, to benet, it is
Besides functional and social benets, a vir-
essential that a balanced proportion of mem-
tual tourist community can also offer psycho-
bers in the community actively contribute to
logical benets to its members. In a virtual
the community in various forms, such as ask-
tourist community, what begins primarily as
ing and answering questions, providing sug-
a search for information transforms into a
gestions, sharing ideas, etc. The willingness
source of community and understanding,
of community members to contribute can be
and eventually a lasting identication may be
explained from theories of gift economy, self-
established. It is argued that psychological
concept, and social capital creation and
benets make the community a part of its
appropriation. The following ve incentive
members lives and a powerful organizing
constructs can be used to explain why mem-
force in the world of commerce. These psy-
bers contribute to the virtual tourist commu-
chological benets include a sense of belong-
nity: instrumental, efcacy, expectancy,
ingness to the community, identity expression
quality assurance and gaining status (see also
through the community, and a sense of afli-
Fig. 14.2).
ation with other members in the community.
Instrumental incentives
Hedonic benets
Just as members join a virtual tourist commu-
Members join a virtual tourist community not nity to obtain functional benets, members
only to obtain functional, social and psycho- make active contributions to that community
logical benets, but also for their own enjoy- for instrumental purposes. Instrumental
ment and entertainment purposes. The incentives can be based on obligations cre-
hedonic perspective views consumers as ated in the process of dyadic social exchange
pleasure seekers engaged in activities that (Blau, 1964). Instrumental incentives can be
elicit enjoyment, entertainment, amusement explained by rational actor models in which
and fun. A virtual tourist community offers individual and collective actors cultivate and
people the opportunity to come together and exploit social capital for their own benets
explore a new world of fantasy and entertain- (De Graaf and Flap, 1988; Burt, 1992). In
ment where they can engage in role-playing addition, the theory of social capital creation
games in which everything seems possible. and appropriation can be used to explain
232 P. OConnor et al.

instrumental incentives, where member judgment of insiders and devotees. Accord-


expectations reect the reward that they may ing to Forrester Research (Allen et al., 1999),
obtain from the pool of social capital. when people are considering buying online,
about half of online community users turn to
Efcacy incentives the opinions of their fellow community mem-
bers. One third of the online community users
It is surprising that a large number of mem- acknowledge that those opinions inuence
bers offer help, support and assistance to their purchase decision. Therefore, it is
other members in a virtual tourist commu- believed that community members make a
nity. Personal attributes including passion, a contribution to the virtual tourist community
desire for recognition and a sense of obliga- for the purpose of controlling products/ser-
tion that comes from past experience as a vice quality, enforcing service excellence, or
taker make some people want to give back making product suggestions/evaluations
to the community (Cothrel and Williams, based on their own travel consumption
1999). Further, this sense of trying to help oth- knowledge and experiences.
ers may come from the self-satisfaction of the
actions itself. The cost of communicating Incentives of gaining status
through computer networks is much lower
than face-to-face communication, and the According to the self-concept theory (Stryker,
value of a piece of information offered online 1980, 1986), the ideal self is derived by adopt-
can be amplied because of the fact that an ing the role of the expectations of the refer-
unlimited number of people might use or ence group members in order to satisfy his/
make copies of the information provided. her own needs of afliation and power. Mak-
ing regular and high-quality contribution to
Expectancy incentives the group can help a person believe that he/
she has an impact on the group which, in
Gift economy can be used to explain the inter- turn, supports his/her own self-image. In a
action in a virtual community (Rheingold, virtual tourist community, high-quality infor-
1993). Gift giving usually involves an mation, impressive technical details in ones
unstated obligation to repay the gift at some answers, a willingness to help others and
future time. When people pass on free advice elegant writings can all increase ones status
or offer useful information in a virtual com- and prestige. Hence, desire for status and
munity, the incentive is an anticipated reci- prestige is considered as one of the key
procity. However, online exchange is more motivations of individuals contribution to
generous and riskier than gift giving (Kol- the virtual community.
lock, 1999) because the recipient is often
unknown and the giver may never encounter
that recipient again. Thus, the usual obliga- Web 2.0, Virtual Community and
tion of reciprocity between two specic indi-
Tourism Destinations
viduals is difcult or impossible. It is also
argued that gifts of information and advice
are often offered not to particular individuals, The growth of the virtual community sup-
but to a group as a whole (Kollock, 1999). ported by Web 2.0 technologies such as blogs,
Although a balanced reciprocity with a par- user reviews and social networks provides
ticular individual may not be possible, there great opportunities for both business organi-
is a sense in which a balance might occur zations and their customers (Armstrong and
within a group as a whole. Hagel, 1996). Companies can use Web 2.0
sites to create new types of services and to
Quality-assurance incentives enhance their existing products and to create
new divisions and capabilities. For tourism
Individuals place great weight on the judge- destinations, these sites can broaden their
ments of their fellow community of con- marketing horizon and have a great impact
sumption members, particularly the expert on marketing, sales, product and service
The Online Community and Marketing 233

development, supplier network, information blog to review information about a destina-


quality and distribution channels. This sec- tion or travel service supplier. As a result,
tion examines the principal developments in managing a destinations reputation on blogs
Web 2.0 and assesses their implications for has become essential (Inversini et al., 2010).
travel destinations. Destinations need to actively monitor what is
being said about them, which allows them to
stay abreast of public opinions about their
Blogs image, and also allows them to make sure
that incorrect information is not being
Blogs, or web logs, are one of the most popu- circulated.
lar forms of user-generated content available, The opportunity also exists for destina-
with the blog search engine Technorati track- tions to proactively reach out to the blogging
ing more than 112 million separate blogs in community. If a destination can identify the
December 2007. Usually written in journal bloggers regarded as authorities for their tar-
style and presented in reverse chronological get markets, steps can be taken to insure that
order, blogs tend to be focused on a highly they are positively inclined towards the desti-
specic topic and typically contain commen- nation (Ellis-Green, 2007). For example, for
tary or news about that particular subject. many years, destinations have engaged in
Content is usually primarily text, although public relations activities with traditional
photos, video and links to external websites travel agents, providing them with brochures
and/or other blogs are often typically and other content to help familiarize them
included. Most blogs allow readers to com- with, and help them sell, the product, as well
ment or respond to postings, which is an as familiarization trips to allow them to
important part of the feeling of community experience what the potential guest might
that typies Web 2.0 developments. The moti- experience. However, as the inuence of
vation to blog varies greatly. For many, the travel agents declines, such actions will
impetus is purely personal, with the blog sim- become less effective. Furthermore, one travel
ply representing a desire to share their agent can only inuence a small number of
thoughts, reections and feelings. A growing people. In contrast, the correct blogger can
trend is the introduction of blogs by compa- potentially inuence a much higher number
nies, either as an internal tool to enhance of people and, as opposed to the travel agent,
communications, or externally for marketing, who is receiving compensation for its recom-
branding or public relations purposes. mendation and facilitation of sales, the blog-
Known as corporate blogs, such sites often ger is looked upon as impartial and therefore
suffer from the aforementioned problem of more inuential. Thus, working with the cor-
credibility. Impartiality is the key, as if the rect set of bloggers can have favourable
message is too commercial, the blog can be effects on a destinations image.
perceived as just another marketing/adver-
tising initiative.
Blogs are seen as being particularly Micro-blogs
important for travel. As discussed above,
most tend to focus on highly specic topics, An interesting and related new trend is the
and bloggers are often seen as authorities growth of micro-blogs a form of blogging
or experts. As the trend towards more that allows users to write brief text updates
specialized travel continues, such authorities (usually 140 characters) and publish them on
are becoming more inuential, both among the Web. These messages can be updated by a
their own regular readers and among casual variety of different means, including text
surfers brought to their blogs by more ef- messaging from a mobile phone, and instant
cient search engines. According to the 2006 messaging by email or from a website. The
Y-Partnership National Leisure Travel Moni- most popular service is undoubtedly Twitter,
tor, more than a quarter of consumers seeking although the status update feature of social
travel information on the Internet visited a networking websites such as Facebook,
234 P. OConnor et al.

MySpace and LinkedIn could also be average of 19 minutes a day on the site. Face-
regarded as a form of micro-blogging. book has been joined in the social network
Although limited in content, micro-blogs are, arena by a growing range of generalist sites
in fact, extremely detailed as they capture (such as MySpace and Friendster, which exist
moments in time, allowing bloggers to share essentially to allow people to network, con-
thoughts and feelings continuously and nect and interact with each other socially),
instantaneously. This form of social media business sites (such as LinkedIn and Viadeo,
lends itself well to a generation already too which are more focused on developing busi-
busy to keep in touch by conventional means. ness relationships) and specialist sites focused
on highly specic subjects, many of which are
being facilitated by technology solutions such
Social networks as Ning, which allows anyone to easily set up
their own social network site with practically
Social networks are sites where people gather no technical knowledge. Different networks
and form relationships within a virtual space. dominate in different areas of the world, with
Most allow users to build personal web pages the major networks having much less inu-
and then connect with friends to communi- ence outside the USA. For example, social
cate and share content. Subgroups typically networking in French-speaking countries is
form around highly specic interests, with dominated by Skyrock a network practi-
each member taking part in multiple sub- cally unheard of in the Anglophone world.
groups (Dwyer, 2007). Such networks have Similarly, Asia also has its portfolio of social
their origins in supporting interactions networks, including Cyworld in South Korea,
among neighbours in a community (Carroll mixi in Japan and QQ.com in China.
and Rosson, 2003), and they typically facili- The reactions of travel companies to the
tate information exchange, discussion and social networking phenomenon have been
joint activity related to local events, issues twofold to leverage the trend and try to cre-
and concerns (Boyd and Ellison, 2007). How- ate their own specialized travel communities,
ever, their context has been transformed by and to participate in existing social networks
the expansion of electronic communications with the aim of building brand loyalty. Prob-
and use of the Web (Wang et al., 2002). No lon- ably the leading example of the rst approach
ger limited by physical location, communities is WAYN (Where Are You Now?) a travel-
of individuals with similar interests and con- based social network that allows users to
cerns can now be formed virtually and can keep tabs on friends they have met around
interact primarily in the online environment the world. The idea for the site was hatched
(Sun et al., 2006). after the founders Jerome Touze and Peter
Facebook, the original social network, Ward returned from a backpacking tour and
was launched by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004. wanted an easy way to keep in touch with
At that time, it was targeted exclusively at friends. The site offers the standard social net-
Harvard students, but proved such a huge hit working features (personal proles, photo
that within 2 weeks, half of the student body sharing, video uploads, messaging) and also
had signed up and other Boston-area schools allows users to share user reviews for travel
began demanding their own Facebook net- products such as accommodation, dining and
work. Within 4 months, Facebook had added nightlife. However, while services such as
30 more college networks and the social net- Ning make establishing a social network rela-
working trend was born. Facebook continued tively easy from a technical perspective,
to grow, opening up to high school students building up an active community of users can
in September 2005, to work networks at the be difcult, which has prompted many travel
beginning of 2006 and nally to anyone with companies to forgo setting up their own net-
an email address in September 2006. Face- works, but instead to concentrate on partici-
book users passion, or addiction, to the site is pating in existing social network sites and
unparalleled: more than half log into the sys- becoming friends with their customers. This
tem every day and users typically spend an allows them to develop relationships with
The Online Community and Marketing 235

groups and share information with highly While in the past, this method implied people
targeted market segments, which, inciden- talking individually or in small groups, the
tally, bypasses the SPAM lter and even the Internet has amplied and turbocharged it
lack-of-interest lter that today acts as a limit into a mass communications medium, be it
on traditional e-mail marketing. Being friends with a predened group of friends or with
with the customer also allows companies to thousands of online but connected strangers
see at rst hand what their customers are in a social network (Hennig-Thurau et al.,
interested in, what they like to do and where 2004). By making it easier for consumers to
they like to go, which can be an incredible disseminate their points of view, and also by
source of market intelligence, giving access to facilitating access to such opinions, the Inter-
information that would be difcult if not net is having a profound effect on how con-
impossible to obtain otherwise. sumers make purchasing decisions.
As a result, today there are online forums
for just about any consumer product, from cof-
User reviews fee to electronics, where consumers can dis-
cuss their experiences, can publish their
As discussed earlier, one of the advantages of opinions and share news and advice (Puri,
the World Wide Web is the incredible access 2007). This means that for the rst time in his-
to information that it puts into the hands of tory, individuals can make their personal
consumers. In particular, the ease with which thoughts, reactions and opinions easily acces-
consumers can use search engines to nd sible to the global community in effect turn-
whatever they are looking for has turned the ing every customer into a mystery shopper.
Web into a user-driven, non-linear repository Furthermore, as Sun et al. (2006) point out,
of information. Instead of, as in the past, the compared with face-to-face communicators,
marketer dictating how information is pre- contributors to such sites tend to demonstrate
sented and consumed, the user is now in con- fewer inhibitions, display less social anxiety
trol. Visitors to websites no longer necessarily and exhibit less public self-awareness, and
enter through a home page and browse con- thus tend to be more honest and forthcoming
secutively through the site as they would in a with their viewpoints. The Pew Internet &
brochure. Instead, they can access specic American Life Project estimates that nearly
pieces of information directly from search half of all US Internet users have published
results. their thoughts or otherwise created content
However, the increased quantities of online (Gretzel et al., 2007). Consumers moti-
information offered by the Web can be both a vation for doing so varies considerably (Walsh
blessing and a curse. Often the sheer quantity et al., 2004). Despite what might be expected,
of information available can complicate the venting frustration about negative experiences
decision-making process, with consumers seems to be a relatively minor reason for post-
neither having the time nor the ability to com- ing a review (Wang and Fesenmaier, 2003). The
pare all options available. When the abun- desire for social interaction, concern for other
dance of alternatives is overwhelming, this consumers and potential to enhance own self-
leads to confusion, sub-optimum decisions or worth are frequently cited motivators in a 2004
dissatisfaction with choices made. In the study (Hennig-Thurau et al., 2004).
ofine world, word of mouth plays a pivotal Interested consumers can now access
role in overcoming this challenge and helping these user-generated data during their deci-
consumers to nd the information they need sion-making processes and use it to help
(Looker et al., 2007). When confronted with evaluate alternatives basing their decisions
too much information, consumers actively on the unltered, dynamic and topical opin-
seek out the opinions of others as a means to ions of their peers rather than on mass-market
manage risk (Smith et al., 2007). In addition, advertising messages produced by suppliers
word of mouth is perceived to be more vivid, (Dobele et al., 2005). As a result, social network
easier to use and more trustworthy than mar- sites have become increasingly important and
keter-provided information (Smith, 1993). are now thought to have as much inuence
236 P. OConnor et al.

on consumers as television and more inu- User reviews are clearly having a mas-
ence than newspapers (Amis, 2007). A recent sive effect on travel (Yoo and Gretzel, 2009).
survey by Opinion Research Corporation The proliferation of user-generated content
(2008) found that over 60% of respondents means that instead of the expensive, glossy,
checked online reviews, blogs and other cus- perfectly posed photos included in brochures
tomer feedback before buying a new product or advertisements, a customers rst image of
or service, and over 80% of those who con- a destination can often be comments or can-
sulted such material said that it had at least did photos posted by earlier guests on social
some inuence on their subsequent purchase network sites. Complete, Inc. suggests that in
decisions. User reviews are seen as highly 2007 almost half of travel purchasers used
credible as the writer is usually seen as being consumer-generated content in their travel
independent of the vendor (Silverman, 2001), planning, and nearly one third said that they
and thus not seen to gain directly from advo- found its input useful. More than half of all
cating the product or service in question online travellers claim to consult online
(Sweeney et al., 2008). This is evidence that reviews every time they plan a trip. Most
consumers are increasingly relying on feed- make use of such sites at the beginning of
back of this type as input into a wide range of their travel-planning process to get ideas or to
decisions, including which movies to watch, narrow down choices, with a smaller number
which stocks to invest in and, of course, consulting them at later stages to conrm
which products to buy. Many claim that con- their choices (Gretzel et al., 2007). Most travel-
sumers in fact prefer such peer recommenda- lers perceive user-generated reviews to be
tions over other forms of input (Smith et al., more likely to provide up-to-date, enjoyable
2007). Owing to the fact that social networks and reliable information than content pro-
are usually formed between consumers with vided by travel service providers. Frequent
similar interests and are peer-to-peer, such travellers, in particular, see peer reviews as
opinions are perceived to be both relevant superior to other information sources and are
and unbiased and, therefore, more likely to be more likely to be highly inuenced by them
believed by todays sceptical consumer than (Gretzel et al., 2007).
advertisements or content generated by pro- Independent user-review sites are not
fessionals (Senecal and Nantel, 2004). Com- without their problems. While, as discussed
mercial sites are also trying to make use of above, consumers often turn to such sites to
this phenomenon to help convert surfers into reduce their information overload problem,
buyers. For example, retailing sites such as the sheer quantity of reviews, comments and
Amazon.com and ebay.com encourage con- feedback available may in fact further com-
sumers to write reviews about products and plicate the decision-making process (Bellman
use these reviews as promotional tools on et al., 2006). In such cases, credibility and trust
their sites. become even more important, and the
Within travel, the Web 2.0 topic receiving absence of contextual clues to aid interpreta-
most attention is clearly the effect of user- tion can be problematic (Dellarocas, 2003). In
generated reviews (Chatterjee, 2001). These the ofine world, contextual clues (such as,
are now routinely built into online travel for example, a persons facial expression) are
agencies sites (see for example Expedia.co.uk used to help evaluate opinions. As such clues
or Priceline.co.uk), in some cases affecting are absent in the online environment, sites
display order and undoubtedly inuencing often display demographic or other data
the potential customers choice. However, about reviewers (for example, the length of
research indicates that reviews posted on membership, their location, the number of
sites of this type are seen as less credible than times they have posted reviews in the past,
those posted on dedicated third-party user- etc.) to help build credibility and trust. Other
review sites (Gretzel et al., 2007), and in many sites allow readers to provide feedback on the
cases, those on commercial sites are (correctly quality of reviews, incorporating such input
or incorrectly) perceived as being less objec- into a rating of the reviewer. However authen-
tive (Xue and Phelps, 2004). ticity remains a key challenge (Puri, 2007).
The Online Community and Marketing 237

The anonymity with which individuals can upload and share personal photos, tagging
post content on social networking sites has them to allow others to search for and retrieve
led to questions about the legitimacy of rat- particular content. However, it is video rather
ings. Without appropriate safeguards, partici- than photos that seems to be having a broader
pants can post dishonest reviews to enhance effect. With broadband connections becoming
their own reputation or tarnish that of their commonplace, particularly in developed
competitors. Several press reports call into countries, the resulting increase in bandwidth
question the legitimacy of reviews posted on has made it possible for consumers to both
user-generated review sites (Keates, 2007). easily upload video to video-sharing sites
However, in an empirical research study car- and to view streaming video presentations.
ried out by OConnor (2008b) on reviews The result is that there are now tens of mil-
posted about London hotels, only a tiny num- lions of user-generated video clips available
ber of the reviews could be identied as sus- online, with websites dedicated not only to
pect, indicating that problem may not be as offering free video clips to users (such as You-
widespread as industry buzz speculates. The Tube and DailyMotion), but also specic sites
power of the crowd that typies Web 2.0 sites dedicated to offering just travel-related video
is also relevant here. As the number of reviews clips (such as TvTrip or Trivop). While some
grows, the impact of fake reviews falls as they of these have used commercial services to
are overwhelmed by the large number of produce their initial content, in most cases
legitimate reviews posted for each tourism their intention is to encourage user-generated
product (hotel, restaurant, trip, etc.). video, with real people sharing videos of
their real experiences. This is clearly an
opportunity for publicity and public relations
Photos and video sharing that can be exploited, either by producing
and uploading video that presents an over-
Although textual content, particularly user view of the resort, or by encouraging, and
reviews as discussed above, has generally perhaps facilitating, customers in doing so.
received the most attention in terms of user Although troublesome, time-consuming and
generated content, the importance of multi- expensive to produce, such material has the
media content particularly photos and authenticity desired by todays consumers,
video should not be discounted. Such con- and may be much more effective than profes-
tent is already making its way into both the sionally produced content or advertising.
social network sites and the user review sites
discussed above, and is obviously highly
inuential. Given the growing popularity of Tagging
such sites as sources of travel information,
instead of posted photos, a customers rst Tagging (or folksonomy) refers to a way of
impression of the hotel may actually be the cutting through the clutter to categorize and
photo of the room service tray that has sat in nd information in the online environment
the corridor for 3 days and now has green (Scaglione et al., 2010). Sometimes known as
mould growing on it (incidentally a real collaborative tagging, social classication or
example from TripAdvisor). In a free society, social indexing, tagging refers to the process
such content is difcult if not impossible to of collaboratively creating and managing tags
control, and it puts further pressure on travel to annotate and group content such as web
businesses to make sure that everything goes pages, blog entries, photos or videos (Tredin-
as planned in their day-to-day operations. nick, 2006). In contrast to traditional index-
In addition to multimedia content being ing, tags are generated not only by experts
posted on social network and user review but also by the creators and consumers of the
sites, a range of dedicated Web 2.0 sites also content. Freely chosen keywords are used
focus specically on sharing photos and instead of a controlled vocabulary and any
videos. Flickr has become the industry stan- piece of content can be assigned multiple
dard for photo sharing, and allows users to tags, which are then consolidated to give a
238 P. OConnor et al.

true, user-generated impression of what the mistakes. Given such a collaborative method-
content is really about. ology, there is obviously considerable debate
Tagging is increasingly being used by as to whether the information found on wikis
people browsing the Internet, not only to clas- is accurate, as there is little, if any, editorial
sify content on sites such as Flickr and You- control. Although recent edits are generally
Tube (thus allowing it to be found easily, both listed on a linked page, and readers can look
by themselves and by other users based on at the revision history of each page, control is
a shared vocabulary) but also as a way of minimum. However, this power of the crowd
storing and retrieving web pages in a way approach seems to work, with a recent study
that they want to remember a process by the British scientic journal Nature show-
known as social bookmarking. Suppose, for ing that Wikipedia comes very close to the
example, that someone was considering plan- traditional Encyclopaedia Britannica in terms
ning a weekend trip to New York. Most peo- of accuracy, with some notable exceptions.
ple would start their planning on one of the While still relatively new, wikis have
major search engines such as Google. Search- begun to develop within travel. For example,
ing just for New York would result in hun- Wikitravel (www.wikitravel.org) is a project
dreds of thousands of results, which the user to create a free, complete, up-to-date and reli-
would begin to iteratively review, rening the able worldwide travel guide, built in collabo-
search depending on what was found and ration with travellers from around the globe.
their specic personal interests. As they vis- Started in July 2003, so far it has gathered
ited each page, they could tag those that inter- over 19,000 destination guides and other arti-
est them to save them in a service such as Del. cles written and edited by travellers from all
icio.us. Retrieving these pages as a group around the world, and was voted one of
thus becomes easy, as they are categorized TIME Magazines 50 best websites of 2008.
based on user-dened terms. The prospective The related site World66 (www.world66.com)
traveller could also consult pages that other takes a similar approach, offering travel infor-
users have tagged using similar keyword mation on over 32,000 destinations and nearly
terms (in effect by looking at their compara- 129,000 articles written and updated by indi-
ble tag clouds, thus allowing them to nd vidual travellers. TripAdvisor (www.tripad-
information based on how like-minded peo- visor.co.uk), the most prominent travel
ple perceive content rather than how the con- user-generated content site, has also recently
tent creator or a marketer intended it to be launched the TripAdvisor wiki (TripAdvisor
classied). Inside; www.tripadvisor.co.uk/TravelHome),
allowing visitors to edit travel guides to sup-
port the large number of user-generated
Wikis reviews. In each of these cases, travel suppli-
ers and destinations need to take the time to
Wikis are a type of website that allows users nd and review their entries on relevant the
to easily add, remove and otherwise change wikis, as their prominence in search result
content on their pages. Thus, in effect, wikis listings means that they are being both seen
act as a form of communal document, with and consulted by consumers searching for
content spontaneously created and updated travel information.
by users themselves. The best-known wiki is
the online collaborative encyclopaedia Wiki-
pedia, which has over 1.25 million articles Podcasts
published in English alone. The concept relies
on the idea of the wisdom of the crowd, with The term podcast typically refers to an audio
its basic premise being that as grass-roots le downloaded from a website or syndica-
users decide what to write about, over time, tion service. The term originated as a combi-
every topic (or at least every topic that is nation of the words iPod and broadcast, as
important to users) will be covered and suc- the original podcasts were designed to be lis-
cessive modications of entries will eliminate tened to on personal media players such as
The Online Community and Marketing 239

Apples iPod, thus allowing individuals to may partly be caused by the fact that the pro-
distribute their own radio-style shows. Pod- cess is relatively complicated, and thus usage
casting is distinguished from simply provid- tends to be limited to more technology-savvy
ing audio content online by its syndication users rather than the general travelling popu-
feature, which uses special software (in par- lation. However, the growth in the use of per-
ticular Apples iTunes) to automatically check sonal portal pages such as iGoogle or
for new content and transfer it to a mobile MyYahoo!, dedicated aggregation services
device as it becomes available. such as NetVibes and Pageakes, and Win-
While the initial appeal of podcasting dows Gadgets, means that more and more
was to allow individuals to distribute their people are using RSS feeds even if in many
own radio-style shows the system has quickly cases they do not understand, or perhaps are
become used in other ways. Currently, it is not even aware, that they are doing so. As a
widely used in education, allowing teachers result, travel companies are beginning to use
to share information with students, parents or RSS feeds to keep customers aware of the lat-
any other interested party, and its use in est developments. For example, the Conde
travel is growing rapidly. Travel websites are Nast website (Conciege.com) uses RSS to
increasingly using podcasts as a means of deliver insider recommendations to inter-
delivering a multimedia experience of a desti- ested readers. Other companies are using
nation. Thousands of guidebook podcasts feeds for more commercial purposes, with
exist covering every possible destination and many of the leading online travel agencies,
topic. For example, the travel guide publisher hotel companies and even destinations in
Lonely Planet, online travel agency Orbitz particular using the technology to make cus-
and airline Virgin Atlantic all provide desti- tomers aware of travel deals and specials.
nation-focused podcast services on their web- Companies such as Expedia, STA Travel, Vir-
sites. Most are free, although commercial gin Holidays and Orbitz all offer customers
versions are also available from online music the opportunity to automatically receive new
stores such as iTunes or Amazon.com. While offers and promotions as soon as they are
many podcasts are professionally produced, posted on the main site, with the twin bene-
the ease with which they can be created has ts of keeping customers informed and also
opened the door to semi-professionals or acting as a powerful selling medium by put-
even users themselves. In line with Web 2.0 ting the offers proactively under the nose of
principles, this allows podcasts to be focused the consumer.
on highly specic niches that would be
uneconomic to service commercially but
which can nd a willing audience among Mash-ups
highly specic online communities.
While, as has been seen from the discussion
above, Web 2.0 concepts and technologies
Real Simple Syndication often interact and overlap naturally, in some
cases they are deliberately combined together
Real Simple Syndication (RSS) refers to a le into what has become known as a mash-up.
format used to subscribe to services such as Technically, mash-ups are dened as web
blogs, newsfeeds or podcasts. Its key benet applications that interactively combine two
is that it alerts the user whenever the content (or more) separate sources of data to create a
to which they have subscribed is updated, value-adding service. Data usually, but not
with the result that the user can keep track of always, ow through an Open API (Applica-
developments on a large number of different tion Programming Interface), such as those
websites, blogs or other services without provided by sites like Amazon, eBay, Flickr,
having to go back and check each one Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and YouTube. Two
individually. good examples of general mash-ups are
The adoption of RSS has clearly been ickrvision.com and twittermap.com, which
slower in travel than in other sectors. This combine user-generated content, in this case
240 P. OConnor et al.

photos from Flickr and mini-blog posts from In order to attract potential members to
Twitter, respectively, and display them geo- the tourist community and encourage their
spatially on maps provided by Google. involvement in the community, providing
Given that travel is all about location, the benets for community members is of great
potential for mash-ups is clearly enormous. importance. The benets of the virtual tour-
Not surprisingly, the majority of travel mash- ist community to travellers result from the
ups use Google Maps, combining their own very characteristics that dene an online
proprietary data with Web 2.0-focused user- community. People are drawn to a virtual
generated content in symbiotic applications. community because it provides an engaging
Images, movies, sounds, blog entries and environment in which people can search for
user reviews can all be combined on a geo- and exchange information, form relation-
graphical grid to give a very real sense of ships and seek pleasure. Travellers can
what can be experienced in a destination. A obtain functional, social, psychological and
very interesting example is the UK Foreign hedonic benets from a virtual tourist com-
and Commonwealth Ofce (FCO) website munity through looking for and exchanging
www.gogapyear.com, where it has teamed travel information and tips, and sharing their
up with Lonely Planet to create a mash-up travel experiences with and telling their
dedicated to gap year planning. The site travel stories to other members in the tourist
offers text, photographs and podcasts of community.
Lonely Planet tips and FCO country-specic As far as contribution is concerned, ef-
travel advice to users, all easy accessible and cacy, expectancy, instrumental, quality assur-
categorized geographically. TripAdvisor is ance and gaining status incentives are major
using a similar technology, for example on factors affecting members active contribu-
their web page for New York City, which dis- tion to virtual tourist communities. Online
plays reviews of hotels, restaurant and things communities should be developed in such a
to do (along with average room rates) on a way that community members can receive
Google map of the citys streets. Travel com- rewards for making active contributions to
panies need to gure out how to leverage the community. On one hand, travellers culti-
these developments and integrate the rele- vate a virtual tourist community for their
vant social media and user-generated content own benets. Travellers make contributions
that is being demanded into their sites. The to the tourist community for the purpose of
beauty of Web 2.0 developments is that if they seeking travel-related information, control-
do not do it, someone else will, and will cap- ling products/service quality, making travel
ture the customers attention in the process. transactions and nding travel companions.
Moreover, making regular and high-quality
contributions to the tourist community can
Conclusion full ones desire for status and prestige. On
the other hand, in the process of information
As more and more travellers are turning to exchange and interaction, a sense of obliga-
online travel communities supported by tion occurs as a result of receiving informa-
social media to full their travel-related tion or help from the information and
needs, the impact of online community on communication pool sustained by the tourist
individual travellers and tourist destinations community, and some people might feel obli-
cannot be ignored. An online community is gated to produce utility for other community
place in manifestation, symbolic in nature members.
and virtual in form. It exists in participants It is clear that online communities, Web 2.0
minds. At the operational level, an online and social media are already having an effect
community consists of four elements: people on destination marketing, but the revolution
performing different roles, purposes provid- has really only just started. The rise of user-
ing a reason for the community, policy gov- driven online services, including Facebook,
erning the community and computer systems Wikipedia and YouTube, has been phenome-
facilitating peoples interaction. nal, but this is just the beginning. Both the
The Online Community and Marketing 241

technologies themselves and user acceptance Tourism; www.itt.org), which continue to


of the resulting services are still in an embry- push the boundaries in this research arena,
onic state. Currently, most businesses and in little is being written on this highly topical
particular most travel businesses are just feel- and important area. This is clearly an issue
ing their way around, experimenting with the that needs to be urgently addressed as, for
technologies and trying to gure out how to destinations, understanding denitions is
use these new media to communicate with, sell one thing but the more signicant questions
to and develop relationships with their cus- are how social media affects brand image and
tomers. The environment is made more chal- what a destinations strategy should be for
lenging by both the rapid pace of development engaging with it. The scale and speed of inno-
and the way in which social media technolo- vation demand that they start addressing
gies tend to blend with each other. these questions urgently, but little hard evi-
As a result, research, particularly empiri- dence is available from the research commu-
cal research on how the developing phenom- nity to help guide their actions. While some
enon is affecting travel and destination guidance can be gleaned from other sectors,
marketing could also best be described as the specicities of travel distribution dis-
embryonic. With the exception of the annual cussed earlier may limit its usefulness. Thus,
ENTER Information and Communication there is a need for travel and tourism research-
Technology in Tourism conferences (the ag- ers to move Web 2.0-related research topics to
ship annual conferences of IFITT, the Interna- the top of their research agendas in order to
tional Federation for IT and Travel and provide guidance for the sector as a whole.

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15 Events and Destination Management

Graham Brown, Leo Jago, Laurence Chalip,


Shameem Ali and Trevor Mules

Event Tourism the age of special events (Janiskee, 1994,


p. 100), with event tourism considered to be
The relationship between events and tourism one of the fastest growing segments of the
can be mutually benecial, but rarely will this tourism industry (Backman et al., 1995). This
be possible without an informed approach to is because events are able to contribute to a
event planning and destination planning. citys range of tourist attractions, facilitate
Despite a more sophisticated approach to media coverage for the destination, and pro-
destination management in recent years, mote awareness of the destination for future
these two activities continue to be treated visitation. However, a wide range of factors
independently in many places, even those will determine the extent to which these out-
that strive to be positioned as event destina- comes are achieved.
tions. This chapter will review the way in Events take a wide variety of forms, and
which events can inuence the destinations signicant sections within scholarly texts are
which host them. It will then describe the devoted to dening the different types of
ndings of research which focused speci- events (e.g. Getz, 2007). Their impacts vary
cally on events and destination branding according to factors such as size and dura-
work which was originally published as an tion. Most events are small, of limited dura-
article in Event Management (Jago et al., 2003). tion and create minor, but not necessarily
Events provide consumers with a leisure insignicant, impacts. It is very important
and social opportunity beyond everyday that any changes that occur are considered in
experience (Jago and Shaw, 1998). The term relation to the size of the community that is
event tourism was coined in the 1980s, and affected. A modest improvement to make
formalized the link between events and tour- facilities suitable to host an event may dra-
ism (Getz, 1997). It has been dened as the matically change local attitudes and the
systematic planning, development and mar- image presented to potential visitors. How-
keting of festivals and special events as tour- ever, it is large events that create the biggest
ist attractions, catalysts and image builders impacts. Mega events such as the Olympic
(Getz and Wicks, 1993, p. 2). There is global Games can be the catalyst for urban devel-
competition to attract major events because of opment (Essex and Chalkley, 1998; Gold and
the economic benets that they bring (Lynch Gold, 2008; Short, 2008) and the stadiums that
and Veal, 1996) and, by the early 1990s, it was are constructed to stage the sporting competi-
considered appropriate to claim that this is tions become symbols that convey national
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
244 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Events and Destination Management 245

values, a reection of how the host country The timing of events can be another key
wishes to be seen by the rest of the world. For factor for tourism destinations. Temporal
instance, much has been written about the exibility means that an event can be held at
role of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games as a an off-peak time when hotels and other ser-
vehicle to assist Chinese modernization and vices will benet from increased visitation.
integration with the West, including initia- Similarly, the spatial exibility of events can
tives towards international tourism (e.g. be used to achieve tourism benets. Events,
Haugen, 2005; Broudehoux, 2007; Ren, 2008; and activities associated with them such as
deLisle, 2009). The ongoing use of stadiums pre-event and post-event tours, competitor
and other new or refurbished facilities training camps and activities organized by
represent an event legacy that may become event sponsors can be held in locations that
valuable tourism resources. However, this will directly inuence the pattern of visitation
utility must be evaluated in relation to (Brown, 2007). Once again, appropriate plan-
industry needs, operational costs and oppor- ning and engagement with relevant inter-
tunity costs. Hence, the frequently voiced mediaries are required for these outcomes to
concerns about the creation of facilities that be achieved.
become white elephants, standing idle for There is a tendency to consider the rela-
much of the year while incurring ongoing tionship between single events and tourism
maintenance costs and, in some cases, debt but, from a destination perspective, it is
repayments. important to take account of the mix of events
Destinations need to consider what size that are hosted throughout the year. In most
of event and associated investment will be destinations, events are presented as tourism
best suited to local needs and capacity con- products on an event calendar. Details are
straints. The duration of the event is also a included on printed promotional material
signicant variable. Some events can be mea- and feature prominently on websites. Each
sured in hours, others in months. Expo was event may appeal to a different market, and
held in Shanghai from 1 May to 31 October this has implications for the extent to which a
2010, and packages that included event tick- destination wishes to attract a diverse range
ets being offered by hotels in the city were an of markets or to be more focused in its offer-
example of a direct relationship between the ings. Specialization may be suitable for desti-
event and tourism. The longer the period nations that are able to use particular events
over which an event is held, the greater the to support an integrated positioning strategy.
scope for the destination to benet from the For instance, surng events can be held at a
sense of animation that is created. The trans- beach destination which has competitive
formative power of events means they bring wave conditions and a surng culture
life and excitement to the place where they reected by surng shops, surf schools and
are held. This benet is gained by local resi- board manufacturers. This approach lends
dents and it is one of the reasons why some itself to communications through specialist
types of events receive strong local support. It media to appeal to a clearly dened market.
is also a motive for tourists to schedule their Despite the signicance of events in
visits when the destination offers the added inuencing destination choice, vacation
appeal of the event. However, the crowds and activities and the timing of travel, little is
excitement that attract some tourists may known about how events can help to brand a
repel others. Displacement can occur when destination and, as a result, inuence long-
tourists decide not to visit a destination that is term visitation to the destination. However, a
hosting an event because they wish to avoid study has been conducted in Australia to
the crowds, and believe that accommodation identify current practices in the use of events
will not be available or only available at to brand destinations. Data were collected
inated prices. Attempts to minimize such through a series of workshops conducted
negative impacts require suitable planning throughout the country which brought
and appropriate communication with rele- together many of the countrys leading prac-
vant stakeholders and markets. titioners in the elds of event management
246 G. Brown et al.

and destination marketing. It is the results of focus on branding requires that destination
this research that are discussed later in the marketers determine how best to build events
chapter. into their overall marketing strategy. In fact,
To date though, most of the research in advocates of brand equity as a basis for mar-
the eld of special events has focused on their keting decisions would contend that whether
economic impact because many events or not an event is worth hosting depends on
require assistance from government in order the degree to which it can add value to the
to be staged, and justication for assistance is destinations overall brand (e.g. Ambler and
often required in economic terms (Mules, Styles, 1997; Keller and Aaker, 1997).
1998). This approach represents a short-term A brand is more than the name or sym-
focus on the impact of staging events, rather bol that represents a product. The term
than a longer term focus on their capacity to brand refers to the overall impression that
raise awareness of a region for future tourism the name or symbol creates in the minds of
(Mules and Faulkner, 1996). As a result, the consumers, including the products func-
Australian study investigated the practices tional and symbolic elements. The brand
whereby events are used to inuence the encompasses the physical characteristics,
branding of a destination. A synthesis was perceived benets, name, symbols and repu-
provided of the various methods used by tation of a product (de Chernatony and
managers of Australian destinations, events McDonald, 1996; Keller, 1998). Brand equity
and tourism organizations to incorporate refers to the value that brand recognition and
events into destination branding. The study position add to the brand through the effect
sought views regarding critical success fac- on consumer utility (Park and Srinivasan,
tors when using events to help brand a desti- 1994; Eagle and Kitchen, 2000) and stake-
nation and outlined the issues and questions holder commitment (Duncan and Moriarty,
that were considered to be of most concern 1997; de Chernatony, 2001).
when seeking to use events in this manner. A strong brand benets both businesses
and consumers. It is valuable for organiza-
tions, as strong brands attract loyal custom-
The Importance of Branding ers and solidify stakeholder networks. Once
a brand has built a loyal customer base and a
Although the importance of brand recogni- solid stakeholder network, it has staying
tion and brand awareness has been under- power. Brands with strong consumer loyal-
stood for many years, marketers have begun ties are more likely to win strong distribution
to pay closer attention to the ways in which support, and are more readily leveraged. A
brands are created, strengthened, changed recognizable brand name is perceived by
and maintained (de Chernatony and McDon- customers to render signicant information
ald, 1996; Keller, 1998). The consumers per- about a product because it identies what
ceptions of a brand can play a signicant role they are buying. A strong brand adds value
in the consumers attitude toward the associ- to stakeholder relationships by clarifying
ated product or service (Mittal et al., 1990) values and increasing condence in the
and the consequent decision on whether or relationship.
not to purchase it (Ambler, 1997). As a result,
managers and marketers are beginning to
evaluate marketing decisions in terms of the Destination Marketing
equity that will be imparted to the brand
(Park and Srinivasan, 1994; Eagle and DHauteserre (2001) suggests that in todays
Kitchen, 2000). The emphasis is, therefore, on highly competitive, global, tourism market-
determining the best means to synergize mar- place, tourist destinations suffer more from
keting tactics in order to build and create the ignorance of their existence by potential cus-
desired brand image (Keller, 1996; de Cherna- tomers than from inefciencies in manage-
tony, 2001). From the standpoint of using ment. Destination marketing aims to raise
events in the marketing of a destination, a awareness of a destination and increase
Events and Destination Management 247

visitation by creating a unique brand which Research Questions


positions and differentiates the destination
from others. The attributes upon which desti- The Australian study already mentioned
nations compete are commonly shared by addressed the relationship between events
several destinations, or are easily matched by and destination branding by identifying cur-
competing destinations (Henderson, 2000). rent practices in the use of events to help
Consequently, it is critical that destination brand destinations. On the basis of the pre-
marketers manage their destinations brand ceding review, the following research ques-
strategically. tions were formulated:
Kotler et al. (1993) dene a destination as
a place that incorporates an interconnected 1. What are the elements that, according to
and complementary set of attractions, events, expert practitioners, make events effective or
services and products which together create ineffective in building a destinations brand?
a total experience and value proposition to 2. What particular strategies or tactics seem
visitors. They suggest that successful desti- to enhance the effective use of events in build-
nation marketing occurs when each element ing a destinations brand?
of the destinations product mix contributes 3. Given the current state of practice, what
something to the total brand image via com- are the areas of uncertainty about the uses of
plementary styles, demographics or experi- events in destination branding that call for
ential values. Kotler et al. (1993) add that to further research?
be successful, destinations need to present
these factors in a coordinated and consistent
offering through careful management of the Method
brand. Although it has been argued else-
where that integrated marketing communi- In order to collect experts views on the mat-
cations are necessary if a brands equity is to ters raised by these research questions, a
be optimized (Keller, 1996; Duncan and series of half-day workshops was held in
Moriarty, 1997), the challenges are particu- Queensland (Brisbane), Victoria (Melbourne),
larly acute in the case of destinations because South Australia (Adelaide), Western Austra-
the destinations array of products and ser- lia (Perth) and New South Wales (northern
vices must be brought together under the NSW and Sydney). The workshops were held
overall destination brand (Chalip, 2001a). in different states in order to explore regional
Thus, it must be feasible to integrate the con- differences in the use of events in destination
sumers image of an event into the overall branding. Participants were invited based on
brand of the destination (e.g. Keller and their substantial expertise in the area of inter-
Aaker, 1997). est, as seen by the state tourism organizations
Integrating consumers images of an and key event agencies that prepared the
event into the destinations brand is a form of invitation lists in each region.
co-branding (Rao and Ruekert, 1994; Simonin Each of the workshops brought together
and Ruth, 1998; Washburn et al., 2000). In this groups of approximately 15 of the countrys
instance, the aim is to link the brand image of leading event practitioners and destination
an event to the destinations brand in order to marketers to examine the key issues relating
increase potential visitors awareness of the to events and destination branding. There
destination and/or to enhance or change the were two reasons for inviting participants
image they have of the destination. Co- from the separate domains of event manage-
branding enjoyed a growth of 40% in the lat- ment and destination marketing. The rst
ter years of the 20th century (Spethmann and was to gain a greater appreciation of their dif-
Benezra, 1994), suggesting that marketers ferent perspectives. The second was to allow
have found it to be a useful tactic for building the two perspectives to interact in a manner
brand equity. However, the requirements for that would highlight points of difference and
making effective use of events in destination matters of uncertainty (perhaps calling for
branding are not well understood. further research).
248 G. Brown et al.

At each workshop, the number of partici- had an impact on the branding of the
pants working as destination marketers destinations, and considered reasons why
slightly exceeded the number of event practi- some events had not had an impact. After the
tioners. Destination marketers were generally idea-sharing phase, all workshop participants
public sector employees working for state or came together to synthesize the ndings of
local government. The event practitioners at the breakout groups.
the workshops covered the spectrum of It was anticipated that based on the
events from small to very large, and included demands of their particular employment
both private operators as well as those domain, the two groups event managers/
employed by state-funded event agencies. marketers and destination managers/mar-
keters would have different views about
some of the issues raised. As a result, a spe-
cialist phase was incorporated in which the
Workshop structure groups were divided, and participants from
the two domains were encouraged separately
The half-day workshop format was the same to offer honest assessments of topics based on
at all locations. The design combined proto- their occupational experience. During this
cols of brainstorming, dialectical decision phase, each group discussed a series of ques-
making and nominal group technique, as tions pertinent to its employment domain.
described by Chalip (2001b). Each included Questions asked of destination managers
the following phases: icebreaker, introduc- covered the factors that they consider to be
tion, priming, idea sharing, idea synthesis, important when selecting an event for their
specialist group discussion, synthesis and destination, how they build events into their
conclusion. This format was chosen to encour- marketing mix, what they consider would
age individuals to express their views on the help make events more effective tools for pro-
subject based on their own particular experi- moting and branding their destination, and
ences, and to provide the opportunity for dif- what needs to be done so that the necessary
fering viewpoints to be brought forward and tasks can be successfully undertaken. Ques-
discussed. The workshop format also pro- tions asked of event managers covered those
vided opportunities for issues to be discussed aspects of a destinations image that were
in greater depth, so that by the end of the important to them when choosing a destina-
days proceedings, the key issues had been tion for an event, the working relationships
identied. they have with destination managers, the
To encourage workshop participants to roles that destinations can play in making
reect upon their experiences, the priming events successful, and whether events should
phase required them to work individually. be used to change or enhance a destinations
Each was asked to think of three or four brand. In the synthesis phase, the two groups
events that, in their opinion, had contributed joined together to discuss the issues raised by
to the branding, image, or marketing of the each in the specialist phase. The workshops
destinations at which the events were held. concluded with a review of the key issues
Attendees were then asked to think of three raised, and a discussion of the issues requir-
or four events which have not contributed to ing further research.
the branding, image or marketing of the
host destination. They were also asked to list
the reasons that, in their view, each event had,
or had not, contributed to the branding of the Data gathering
destination.
Small groups were formed for an idea- Each of the workshops was facilitated using
sharing phase, the aim of which was to fur- the standard protocols for group decision
ther encourage discussion of the ideas making and problem solving (Chalip, 2001b).
generated in the priming phase. Group dis- A facilitator was appointed to each specialist
cussions focused on the reasons that events group, and this discussion was recorded by a
Events and Destination Management 249

note taker. Records from breakout and full to be differentiated from others, (iv) the
group discussions provide the basis for the longevity or tradition of the event at the des-
workshop report. tination, (v) cooperative planning among key
players, and (vi) media support of the event.
It was also noted that there can be some syn-
ergy among the events in a destinations port-
Results folio. In particular, it was noted that events
which seem comparatively small in scale can
By the end of each workshop, participants build the social capital and human infrastruc-
had typically reached some consensus about ture of a destination in a manner that helps to
the key facilitators and barriers when using build the destinations brand, and which
events in destination branding. Workshop thereby enables the successful utilization of
attendees felt that, in general, events can play larger events.
a useful role in helping to brand destinations. The six themes outlined above represent
Although they were not generally able to bases for planning and evaluating the utility
articulate specic questions for future of a particular event in destination branding.
research, they were able to describe realms of Each then becomes a basis for considering the
uncertainty that require research. events utility with reference to the overall
There were negligible differences among portfolio of events at the destination. That
the regions regarding how events can help to utility is also a basis for evaluation and plan-
brand destinations. Differences were merely ning. The planning and evaluation model is
in terms of the degree of emphasis given to illustrated in Fig. 15.1.
particular points, rather than in terms of the Each of the six themes is described below.
points themselves. Regional differences did Media coverage and the matter of portfolio
not affect the overall conclusions to be development are then considered. Following
derived from the workshops, as the most that, participants views about the uses of
highly regarded and frequently mentioned events in helping to change a destinations
issues were the same in all destinations. These brand (as opposed to merely enhancing or
had to do with the importance of local com- strengthening an existing brand) are pre-
munity support for events, and the need for a sented. Means to enhance the use of events in
good strategic and cultural t between events destination branding, and matters in need of
and destinations. further research are then described.
Each workshop also explored reasons
that some events have not been used success-
fully to help brand destinations. In general,
the reasons for lack of success were phrased Community support for event
in terms of the absence of critical success fac-
tors. Consequently, the following presenta- Workshop participants considered local com-
tion focuses on the factors that were deemed munity support to be the most important fac-
to be critical for successful utilization of tor in determining the success of an event in
events in destination branding. branding a destination. Community involve-
Workshop participants described a num- ment at every stage of planning was seen as
ber of issues that play a role in the successful vital to creating a sense of ownership and
use of events in destination branding. For the pride in the event among the members of the
purpose of this study, and for future research, community. To be truly successful, it was felt
the most commonly mentioned issues have that there needs to be a sense of excitement
been grouped into themes. The two most and occasion in the local community. Strong
important and frequently mentioned themes nancial outcomes for the local business com-
were: (i) the need for local community sup- munity from the event were also considered
port, and (ii) the need for a good strategic and important, as these could lead to partnerships
cultural t with the destination. Other themes and further support from within the local
that emerged were: (iii) the need for an event business community.
250 G. Brown et al.

Event planning Event evaluation

Community support Fit with destination

Differentiation Longevity/tradition Stakeholder Media

Event portfolio synergy

Fig. 15.1. Derived model for planning and evaluating an events contribution to a destinations brand
(Adapted from Jago et al., 2003).

The success of many events is heavily did not support it. As a result, images of the
dependent upon local communities in that event and destination have been somewhat
event patronage is usually dominated by tarnished.
local residents (Crompton and McKay, 1997;
Getz, 1997). Participants noted that members
of the local community need to be advocates Cultural and strategic t of the event
for the event and the branding of the destina- with the destination
tion. It was suggested that there is an element
of image and brand involved with success- Workshop participants frequently noted that
ful events and local communities. If local an event must have a good cultural and stra-
people see themselves as an integral part of tegic t with a destination and its community
the event and are interested in the event, their if it is to play a positive role in branding the
support will have a positive effect on the way destination. It was suggested that t needed
that visitors view the event and the destina- to be obtained across several dimensions,
tion. Volunteers during the Sydney Olympics including values, the culture of the event (and
were given as an example of community sup- its attendees), and the destinations physical
port that was sufciently salient to contribute and communications infrastructure (whether
a friendly dimension to the event, and con- existing and proposed). Because a brand
sequently to the destinations brand. reects values, culture and infrastructure, it
Lack of community support was also was argued that the events values, culture
seen as a major reason for the failure of events and requisite infrastructure need to be consis-
in helping to brand destinations. The Austra- tent with those that the community seeks to
lian Festival of Chamber Music in Queensland communicate through its brand.
was given as an example of an event that, The Brisbane Festival was given as an
owing to its lack of community support, was example of an event that failed to positively
not successful in achieving positive destina- brand the destination because it did not
tion branding. The event, which was speci- reect the local spirit. Pitched to the arts
cally marketed to visitors from outside the elite, the marketing of the event was seen to
region, has been remembered as a failure. The discourage local attendance. As a result, local
community was not proud of the festival and people were reticent in supporting it. This
Events and Destination Management 251

event was compared with the Adelaide It was noted that event visitors may
Festival, which was seen to successfully choose to attend events (or visit events in sub-
reect some of Australias cultural values, sequent years) as a consequence of the unique
and successfully contributed to Adelaides benets that an event provides. It was sug-
branding. gested that the benets obtained by visitors
Participants felt that cultural and strate- could be nancial, cultural, experiential,
gic t need to be ascertained with reference to entertainment or social. Thus, events could
the way a community sees itself and wants to differentiate themselves and the host destina-
be seen by others, rather than with the way tion across an array of different facets. How-
that others currently view it. It was noted that ever, it was also observed that very little is
some events are successful in positively known about the particular benets that visi-
reshaping a destinations brand precisely tors seek or obtain from events, which event
because they convey images and values that elements render or inhibit particular benets,
are different from those associated with the or how those benets become associated with
destination, but that are consistent with what the host destinations brand. Event managers
and how the destination seeks to be per- and destination marketers felt that these top-
ceived. The Woodford Folk Festival in ics warrant further research.
Queensland was given as an example of this
phenomenon, as it has changed Woodfords
image from that of a prison town to one that Longevity/tradition of the event
runs a successful cultural event.
It was suggested that recurring events The need for an event to be ongoing in order
generally rely heavily on the community, and to deliver branding benets to a destination
thus may need to have an even closer t with was frequently identied as important by
the community and destination than is workshop participants. Longevity and tradi-
required for larger events that may occur only tion were seen to reinforce the branding effect
a single time at the destination. Nevertheless, by adding saliency and prole. The Mel-
participants also pointed out that event own- bourne Cup was noted by a number of groups
ers award events to destinations for which as a good example. It was seen not only as
there is a good t between the event and the Australias oldest hallmark event, but also as
destinations attributes. Thus, the necessity of one that involves the community, has devel-
a t between the community and the event is oped integrity over time and reects the
two-way: it is necessary for the event to con- Aussie fun loving character.
tribute to the destinations brand, and it is Although it was often mentioned, lon-
necessary for the destination to contribute to gevity was not rated highly in group discus-
the events own brand. sions. This seems to have been the result, in
part, of the successful contribution that a
number of one-off events have made to desti-
A point of event differentiation nation branding, such as the Sydney and Mel-
bourne Olympics, the Brisbane Expo, the
Participants pointed out that events play a Brisbane and Melbourne Commonwealth
particularly useful role in destination brand- Games and the Americas Cup in Fremantle.
ing when they help the destination to differ- These events are large, high-prole events
entiate itself from others. In this way, the that brought with them a great deal of prole
destinations product mix and the resulting and tradition. Thus, although the event might
benets that the destination can offer are dif- only occur once at a destination, it can still
ferentiated from those of other destinations. provide benet to the destinations brand
This could occur through the specic and through the prole and tradition that it
unique benets afforded to event visitors, or brings.
through the added name recognition and None the less, participants did feel
consequent cachet that an event affords to a that longevity at a particular destination is
destination. important in order for an event to become
252 G. Brown et al.

synonymous with its destination. It was sug- to be more probable in small rural towns, per-
gested that an event could make a particu- haps as the result of a greater degree of coop-
larly useful contribution to branding a erative spirit. Nevertheless, it was argued
destination if it were tied to the same destina- that integration between event management
tion for 510 years. The SydneyHobart Yacht and destination marketing is essential for
Race was noted as a particularly good events to make an optimal contribution to the
example, having been held for more than destinations brand, regardless of the size of
50 years and linking one event with two des- the host community.
tinations. The timing of the event enhances
the impact, as it commences on the Boxing
Day holiday every year, which further
increases the anticipation. Media coverage of an event
Workshop participants pointed out that
events must be nancially sustainable in The medias positive support for events and
order to survive long enough to contribute destinations was mentioned as a factor that
successfully to a destinations brand. Conse- can have a substantial impact on the degree to
quently, each event must rst be sufciently which an event contributes to a destinations
appealing to the acionados who are the brand. To some degree, this was understood
events primary market. Only then can an to be a function of event size, with larger
event establish itself in a manner that contrib- events generating a greater degree of media
utes to the destinations brand. attention, and many small events obtaining
little or no attention beyond the host commu-
nity. However, event images and mentions
are not limited to event publicity. They can
Cooperative event planning also be incorporated into media, including
advertising, that the destination produces
Workshop participants felt that the successful itself. Thus, the media value of an event needs
use of events in destination branding requires to be understood in terms of the reach and
cooperative planning and coordination frequency of event publicity, as well as in
among key players, including event manag- terms of the potential utility of event images
ers, destination marketers and the destina- and mentions in advertising and related
tions government event organization. media that the destination produces itself.
Cooperative planning was also seen to be
necessary to ensure that facilities and access
to destinations were adequate, and that coop-
erative marketing was obtained. This conten- The event portfolio
tion is consistent with other work on
branding, which recommends stakeholders Workshop participants pointed out that it is
cooperation and integrated marketing com- rare for a single event to have a noticeable
munications (Duncan and Moriarty, 1997; effect on a destinations brand. Rather, they
Keller, 1996; de Chernatony, 2001). observed that the entire portfolio of events at
When asked how the working relation- a destination needs to be considered in order
ship between event managers and destina- to build the destinations brand. Thus, each of
tion marketers could be made more effective, the factors noted in the themes above needs
it was suggested that members of the two to be assessed with reference to the full scope
employment domains need to put aside their and quality of events at the destination.
independent agendas and work more coop- In order for events to contribute to the
eratively in the planning and implementation destination brand, their application to desti-
of events. The size of a destination was seen nation branding needs to be developed
to be a factor that may inuence how well through an integrated strategy. It was noted,
organizations work together when staging an for example, that Melbourne and Brisbane
event, with organizational cooperation seen have positioned themselves as event capitals.
Events and Destination Management 253

However, the two cities were seen to have during the rodeo. This, in turn, enhances the
taken different strategic paths, though both impact that the event has on the destinations
have used events successfully. Melbournes regional brand.
diverse calendar of events is itself a major
contributor to the destinations brand, and
the citys emphasis on its range and volume Changing or enhancing a destinations
of events has worked well. Conversely, Bris- brand
bane has sought to rationalize its event pro-
motions by encouraging smaller festivals to The general focus of participants observa-
group together and make use of cooperative tions in the workshop had to do with the uses
marketing opportunities a strategy that also of events to enhance or strengthen a destina-
seems to have been effective. tions existing brand. In order to determine
Participants felt that smaller events how events might be used to change a desti-
which might not otherwise contribute to a nations brand, participants were asked to
destinations brand can contribute to the consider that matter specically. The consen-
destinations capacity to host other events, sus of workshop participants was that it is
and enhance the quality of larger events. appropriate to use events to change a destina-
It was noted that successful local events tions brand, but only if the initiative is led by
can create a positive community attitude the community and is not something that is
towards events, and may also help to imposed upon it. Respondents added that, if
develop event management expertise and an planned well, and with the full backing of the
experienced pool of event volunteers. Each community, an event may lead to new oppor-
of these can contribute to the quality of tunities for the community and might help
larger events, thereby improving the quality the community to develop a greater apprecia-
of impact that those events have on the des- tion of itself.
tinations brand. In effect, smaller events Participants emphasis on community
may contribute indirectly to a destinations leadership when using events to change a
brand by adding to the destinations social destination brand is consistent with their
and human capital. view that there needs to be a cultural and
Similarly, small local events that occur as strategic t between the event and the desti-
augmentations to larger events can build nation. In fact, they felt that the same factors
local identication with the larger event, and that were identied as requisites for events to
can thereby enhance the quality of that contribute to a destination brand are also
events impact on the destination brand. The required when events are used to change a
many local events that make up the Gold destinations brand. They also suggested that
Coasts Indy Carnival during the lead-up to an events role in changing a destination
the Honda Indy 300 race day are an example brand is facilitated when an event affects a
of event augmentations that create a local communitys appreciation of itself. Events
atmosphere which contributes to the destina- were also seen to be particularly benecial if a
tions brand. Small local events can similarly destination seeks to develop infrastructure,
contribute to events that are merely regional enhance its saleability and can do image, or
in scope. One participant from northern inject life back into itself. Queenslands
Queensland described a rodeo event that Woodford Folk Festival was noted as an
plays an important role in her towns devel- example of an event that has successfully
opment of its regional brand. Local interest enhanced a destinations brand, and that has
in the event was enhanced by creating oppor- done so in an appropriate way. As noted
tunities for locals to participate at the same already, before initiation of the event, the des-
time in complementary arts events, such as a tination was synonymous with the Woodford
photo contest, which are themed with the Prison. However, the festival is now so popu-
rodeo. Event augmentations of this kind lar with the community and visitors that it
strengthen local support for the rodeo, and has caused the destinations image to change
enhance the destinations look and feel from a negative to a positive one.
254 G. Brown et al.

Making events more effective tools to the event title. This is comparable to an
for destination branding event naming right, and is a practice that is
used widely and successfully. Examples
The factors represented by the six themes that deemed successful by workshop participants
have been addressed were thought to be include the Melbourne Cup, the Sydney
essential for events to contribute to a destina- Hobart Yacht Race and the Port Fairy Folk
tions brand. However, participants also Festival.
noted that there are a number of related fac-
tors that can enhance the effect of events on a
destinations brand. The most important
were: building an event beyond time in Issues Raised for Further Research
order to capitalize on tourism to the destina-
tion over the long term; building events A number of issues were raised by work-
around community values; ensuring a better shop participants as worthy of further
t with the local image; and ensuring that research. They felt that the matter most
signage and imagery are consistent with the vitally in need of future research is identi-
destinations other efforts to market itself to cation of those elements that make an event
the same target markets. Participants noted attractive, and which thereby bring visitors
that destination managers are often not clear to the destination. This research would
about what they want to achieve from events identify the elements that make one event
with respect to their destination. If events are more desirable than another (e.g. sources of
to be effectively and appropriately incorpo- social value, nancial reward, entertainment
rated into a destinations branding strategy, value), and would identify how those attri-
then there needs to be a clear vision for the butes can be measured. The research would
ways that the event ts into an integrated provide destination marketers with informa-
marketing communications campaign for the tion to assist them in selecting, managing
destination. and setting goals for events as part of their
The need to build an event beyond time brand strategy.
became a matter for focused attention at the The linkages among community, event
workshops. Building an event beyond time and destination brand also require further
refers to the legacy that an event provides. investigation. For example, means to enhance
From the standpoint of branding, the key issue an events legacy by building it beyond time
is the ways that the event becomes part of need to be identied and explored. This
advertising and promotions designed to includes maximizing the promotional bene-
encourage long-term visitor demand for the ts of an event over the long term not
destination. Examples raised by workshop merely for event visitors, but in terms of the
participants included the Brisbane Expo, the ways that the event affects the local commu-
Brisbane Commonwealth Games and the Syd- nitys perception of itself, and the ways that a
ney Olympics, which demonstrated to the community self-perceptions are transferred
world that Australia is a safe destination that to the destinations image.
can host large events. Brisbane workshop par- There was substantial discussion among
ticipants stated that major events like the Com- participants about the benets of recurring
monwealth Games and Expo helped Brisbane events versus larger one-off events. It was
to grow up from a country town to a city that suggested that the matter of community t
enjoys (and is proud of) its modern and sophis- was more important for recurring events than
ticated facilities and tourist attractions. Partici- for one-off events, but the degree to which
pants added that the latter two events also had that might be true needs to be established
a huge impact on the local culture, generating through research. The particular challenges
new nightlife and providing opportunities for of using one-off events versus recurring
local people to experience other cultures. events in destination branding also need to be
Workshop participants also noted that it examined. In this context, it was noted that
can be useful to attach the destinations name mega events should be considered separately
Events and Destination Management 255

from other one-off events. It was observed marketing with the roles, strategies and activ-
that the imagery, branding and media interest ities of event marketing. The second has to do
in the worlds mega events such as the with marketing tactics: the need to identify
Olympic Games, Americas Cup, and Expo the most effective integration of event
put them into a separate category, particu- marketing with destination marketing not
larly in terms of their probable effect on a host merely during the event itself, but also before
destinations brand. and after the event is held.
Finally, it was noted that there is more to The key themes raised by participants
using events in building a destinations brand are themselves worthy of further investiga-
than merely hosting a good event. More work tion. Certainly more needs to be done to
needs to be done to identify the best means to examine the effects that events have on the
link the events brand to that of the destina- community, as well as the effects that events
tion. The best ways to use and to target event can have on a destinations brand. Partici-
visuals and event mentions both during pants made a strong point of the vital links
the event and at other times need to be between a community and its events. While
identied. community support was seen to be vital, it
was also clear that events can affect resi-
dents perceptions of their community.
Discussion However, it is inappropriate to regard com-
munities as homogeneous and it is impor-
The ndings discussed here suggest that the tant to gain more understanding of the
quality of an events impact on destination reasons why some events cultivate support
brand depends, at least in part, on the quality from some local groups while at the same
of the event. This nding has some intuitive time attracting apathy or hostility from
appeal insomuch as the act of hosting causes others. It is encouraging that recent research
the events brand to be associated with that is starting to examine the potentially endur-
of the host destination. However, it might ing psychological impacts of events associ-
also be argued that event quality is at best a ated with concepts such as place identity
necessary but an insufcient basis for build- (e.g. Hixson, 2010).
ing the destinations brand. The impact will Events can also affect the human capital
depend not merely on event quality, but on that communities can deliver to future event
how the event is built into the destinations production. Thus, the effect of events on
overall marketing communications strategy destination brands is both direct and indi-
(Chalip, 2001a). rect. There is the direct effect rendered
The workshop participants focused through media and word of mouth, and
concentration on event quality reects the there is the indirect effect, which is a conse-
generally weak integration of event market- quence of the events impact on the commu-
ing with destination marketing. Participants nity itself. In a sense, events are not merely
resorted to reections about event quality stories that host destinations tell to the
when they found it difcult to articulate spe- world; they are also stories that host desti-
cic uses of events in destination branding. nations tell to themselves. This, in turn, may
In fact, it was not uncommon for destination affect the ways that destinations present
marketers and event marketers to comment themselves to the world, even beyond the
on the separation of their respective tasks time of the event. How that impact ramies
and daily activities. As a consequence, event and how to optimize its outcomes require
marketing and destination marketing have further study.
been treated in practice as separate (albeit The ways in which any particular event
not independent) realms. This separation affects local perceptions of the host commu-
and its consequences highlight two vital nity, visitors perceptions of the destination,
research needs. The rst is institutional: the or mediated positioning of the destination
need to identify means to better link the brand will depend on other events that the
roles, strategies and activities of destination destination hosts. The brand is created not
256 G. Brown et al.

merely through a single piece of the product From a branding perspective, one of the
mix, but via the sum total of messages that key values that events have is the media that
are built from the entire product portfolio (de they can generate for the destination. Yet very
Chernatony and McDonald, 1996; Keller, little is known about the kinds of mentions
1998). Consequently, future work on the role and images that events generate in source
that events play in any particular destination markets, and even less is known about the
brand should consider each event in the con- most effective ways to build event mentions
text of others that the destination hosts. As and images into the destinations marketing
events with merely a local audience may have communications. Work is needed to map the
an effect on local perceptions, and thereby on nature of coverage that host destinations
the image that the community projects, the obtain in event media, and to identify the
synergies among events whether their mar- effects (if any) that these event media have on
kets are local, regional, national or interna- audience perceptions of the destination. Simi-
tional need to be considered. larly, work is needed to identify the best ways
Synergies also need to be understood in to reference or highlight events in destination
terms of the ways that contemporaneous advertising and promotions.
events at the same destination do and do not Studies like those recommended here
augment one another. The market segments have a clearly practical utility. As more is
that are reached and the images of the desti- learnt about the roles and uses of events in
nation that they obtain will be affected by the destination branding, the more effective will
mix, and not merely by the individual ele- become destination marketing. However, the
ments (Chalip, 1992). Like the Gold Coasts study of events and destination branding also
Indy Carnival, events that co-occur can has fundamental scholarly value. The linkage
coalesce to become a single entity. To date, between events and their host destinations is
very little is known about how these comple- a form of co-branding (Rao and Ruekert,
mentarities function, and even less about 1994; Simonin and Ruth, 1998; Washburn
how to use them (Garcia, 2001). More work is et al., 2000). By learning how the events
needed to explore event augmentations, their brand and the destinations brand affect one
role in differentiating events (Green, 2001), another, more will be learnt about the ways
and their consequent effects on destination that people come to encode (and thus make
brand. sense of) their world.

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16 Collaborative Destination Marketing:
Principles and Applications

Youcheng Wang

Introduction leading to new opportunities, innovative


solutions and a greater level of effectiveness,
The development of tourist destinations has which would not have been achieved by the
increasingly focused on a collaboration and partners acting alone.
community approach (Grangsjo, 2003; Wang Previous studies have shown the advan-
and Fesenmaier, 2007). Wood and Gray (1991) tages of promoting a tourist destination by
argue that collaboration occurs when a group involving the relevant tourism businesses in
of autonomous stakeholders of a problem the production and marketing of tourist
domain engage in an interactive process, products at the destination (Palmer and Bejou,
using shared rules, norms and structures to 1995; Buhalis and Cooper, 1998; Weaver and
act or decide upon issues related to that Opperman, 2000; Fyall and Garrod, 2004).
domain. Collaborative destination marketing However, the concept of collaborative desti-
arrangements in the tourism industry involve nation marketing has been challenged by two
a number of stakeholders (both public and factors that make the creation of the neces-
private) working interactively on a common sary inter-community cooperation and col-
issue or problem domain through a process of laboration a complex and difcult process.
exchange of ideas and expertise, and pooling First, the destination marketing task is char-
of nancial and human resources (Vernon acterized by the fragmented nature of the
et al., 2005). Such collaborative marketing tourism stakeholders who are responsible for
activities can be conducted in various forms the components of the total offer (Jamal and
and by focusing on different areas. Examples Getz, 1995; Saxena, 2005). Secondly, no single
of collaborative destination marketing may agency can control and deliver a rich combi-
include joint promotion campaigns, partici- nation of tourism product and service portfo-
pating in cooperative programmes for trade lio at a destination (Bramwell and Lane, 2000;
shows and advertising, organizing familiar- Prideaux and Cooper, 2003). As a result, most
ization tours to travel agents and tour opera- tourism products at a destination have been
tors, sharing information and market marketed and sold in the marketplace in
intelligence, and contributing to destination bits and pieces by a variety of individual
events, among others. Bramwell and Lane suppliers (Gunn, 1988; Laws, 1995). However,
(2000) argue that by combining knowledge, it has been recognized that destination
expertise and capital resources, collaborative marketing and promotion, if done individu-
strategy can produce consensus and synergy, ally and independently by various tourism
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
(eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam) 259
260 Y. Wang

stakeholders, is not conducive to developing single-handedly explain tourism inter-


a holistic image of the destination and so does organizational relationships. The structure of
not enable the destination to succeed in the the tourism industry and the complexity of
long run (Grangsjo, 2003; Fyall and Garrod, destination marketing calls for an integrative
2004). In an increasingly competitive market- approach in order to understand the nature
place, the ability to create greater levels of and dynamism of collaborative destination
awareness of the destination through collab- marketing. This chapter intends to propose a
orative efforts provides an important com- theoretical framework for examining collabor-
petitive advantage for a destination (Palmer ative destination marketing that brings
and Bejou, 1995). together a diverse range of stakeholders in a
In this respect, the interdependency of concerted effort to market and promote the
organizations involved in marketing and pro- destination. First, a theoretical framework
moting the tourism destination provides a using an integrative approach for destination
basis for the development of co-marketing marketing is proposed and elaborated; this
alliances and networks. This arises from rec- includes an array of important issues in collab-
ognition and understanding of the fact that orative destination marketing such as precon-
the success of each organization in the desti- ditions, motivation, the process and outcomes
nation depends in part on other organiza- of collaboration. The chapter further examines
tions, and that two or more of them can the roles and strategies of destination market-
collectively achieve more than the sum of ing organizations (DMOs) in destination col-
each individuals own efforts. While compa- laboration efforts, followed by an analysis of
nies in the manufacturing industry have a strategic relationship congurations within
long history of collaborating to add value the tourism industry in a particular destina-
and/or reduce costs of the nal product, col- tion and the driving factors for this. The chap-
laboration among tourism organizations at ter concludes by discussing the practical
the same level of a value-added network has implications regarding a collaborative
become increasingly important. Thus, there is approach in destination marketing, and direc-
a need to create a means of bringing the tour- tions for future research in this area.
ism industries together for the common pur-
pose of tourism destination marketing
through collaboration, so that these stake- Collaborative Destination Marketing:
holders can be united in their willingness to An Integrative Framework
treat the destination as a single entity and to
help build a strong tourism economy. It is posited that an integrative approach
Despite the signicance and benets of should be used to explain the behaviour of
collaborative destination marketing, adequate tourism organizations in forming marketing
attention has yet to be given to this topic, either alliances and networks. Following Wood and
from a practical or theoretical perspective Gray (1991), and based on multiple inter-
(Fyall and Garrod, 2004; Vernon et al., 2005). views at two destinations in the USA, a con-
The literature on inter-organizational relation- ceptual framework is developed in order to
ships and strategic alliances in general, and on extend the theory of collaboration to collab-
co-marketing alliances and networks in par- orative destination marketing and guide
ticular, has used different theoretical para- research centred on the key issues related to
digms to approach the issue, such as resource its process of formation (see Fig. 16.1). This
dependency theory (Pfeffer and Salancik, conceptual framework is dened by four
1978), transaction cost economics (Williamson, major constructs with the emphasis on the
1975), strategic management theory (Prahalad nature and dynamics of collaborative desti-
and Hamel, 1990) and networking theory nation marketing. These include: (i) the pre-
(Granovetter, 1985; Gulati, 1998). However, condition construct which delineates the
owing to the uniqueness of collaborative economic, social and environmental condi-
destination marketing, none of the above tions for alliance and network formation;
commonly used theoretical paradigms can (ii) the motivation construct which explains
PRECONDITION MOTIVATION STAGES OUTCOMES

Economic Strategy oriented Strategy realization


condition Expand market and Product portfolio
product portfolio development
Maintain Destination
Assembling Ordering Implementation Evaluation Transformation
Crisis or major competitiveness competitiveness
event Issue identification Establish goals Assign roles Assess Evolve into
Transaction cost Partner selection Develop Execute predefined goals stronger Organization
oriented programme programme partnership learning
Organization Efficiency Check against Organization change

Collaborative Destination Marketing


support Economic scale expectations Spawns other and innovation
and scope projects Enhance competency

Changing Learning oriented Continues the Social capital


demands of Expand capability same building
tourists Broaden Relationship and trust
knowledge base Continues in building
different form Value creation through
Organizational Cluster business networks
support competitiveness Finishes
Create value by completely
complementarity
Technology Provide holistic
support experience

Community
responsibility
Meet social
expectation
Obtain credibility
and legitimacy

Fig. 16.1. An integrative framework for collaborative destination marketing (Adapted from Wang and Fesenmaier, 2007).

261
262 Y. Wang

why organizations choose to enter into strate- tion, attractions, cultural, arts and events orga-
gic alliances and networks to achieve their nizations) in 2 weeks in July 2003.
specic goals; (iii) the stage construct which The second destination case selected for
captures the dynamics of collaborative mar- interviews, Orlando, Florida, is home to great
keting processes; and (iv) the outcome con- entertainment, shopping and dining, which
struct which describes the consequences of are ranked by the Orlando CVB as the top
collaborative marketing activities. In addi- three visitors favourite activities. Orlando
tion, the strategic relationship conguration represents an ideal location to study destina-
between local tourism businesses and the tion marketing because of its market diversity
driving factors behind relationship congu- in tourism travel. It is an internationally
ration are examined and discussed based on renowned destination known for its state-of-
the interviews. the-art meeting spaces, its diverse portfolio of
As mentioned above, the conceptual lodgings, restaurants and attractions, and its
framework and other extended issues relat- subtropical climate. Because of the wide range
ing to collaborative destination marketing of facilities that are welcoming to both the
have been developed based on previous the- value and the luxury travel markets, Orlando
ory as well as numerous interviews with con- has become a popular destination for visitors
vention and visitors bureau (CVB) staff and even during the economic downturn. In 2008,
local tourism businesses at two destinations. 44.6 million domestic visitors and 3.1 million
The rst destination is Elkhart County in international visitors from 205 countries vis-
Indiana and the second is Orlando in Florida. ited Orlando. In 2007, all travellers generated
The following section provides brief informa- US$31.1 billion for the local economy. The
tion about the nature of these two destina- Orlando and Orange County CVB (OOC-
tions as well as information on how interview CVB) is the local DMO responsible for gener-
data were collected and analysed. ating brand awareness, increasing leisure
The rst destination case selected for travel, and booking conventions and meet-
interviews, Elkhart County in northern Indi- ings to the destination, and is working exten-
ana, is 150 miles north-east of Indianapolis, sively with local tourism businesses to
100 miles east of Chicago, and 50 miles north- develop a collaborative marketing plan in
west of Fort Wayne. The destination is com- order to better promote the destination. The
posed of three cities (Elkhart, Goshen and OOCCVB works with over 1200 members in
Nappanee) and four towns (Bristol, Middle- six different membership groups (accommo-
bury, Wakarusa and Shipshewana). As the sec- dation members, convention service mem-
ond largest Amish community in North bers, non-prot members, retail members,
America, this destination is collectively pro- transportation members, and visitor and pro-
moted as Northern Indiana Amish Country. fessional service members). Interviews with
Over a million visitors are attracted to the des- seven OOCCVB staff and 32 local tourism busi-
tination annually, with most of them being nesses were conducted during August 2009.
domestic day visitors. The feeder markets
include Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis, south-
west Michigan and northern Indiana; most of Preconditions for marketing alliances
these markets are within a 150 mile radius. The
Elkhart County CVB (ECCVB) is the major In strategic management, it is generally
DMO representing the local community and is accepted that organizations must adapt to
the convener of most of the collaborative mar- their environments in order to survive and
keting campaigns. The ECCVB is funded by prosper. Following Duncan (1972), the envi-
US$12,000,000 of lodging tax collection and ronment can be dened as the relevant
US$200,000 of publication sales from the physical and social factors outside the bound-
ECCVB Vacation Planner. The interviews ary of an organization that are taken into
(about an hour each) were conducted with ve consideration during organizational decision
ECCVB staff and 32 industry representatives making. As such, organizations do not form
covering four industry sectors (accommoda- alliances in a vacuum and their collaborative
Collaborative Destination Marketing 263

behaviours are inuenced and shaped by envi- and typical preconditions for the local tour-
ronmental forces, which set the preconditions ism organizations to form collaborative rela-
for organizations to enter into collaborative tionships, especially when the crisis requires
relationships. Interviews at both destinations collective action. There are always some
indicated that there are several important pre- issues that come up that destinations have
conditions for destination marketing alliances: not planned for. When one of those crises
(i) economic conditions; (ii) crisis or major arrives, destinations have to put people
event; (iii) changing demands of tourists; together for ideas. Most industry representa-
(iv) intra-destination competition; (v) inter- tives supported the view that partnerships
destination competition; (vi) organization are the only effective means of dealing with
support; and (vii) technology support. crises of various types at the destination level.
For example, several of the retail sector com-
Economic conditions panies and theme parks in Orlando indicated
that weather-related factors (e.g. hurricanes,
The poor economic conditions in the USA persistent rain and excessive heat) are major
have had a major impact on the willingness of tourist concerns that affect attendance rates.
tourism businesses to participate in collabor- In order to mitigate the weather concerns of
ative marketing efforts. The Orlando inter- the tourists, these companies try to offer
views indicated that under the current package deals with other tourism companies
difcult economic conditions, businesses (e.g. the Wet-N-Wild Water Park with Prime
become more receptive to collaboration for Outlet Shopping Center). The hotel and event
the purposes of cost sharing in operation and sectors indicated that after 9/11 other loca-
advertising, generating new ideas for pro- tions/destinations began to peel away
moting the entire destination to boost visita- Orlandos group and meeting sales business.
tion and creating superior products for Hotels indicated that the tragedy drastically
consumers. It is clear that tourism rms in intensied their desire to collaborate in mar-
Orlando have expressed concern regarding keting efforts (with direct or indirect competi-
the decrease in tourist arrivals that had tion) in order to avoid losing potential group
occurred over the last year and a half. The business. Exclusive to the event sector, the
marketing managers of the rms interviewed event managers interviewed noted that the
noted that this decrease in arrivals has led to increased fear in contracting an illness while
scarce marketing, advertising and promotion traveling (e.g. swine u) was inuencing
dollars, which has directly led to the increased their rms willingness and motivation to col-
interest in collaborative marketing efforts laborate with other types of rms (not neces-
with other tourism companies. The increased sarily tourism rms) to try and promote
interest in collaborative marketing efforts health and safety. For example, one event
with other tourism companies is reected management rm added value to its event
through the bundling of tourism services and proposal/bid to a national sales meeting with
products supplied by multiple tourism rms. Enterprise Car Rental through the formation
The economic conditions have also stimu- of a marketing partnership with Dr. P. Phil-
lated a dedication from tourism rms to lips Hospital in Orlando.
design a superior tourist product through the
bundling of services and goods with partner- Changing demands of tourists
ing tourism businesses. This trend is particu-
larly specic, but not exclusive, to the hotel Emerging tourist travelling trends and uc-
industry and event sectors. tuating demand patterns (seasonality) of
tourists and/or locals seemed to also trigger
Crisis or major event tourism rms (particularly small rms) to
participate in collaborative marketing
The interviews in the two destinations efforts with other businesses. Several event
revealed that a crisis or major event (e.g. 9/11 and hotel rms noted that the increased
and hurricanes) is one of the most important demand for green products/events was a
264 Y. Wang

growing request from tourists to Orlando room rate reduction. At the same time, small
and the corporate meeting segment; this has companies in specic industry sectors are
ultimately forced the companies to venture inclined to work with each other to form con-
into agreements with other rms that are sortia so as not to be smashed by the
able to supply the green requests to the Orlando big guys. For example, the smaller
tourists/clients. In addition, the increased attraction companies who are in a disadvan-
cost of fuel has resulted in a rise in transpor- taged position to compete with Disneys
tation costs to the destination which has advertising and marketing budget form
deterred some of the expected tourists. To partnerships to share advertising costs and
overcome this challenge, the tourism indus- reach a larger audience. The OOCCVB has
try has looked to form marketing partner- also attempted to increase Orlandos propen-
ships with either tour operating companies sity to receive city-wide events that they feel
or transportation companies. For example, all tourism rms may benet from by
Disney partners with an airline company to collectively incorporating hotel bands that
reduce the air fare available to tourists work together to support the city-wide
coming to Disney. event if it is awarded to Orlando (e.g. a Pro-
fessional Convention Management Associa-
Intra-destination competition and tion (PCMA) bid).
performance
Inter-destination competition
Another important precondition for the
development of collaboration relationships is From a macroeconomic perspective, the inter-
related to the increasing competition in the views revealed that external competition
marketplace and the pressure for better desti- from surrounding areas is an immediate con-
nation performance in order to attract busi- cern for both destinations. This environmen-
ness. Under such circumstances, organizations tal condition increases the likelihood that
tend to work with each other and pool tourism rms are willing to work together to
resources together in order to achieve some- promote the destination in competition with
thing that they could not achieve simply by other destinations. For example, the hotel and
individual efforts. In Orlando, it seems that theme park sectors in Orlando readily admit-
the hotel, theme park and attraction sectors ted that in order to prevent continued future
noted that the level of competition within the loss of tourists interests to other destinations,
destination has rapidly increased as a result they would have to come together in a col-
of the decrease in the amount of tourist arriv- laborative market to correctly position the
als to Orlando. In order to overcome the destination in the minds of tourists. They
increased level of competition from the inter- advocated that the tourism rm mind-set
nal marketplace, rms have explored oppor- must change from in the market to market
tunities and methods to increase demand for to market. Larger hotels, attractions and
Orlando as a destination. Efforts to increase theme parks also realized that from a future
demand have been made particularly by the perspective it is necessary to overcome inter-
hotel sector in its search for means to work nal competition within the destination before
with other businesses to create value-added forming any competitive strategies against
packages in order to increase the severely other destinations.
depleted occupancy levels/rates. For exam-
ple, Marriott partners with Universal Studios Organizational support
in an attempt to build a better package deal
than Disney, and both Universal Studios and During the interviews, a number of represen-
the Marriott Hotels benet. One hotel man- tatives indicated that organizational support
ager noted that in order to compensate for the serves as a very important precondition for
discounts that Disney offers they must part- them to enter into alliance relationships with
ner with other businesses because their con- others. This is probably because the success of
tribution margins cannot afford to have deep the collaborative activities is not based just
Collaborative Destination Marketing 265

upon individual efforts, but rather reects Motivation for entering into marketing
the values of the entire organization. alliances
The interviews revealed that leadership, atti-
tude toward cooperation, communication, Organizations and businesses enter into
resources and competency are important fac- collaborative relationships with different
tors supporting collaboration. For example, motivations, ranging from social to economic
strong leadership was mentioned repeatedly to strategic. These motivations can be classi-
as an important organizational support for ed into ve broad categories: strategy
executing co-marketing campaigns, because oriented, transaction-cost oriented, learning
the leader sets the tone and provides direc- oriented, cluster competitiveness and com-
tion for the organization, especially in small munity responsibility. Accordingly, different
organizations. A positive attitude to coopera- approaches have been developed to study
tion is the mentality required for successful these motivations. As recognized by Kogut
collaboration. The open communication envi- (1988), these theoretical approaches are par-
ronment within the organization has to be ticularly appropriate for explaining the choice
guaranteed so that there will be no barriers to and motivations of alliance formation.
smooth communication and information
sharing on a constant basis, thus encouraging Strategy-oriented motivation
the partners to stick to the collaboration
efforts. Besides this, partner organizations The strategic behaviour approach (Bleeke
need to have ample and sufcient resources and Ernst, 1993; Ohmae, 1989) focuses on the
to support the collaboration effort and to consequences for the competitive positioning
ensure its success. These organizational of the organization. According to this view,
resources can be represented by different the formation of inter-organizational linkages
forms, such as support from other employees can be explained as the strategic or resource
and nancial support. In addition, the organi- needs of organizations (Hamel, 1991; Hage-
zation should have the competence necessary doorn and Schakenraad, 1994). According to
for planning and executing the collaboration Pearce (1989), tourism organizations are set
activities in the eyes of the partners. up to achieve goals when these goals are best
met by combined activities based on the par-
ticipants working within a formal structure.
Technology support
Bramwell and Rawding (1994) argued that
Information technology seems to be playing certain characteristics of the tourism industry
important roles either as a driving force to may provide encouragement to the formation
collaboration or as a facilitating tool during of inter-organizational relationships, such as
the collaboration process. It was revealed in the interdependence of a wide range of goods
the interviews that some of the salient and services comprising the tourism product,
advantages of technology include keeping the small scale of many individual operators
information updated, opening up more and the spatial separation of the destination
opportunities, allowing for more and effec- area from where the tourist lives. In particu-
tive communications, and making a virtual lar, the destination as a whole and the tour-
information repository possible. However, ism organizations involved will only be able
there are some challenges in terms of effec- to gain competitive advantage by bringing
tive use of technology for collaborative mar- together their knowledge, expertise, capital
keting purposes. One industry representative and other resources (Pearce 1989). It is increas-
pointed out that technology changes so fast ingly difcult for individual tourism organi-
that everyone has a hard time to keep up zations to make decisions unilaterally without
with it, especially small businesses. It was taking the interests of other tourism organiza-
further suggested that most of small busi- tions into account. In addition, increased
nesses do not have the resources, expertise, competitive pressures have prompted collab-
knowledge and training to make effective oration between tourism organizations trying
use of technology. to gain access to new assets, markets and
266 Y. Wang

technologies, or trying to spread the cost of want to work with each other in order to gain
marketing innovation over several parties a better understanding of the marketplace.
(Selin, 1993), which can eventually improve From the CVBs perspective, the more infor-
their strategic positions in the marketplace. In mation they have at their ngertips, the more
the tourism context, expanding markets and helpful they think they would be to both their
developing a portfolio of attractions for the direct partners and to the business commu-
local destination are important motivations nity in general. The same view was shared by
for DMOs and the local tourism industry to several representatives of the tourism indus-
work together. From the industry perspec- try. From their viewpoint, the more they work
tive, it is believed that increasing the portfolio with each other, the more they will under-
of product offers will not only provide con- stand the local businesses related to them and
sumers with more opportunities from which the opportunities that are available, and the
to choose, but will also make it possible for more they will possibly identify good part-
visitors to stay longer. Many industry ners to work with. In addition, most of the
representatives understand that working representatives believed that the CVBs have
together and providing a holistic experience the knowledge base and expertise that they
to consumers is the only way to make the des- need, and that the process of working with
tination more competitive and sustainable in the CVBs is a learning process itself. In other
the long term, thus enhancing economic gains words, working with others is one way to
for the entire community. expand their own capabilities by broadening
their knowledge base.
Transaction-cost-oriented motivation
Cluster competitiveness
From the transaction-cost perspective, orga-
nizations entering into alliances and net- Cluster competitiveness can trace its theoreti-
works are driven by the need for efciency, cal foundation from cluster theory (Gunn,
with the emphasis on providing incentives 1988; Porter, 1990), developed to explain cer-
for efcient transactions and economizing on tain economic development phenomena.
transaction costs (Williamson, 1975, 1985). It Clusters are viewed as encompassing an
appears from the interviews at both destina- array of linked industries and other entities
tions that cost efciency is a key motivation important to competition as a destination;
driving the CVB and the local tourism indus- they provide complementary travel products
try to work together. From the CVB perspec- and services and offer a holistic experience to
tive, tourism businesses are able to do so travellers. These complementarities come in
much more when they work with others by many forms, with the most obvious being
leveraging their resources together. They can when products complement one another in
be more powerful, get more public relations meeting customer needs. For example, the
covered and see more value in what they do. quality of a tourists visit to the tourism clus-
At the regional level, it is more efcient and ter in a destination is reliant upon the quality
effective to work together as they can convey and efciency of complementary businesses
the general picture of the destination collec- such as accommodation, attractions, retail
tively at reduced costs. outlets, etc. This view was shared by quite a
number of local tourism businesses. One
Learning-related motivations business manager observed that you cannot
make all by yourself. No one is going to travel
Organizational learning perspective focuses just to see me. They are going to come to see
on the ability of organizations to extract new me because they can also see the people next
knowledge and skills or to protect core com- door and do lots of other things. The same
petences from competitors (Parkhe, 1993; logic was expressed by a manager from a
Baum et al., 2000; Saxena, 2005; Dredge, 2006). camping ground in Indiana: Theyll stay lon-
Interviews from both destinations indicated ger if they enjoy our area we really need
that tourism businesses revealed that they partners in the area so that we can provide
Collaborative Destination Marketing 267

more things to do for the travelers. We can setting, direction setting and structuring.
only become more competitive as a group Selin and Chavez (1995) also used the same
and that is what we should be thinking. three phases to describe the evolutionary pro-
cess in tourism planning. A more recent
Community responsibility attempt by Bailey and Koney (2000) outlined
four phases to describe the developmental
On many occasions organizations enter col- process of strategic alliances.
laborative relationships in order to address a There are several limitations in these
certain community issue or public concern. studies. First, the existence of different termi-
Organizations motivated by this desire are nologies suggests that there is little consensus
responding from a perspective of social in the understanding of the collaboration pro-
responsibility (Carroll, 1991, 1999). Because cess. Secondly, the terminologies and their
the mission of the CVB is generally linked to elaborations only reect the fragmented and
community development, this is often a criti- discrete aspects of the collaboration stages at
cal aspect motivating the CVBs active par- best, and so there is a lack of understanding
ticipation. Another aspect of the community of the whole process from the beginning
responsibility framework is the goal of to the end. In addition, the studies have
increasing goodwill in the community. In this embraced a static and linear approach
case, an organization may establish itself as a in studying the collaboration process. In real-
member of an alliance to enhance its reputa- ity, collaboration stages do not necessarily
tion with its consumers and local constituents manifest a sequential order; instead, they
(Freeman, 1984; Wood, 1991). By participat- are embedded in a dynamic and cyclical pro-
ing in and leading the alliance, the CVB can cess whereby cooperation, conict and com-
demonstrate to the community that it is con- promise coexist, and various governance
cerned about and actively responding to the structures are negotiated to ensure that the
tourism stakeholders needs and expectations whole collaboration process is smooth and
so that it can enhance its credibility and legit- successful. As such, it is proposed that there
imacy in the community. are ve stages in the collaboration process,
including: (i) the assembling stage; (ii) the
ordering stage; (iii) the implementation stage;
Stages of marketing alliance formation (iv) the evaluation stage; and (v) the transfor-
mation stage.
Collaboration can be dened as a process of The assembling stage describes a process
shared decision making among key stake- of issue identication and partner selection so
holders of a problem domain about the future that understanding can be built around it
of that domain (Gray, 1985). Within the tour- (McCann, 1983; Bailey and Koney, 2000).
ism domain, this involves joint decision mak- First, it is concerned with identifying and
ing among all those parties having an interest mutually acknowledging the key issues
or stake in tourism destination marketing. A within a problem domain among the poten-
number of studies have been conducted to tial partners (Gray, 1985). It is important at
model the collaborative processes in different this stage that a consensus is reached about
disciplines. For example, Waddock (1989) what the joint issue is, who has a legitimate
argued that three concurrent processes can be stake in the issue, and whether the parties
identied at the start of a partnership: issue involved have a common problem denition.
crystallization, coalition building and pur- At the same time, the initiation of the collabo-
pose formulation. These are continuous ration will depend on the level of the per-
processes that are interactive and constantly ceived benets of the parties and the
inuence the strategic thrust and pragmatic perceived salience of the problem (Selin and
developments of the partnership. Similarly, Chavez, 1995). Secondly, the initiation of col-
McCann (1983) observed that collaboration laborative relationships requires the selection
develops through a natural process consist- of partners, which includes recognition of
ing of three sequential phases: problem interdependence, domain consensus, goal
268 Y. Wang

similarity, partner t and mutual trust (Selin organization and action. Most importantly, an
and Chavez, 1995). These factors inuence effort aimed at fostering a shared vision and
the formation and operation of tourism mar- breaking down any existing stereotypes or
keting alliances in different ways. For exam- lack of trust among participants is often
ple, interdependence requires destination needed to ensure a successful collaboration
organizations to draw together different sec- (Waddock, 1989). This is because the collab-
tors of the tourism industry for the goal of orative marketing process brings together
effective destination marketing (Pearce, 1989; various types of tourism organizations (both
Selin and Beason, 1991). Interdependence private and public) who have different ideol-
also generates a need to coordinate the differ- ogies and values (Rainey, 1983). Such differ-
ent sectors to ensure that they function har- ences may upset the equilibrium of the
moniously. Interdependence, small size, collaborative effort if they are not reconciled
market fragmentation and spatial separation (Waddock, 1989). In addition, strongly held
are all factors that may lead to a desire for stereotypes, which inhibit productive interac-
combined actions, a willingness to unite to tions, may exist in the collaboration process
achieve common goals and a need to form (Gray, 1985).
collaborative alliances (Murphy, 1985; Pearce, The implementation stage is introduced
1992; Jamal and Getz, 1995). after the rst two preparation stages, and is
The stage of assembling gives way to the where ideas and thoughts are put into action,
ordering stage where ideas identied in the and plans and strategies are operationalized.
previous stage are streamlined and sorted In this stage, the parties involved reassess the
through, and efforts are made to arrive at a costs and benets of the project and assign
shared vision among all the parties involved roles among partners so that everybody is
so that appropriate actions can be taken (Selin clear about their responsibilities. In order to
and Chavez, 1995; Bailey and Koney, 2000). ensure the success of these activities, a suit-
The purpose of the ordering stage is to align able structure and effective means of commu-
all the resources available and make sure that nication are required. For example, Selin
everything is working towards the success of (1993) noted that, for collaboration to succeed
the collaborative project. At this stage of the and persist over time, there is a need to man-
collaboration, stakeholders share interpreta- age stakeholder interactions in a systematic
tions about the future of the project and begin manner through establishing the structure for
to foster and appreciate a sense of common the implementation of the collaborative activ-
purpose (McCann, 1983). At the same time, ities. This is because the collaborative rela-
they establish specic goals to achieve, set tionships are dynamic, and collaborative
rules and an agenda for realizing the goals, marketing activities must take into account
collect and share information, explore and not only the common wishes of all stakehold-
compare options and alternatives, and select ers but also divergent views resulting from
viable solutions. According to Wood and each individual stakeholders own business
Gray (1991), collaboration occurs when a strategies. Thus, the structure is used to
group of autonomous stakeholders of a prob- ensure that all stakeholders ascribe to shared
lem domain engage in an interactive process, meanings and coordinate each individual
using shared rules, norms and structures, to stakeholder in terms of its roles and responsi-
act or decide on issues related to that domain. bilities in the network of relationships. Fur-
Stakeholders are autonomous in that they ther, mutual communication is also critical
retain independent decision-making powers for successful collaboration in the tourism
even when they agree to work with each industry. An accurate reading of the environ-
other within a framework of rules or other ment, especially of the availability of
expectations. The denition given by Wood exchange partners and of the goodness of t
and Gray (1991) suggests that participants between the organizations involved, greatly
must work together with at least the intention depends upon the quality and frequency of
to develop a mutual orientation in response mutual communication (Selin and Chavez,
to an issue, e.g. to determine direction, 1995). Following Bailey and Koney (2000), it
Collaborative Destination Marketing 269

is posited that, as the alliance moves into the earlier to review the effectiveness of the
implementation stage, the alliance leaders alliance as it moves through the stage, and
and members must understand clearly the make decisions about their next move(s) (Bai-
costs and benets of membership, their new ley and Koney, 2000). It is suggested that the
roles and how they t into the larger context transformation stage may offer several possi-
through effective ways of communication. bilities for the future direction of the tourism
Evaluation is another important stage in marketing alliance: the alliance may become
the collaboration process for most of the stronger; the alliance may generate more
tourism organizations involved, especially projects; the alliance may continue
the leading organizations. Evaluation takes unchanged; or the alliance may formally end.
a retrospective perspective and assesses It should be noted that not all collabora-
whether the predened goals and objectives tions proceed through these stages in
have been achieved (Gray, 1989). The evalua- sequence. In other words, the collaboration
tion stage involves a number of activities, stages are not necessarily separate and dis-
such as reviewing individual projects and tinct in practice. Overlapping and recycling
making decisions with respect to continuing back to earlier issues that are not addressed
the current projects, revising the project plans, may be necessary, particularly if leadership
planning and executing other similar proj- is conicted or third-party facilitation is
ects, and ensuring accountability in opera- absent (Bailey and Koney, 2000). For exam-
tions. What is vital is to draw lessons and ple, issues in the assembling stage may con-
produce recommendations through analyses tinually appear during the ordering stage.
of the factors affecting the project results and Failure to address a critical issue adequately
utilize them for improvements in the process. in a certain stage can severely hamper the
Various measures can be taken to serve the success of the collaborative efforts (Selin and
evaluation purpose, such as assessing pre- Chavez, 1995).
dened goals, revisiting business plans, eval-
uating predened objectives, documentation,
checking against expectations, informal
follow-ups, benchmarking against previous Outcomes of marketing alliances
projects, etc. (Gray, 1989; Borden, 1997).
In the transformation stage, members in Collaboration inevitably leads to outcomes
an alliance determine the future direction of that are usually multifaceted and contingent
their relationships at some point in the life upon the context in which the collaboration
cycle of a tourism collaborative marketing takes place. There are three broad categories
project. The transformation stage is generally of outcomes resulting from collaborative
precipitated by a specic event or guidance, marketing: strategy realization, organiza-
such as the accomplishment of the alliances tional learning and social capital building.
initial goal or the end of the initial term set for First, the realization of strategy is directly
the marketing alliances work (Bailey and reected in the enhanced competitive advan-
Koney, 2000). It is conceivable that during the tage of tourism organizations that occurs
transformation stage, participants will usu- through collaboration. Within the destination
ally revisit the salient issues at each of the context, this enhanced competitive advantage
previous stages, including their commitment may include shared marketing cost, effective
to the alliance, and determine if and how the use of pooled resources, increased destina-
alliance should proceed. That is, the individ- tion competitiveness, competitive branding
ual tourism stakeholders will assess whether and image building, and an improved
the purpose and activities of the alliance are product portfolio (Gunn, 1988; Pearce, 1992;
still consistent with their own goals and Selin, 1993; Jamal and Getz, 1995; Selin and
resources. In the transformation stage, which Chavez, 1995).
is characterized by change and reection, The second category of collaboration
tourism stakeholders informally and for- outcome is related to organizational learning.
mally use the evaluation system established Collaboration can essentially be characterized
270 Y. Wang

as a joint learning experience (Doz, 1988) and the destination level, to say that social capital
a vehicle by which rms transfer knowledge is productive is an understatement: no one
(Kogut, 1988). Through collaboration, organi- can be successful or even survive without
zations purposefully acquire knowledge in the interconnected relationships among the
order to increase their competences (Hage- various tourism businesses.
doorn, 1993). Within the tourism context, col-
laborative destination marketing involves a
range of stakeholders, who may bring their
knowledge, expertise and other capacities to Destination Marketing: Competition,
the collaborative marketing efforts which, in Cooperation or Coopetition?
turn, will introduce change, improvement
and innovation through the interaction pro- Understanding the working relationships
cess (Anand and Khanna, 2000; Kale et al., among tourism businesses at a destination is
2000). In other words, organizational learn- a critical prerequisite to the success of many
ing-related outcomes for tourism organiza- collaborative destination marketing pro-
tions are manifested in knowledge transfer, grammes (Terpstra and Simonin, 1993). When
organization change and innovation, and tourism stakeholders/businesses at a desti-
improvement in the various types of skills nation participate in collaborative marketing,
required for collaboration, such as people there are many relationship forms they can
skills, communication skills and problem- choose, ranging from loose connections to
solving skills. more formal and integrated relationships
The third category of collaboration out- (Bailey and Koney, 2000). For example, infor-
come is social capital building. Social capital mal afliation manifested by loose linkages
refers to the resources available in and and connections may represent the least
through personal and business networks developed and integrated working relation-
(Granovetter, 1985). These resources include ship as this type of relationship only requires
information, ideas, leads, business opportu- the organizations involved to demonstrate
nities, power and inuence, emotional sup- similar interests and sometimes the good
port and even good will, trust and the spirit faith of mutual support (Bailey and Koney,
of cooperation. The notion of social capital 2000). At the other end of the relationship
suggests that these resources reside in net- continuum, a joint venture might represent a
works of relationships (Burt, 1997). In other more developed and integrated relationship
words, if human capital can be understood as in which two or more members work together
what one knows (the sum of ones own on a separate project (Ring and Van de Ven,
knowledge, skills and experience), then 1994). Other forms of working relationships
access to social capital depends on who one might also appear in this continuum of
knows the size, quality and diversity of arrangement (Bailey and Koney, 2000). In the
ones personal and business networks tourism context, what is more common is the
(Granovetter, 1985). Social capital built loosely formed alliance of tourism organiza-
through collaborative destination marketing tions, such as regional or local tourism
mainly lies in the benets of relationships and associations, and other marketing alliances
trust established among the various sectors of initiated and organized by local DMOs (Hen-
the tourism industry as well as among indi- derson, 2001; Prideaux and Cooper, 2003;
vidual organizations in the destination; this Saxena, 2005; Wang and Fesenmaier, 2007;
may be harnessed as high-quality informa- Wang and Xiang, 2007).
tion, future project opportunities and the Though there is a signicant and growing
spirit of collaboration within the destination. amount of theoretical and empirical research
Social capital, like human capital or nancial devoted to understanding the formation of
capital, is productive; it enables network these relationships (Watkins and Bell, 2002), a
partners to create value, get things done, systematic denition and description of rela-
achieve their goals, full their missions and tionships as seen by the tourism industry
make the destination more competitive. At would contribute to the understanding of
Collaborative Destination Marketing 271

how businesses perceive their relationships considered as a relatively more formal process
with their counterparts, and how they move involving regular, face-to-face dialogue. This
from one existing mode of relationship to view is supported by other researchers who
another (Watkins and Bell, 2002). Relating to argue that collaboration is an intensive form
this, an understanding of the driving factors of mutual attachment in which actors are
behind the dynamic conguration of the busi- bound together by the mutually supportive
ness relationships will not only provide a pursuit of individual collective benets (Hux-
theoretical contribution but also offer practi- ham, 1996). Jamal and Getz (1995) applied the
cal guidelines to the successful and sustain- concept of collaboration to community-based
able operation of destination marketing tourism planning and dene it as a process of
alliances (Palmer, 2002). In addition, the frag- joint decision making among autonomous,
mentation of the tourism industry and the key stakeholders of an inter-organizational,
complexity of destination marketing call for a community tourism domain to resolve plan-
collective approach to destination marketing; ning problems of the domain and/or manage
how the tourism industry in a destination issues related to the planning and develop-
keeps the balance between cooperation and ment of the domain.
competition determines, to a great extent, the Other researchers use the term strategic
effectiveness of their destination marketing alliance to refer to a more formal and struc-
efforts, as well as the long-term competitive- tured working relationships between organi-
ness and success of that destination (Palmer zations (e.g. Parkhe, 1993; Terpstra and
and Bejou, 1995). Simonin, 1993). Strategic alliance is dened as
An extensive and critical review of the organizational arrangements and operating
literature in the general business area indi- policies through which separate organiza-
cates that different terms have been used to tions share administrative authority and form
describe the working relationships between social links through more open-ended con-
and among businesses. For example, Fyall tractual arrangements as opposed to very
and Garrod (2004) used the term coordina- specic, arms length contracts (Witt and
tion and described it as a process whereby Moutinho, 1989). Strategic alliances are con-
two or more organizations create and/or use cerned with issues of how to obtain resources
existing decision rules that have been estab- through partnership (Witt and Moutinho,
lished to deal collectively with their shared- 1995; Henderson, 2001). The concept has been
task environment. Others use the term applied to tourism marketing alliances, which
cooperation to refer to the links that bring are contractual relationships undertaken by
organizations together, thereby enhancing tourism businesses whose respective prod-
their ability to compete in the marketplace ucts complement each other in the market-
(Lynch, 1990). Palmer (2002) applied the place (Palmer and Bejou, 1995; Fyall and
cooperative concept to marketing, stating Garrod, 2004).
that cooperative marketing groups are As can be seen, the majority of the litera-
groups of independent businesses that recog- ture describing inter-organizational relation-
nize the advantages of developing markets ships tends to focus on the cooperative aspect
jointly rather than in isolation. of the relationship; the competitive aspect of
Beyond coordination, collaboration is a the relationship is usually neglected. In addi-
commonly used term to describe a more for- tion, there is limited evidence to provide sys-
mal type of working relationship between tematic and empirical support as to why
businesses and organizations (Wood and organizations switch between the different
Gray, 1991; Selin, 1993). Wood and Gray modes of relationships, particularly in rela-
(1991, p. 146) dene it as a process when a tion to cooperation and competition. Doz
group of autonomous stakeholders of a prob- (1996) attempts to make a link between the
lem domain engage in an interactive process, various relationship congurations with
using shared rules, norms, and structure, to exogenous environmental dynamics, arguing
act or decide on issues related to that domain. that a shift in the strategic priorities of a rm,
They argue that collaborative interaction is or a loss of leadership which makes a partner
272 Y. Wang

less attractive than it was earlier, are all Forms of business relationships in
drivers to shift the balance from a more coop- destination marketing
erative to more competitive mind-set. Koza
and Lewin (1998) try to understand the issue Findings from the interviews in the two desti-
from a market perspective. They believe that nations indicated that tourism businesses
the proximity of an activity to its customer engage in various forms of relationships in
seems to be of importance for the division their destination marketing efforts, ranging
between cooperative and competitive interac- from competition to cooperation to the hybrid
tions. That is, the cooperative or competitive behaviour comprising competition and coop-
relationship are divided owing to the close- eration that is referred to as coopetition. The
ness of an activity to the customer, in that relationship can be best demonstrated in
rms compete in activities close to the cus- Fig. 16.2, where competition and cooperation
tomer and cooperate in activities far from the are two diametrically different logics of
customer. behaviour, but where coopetition behaviour
This leads to another term coopetition can be observed in between from time to
introduced by other researchers (e.g. Bengts- time. Competitive behaviour is observed
son and Kock, 2000; Gnyawali and Madha- when individual tourism businesses try to
van, 2001) who argue that organizations do maximize their own interests and do not par-
not always engage in either competitive or ticipate in collective action; the different self-
cooperative relationships with each other; interests are often in conict with each other
rather, these relationships can often coexist. and, as a result, businesses compete against
In this stream of literature, the term coopeti- each other to best full their own self-
tion is dened as simultaneous cooperation interests. Cooperative behaviour is based on
and competition (Brandenburger and Nale- a diametrically opposite rationale in which
buff, 1996). However, the two traditional individual tourism businesses participate in
research perspectives of competition and collective actions to achieve common goals.
cooperation have evolved as different Coopetition relationships are complex as they
research streams. In competition, the focus is consist of two diametrically different logics of
on value-appropriation strategies, whereas in interaction. Tourism businesses involved in
cooperation, the focus is on collective strate- coopetition are involved in a relationship
gies for value generation (Moore, 1993; that, on the one hand, consists of competition
Gnyawali and Madhavan, 2001). In the tour- resulting from conicting interests and, on
ism context, in order to provide the products the other hand, consists of cooperation aris-
and services for consumption, destinations ing from common interests. It should be
have to effectively coordinate resources and noted that most of the interviewees focused
capabilities between participating businesses, much of their discussion on cooperation
which requires both cooperation and compe- rather than competition or coopetition, indi-
tition. However, there is no coherent theoreti- cating that cooperation is taking the central
cal basis for understanding the balance stage as the dominant way of thinking when
between competition and cooperation in the it comes to destination marketing.
management literature; nor is the manner in The interview ndings indicated that
which tourism businesses in a destination can cooperative relationships among the tourism
engage in coopetitive relationships supported organizations in destination marketing exist
by the tourism literature. Based on the inter- with different forms at different levels. These
views previously described from the two des- alternatives range from loosely connected
tinations, a summary of reports has been relationships to those that are very formal
provided that focuses on three issues: (i) and integrated. Very often tourism organiza-
forms of business relationships in destination tions nd that there is no need for them to
marketing; (ii) the driving factors for relation- enter into a formal and complex relationship
ship conguration in a destination; and (iii) if the intention is merely to exchange infor-
the strategic choice of cooperation versus mation about a particular issue or client.
competition in a destination. The arrays of relationships can be broadly
Low Maturity of destination marketing approach High

Weak Leadership of local destination marketing organization (DMO) Strong

Affiliation Coordination Collaboration Strategic networks


Supporting one another through Pursuing individual business Securing a long-term Striving for long-term shared
informal exchange of information, goals through coordinating business advantage through vision and strategy for the
endorsements and referrals; activities with other compatible developing joint strategies destination at large; system
personal relationship important businesses; aligning self-interest towards shared purposes; approach for achieving
with others interests frequent commitment to destination success
regional marketing efforts

Collaborative Destination Marketing


Co Co Co
mp ope ope
etit titio rati
ion n on

Near Distance of marketing campaign Far

Micro Focus of strategic thinking Macro

273
Fig. 16.2. Relationship conguration within the tourism industry and the determining factors (Adapted from Watkins and Bell, 2002).
274 Y. Wang

manifested in four forms in a continuum to pursue their individual organizational


dened by various degrees of formalization, goals better by arranging their activities with
integration and structural complexity the activities of other compatible organiza-
required by the nature and mission of the tions, and by aligning self-interest with oth-
marketing project. These four forms of busi- ers interests. Some typical examples of
ness relationships can be termed afliation, coordination relationships in the destination
coordination, collaboration and strategic net- are usually fairs and related events where
works (see also Fig. 16.2). It should be noted tourism businesses coordinate their activities
that although these four forms of relation- and contribute to the common activities in
ships follow a logical order of low to high for- different forms, such as manpower, ideas and
malization, integration and structural even nancial contributions. Such coordina-
complexity, they are only indicative, not tion may include two tourism organizations
exhaustive, in describing the cooperative sharing information about programme activi-
working relationships among tourism busi- ties, and deciding to change their programme
nesses in the destination. The interviews also contents and schedules in order to better
lend support to the observation that not all serve their common customers. Such pro-
business relationships have to follow such a grammes may also include tourism busi-
linearly sequential order; rather, the relation- nesses in the destination participating in
ships are scenario based, depending on the marketing campaigns organized by the CVB
types of organizations involved and the to which they contribute in different forms
nature of the projects undertaken. The follow- according to the resources available. For
ing is a description of observations of the four example, in a collaborative destination mar-
forms of cooperative relationships. keting campaign such as a familiarization
It was demonstrated by the interviews tour, hotels may provide meeting space and
that afliation is the most informal linkage accommodation services; attractions may
among tourism organizations and, as a result, provide sightseeing opportunities; restau-
can be used the most easily. It often reects an rants may participate by providing
initial level of trust and commitment among complimentary dining experiences; and
the tourism organizations concerned, and is transportation companies may offer easy
best maintained when connections or link- access to various locations in the destination
ages between tourism organizations are made for the tour group. In this case, all the stake-
person-to-person rather than organization-to- holders coordinate with each other to achieve
organization. This point is made by many the common goal: sell the destination. Quite a
industry representatives who claim that their number of stakeholders asserted that they
relationships often stay at the personal level, have developed more formal relationships
and that this can serve as the basis for further through the CVB or a chamber of commerce,
business-to-business relationship develop- and regard the experience of coordination as
ment. In other words, tourism organizations a commitment to being part of the industry in
afliated with each other continue to operate the local community.
independently while supporting one another Tourism organizations may sometimes
through the exchange of information, feel the need to go beyond coordinating their
endorsements and making referrals, usually operations around a certain event or practical
on an informal and ad hoc basis. goal; they may want to develop a joint strat-
At the next level, coordination allows egy or common set of strategies for working
otherwise autonomous tourism organiza- collectively toward a shared purpose. In this
tions to align their activities to support events collaborative relationship, each person or
or services by implementing common tasks. organization wants to help not only them-
The integration of staff or activities is minimal selves but also their partners become better at
and tied to the accomplishment of specic what they do. In a collaborative agreement,
tasks. Policies and procedures are generally tourism organizations usually develop a for-
kept relatively informal. The focus of the mal plan for working together on a regular
coordination is on the ability of stakeholders basis. These relationships are typically
Collaborative Destination Marketing 275

dened through memoranda of understand- focus on individual tourism organizations is


ing, contracts or other formal agreements. relevant only for understanding how and
Throughout the interviews, collaboration why each organization contributes to the
was described as a formalized arrangement overall implementation of the service. This
between two or more complementary entities was demonstrated by one industry represen-
for the purpose of securing a longer term tative from Indiana, who said: In order to be
business advantage. Collaboration is more successful as an individual business, we have
formalized than coordination and requires a to be successful as a destination, and every-
longer term commitment. This type of rela- body has to be successful we are tied to
tionship allows members align themselves in the whole network and if we do not think
a professional and business-like manner to collectively and look at the big picture, we
the benets of all parties through their many will be in trouble.
years of close working relationship. By adopt- Based on the descriptions of the infor-
ing collaborative strategies, gains to the mants, it is noted that afliation, coordina-
immediate members often ow on to other tion, collaboration and strategic networks
businesses or sectors outside the formalized describe the cooperative processes that take
arrangement. In such circumstances, market- place in tourism destination marketing. These
ing programmes seem to be driven by a moti- different forms of cooperative relationships
vated entity such as the CVB or a small group are built upon each other along a continuum.
of businesses who have a vision for and com- That is, when the continuum of the coopera-
mitment to a better and competitive destina- tive marketing relationship moves from afli-
tion. The interviews indicated that many of ation to strategic networks, it also moves
the parties are willing to take this long-term from a low degree to a high degree of organi-
collaborative perspective to increase the des- zational integration, which requires more for-
tinations competitiveness as well as the mal and complex relationships between the
bottom line of their own businesses. organizations involved.
It was found that strategic tourism net-
works are more formal structures that inte-
grate the shared vision of all tourism The driving factors for relationship
organizations involved and take a system conguration in a destination
orientation in destination marketing. There
are broadly two types of networks in a desti- It appeared from the interview ndings that
nation, and they vary depending on the for many of the different sectors of the tour-
kinds of organizations participating in them. ism businesses in a local destination, the
Horizontal networks involve organizations experience of providing, coordinating and
that provide similar services, such as the delivering collaborative marketing activities
local hotel and motel association, and verti- is not an easy one. Although many busi-
cal networks involve organizations offering nesses recognize their interdependence and
different services, such as the marketing the need to align their activities by establish-
campaigns facilitated by the CVB. Yet, ing relationships either directly with other
regardless of type, strategic networks are businesses or through the mediation of the
integrated marketing systems that seek to CVB, they are also compelled by competitive
improve service delivery by deepening or forces to maintain their own business advan-
broadening the scope of services available at tages. It is interesting to note that different
the destination to their consumers. In strate- congurations of relationships exist across
gic networks, the emphasis is often on the the various sectors of the tourism industry,
importance of the network itself in success- with some sectors adopting certain relation-
fully marketing the destination. In other ship congurations more than others. For
words, when a marketing programme can be example, the interviews revealed that hotels
successfully implemented only through the and motels are more likely to take a compet-
joint efforts of multiple organizations, then itive perspective than the camping ground
the network itself becomes critical and a business, where cooperation is more likely
276 Y. Wang

to nd its way. Also, the various congura- Distance of marketing campaign


tions of relationships, including the different
levels of cooperative relationships, as well as Tourism businesses under a cooperative
the cooperation versus competition strate- arrangement usually share information on a
gies adopted by tourism organizations in the regular basis to support each others activities
destination, are affected by the following in order to compete with other destinations.
factors: strategic thinking (micro versus In other words, the perspective of coopera-
macro), maturity of destination marketing tion was described as stimulating more busi-
approach, distance of marketing campaign ness to the destination through working
and leadership of the local DMO. These together. The parties realize that involvement
observations are also visually presented in in networking of any kind is a mechanism
Fig. 16.2. with the potential to generate additional busi-
ness for the community instead of losing
business to other communities/destinations.
Strategic thinking: micro versus macro They also realize that in the community they
Those holding a competitive viewpoint usu- are less in competition with each other; they
ally start from a micro organizational per- are more in competition with other regions
spective, and their major concern is to and destinations. As expected, this view often
generate more business for their individual affects participation in cooperative pro-
organizations. This perspective is more pro- grammes organized by the local CVB. For
nounced among those business within the example, tourism businesses are more inter-
same sector, and is highlighted especially by ested in participating in group marketing
the lodging industry, which usually views activities organized by the CVB in order to
other lodging businesses in the local area as attract business to the local community/des-
head-to-head competitors. However, some tination, such as sales missions in potential
businesses broadened the concept of compe- markets, joint advertising programmes to
tition beyond this head-to-head rivalry and maximize their communication impact as a
acknowledged that competition could be an destination, etc. However, cooperative initia-
incentive to gain more business by working tives within the destination, such as internal
with others; for example, they can refer information sharing, are more difcult and
excessive business to others in the immediate challenging. It seems that the level of cooper-
area instead of losing the business com- ation among members of the local tourism
pletely from the area. Under certain circum- industry demonstrates a negative relation-
stances they will often compete with and ship with distance of marketing campaigns:
assist each other simultaneously. It appears they are more willing to conduct collabora-
that these arrangements are loosely formal- tive marketing campaigns outside the com-
ized and spontaneous, and often break down munity in order to compete with other
as one of the parties fails to keep the arrange- destinations to bring business to the local des-
ment. One important nding from the inter- tination. Once the customers are within the
views is that the cooperation and competition destination, they tend to compete and ght
mentality is affected by how tourism busi- for those customers.
nesses in the destination perceive the collab-
orative destination marketing strategy. Those Maturity of destination marketing approach
taking a macro perspective tend to work with
each other more by focusing on the common At the destination level, this dynamism and
benets of the destination; whereas those conguration of relationships is a reection of
who take a micro business perspective are the maturity of the destination marketing
less likely to work with other tourism busi- approach. A more mature destination market-
nesses. Their focus is on how to create and ing approach is more likely to have a coopera-
maintain competitive advantage through the tive mind-set as the mainstream, though one
conscientious efforts of their own individual can still nd the coexistence of competition
business. and cooperation. In other words, the more
Collaborative Destination Marketing 277

mature the destination marketing approach these two skills areas, communication skills,
is, the more cooperation there will be within knowledge of the tourism system and politi-
the destination. It seems that there is a learn- cal savvy were identied as other vital quali-
ing curve when tourism businesses get into cations for DMO leadership.
working relationships with each other. At
rst they might not want to cooperate with
anyone because they see that as threatening. Cooperation versus competition the
But as they progress and become more mature strategic choices of the destination
in marketing, they understand that their com-
petition is not their next-door neighbours but Industry representatives from both destina-
another destination. Both Elkhart County and tions interviewed provided the rationale for
Orlando demonstrated very mature destina- cooperation rather than competition in their
tion marketing strategies by embracing a destinations. The tourism businesses do
high level collaborative spirit relative to understand that it is important to have
other destinations in the states or in the an umbrella message about the destination
country. which can serve a brand to set the destination
apart from the competition. However, at the
operational level, especially with small busi-
Leadership of the local DMO nesses, the mind-set of competition is a recur-
ring theme simply because there is too much
It was also interesting to note that a lot of focus on benets to individual businesses
tourism businesses realize that cooperation rather than to the destination as a whole. This
programmes in a community require leader- relationship between cooperation and com-
ship. This can be demonstrated by a compari- petition is a dynamic one; it is also often
son of two towns in Elkhart County: affected by the perspectives adopted by the
Shipshewana and Nappanee. The former tourism businesses in the destination
enjoys a high level of cooperation among involved in the business interaction, based on
local tourism industry organizations whereas the benets that they seek and on the nature
cooperative activities are very rare with the of the projects. It seems that the duck and
latter. Many interviewees attributed this dif- hare analogy can be applied to interpret the
ference to the presence and the strength of behaviour of the businesses involved in rela-
leadership in the community, particularly tion to two opposing but interconnected
from organizations who take leadership roles views/approaches: whether the business
in facilitating tourism business activities in should serve the destination interest the
their respective communities, such as cham- duck (a cooperation perspective), or whether
bers of commerce or CVBs. One industry rep- the destination should serve the business
resentative from Shipshewana made the interest the hare (a competition perspec-
following observation: I think we have come tive), as shown in Fig. 16.3. The cooperative
a long way here in Shipshewana; weve been or competitive mind-set of the individual
so much more blessed that weve been able to businesses depends on the perspective of the
jump on board and support each other, a lot viewer. These different perspectives inuence
more than Nappanee; they are running a both the attitude and the interest of individ-
lonely race; they just dont have the support ual tourism businesses in the marketing
from within their town. Obviously there has of the destination. Both perspectives exist
to be some leadership. CVBs are expected to simultaneously at the destination, but it
be able to demonstrate their leadership by appears that the businesses involved are
being able to visualize their communities as unable to perceive the two at the same time.
tourism destinations. Human relations skills Frequently, businesses are only able to see
are identied as vital to this leadership role one perspective at a time based on the types
because CVBs have to rely on other busi- of businesses that they work with, the nature
nesses and organizations to implement their of the project, or the type of marketing activi-
vision of a great destination. In addition to ties conducted. It appears that the norms and
278 Y. Wang

Cooperation Perspective Competition

Company serves the Norms and values The destination serves the
destination interest Duck company interest Hare
Involved Community feeling Detached

Interdependent Relationships Independent

Cooperation Business model Competition

Macro Strategic thinking Micro

Fig. 16.3. Cooperation or competition: its all about perspective! (Adapted from Wang and Krakover, 2008).

the values of the individual businesses inu- marketing produces three major outcomes:
ence the different ways in which they are strategy realization, organizational learning
committed to the community. In other words, and social capital building. Efforts have also
the dominance of business relationships (i.e. been made to understand the business rela-
competition or cooperation) among the tour- tionship in the context of destination market-
ism stakeholders at the destination is affected ing. The frameworks proposed in the chapter
by the fact that the various actors have differ- offer important theoretical implications for
ing norms and values, which, in turn, affect tourism research as well as practical guidance
their feelings towards the community as a for marketing alliance development in the
destination, their perceived relationships tourism context.
with other stakeholders, and the business The chapter represents a fresh attempt to
models that they adopt when they interact expanding the framework for research on
with other stakeholders (models which arise destination marketing. That is, conventional
as a result of their own strategic thinking). research in destination marketing usually
focuses on developing tools and techniques
to understand and approach consumer mar-
kets, which is reected in the plethora of
Conclusions studies on market segmentation. From a mar-
keting strategy point of view, such an
Collaborative destination marketing is con- approach places the emphasis on the external
ceptualized in this chapter as a product of environments for tourism destinations. While
external forces presented to organizations in a these studies have identied and developed
destination. These forces serve as the precon- useful means that tourism organizations can
ditions for the development of marketing alli- utilize when marketing and promoting their
ances. In delineating alliance formation, it is destinations to potential visitors, how to
argued that the motivation of tourism organi- improve the marketing efforts through
zations entering marketing alliances can be enhancing the capacity and capability of tour-
explained from three broad perspectives: ism organizations has rarely been fully exam-
strategic oriented, transaction-cost oriented, ined (Palmer and Bejou, 1995). Essentially,
and organization-learning oriented. It is destination marketing is a collective effort
further proposed that tourism marketing which requires various organizations and
alliances go through ve distinctive develop- businesses to harmoniously work together in
mental phases: (i) assembling the member order to achieve a common goal. As such,
organizations; (ii) ordering the alliance; (iii) successful destination marketing entails a
implementing the tasks; (iv) evaluating the profound understanding of the critical
results; and (v) transforming the alliance. It is aspects in the collaboration process. By pro-
suggested that collaborative destination viding a comprehensive and integrated view
Collaborative Destination Marketing 279

of the collaborative process, the chapter has competition and cooperation is no longer
demonstrated an important, although pre- valid (Gnyawali and Madhavan, 2001). In
liminary, step toward a research theme focus- the tourism context, the destination products
ing on capacity and competence building for are produced in a way in that different ele-
tourism organizations and destinations ments are assembled at the time of consump-
within a marketing context. tion in order to provide the total customer
The chapter also contributes to the study experience (Palmer and Bejou, 1995). This
of tourism-specic partnerships and value-creation network, which requires
networks. Building partnerships and net- simultaneous coordination and cooperation
works in tourism destinations has become an among various stakeholders, is different
increasingly important management strategy from the value-chain production process evi-
in response to escalating environmental dent in the manufacturing industry, which
pressures (Palmer and Bejou, 1995; Selin and follows a more linear, step-by-step produc-
Chavez, 1995). However, research effort tion approach (Porter, 1990). A tourism busi-
directed towards a theoretical understanding ness can be involved in several different
of this issue is rare, perhaps as a result of the relationships at the same time in order to
fact that partnerships and networks are defend its position in the business network.
highly complex social, economic and, some- Some relationships consist of pure competi-
times, political arrangements in tourism des- tion; others of pure cooperation and, between
tinations. Applying a single approach to the two extremes, there are relationships
studying this issue, therefore, cannot produce consisting of a mix of both (coopetition).
fruitful and meaningful results. Compared Cooperation is important for utilizing a des-
with previous research, this chapter con- tinations limited resources in the most ef-
structs a comprehensive view of tourism col- cient way, whereas coopetition can be
laborations through synthesizing and regarded as an efcient way of handling
integrating multiple theoretical perspectives. both cooperation and competition between
While the primary goal of the chapter is to businesses.
describe and explain the process of destina- From a cooperative perspective, it has
tion marketing collaborations, the proposed been argued in the chapter that such relation-
framework can also serve as a theoretical ships can be demonstrated as four types
foundation for understanding other types arranged in a continuum based on the level of
of partnerships and networks in tourism formality, integration and structural com-
destinations. plexity: (i) afliation; (ii) coordination; (iii)
Further, the chapter also offers an collaboration; and (iv) strategic networks. In
understanding of business relationships in afliation, two or more tourism organizations
the context of destination marketing. Com- are loosely connected with each other, usually
pared with previous frameworks describing informally, because of their similar interest or
business relationships, the framework pro- interests. In coordination, otherwise autono-
posed in this study includes competitive, mous tourism organizations align activities,
cooperative and coopetition arrangements. sponsor particular events, or deliver targeted
This represents an encompassing range of services in pursuit of compatible goals. In col-
possible relationships, and is a development laboration, parties work collectively through
over previous studies in which such arrange- common strategies. In strategic networks, all
ments are characterized more as typologies the tourism organizations involved in the net-
of discrete business relationships of competi- work have a shared vision and adopt a sys-
tion and cooperation, which emphasize only tem orientation to achieve group objectives
the structural entities in which particular through consistent strategy and concerted
ways of relating are facilitated (Bengtsson efforts. These terms clarify the extent to which
and Kock, 2000). Indeed, todays business tourism organizations work together to
networks are complex gatherings of differ- achieve their goals and describe much of the
ent kinds of relationships; this means that inter-organizational activity occurring among
the traditional neoclassical way of analysing tourism industry businesses.
280 Y. Wang

In order to nurture a more cooperative reference to the marketing of a tourist desti-


environment among tourism businesses in nation, as it often takes place on a number of
the local destination, the following factors different levels (Grangsjo, 2003). On the one
were identied as playing important roles: hand, from the tourists point of view, the
focus of strategic thinking; locality of market- tourist destination offers a unied tourist
ing campaign; maturity of destination mar- product in relation to other destinations but,
keting approach; and leadership by local on the other hand, within the destination
DMOs. First, a macro business perspective is there is competition between the different ele-
required for the tourism industry to focus on ments of the tourist product. The develop-
the competitive advantage of the destination ment of the destination can be affected by
in order to create a winwin situation for all whether the different companies work with,
the stakeholders involved. Given the priority or against, one another. There is a lack of
that individual businesses put on their own existing theories and research on the relation-
benets, this educational responsibility has to ship between competitors, while it is claimed
fall on the shoulders of certain organizations that the aforementioned coopetition is, in
that can represent all of the stakeholders in fact, the most mutually advantageous rela-
the destination, such as the local CVB/DMO. tionship for competitors (Bengtsson and
This educational process has to be long term Kock, 2000). Coopetition means that competi-
and continuous in order to reinforce the coop- tors can both have a competitive and a coop-
erative mind-set within the destination so erative relationship with one another at the
that it is able to see both the forest and the same time (Nalebuff and Brandenburger,
trees. Secondly, given the observation that 1996). It seems that this coopetition mentality
the level of cooperation from the industry in occupies the mind-sets of tourism stakehold-
collaborative marketing programmes is sensi- ers when they approach the issue of destina-
tive to distance of the marketing campaign, tion marketing.
CVBs/DMOs may take advantage of this As reected by the interviews described
mentality and facilitate more activities in in the chapter, this paradoxical coopetition
peripheral markets that are involved in creat- relationship may emerge when tourism busi-
ing and maintaining competitive advantage nesses cooperate in some activities in a col-
over other destinations. These types of activi- laborative destination marketing context, and
ties/programmes can eventually contribute at the same time compete with each other in
to a more mature approach to destination other activities (Bengtsson and Kock, 2000).
marketing, which, in turn, leads to a more That the cooperative behaviour and competi-
competitive destination. In order for this to tive approach adopted by some tourism orga-
happen, the CVB/DMO has to take the lead- nizations depends on the distance of the
ership responsibility for steering the destina- marketing campaign is a good illustration of
tion to future success. The CVB/DMO has to the coopetition relationship. Coopetition
be knowledgeable enough about the destina- behaviour involves two different logics of
tion, and has to have the communication interaction. On one side, there is hostility due
skills and political savvy to coordinate the to the conicting interests of getting a bigger
diverse interests of the tourism stakeholders piece of the business once the visitors are in
in the destination. It needs to take this leader- the destination; on the other side, it is neces-
ship role by not only providing knowledge to sary to pool resources and develop mutual
direct the tourism-related activities, but also commitment to achieve the common goal of
by being politically astute enough to balance attracting the visitors to the destination. It
the interests of all constituents, including seems that creating value, a bigger pie, is fun-
industry members, government ofcials and damentally a cooperative activity that a busi-
local residents, so that the benets of tourism ness cannot accomplish alone, while the act of
activities are seen as being equitably distrib- dividing up the pie is fundamentally com-
uted to all affected parties. petitive. A business has to keep its eyes on
It is argued that the relationship between both viewpoints: on creating and capturing at
cooperation and competition is vital with the same time. The coopetition perspective
Collaborative Destination Marketing 281

recognizes the need for more complex theories of inter-organizational collaboration


descriptions of markets and business models and partnership have so far received scant
in which cooperation and competition merge attention in the tourism studies literature.
together, and actors roles, processes and Though some anecdotal work has been done
objectives become more complex. A CVB/ in relation to planning for tourism develop-
DMO needs to manage this process to make ment (for example, Gunn, 1988; Inskeep,
sure that the local tourism industry under- 1994), no work on the nature and dynamics of
stands that, from a long-term perspective, the collaborative marketing in a destination has
well-being of the destination is more impor- been explored. This chapter has attempted, in
tant than the prot maximization of any one part, to ll this gap in that it has explained
business, and that a winwin relationship is some of the most important issues related to
possible when each contributes to the total collaborative tourism marketing within a
value creation for the destination; this gives destination. It is expected that the results of
rise to a partially convergent interest and goal the interviews from the two destinations, and
structure in which both competitive and more importantly, the frameworks proposed
cooperative issues are simultaneously pres- in the chapter will provide a strong theoreti-
ent and strictly interconnected. cal foundation and practical guidance for
Collaborative destination marketing marketing alliance development in the tour-
activities are voluntary arrangements ism context.
between tourism organizations involving
marketing and promoting the destination in a
collective way, and can occur as a result of a Acknowledgement
wide range of motives and goals, take a vari-
ety of forms, and occur across vertical and This chapter has been adapted and updated
horizontal boundaries. For tourism research, from the following articles: (i) Wang, Y.C. and
studies of inter-organizational collaboration Krakover, S. (2008) Destination marketing:
appear to be particularly relevant at a time competition, cooperation or coopetition? Inter-
when public, private and, to an extent, volun- national Journal of Contemporary Hospitality
tary sectors are increasingly forging partner- Management 20, 126141; (ii) Wang, Y.C. and
ship arrangements to market and promote Fesenmaier, D.R. (2007) Collaborative destina-
tourism products in destinations. In addition, tion marketing: a case of northern Indiana,
tourism as a social and economic system is USA. Tourism Management 28, 863875; and
ideally suited to the development of partner- (iii) Wang, Y.C. and Xiang, Z. (2007) Towards
ship, given the range and diversity of organi- a theoretical framework of collaborative
zational and community interests and destination marketing. Journal of Travel
involvement. It is, therefore, surprising that Research 46, 7585.

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17 Tourism Development and
Destination Community Residents

Claudia Jurowski

Introduction perception of the objective conditions within


the community (i.e. economic activity,
A major component of the tourism experience climate, social/cultural institutions and envi-
is the interaction the visitor has with the local ronmental conditions) (Cutter, 1985; Andereck
people. Consequently, the importance of and Jurowski, 2006).
community support for the tourism industry Consequently, policy makers need infor-
cannot be understated. While consumer evalu- mation about how an area is doing not only
ation of a tourism experience is a result of a from a broad-based quantitative perspective,
number of factors, the manner in which but also from a subjective perspective that
visitors are received by residents is undeniably incorporates how citizens perceive the factors
a critical component. The marketing cost of that contribute to their own quality of life and
overcoming negative word of mouth that how they collectively think their region or
results from rude treatment or a feeling of not area is doing. To that end, decision makers
being welcome can be signicant. Murphy need to understand the perspective of com-
(1985) was one of the rst to focus attention on munity residents in relation to how they
how tourism affects the community by experience tourism; in other words, the extent
explaining that citizens are affected by the out- to which residents feel tourism improves or
comes of tourism development and should worsens their quality of life. To create quality
have greater input into how [their] community tourism experiences for both residents and
is packaged and sold as a tourism product on tourists, it is important to identify specic
the world market (Murphy, 1985, p. 16). aspects of tourism that reduce the quality of
Communities engage in tourism devel- experiences so that measures can be taken to
opment with the expectation that a viable mitigate problems. Knowledge of the way
tourism industry will improve their quality of that residents assess costs and benets of
life. Objective measures, even those that tourism as well as the extent to which they
include social and environmental measures feel tourism is responsible for those costs and
along with economic measures, do not pro- benets is vital to decision makers. Hence, an
vide a complete picture without the subjec- understanding of the dynamics of resident
tive measure of how individuals evaluate attitudes is critical to destination and industry
their quality of life. Consequently, the value managers and marketers.
of tourism to a community must include The critical component of residents per-
community members feelings about and ceptions is their evaluation of how tourism
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
284 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Development and Community Residents 285

affects their lives. Tourism products and facil- new jobs can result in the displacement
ities such as festivals, restaurants, natural and of traditional patterns of labour. Tourism
cultural attractions, and outdoor recreation employment is often seasonal, resulting in
opportunities facilitate enjoyable tourism unemployment for a signicant percentage
experiences for residents in addition to the of the community off season. Finally, tour-
economic benets of a higher personal ism has been accused of causing economic
standard of living, increased tax revenues duality, which creates wealthy investors
and increased employment that some mem- and working poor. In the poorest destina-
bers of the community enjoy. These positive tions, as much as 97% of the income from
experiences, however, can be overridden tourists leaks out of the economy before
by negative effects such as crowding, trafc it has had a chance to generate economic
and parking problems, increased crime, growth. Further, the economic impacts of
increased cost of living, friction between tourism experiences on residents vary con-
tourists and residents, and changes in the siderably within a community. For example,
residents way of life. The nature of the impact vacation home development can create a tax
is related to the size, scope and type of tour- burden on local residential property owners
ism in relation to the population and values (Fritz, 1982), and tourism development has
of the community members. been found to increase government debt
and the cost of living for residents (Crotts
and Holland, 1993).
Although residents generally favour the
Positive and Negative Impacts economic benets of tourism, the social/cul-
of Tourism tural domain is an equally important compo-
nent in the overall community attitude
The impacts of tourism are traditionally dis- towards tourism because of its impact on
cussed in three domains economic, social their quality of life. Tourism development
and environmental each of which has posi- directly affects residents habits, daily rou-
tive and negative effects. On the economic tines, social lives, beliefs and values. The
front, the tourism industry brings increased inux of tourism changes a community in
employment opportunities, investments and both positive and negative ways. The most
protable local businesses. The inux of new frequently mentioned negative social impact
money results in increased income for indi- is that of overcrowding and trafc conges-
viduals and tax revenues. Additionally, tour- tion, while the most commonly identied
ists create a demand for local products and positive social impact is the opportunity to
services which keeps money in the local econ- interact with new and interesting people.
omy to facilitate economic growth. Citizens Tourism can create a favourable image for the
often benet from infrastructure develop- destination, thus increasing residents pride
ment, such as new airports or improved sew- in their community and in their local arts,
erage systems, that are developed to facilitate crafts and cultural expressions. However,
a tourism industry. A major economic advan- when tourist demand exceeds the ability of a
tage tourism that brings to a community is community to produce enough cultural arte-
that of economic diversication which pro- facts, entrepreneurs are encouraged to sell
tects a community from economic collapse in mass-produced replicas, thereby lowering
the case of industry downturn. Conversely, the value of traditional works of art and
tourism is detrimental to a community when reducing the cultural signicance of the
it results in increased demand for local prod- object. Areas with high levels of tourism
ucts which raises the prices of food and other activity often experience an increase in popu-
staples. The ination of land values may be lation as a result of tourists falling in love
an advantage to those who wish to sell prop- with the community and relocating there. The
erty, but a burden for those who have to pay result can be signicant changes in the social
higher taxes because the value of the property character of the community (Perdue et al.,
has risen. Also, the advantage created by 1991; Christensen, 1994). Loss of residential
286 C. Jurowski

identity and local culture often occurs when a Tourism gives economic value to natural
high growth rate with poor planning and resources, thereby encouraging the preserva-
growth management are combined (Rosenow tion of land, water and wildlife. The arrival of
and Pulsipher, 1979). Other negative socio- visitors often prompts clean-up campaigns
cultural consequences of tourism include a and other beautication efforts, resulting in a
decline in traditions, drug trafcking, prosti- more pleasant environment for the residents.
tution, materialism, increase in crime rates Considerable research has focused on the
and social conicts. A great difference in impact of tourism on local communities for
wealth between the visitor and the residents good reason. When the community supports
creates feelings of resentment and antago- tourism, residents are more likely to support
nism. At the same time, tourism assists in the tax dollars spent on infrastructure improve-
process of modernization and facilitates entry ment, and taxation such as the hospitality tax
into the economic system in areas where the commonly imposed on accommodation, food
economy is largely subsistence based. Entre- and beverages. Without resident support,
preneurs selling goods on a blanket in the public ofcials may be blocked from funding
street make contact with suppliers and infrastructure such as a visitor centre needed
develop business skills. Culturally, tourism to provide a pleasant experience for the tour-
provides support for cultural events, historic ists and support for local tourism businesses.
preservation and entertainment resulting in a Perhaps most important is the nature of the
stronger cultural identity. interaction of residents and visitors. Pleasant
Tourism has been promoted to communi- attitudes and helpfulness can overcome
ties as a clean economic development tool weaknesses in supply or infrastructure. How-
compared with heavy industry and, indeed, ever, when residents feel visitors are intrud-
tourism causes less environmental damage ing or competing for resources, they are less
than steel mills; but it still has the potential to likely to be welcoming and helpful, giving
cause signicant environmental damage rise to an unpleasant experience for the visi-
because it is often developed in areas that tor and destructive word of mouth opinions.
have attractive but fragile environments. The Consequently, it is critical to measure and
principle environmental consequences of monitor residents attitudes to destination
tourism are depletion of natural resources, development.
pollution and physical changes. With tourism
comes a greater demand for water, energy,
food, raw materials and land, resulting in
fewer resources for the residents. Air, noise, Background
solid waste, litter, sewage and releases of toxic
materials all contribute to a less pristine envi- Predictors of resident perceptions
ronment. The most visible impacts on the of tourism
environment are the physical changes that
occur from construction that clears land, Residents who perceive greater levels of per-
obstructs views and changes the appearance sonal benet from tourism express more posi-
of the setting. Problems arising from the tive attitudes towards tourism and are more
extensive use of natural resources include: supportive of tourism development than
wildlife destruction as a result of hunting, those who feel that tourism does not benet
trapping and shing, and disruption of the them personally (Liu and Var, 1986; Perdue
natural habitat; plant destruction, deforesta- et al., 1990; Lankford and Howard, 1994;
tion, over-collection of plant specimens, forest Jurowski et al., 1997; McGehee and Andereck,
res and trampling of vegetation; and destruc- 2004; Dyer et al., 2007; Oviedo-Garcia et al.,
tion of wetlands, soil, coral and coastal dunes. 2008). When residents are categorized into
Yet tourism can also result in more environ- those who receive direct economic benet
mental awareness and appreciation of the from tourism and those who do not, it
environment, and bring about increased con- becomes evident that the former perceive the
sumer support for environmental protection. tourism industry in a more positive manner
Development and Community Residents 287

(Liu et al., 1987; Allen et al., 1990; Haralambo- well as describe the degree to which they
poulos and Pizam, 1996). Residents who are support its development (Milman and Pizam,
themselves or who have family employed in 1987; Gee et al., 1989; Perdue et al., 1990; Gur-
the tourism industry tend to have more soy et al., 2000). Favourable impacts have
positive perceptions of the impacts of tourism been described as benets while unfavour-
than other residents (Allen et al., 1988; able impacts are considered costs. Theoreti-
Lankford and Howard, 1994; Haralambopou- cally, support for or opposition to tourism is
los and Pizam, 1996; Jurowski et al. 1997; based on an analysis of its costs and benets.
Deccio and Baloglu, 2002; Sirakaya et al., The benets of tourism are both economic
2002). The social exchange theory offers an and social. The most commonly studied
explanation for this phenomenon. This theory economic benets include employment
proposes that those who value the benets of opportunities (Belisle and Hoy, 1980; Tyrrell
tourism and evaluate the benets as greater and Spaulding, 1984; Davis et al., 1988;
than the costs will be supportive of tourism Ritchie, 1988) and revenue for communities
development efforts, while those who see (Murphy, 1985; Tyrrell and Spaulding, 1984;
greater costs or who have little value for the Davis et al., 1988; Lankford, 1994; Jurowski et
rewards will not be supportive. al., 1997). Research ndings support the the-
Social exchange theory suggests that ory that residents perceive tourism as an
individuals will engage in exchanges if: activity generating employment and revenue.
(i) the resulting rewards are valued; (ii) they Social benets have been identied as
believe the exchange is likely to produce improved opportunities for shopping and
valued rewards; and (iii) perceived costs do recreation, improved services such as police
not exceed perceived rewards (Skidmore, and re, improved infrastructure, improved
1975). The theory assumes that individuals preservation of the local culture and opportu-
select exchanges after having assessed the nities to interact with visitors. Research has
costs and benets (Homans, 1961). Theoreti- demonstrated the positive relationship
cally, when residents view tourism as poten- between the social benets of tourism and
tially or actually valuable and believe that resident feelings about tourism (Pizam, 1978;
the costs do not exceed the benets, they will Allen et al., 1988; Keogh, 1990; Perdue et al.,
favour the exchange and will consequently 1990; Jurowski, 1994; Jurowski et al., 1997;
be supportive of destination development Yoon, 1999).
efforts (Turner, 1986). However, when the Perceptions of crime and congestion
cost of tourism is seen to exceed the benets, have been the most frequently examined
residents will oppose its growth and/or costs for the host community. Several studies
development. have found that residents perceive trafc con-
The basic precepts of the social exchange gestion as a major problem created by tour-
theory are implied in a considerable amount ism activities (Milman and Pizam, 1988;
of research related to residents reactions to Ritchie, 1988; Keogh, 1990; Jurowski et al.,
tourism development (Perdue et al., 1990; Ap, 1997). A number of researchers examined the
1992; Jurowski, 1994; Lindberg and Johnson, link between the perception that tourism con-
1997; Gursoy et al., 2002). The relationships tributes to increased crime and support for its
between and among the perceived benets, development. However, ndings have been
perceived costs, perceived impacts and sup- contradictory and not conclusive (Lankford,
port for tourism have been explored based on 1996). While several researchers reported that
the theory that residents will support tourism crime is related to resident perceptions of
if they view it as potentially or actually valu- tourism development (Belisle and Hoy, 1980;
able, and believe that the costs do not out- Liu et al., 1987; Milman and Pizam, 1988;
weigh the benets (Pizam 1978; Tyrell and Lankford, 1996), others were not able to
Spaudling, 1984). Resident attitude studies conrm the relationship between crime and
ask residents to evaluate the effects (com- tourism (Pizam, 1978; Allen et al., 1993;
monly referred to as impacts) of tourism and McCool and Martin, 1994; Jurowski et al.,
then to render an opinion about tourism as 1997). Lankford (1996) examined the link
288 C. Jurowski

between crime and tourism by exploring the impact constructs into costs and benets in
perception of it from a sociodemographic order to examine the inuence of the percep-
perspective. He reported that rural popula- tions of costs and benets on support for
tion, long-term residents, farmers, recreation- tourism. These two structural models provide
ists and the younger segments of the evidence of a relationship between the evalu-
community perceive that tourism contributes ation of the costs and benets and support for
to an increase in crime. The research of the tourism. Several factors affect the way that
past two decades conrms that tourism has residents evaluate rewards in relation to the
costs as well as benets, and that perceived costs. Expectations of economic benets have
costs are negatively related to residents the largest positive effect on support of local
reactions to its development (Milman and residents. Residents who received the greatest
Pizam, 1988; Ritchie 1988; Keogh, 1990; economic benets favour tourism more than
Prentice, 1993; Jurowski, 1994; Jurowski et al., those who receive fewer or no benets
1997; Gursoy et al., 2000; Lee and Back, 2003). (Ritchie, 1988; Perdue et al., 1990; Akis et al.,
However, all residents do not evaluate costs 1996). In like manner, there is a direct
and benets in the same manner. Studies relationship between the positive evaluation
have identied a variation in residents of social and cultural impacts and support for
evaluations of the costs and benets of tour- tourism (Madrigal, 1993; Lankford and How-
ism based on differences in their participation ard, 1994; Brunt and Courtney, 1999; Bescu-
in recreation (Keogh, 1990; Perdue et al., 1990), lides et al., 2002). Residents who fear that
attachment to the community or length of tourism development will destroy or damage
residence (Um and Crompton, 1987), knowl- the environment are opposed while those
edge about the industry ( Davis et al., 1988), who see tourism as an incentive to preserve
proximity to its business zone, or contact with and protect the natural environment are
tourists (Belisle and Hoy, 1980; Sheldon and supportive (Butler, 1980; Liu and Var, 1986;
Var, 1984; Jurowski and Gursoy, 2004), Martin and Uysal, 1990). The studies conrm
sociodemographic characteristics (Brougham the direct relationship between a positive
and Butler, 1981; Ritchie, 1988), political and evaluation of the benets and costs and
demographic position in society (Thomason support for tourism development, and
et al., 1979; Mansfeld, 1992), type and form of explain the differences in residents percep-
tourism (Murphy, 1985; Ritchie, 1988) and tions of the costs and benets.
economic benets derived from the industry The differences in evaluation of benets
(Pizam 1978; Liu and Var, 1986; Ap, 1992; and costs are based on a number of factors.
Prentice, 1993). Long-time residents and those who feel an
Several models based on the social emotional bond to the community use differ-
exchange theory have proposed explanations ent criteria to evaluate the impacts from those
for variations in resident attitudes to tourism who have not developed strong bonds or
(Ap, 1992; Jurowski, 1994; Jurowski et al., feelings of attachment to the community
1997; Lindberg and Johnson, 1997; Gursoy (Allen et al., 1988; Jurowski, 1994; Lankford,
et al., 2002; Lee and Back, 2003). Jurowskis 1994; McCool and Martin, 1994; Gursoy et al.,
(1994) model demonstrates that attitudes 2002). Residents who use the recreation
towards tourism are inuenced by residents resource that attracts the tourists may be
perceptions of the economic, social and more concerned about overcrowding and
environmental impacts, e.g. tax revenues and may have a greater desire for infrastructure
trafc congestion, and that these perceptions improvements. Consequently, users of the
are inuenced by perceived economic gain, recreation base will have a different perspec-
the level of use of the recreation resource, and tive from those residents who do not use the
attitudes about humankinds role in the recreation base (Keogh, 1990; Jurowski, 1994;
preservation of the natural environment. Lankford et al., 1997). Residents who are more
Gursoy et al. (2002) modied the Jurowski knowledgeable about tourism and those who
(1994) model by segregating the variables in are most concerned about the local economy
the economic, social and environmental will use a different set of criteria to evaluate
Development and Community Residents 289

the impacts of tourism from those who know as a means to quickly create new jobs, gener-
little about the industry or the local economy ate foreign exchange, provide a rapid return
(Davis et al., 1988; Lankford, 1994; Gursoy on investments, and bring technology and
et al., 2002). In addition, studies have demon- training to improve the living standard of the
strated that evaluation of the costs and bene- developing world.
ts of tourism varies with sociodemographic Impacts vary with the economic strength
characteristics (Ritchie, 1988; Williams and of a community, the relative importance of
Lawson, 2001), political and demographic tourism to the economy and economic devel-
position in society (Thomason et al., 1979; opment policies. The degree to which tourism
Mansfeld,1992), level of contact with tourists can provide economic benets varies with the
(Brougham and Butler, 1981; Lankford, 1994; number of people employed (Peppelenbosch
Akis et al., 1996), environmental attitudes and Templeman, 1989), the type of employ-
(Jurowski et al., 1997; Gursoy et al., 2002) and ment opportunities offered to local people
type and form of tourism (Murphy, 1985; (Smaoui, 1979), the jobs created per invest-
Ritchie, 1988; Jurowski, 1994; Gursoy et al., ment dollar (Archer, 1973; Brownrigg and
2002). Greig, 1974; McNicoll, 1976). The measure of
While most of the earlier studies offered foreign receipts and, especially, the net
evidence to support the social exchange the- income generated by those receipts that a
ory, the direct association between beliefs country can expect from tourism expenditure
about whether the benets of tourism exceed is dependent upon national policies and a
the costs or not, and support or opposition to variety of country characteristics. A high
tourism development and tourism develop- demand for imports, expatriate workers and
ment strategies, was demonstrated in a study international owners without adequate pro-
of the residents of eastern Florida (Jurowski tection can leave a country with slight foreign
et al., 2006). In contrast, another study (on currency advantages. Local economic bene-
hosting mega events) found that perceived ts are higher when policies require local
costs did not have a signicant effect on sup- ownership or management training for local
port for tourism (Gursoy and Kendall, 2007). people as opposed to laissez-faire policies.
Yet another study of a former mining commu- The effect of policy decisions increases in
nity concluded that perception of the positive importance when one considers that the ben-
and negative effects of tourism is the princi- ets are not without economic and social
pal factor that determines the attitude of the costs. Loss of workers in the agricultural
resident population towards more tourism segments has resulted in abandonment of
development where there was a positive crop cultivation as, for example, in St Lucia,
relationship between more tourism develop- where because the banana harvest and the
ment and perceived benets and a negative peak tourism season coincided, no workers
relationship with perceived costs (Vargas- could be found to harvest the crop. Also,
Snchez et al., 2009). heavy unemployment results after the con-
struction phase of tourism development and
in the off season when workers are no longer
needed (Young, 1973).
Factors that affect the intensity and The level of sophistication of the tourism
direction of tourism impacts industry also inuences the strength and
direction of its impacts. The experience curve,
Tourism has been an attractive development economies of scale, and marketing linkages of
activity since the 1960s when the growing international hotel chains, tour wholesalers,
middle classes in Western industrial nations intermediaries and airlines empower these
created a boom in demand for the attributes organizations to manipulate the type of prod-
of many non-industrialized nations: sunny ucts created in underdeveloped countries.
climates, sandy beaches and exotic cultures. It Small-scale local operators who have limited
is particularly attractive to nations with resources, limited experience and few con-
emerging economies because tourism is seen nections with the industry are dependent
290 C. Jurowski

upon the dominant sector enterprises and, Along with the volume of tourists, other
ultimately, foreign tourism corporations to market factors inuence the impact of tour-
provide their market. Consequently, the eco- ism: length of stay, activities, and the cultural,
nomic benets to the host country are mini- psychographic and demographic characteris-
mized (Britton, 1981). Factors such as the tics of tourists. Longer staying visitors will
availability of labour, the amount of land have greater impact on a host population and
suitable for hotel development, the capacity the environment through increased contact,
of the roads or the principal tourist attraction and this may erode a fragile culture. A prime
inuence the extent and direction of the consideration in determining the impact of
impacts (Young, 1973). tourism is the nature and composition of the
Other supply-side factors include the fra- various groups involved and the relation-
gility of the natural environment, the strength ships between them. The basic dichotomy of
of the culture and extent of infrastructure hosts and guests must be examined in light of
development. For example, the negative their differences. The greater the difference in
impact on the community of Sedona, Arizona cultures, levels of afuence and preferred
(Red Rock country), has been minimal activities between the visitors and the local
because the natural environment is largely population, the more their impact will be felt
rock, the culture is strong and sufcient funds (Crandall, 1987). Theoretically, there is a posi-
were available to update a stressed sewage tive relationship between the number of tour-
system. In contrast, a marginalized commu- ists and the willingness of the tourists to
nity in a less developed country with a fragile adapt to cultural norms (Smith, 1977). The
mountain environment such as Nepal has activities of tourists determine the amount of
incurred signicant negative impacts from contact that a community will have with tour-
tourism. Without appropriate management ists. Large volumes of tourists that demand
and infrastructure development, the environ- Western amenities are more likely to alter
ment suffered from erosion, litter and lack of forms and types of occupation, values, the
proper sewage treatment, while the culture traditional way of life and consumption pat-
was compromised by the demonstration of terns (Pearce, 1989).
Western values brought to the region. While tourism impacts can be measured,
On the demand side, a signicant factor the evaluation of the costs and benets of the
in determining the effect of tourism is the impacts varies with political persuasion and
scale or number of visitors in relation to the attitudes towards tourism development. Per-
local population. A small number of tourists sonal and community values of the observer
will have little effect while larger numbers, affect the determination of whether the
especially in proportion to the population, can impacts are positive or negative. Unanimous
dramatically change the structure of a society, support or opposition is not likely to be found
harm fragile cultures or environments, and in any community. Those with a vested inter-
demand a fully developed infrastructure. A est in tourism are likely to be the strongest
great mass of tourists intensify the pressure on supporters, while opposition can come from
the environment through litter, trampling, various fronts, including those who feel that
deforestation, beach and mountain erosion, tourism does not bring in enough benets to
and destruction resulting from construction justify the costs and believe that public funds
(Murphy, 1985). Studies in rural Colorado would be better spent on other projects, envi-
communities have indicated positive impacts ronmentalists who feel tourism is harmful to
until the percentage of retail sales receipts the natural environment, citizens who do not
derived from tourism reached between 3.5 want to see changes in their community, and
and 10.5% annually (Allen et al., 1988). A later those who are simply annoyed by the
study conrmed these ndings, demonstrat- inconvenience caused by the crowding and
ing that the perceived contribution of tourism congestion that results from tourist visits.
to quality of life peaked when the amount of Within any community, there is most likely a
retail sales derived from tourism was approxi- combination of impacts, some of which are
mately 9% (Botkin et al., 1991). viewed as positive while others are viewed as
Development and Community Residents 291

negative. It is the overall evaluation of the about developing economic opportunities for
consensus of the community that results in the younger members of the community, who
support or opposition for tourism. otherwise may be forced to move away in
search of employment. Consequently,
attached residents tend to care more about
their community than those whose feelings
Application towards their place of residence are more
ambivalent. It is therefore important to gain
Destination managers and developers need their support.
to be aware of inuencers of residents atti- Projects that promise social and environ-
tudes towards tourism and put in place plans mental benets will get more support from
to manage them. The most critical manage- attached citizens than those that promise
ment techniques are education and inclusion. solely economic rewards. These constituents
Keeping the community informed of the ben- are most concerned about expressing and
ets of tourism and involving members in the maintaining the character of their commu-
planning process is the best defence against nity. They may complain about congestion,
negative community attitudes. It is important trafc problems, difculties in getting a park-
to recognize that there are a variety of ing place, longer shopping lines or the loss of
individual values in a community. Three spe- a favourite spot in the local restaurant or
cic groups are particularly important to des- attraction. However, these impacts are
tination planners, developers and managers: considered relatively minor irritants that
(i) those with strong feelings of attachment to attached residents would be willing to put up
their community; (ii) those who use the same with if they perceived that the end result was
resources as visitors do; and (iii) those who good for the community as a whole. Resent-
are concerned about environmental protec- ment of the effects of tourism will be
tion/preservation. An understanding of how expressed if residents feel the character of
to gain the support of these three groups can their community is being changed to support
go a long way towards the development of tourism development, but if they perceive the
projects with community support. changes as community improvement, they
The rst of these groups, residents with are more likely to be supportive. It is impor-
strong feelings of attachment, have deep feel- tant that these residents perceive that they
ings about either the natural environment or have control over the form and function of
the people within the community. These resi- their own community, and involving them in
dents express greater sadness when forced to the early stages of tourism development may
think about leaving and a greater interest in reap considerable benets.
local affairs. Longer term residents, those While attached residents may support
who have a higher social standing in the com- tourism development in general because they
munity, and those in a later stage in the life view it as good for their community, they will
cycle, are generally the most likely to feel object to certain types of tourism. Attached
attached. The positive feelings about the com- citizens are most likely to support projects that
munity may develop from the social bonds provide opportunities for self-expression.
that residents establish as members of local High-impact tourism, which encompasses
organizations. However, newcomers who large projects such as resort complexes, theme
were attracted to the community by their parks and the like, will be opposed by this
tourism experience are also likely to feel a group. These types of ventures rarely express
sense of emotional attachment to a commu- the nature of the community as seen by its
nity. They are likely to have a fondness for citizens and most frequently require nancial
either the physical or human environment or resources beyond the means of many com-
both. The emotional bond of attachment munities. The threat of outsiders controlling
spawns a deep concern for improving the their community is of particular concern to
quality of life in their place of residence. those who are emotionally attached to it.
Attached individuals are also concerned Their opposition to large-scale projects is
292 C. Jurowski

logical because this group is interested community, i.e. how they determine who
mainly in benets for the people who live in they are culturally. To get a feel for how the
their community. These citizens may also community members see their homestead the
object to such projects because they are more local newspaper can be encouraged to spon-
likely to reect the nature of outside develop- sor a contest in which citizens are asked to
ers or a tourists conception of what the com- contribute proposals for a town slogan, ag,
munity should be than the ideas or culture of motto or mural. The analysis of the entries
the host community. However, opposition can give planners a picture of what the citi-
may be minimized if the residents can be zens consider to be the character of their
shown that signicant social and/or environ- home town. To get a more representative
mental benets will be derived for the sample of resident feelings, a survey can be
community from the proposed development. developed based on the contest entries. The
Developers who focus purely on the eco- results of the contest and survey will provide
nomic benets to be derived may not gain the information on appropriate development
support they seek. Instead, attached residents themes for events, architectural schemes,
prefer culture- or event-based tourism. Pro- and/or entrepreneurial incentives. Table 17.1
grammes designed to restore and/or pre- describes actions which have assisted some
serve historically important structures, communities in reducing conict and creating
customs, traditions or artefacts will gain citizen ownership of tourism development
signicant support from this group of resi- projects.
dents. By proposing a means for residents to Like the attached residents, the second
preserve and express what is valued by them, community group important in tourism
tourism developers will have a source of development consists of those who use the
support for their efforts and a potential for same resource as visitors and are concerned
volunteer energy. about how tourism might change their ability
One of the rst steps in soliciting the sup- to enjoy that resource. For example, local
port of attached residents is to determine how shermen and water skiers are more con-
the residents view the character of their cerned about an increase in the number of

Table 17.1. Activities designed to secure the support for tourism development of citizens who are
attached to their communities.

Involve citizens in the planning process.


Establish a focal point and common theme.
Develop projects which provide a means for members to express their heritage, culture or who they think
they are, such as:
A community photo exhibit Encourage citizens to share photos of community events in a specic
decade. Feature a new decade each month. Display photos in prominent gathering places in town.
Ask the local newspaper to feature selected photos and a story. A portable photo display can be
taken to clubs and to meetings of organizations.
Oral history recordings Gather oral histories from the oldest citizens in town. A local history teacher
may wish to take this on as a project for high school classes. Print the most interesting stories in the
local newspaper.
Image formation Develop a logo and theme. Use the theme on bumper stickers, local government
stationery, public buildings and vehicles, etc. Encourage local businesses to incorporate the logo or
theme in their displays, stationery, etc.
Protect citizens from crowding by encouraging restaurants to reserve tables for locals.
Reduce the effects of rising costs by offering discount prices in restaurants or tourist attractions for
citizens.
Sponsor an annual locals day, week or even month where citizens can tour or enjoy tourist facilities free.
For example, Lion Country Safari in Palm Beach County, Florida, provided free admission to local
residents for a month.
Development and Community Residents 293

people who use the local water-based resource Once the extent of potential conict and
than those who have no interest in water potential advantages resulting from tourism
sports. Likewise, those interested in arts and development has been discovered, planners
crafts, shopping or amusements have differ- will have the knowledge necessary to gain
ent reasons for encouraging the development the support of the resource user. Involving
of tourism than those whose lives are not the local bass club in shing tournaments,
involved with the related resources. cyclists in the development of a race, car
The resource user balances the positive enthusiasts in road rallies and the like will
and negative effects of increasing the number provide the user with the incentives to
of people who use the same resources with contribute to the development of tourism
his/her own interests in mind. The more events and may lead to the construction of a
likely individuals believe that an increase in permanent attraction.
tourism will result in improved facilities, the It is equally important to recognize areas
more they will be inclined to support tour- that are sacred to the local activist. It is com-
ism. When residents view tourists as compet- mon for recreationists to have areas that they
itors for a scarce resource, they may oppose consider special or unique and which they
any new development unless their interests would like to protect from intruders. One
are protected. Users evenly balance the approach that could be considered is limiting
positive effect of improved facilities with the the type of use or the number of users permit-
negative effect of crowding. This group is ted in these special areas. Another way to
relatively ambivalent to the economic impacts protect the interests of the host community
of tourism. Their support can be gained by resident is to form organizations whose mem-
focusing on improvements to the physical bers have exclusive use of specic sites. Yet
environment. Recreationists, shoppers, or another means of soliciting the support of the
culture champions will be the best source of user is to allocate a portion of the funds col-
volunteer help for festivals and events that lected from tourism to the development of
are centred on their interests. Furthermore, facilities or services desired by the local user.
users will support nature- and culture-based Table 17.2 lists activities that may assist desti-
tourism activities if they believe potential nation managers in gaining the support of
positive social or environmental benets can community resource users.
be derived from such activities. The strongest The third segment of the resident popu-
reaction against tourism development will be lation concerned about tourism development
towards large-scale projects. is interested in protecting the resource and
The rst step in soliciting the support of comprises environmentalists who are more
community resource users is to determine likely to focus on the negative impacts of
their interests, hobbies and activities. The tourism. They do not believe that the earth
least expensive method for gathering infor- has plenty of natural resources or that the bal-
mation about this segment of the population ance of nature is strong enough to cope with
is through observation. A count of the num- the impacts of modern industrial nations.
ber of local participants in the activities that They oppose the attitude that humans have
would be affected by an increase in usage will the right to modify the natural environment
yield important information. Secondly, it is to suit their needs. However, even though
important to determine whether the activities media coverage of environmentalists activi-
are more or less enjoyable for the user when ties would suggest that this group of people
the number of participants is increased. would oppose all development plans, there is
Thirdly, an assessment of what facilities evidence that they might support certain
and services users would like to see improved types of development.
should be made. Surveys that analyse a When asked to evaluate the benets and
random sample of participants who are costs of tourism development, environmen-
representative of typical users are most talists generally perceive more costs than
effective for drawing conclusions about the benets. They tend to see trafc congestion,
factors important to the resource user. crime and cost of living increases as more
294 C. Jurowski

Table 17.2. Activities designed to secure support of community resource users for tourism development.

Provide opportunities for local young people to build skills or knowledge concerning the affected activity
Involve users in events that feature their interests, for example, bow-shooting contests, camp-a-thons,
bike races, shing tournaments and water-ski shows
Set aside specic areas for club members only to protect sacred sites
Allocate funds to the development of facilities favoured by the local user

Table 17.3. Activities designed to secure support for tourism development of community groups
concerned about the environment.

Provide continuous information about how the project is designed to protect the environment
Include ecological educational programmes as part of the development scheme
Encourage participation of environmentalists in the development of events
Develop events based on environmental issues
Encourage environmentally concerned citizens to develop educational programmes for tourists

severe than do other groups. They may not tures are erected for most events and festivals,
value the benets of increased opportunities the environmentalist does not nd event-
for shopping or recreation, but nd the pres- based tourism objectionable.
ervation of the local culture important. Their Specic actions should be planned by
perception of the economic impact of tourism development organizations to reduce conict
is negative. They tend to believe that an with environmentalists. First, it is important
increase in employment opportunities and to determine the level of environmental
revenues for local services is not worth the concern within a community. Then the results
economic costs of providing services for visi- of that study can be used to evaluate develop-
tors. In general, they perceive that the nega- ment projects to determine which are accept-
tive effects of tourism override the positive able to environmentalists. Table 17.3 offers a
effects. few suggestions which may help gain the
As would be expected, the environmen- support of those concerned about the
talists, unlike the attached residents or the rec- environmental impacts of tourism.
reationists, perceive that an increase in the For tourism to be a successful develop-
number of tourists coming to an area would ment strategy, the concerns and aspirations of
worsen the quality of the natural environment. the entire community should be identied
Opposition increases in direct proportion to and considered. The way people feel about
the extent of proposed changes to the natural their community, the use they make of the
environment, although this negative evalua- resources shared with the tourists and their
tion of the impacts of tourism does not lead to ecological attitudes will bias residents atti-
opposition for all types of tourism. Environ- tudes toward tourism. Generally, those who
mentalists will oppose high-impact tourism are attached to their community hold more
designed to attract a large number of visitors. favourable attitudes toward tourism. In con-
They are more ambivalent towards culture- trast, sensitivity to environmental issues pre-
and history-based tourism, such as museums cipitates general opposition to tourism. Those
and visitor centres. They only mildly object to who use the tourism resource have mixed
projects based on the natural environment, feelings about tourism. The attached resident,
such as cabins in the forest or cross-country ski the resource user and the environmentalist all
trails. Further, tourism that focuses on events usually oppose large-scale tourism projects
may receive support from environmentalists, but favour event-based attractions. By focus-
who view short-term, minimum-impact ing on the concerns and goals of the commu-
events as a positive means of self-expression nity and by understanding why certain types
for the community. As no permanent struc- of tourism proposals are disputed, tourism
Development and Community Residents 295

developers can reduce conict, stimulate create an environment for people to succeed.
volunteer activity and advance the goals of One of the most difcult things about Punta
the community. Cana was that there was no life for a family or
infrastructure for family life. One of the rst
things was not to make the place just for
visitors, but to create a successful environ-
Case Study: Punta Cana ment for workers so that they will be happy
Resort and Club to live here with their families. (Gupta and
Gupta, 2006, p. 4). Through the establishment
The aforementioned suggestions for gaining of the PUNTACANA Foundation, the Ann
community support are designed for commu- and Ted Kheel Polytechnic High School, the
nities whose tourism has evolved over time. Rural Clinic of Veron and the PUNTACANA
Creators of a new tourism development proj- International School were built and sup-
ect have an opportunity to focus on benets ported. The technical school was the only
for residents from the outset. The Punta Cana high school within 50 miles of the airport. It
Resort and Club in the Dominican Republic is provides technical skills and training to
a model for community-focused develop- 350 students and supports evening adult edu-
ment. The resort is not only economically cation courses. The clinic was created from an
successful; it is socially and environmentally agreement between a university, the secretary
responsible and is creating a highly benecial of public health, the community of Veron and
development for the residents. the PUNTACANA Foundation. It services
Punta Cana is the fastest growing desti- 5070 patients daily, focusing in on emer-
nation in the Caribbean. One-third of the gency care, premature care, infectious dis-
foreign exchange dollars of the Dominican ease, AIDS/HIV assistance and outreach
Republic is generated in this region. Its air- programmes. The international school is a
port is the third busiest in the Caribbean, private bilingual school with more than 450
serving approximately 1.7 million arrivals students. Scaled tuition creates opportunities
annually. Within the region, there are more for a wide socio-economic range of people.
than 48 lodging operations that are largely The school is multicultural, with 20 nationali-
all-inclusive resorts with 24,500 rooms, creat- ties represented. The building of a commu-
ing 35,000 jobs related to tourism. nity was enhanced by the formation of the
When Ted Kheel purchased the 30 square Bavaro Rotary Club which holds fund-raising
miles on which Punta Cana Resort sits, it was activities to support schools and other com-
raw land. There was no water, sewerage facili- munity needs.
ties, electricity, roads or buildings of any kind. Protecting the natural environment
The people that resided in the area lived off while developing tourism is critical to the
the land by cutting down trees to make char- nancial and social success of tourism devel-
coal. Together with Club Med, Ted Kheel and opment. The Punta Cana Resort and Club
his partner Frank Rainier arranged access by and the PUNTACANA Foundation, support
building an airport. Today, the airport has the Punta Cana Nature Reserve, the Center
been expanded; there is a commercial plaza for Sustainability, an organization for the pro-
with upscale shops, a golf course, water and tection of the coastal areas and sustainable
sewerage systems, an electricity generating agriculture. The Punta Cana Nature Reserve,
plant, schools, villas and numerous buildings. which has 1500 acres preserved for recreation,
Building a resort area from the ground scientic investigation and conservation of
up provided an opportunity to build a com- species, receives over 1500 visitors annually.
munity. The nearest place for people to live The Center for Sustainability has programmes
which had infrastructure, including schools, with ten universities who send 150200
was 45 minutes away by car or bus. The need students annually to research and learn about
to build a community was evident to the sustainable tourism. Resort personnel were
creators and the investors. Oscar de la Renta, also responsible for organizing the Partner-
one of the investors, explained: You have to ship for Ecologically Sustainable Coastal
296 C. Jurowski

Areas (PESCA) which, with the University of more effective tourism management plans.
Miami, conducts research to identify and This chapter recommends resident support
inventory ora and fauna, resort beaches, programmes, but there is no empirical
mangroves and corals, monitor water quality evidence to identify which programmes work
and implement a marine management pro- better than others. Research as to the effec-
gramme. The resort supports sustainable tiveness of programmes would assist destina-
agriculture by assisting entrepreneurs to tion managers in selecting the programme
grow organic vegetables, build a fruit tree best for their community. Furthermore,
garden and a beekeeping operation, and research is needed to determine the economic
manage worm composting and other com- value of resident support for tourism so that
posting facilities. In all, the resort has helped destination managers have justication for
to develop 20 new small companies and sup- using marketing dollars to support expendi-
ports 100 more. Other community support ture on programmes designed to gain resi-
activities include providing education pro- dent support. A comparison of economic gain
grammes for staff and visitors, celebrating indicators in destinations with varying levels
international environmental days, support- of support or opposition might provide the
ing tree planting and beach clean-up cam- necessary insight.
paigns, sponsoring bird observation outings Community managers also need infor-
and guided nature tours. Buildings have been mation regarding the costs and benets of
made of local materials and designed to blend different types of tourism. For example, is
into the environment. the balance of costs and benets more favour-
The value of this tourism destination able in community-based tourism develop-
development to the community in which it ment as opposed to tourism created by
operates has been recognized by international development corporations? Which benets
organizations. Punta Cana Resort and Club are increased? Which costs are diminished?
was awarded the 2009 Conde Nast World Even though there seems to be a belief that
Savers Award, and Tourism for Tomorrows community-based tourism is better for a
2009 Destination Stewardship Award. This community than mass tourism, there are no
model development provides a safe and studies that empirically evaluate the costs
enjoyable environment for visitors, protects and benets of each type.
the environment and serves the humans who Finally, there is the question of what
live and work within the community, while factors determine the tipping point of com-
making signicant prots. Oscar de la Renta munity support. Studies that follow up the
sums up the success of the endeavour: Now relationship between retail sales in tourism
that the community has been created, they and community support might examine what
nd they have a sustainable business (Gupta social, economic or environmental impacts
and Gupta, 2006, p. 7). make tourism no longer acceptable to a com-
munity. Is it simply the number of tourists
and the amount they spend? What are the
similarities in destination communities with
Future Research disgruntled or supportive residents?

As one of the most frequently researched top-


ics in the eld of tourism, studies of resident
attitudes are prolic. Each new research nd- Summary and Conclusions
ing adds more information on inuencers of
attitudes, and the complexity of the issue con- Policy makers need to understand factors that
tinues to be revealed. While the knowledge of affect resident attitudes toward tourism as
what the impacts of tourism are and how well as how community residents evaluate the
residents react to them is signicant, more costs and benets of tourism, because commu-
questions need to be answered. Sustained nity support for tourism contributes to a will-
research will provide a basis for creating ingness to expend public funds on marketing
Development and Community Residents 297

and infrastructure development. Furthermore, intensity and direction of the impacts of tour-
pleasant attitudes and helpfulness toward vis- ism as do the strength of the community and
itors generate valuable positive word of the relative importance of tourism to the econ-
mouth. Simple resident attitudes surveys do omy. The evaluation of benets and costs is
not tell the entire story. Tourism changes a related to personal and community values and
community for better or worse, and the to the amount of direct effects that individuals
economic, social and environmental conse- encounter. Therefore, an understanding of the
quences of tourism development vary in dynamics of residents feelings about tourism
intensity and direction from community to and a toolbox of activities designed to secure
community and from resident to resident. the support of residents is critical to destination
Public policy and industry practices affect the and industry decision makers.

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18 The Importance of Safety and
Security for Tourism Destinations

Galia Fuchs and Abraham Pizam

Introduction and Mansfeld, 2006; Araa and Len, 2008;


Rittichainuwat, 2008; Rittichainuwat and
Although tourism experiences are primarily Chakraborty, 2009).
about the pursuit of pleasure for the tourist, As the tourism industry is particularly
there are considerable elements of risk associ- susceptible to safety and security incidents,
ated with both travel and tourism. Interna- putting the sector under almost constant
tional tourists might be faced with many threats of a crisis, it is crucial to understand,
dangers ranging from wars, terrorist attacks anticipate and prepare to deal with these
and crime, to natural disasters, epidemics, threats, which are precipitated by either
transport accidents, food poisoning and even humans or nature. This chapter deals with the
wild animals (Durrheim and Leggat, 1999; concepts of safety and security and their
Pizam, 1999; Peattie et al., 2005; Pizam and inuences on the tourism industry. At the
Mansfeld, 2006; Tarlow, 2006; Wilks, 2006; beginning, we will discuss the notion of these
Larsen et al., 2007; Howard, 2009; Bentley two concepts, their importance for tourism
et al., 2010). These kinds of episodes are not destinations and the role of their frequency
conned to any particular geographical and severity. Next, we will describe the
regions, as crises respect no political or cul- motives of the perpetrators of security inci-
tural boundaries (Santana, 2004). According dents, the targets and the location of the secu-
to Dwyer et al. (2009), factors such as interna- rity incidents. After that, we will discuss the
tional terrorism, security, infectious diseases various impacts of security and safety inci-
and tourism safety consciousness are likely to dents. This is followed by a description of
continue over the next 15 years and, as global media coverage and the image perception
trends, would play an important part as driv- management during security and safety inci-
ers of tourism change. Because the perception dents. The nal section will deal with preven-
of safety and security is a major determinant tion and mitigation of security and safety
in travellers decisions to visit a place, as well incidents, and with recovery strategies.
as in the scope of travellers activities at the In the tourism literature, most of the
destination, all of the above-mentioned dan- time, incidents of safety and security are
gers lead to a signicant decline in tourist referred to without any real differentiation,
demand (Pizam et al., 1997; Snmez and but these incidents differ in their essence.
Graefe, 1998a,b; Pizam, 1999; Mawby, 2000; Security incidents can be dened as incidents
George, 2003; Lepp and Gibson, 2003; Pizam where tourists suffer harm as a result of the
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
300 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Importance of Safety and Security 301

deliberate actions of others, such as wars, ter- tourists the appropriate warnings, or by
rorist attacks, civil and/or political unrest, reducing the level of crime with the assis-
and crime (Peattie et al., 2005; Pizam and tance of special police units and by using
Mansfeld, 2006), while safety incidents can be security devices such as electronic locks and
conceptualized as incidents where tourists monitored video cameras. Other safety and
are injured accidentally and without malice security incidents, like natural disasters or
aforethought. Such safety incidents can be exposure to terror attacks are more challeng-
caused by problems in infrastructure and in ing and can hardly be dealt with directly. The
the environment at the destination, by break- next section will provide more details on
downs resulting from natural disasters, and safety and security incidents and will sharpen
by tourists behaviour and activities. Occur- the differences between them; in this section,
rences might be, for example, oods, res, we will also provide an insight into the role of
infectious diseases, food poisoning, trafc the frequency and the severity in safety and
accidents, accidents related to activities such security incidences.
as skiing, accidental slips, falls, cuts and
burns, and damage to property (Okumus,
2005; Peattie et al., 2005). Safety and Security Incidents
The importance of safety and security for
tourism destinations is very high. According Safety incidents
to the ndings of Dwyer et al. (2009), safety
and security are among the fundamental As mentioned earlier, safety incidents can be
requirements for the success of tourism conceptualized as incidents where tourists
development at the destination level. These are injured accidentally and without malice
ndings are congruent with the accumulated aforethought. Safety incidents can be cap-
tourism literature. For example, Pizam et al. tured into two groups according to the ability
(1997, p. 23) claimed that Most tourists select to prevent them natural disasters that can-
their destinations not only on the basis of not be prevented, and other incidents that can
price and destination image, but, most impor- be avoided or mitigated. These incidents
tantly, on personal safety and security. The can be clustered into three groups, namely:
importance of safety and security was also (i) destination management-related incidents;
stressed by Peattie et al. (2005, p. 399): Tour- (ii) nature-related incidents; and (iii) tourist-
ism experiences can be unsatisfying for many related incidents (Peattie et al., 2005; Uriely
reasons, but when a tourist comes to some and Belhassen, 2006; Rittichainuwat, 2008;
form of physical harm, it can pose problems Howard, 2009; Bentley et al., 2010; Tsa and
for those promoting tourism to a particular Chen, 2010).
area, as well as for the luckless tourist. Araa
and Len (2008) also emphasized tourists Natural disaster incidents
sensitiveness to the inuence of political vio-
These incidents may include a range of natu-
lence and terrorist attacks, and their apprecia-
ral disasters, such as earthquakes, oods,
tion of tranquillity and peace for the
hurricanes and volcanic eruptions, which
enjoyment of the activities and pleasures
cannot be avoided. However, early planning,
offered by the destinations. Dwyer et al. (2009)
such as construction aimed to reduce the
concluded that tourists perception of safety
resulting injuries and the damage, can dimin-
and security at the destination will continue
ish their severity. Interestingly, natural disas-
to constitute an important competitive advan-
ters often function as major tourist attractions
tage in the coming decades.
in the aftermath.
Thus, destination policy, planning and
development must strive for a safe and secure Destination management-related incidents
experience for tourists. Some safety and secu-
rity incidents are possible to deal with and These incidents may range from episodes
can be mitigated, for example, by solving such as problems with infrastructure (e.g.
problems with infrastructures, and by giving poor sanitation), safety standards in tourism
302 G. Fuchs and A. Pizam

establishments (e.g. re, construction errors) Tourist-related incidents


and car accidents, to health concerns (e.g.
legionnaires disease). For example, tourism Tourists may endanger their own safety by
destinations in some developing countries practising dangerous sports and leisure activ-
have suffered from a reputation of having ities such as skydiving, skiing or climbing,
unsafe sanitation conditions that lead to which might expose them to accidents. The
occurrences of waterborne diseases such as tourists themselves might increase the prob-
diarrhoea, which is popularly referred to as ability of occurrence of these accidents by
Montezumas Revenge in Mexico and misunderstanding and/or not following
Delhi Belly in India. Fires that occur at instructions, horseplaying, poor physical
tourist establishments can also have a sig- skills and abilities, inadequate tness and
nicant negative impact on tourist visitation health, and limited familiarity with the
to the affected properties, as well as to other task or the environment. Sometimes, as part
similar establishments. Famous and well- of their vacations, tourists engage in activities
publicized res such as the 1980 MGM they are not used to, which might increase
Grand re in Las Vegas that killed 87 people, their vulnerability. This might be an activity
the 1997 Pataya Royal Resort Hotel re in undertaken because one is on a holiday, like
Thailand that killed 88 and the 2004 binge drinking, consuming recreational
Repblica Cromagnon nightclub re in Bue- drugs, dangerous driving, unprotected sex,
nos Aires that killed 194 and injured 714, excessive exposure to the sun and other types
drew the attention of the international tour- of risky behaviour.
ism community to the lack of proper re
safety standards in many tourism properties
worldwide. Last, but not least, poor mainte- Security incidents
nance of equipment in tourism enterprises
can cause some serious health problems, In general, security incidents can be dened as
such as legionnaires disease, which acquired incidents where tourists suffer harm as a
its name in July 1976 when an outbreak of result of the deliberate actions of others (Pizam
pneumonia occurred among people attend- et al., 1997; Pizam, 1999; Peattie et al., 2005;
ing a convention of the American Legion in Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006; Araa and Len,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 2008). According to Pizam and Mansfeld
(2006) the four generators of security incidents
Nature-related incidents that tourists might suffer from are: crimes, ter-
rorism, wars, and civil/political unrest.
In general, tourists are sensitive to climate,
and climate change and any detrimental Crimes
change in weather conditions will affect
the relative attractiveness of a destination. There is a wide range of incidents, such as
Therefore, incidents that are caused by the robbery, assault, rape, kidnapping and mur-
natural conditions at the destination such der, which are considered as crimes and dif-
as changeable weather, hazardous terrain ferent people react differently to those
underfoot, wilderness conditions and expo- incidents. Naturally, the tourists choice of
sure to water or drowning threats, can have a where and how they will travel and stay will
signicant impact on tourist destinations. affect the probability of their exposure to
The effects of severe weather conditions such crimes (Boakye, 2010). Although crime inci-
as hurricanes, tornadoes, oods, extreme dents might occur among the tourists them-
temperatures, etc. on tourist visitation have selves, between tourists and locals, or vice
been well documented and prove that they versa, it has been found that tourists are more
can have a devastating impact on well-being likely to suffer from crimes than local resi-
at the local destinations. The same can be dents (Chesney-Lind and Lind, 1986; Barker
said for earthquakes, mudslides and other et al., 2002; Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006;
forms of hazard. Boakye, 2010).
Importance of Safety and Security 303

Terrorism rebellion in Chiapas in 1994, in Egypt in 1997


and 2004, and in many other similar destina-
Tourism destinations and tourists have tions, have shown that these occurrences can
always been soft targets for terrorist activi- have long-term and sometimes even devas-
ties (Richter and Waugh, 1986; Ryan, 1993; tating effects on tourism destinations.
Snmez et al., 1999; Pizam and Mansfeld, Although security incidents attract more
2006; Paraskevas and Arendell, 2007; Araa attention than safety incidents, it is worth
and Len, 2008). Owing to the medias inter- noting that health-related safety incidents
est in covering terrorist incidents, terror among tourists are more prevalent and affect
attacks have become the most frequently more people than security incidents (Peattie
used tool for expressing political and geo- et al., 2005).
graphical conicts. By attacking tourist desti-
nations and tourists indiscriminately, the
terrorists attract attention to their causes in a
most effective manner (Snmez et al., 1999). Frequency and severity of safety
As mentioned above, tourism is gravely and security incidents
affected by terrorism. Yet, besides terrorism
that targets tourism destinations and tourists The effects of security and safety incidents
specically and directly, the tourism industry depend on the frequency and severity of
and tourists themselves may be indirectly those incidents. Severe and frequent incidents
victimized when terrorism is aimed at civil or that get high media coverage will inuence
economic targets that are related to tourism tourists decisions regarding the affected
(Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). destinations as far as booking and cancella-
tions are concerned; effects on tourists deci-
Wars sion making will be lengthier and more
widespread and the international visitor
By now we have sufcient documented evi- demand will be lower in these cases (Pizam,
dence that wars negatively impact tourism 1999; Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). Yet, accord-
demand for the countries involved in particu- ing to the ndings of Pizam and Fleischer
lar and for global tourism in general, for a (2002), the tourism industry will recover in a
long period of time (Pizam and Mansfeld, period of 6 to 12 months when terrorist events
2006). Wars such as the Yom Kippur war are not repeated.
between Israel and Egypt, the Yugoslav war As to the impact on tourism demand of
between Serbia and Croatia, the war between the frequency and severity of terror events, it
the Greek and Turkish sides in Cyprus and was found that although both are negatively
the Tamil war in Sri Lanka have all had a correlated with tourism demand (Pizam,
destructive impact on tourism demand to 1999; Krakover, 2005) the frequency of terror
these countries, and have even caused a tem- acts caused a longer decline in demand than
porary cessation in all tourist activities. the severity of those acts (Pizam and Fleischer,
2002), especially in international tourism
Civil and/or political unrest compared with domestic tourism (Pizam and
Fleischer, 2002; Yechiam et al., 2005). As to the
Civil and/or political unrest at tourist desti- factor of time, the conclusion is that over a
nations can cause tourists to make cancella- longer period of time an incidents psycho-
tions that severely affect or even paralyse the logical effect on tourists tends to decrease
local tourism industry (Pizam and Mansfeld, (Yechiam et al., 2005). Variation in the level of
2006). Civil and political unrest in countries severity of security incidents has different
such as South Africa before 1994, in Thailand lasting impacts over time. Severe security
in 2010, in Northern Ireland as a result of incidents, such as mass destruction of life and
long-term IRA activities, in Spain as a result property due to war or terrorism, will have
of the activities of the ETA separatist group in much more severe negative impact on tour-
1995, in Mexico as a result of the Zapatista ism demand and arrivals than acts that cause
304 G. Fuchs and A. Pizam

some loss of life (murder), or bodily harm economic motives (robberies), acts commit-
(rape), or loss of property (Pizam, 1999; Pizam ted for social motives (Robin Hood style) and
and Mansfeld, 2006). crimes motivated by personal reasons
In order to create effective contingency (revenge and jealousy). These types of inci-
and mitigation plans for affected destina- dents will occur at higher frequency in tourist
tions, it is essential to understand the motives destinations because of the abundance of
behind the security incidents. An in-depth opportunities and the higher probability of
study of these motives could provide valu- success (the presence of gullible tourists). At
able information on potential targets and on times, non-violent incidents might deterio-
the location of these incidents. The next sec- rate in their course and turn into violent and
tion deals with these issues. serious acts, such as murder (Pizam, 1999;
Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006).

Motives and Targets of Perpetrators


and the Location of Security Targets of security incidents
Incidents
Security incidents at tourism destination can
Motives of the perpetrators of security victimize the tourists, anywhere at any time:
incidents on their way to and from the destination, dur-
ing their stay and throughout their vacation
The most frequent motives for security inci- activities. Besides tourists, local residents,
dents that have been identied in the litera- including famous or known personalities, can
ture are: political, religious, social and also become victims of the violent acts (Pizam,
economic motives, hostility to tourists, pub- 1999; Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006), although in
licity and the destruction of an areas econ- security-affected destinations, tourists are
omy (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). Security more likely to be the targets than local resi-
incidents affect tourists arrivals at a destina- dents for a variety of reasons, ranging from
tion according to the type of motive that leads tourists behaviour and appearance, to the
to the incident. In general, it has been noted fact that causing bodily harm to tourists cre-
that political and religious motives affect ates instantaneous mass publicity (Chesney-
tourism demand in the most severe manner, Lind and Lind, 1986; Barker et al., 2002; Pizam
followed by economic and social motives; and Mansfeld, 2006; Boakye, 2010).
personal motives had the lowest effect From the literature emerge two broad
(Pizam, 1999). factors that cause tourists to be more prone to
Violent acts occur at tourist destinations the security incidents of crime their appear-
for a multitude of motives, the most promi- ance and their behaviour. Concerning tour-
nent of which are religious, political or eco- ists appearance, tourists have been known to
nomic injustice. But, regardless of the motive, possess a range of characteristics which make
the terrorists feel that through carrying out them vulnerable to crimes (Chesney-Lind
violent acts that cause great damage to life and Lind, 1986; Pizam and Manseld, 2006).
and property, they achieve their goal of get- For instance, the mere appearance of non-
ting the maximum exposure to their cause. locals makes them potential targets for
However, in the process of achieving their attacks, and this is especially true when the
goals, the terrorists manage to damage the victims are perceived as being wealthy
tourism industry and at times impair the des- (Cohen, 1987; Harper, 2006; Boakye, 2010). In
tinations economy and/or its political estab- relation to tourists behaviour, their behav-
lishment (Pizam, 1999). ioural patterns make them vulnerable to
As mentioned before, security incidents crime. According to Cohen (1987), tourists
include a variety of criminal acts. These acts may be victimized because they are ignorant
are committed for different motives, such as of the customs and laws of the host country
non-violent acts that are committed for and are socially isolated. Pizam and Mansfeld
Importance of Safety and Security 305

(2006) propose that certain tourist behaviour foreign devils and not locals, and the attack
patterns make them easy prey for criminal will get extensive and immediate global
victimization. Such actions include letting media coverage (Pizam, 1999).
down their guard and entering into unsafe
areas to which locals will never dare go. As
noted by Pizam et al. (1997), in security-
affected destinations, tourists are much more Location of the security incidents
vulnerable to property crimes than residents.
This is mainly as a result of their tendency to In order to handle successfully security-
carry more money and valuables than local related tourism crises it is important to under-
residents. Harper (2006) further proposes that stand the geographical dimension of the
the search of victims for a more authentic security incidents. When incidents of the kind
(sometimes illicit) experience takes them to occur in a certain local community there is a
places considered dangerous even by local spillover effect, which means that the decline
residents, and makes them particularly sus- in tourist visitation spreads quickly to other
ceptible to victimization. In some cases, the regions within and outside the country
tourist who searches for involvement with affected. This happens because of lack of geo-
the local population is stricken by violent acts graphical knowledge, either on the part of
conducted by his local acquaintance who tourists or resulting from biased media cover-
carefully cultivates a friendship with the age that does not supply exact information on
tourist over a period before striking (Harper, the affected area (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006).
2006; Holcomb and Pizam, 2006). Their suit- As mentioned before, in some cases,
ability for becoming crime targets depends hotels have been the main target for the terror
on the different travel arrangements made by attacks. According to Pizam (1999) one of the
tourists. Tourists who self-arrange their trav- basic conditions for terrorists to target hotels
els are more exible and, therefore, might is that these hotels must be located in a region
venture into places that even locals would that has numerous sympathizers who can
hesitate to visit (Boakye, 2010). provide logistical, moral and nancial sup-
Evidently, tourists are also likely to be port to the terrorists. In most cases, terrorist
easy targets for terror attacks. According to attacks will not occur at locally owned econ-
Pizam and Mansfeld (2006), attacks against omy hotels that cater to domestic tourists.
tourist destinations are particularly desirable Terrorists prefer to target those hotels that
to terrorists owing to a number of facts. On are: (i) associated with well-known interna-
one hand, tourist destinations are easy targets tional brands; (ii) owned by an avowed inter-
and have the potential of a large number of nal enemy; and (iii) are frequented by
fatalities which will lead to immediate mass international tourists and especially by tour-
publicity. On the other hand, a strike against a ists from countries that the terrorists have a
tourist destination can achieve two goals major conict with.
catastrophic damage to the economy of the As previously noted, another major secu-
region or the state, and an assault against a rity issue that affects tourism demand to a
specic nation or country because many tour- destination is crimes. Geographical areas that
ist destinations are symbols of a national and are plagued by high rates of crimes in general
cultural identity. and are also visited by large numbers of tour-
One of the easiest and most exceptional ists tend to have more occurrences of chronic
opportunities for the terrorists is targeting crime and security problems with regard
tourists at their hotels, especially those that to tourists. Tourist locations are prone to
cater for international guests or are owned by criminal activities owing to the tourists per-
foreigners: an easiest opportunity as it is not manent, natural, hedonistic activities and ori-
in the economic interest of the hotel owners to entation. Areas with little police presence,
alienate guests by over guarding the hotel, low amounts of pedestrian trafc and poor
and an exceptional opportunity as it justies physical characteristics of the tourist sur-
the terrorists actions because the victims are roundings such as dimly lit parking lots or
306 G. Fuchs and A. Pizam

motels with external corridors may facili- (Snmez, 1998; Snmez and Graefe, 1998a;
tate the occurrences criminal activities (Pizam Pizam and Fleischer, 2002; Floyd et al., 2004;
and Mansfeld, 2006). Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006; Araa and Len,
2008; Rittichainuwat and Chakraborty, 2009;
Fuchs and Reichel, 2010).
Impacts of Security and Safety Among the various types of security inci-
Incidents dents, terrorist attacks against tourists and
tourism infrastructures have long been
acknowledged as the most destructive type of
Tourism is an industry where both demand
short-term incidents that have an impact on
and supply can be sensitive to security and
tourists behaviour (Pizam and Mansfeld,
safety incidents (Richter and Waugh, 1986;
2006). According to Viscusi and Zeckhauser
Ryan, 1993; Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). The
(2003), tourists do not deal with the probabili-
occurrence of these incidents strikes and
ties of terrorism occurrences. However, they
impacts all the participants in the delivery
do ponder the worst-case scenarios of terror-
of the tourism product namely the tourists,
ism attacks while planning their holidays.
the destination, the tourism industry, destina-
Yet, negative impacts of terrorists attacks left
tion governments and generating markets
on peoples minds weaken with time and,
and their governments.
therefore, the affected tourist destination may
rebound from the terrorist shock that it has
had (Narayan, 2005).
Impact of safety and security incidents Yechiam et al. (2005) assert that the main
on tourist behaviour differences (heterogeneity) in the impact of ter-
ror events on tourist behaviour depend on three
In most cases, security and safety incidents dimensions: cultural aspects, personal experi-
cause changes in tourists perception of risk. ence and the cost of avoiding the risk. Indeed, in
The concept of tourists risk perception has other studies, culture and nationality have been
gained a lot of attention in recent years (Roehl found to be associated with perception of
and Fesenmair, 1992; Mitchell and Vassos, destination risk (Fuchs and Reichel, 2004;
1997; Tsaur et al., 1997; Snmez, 1998; Fuchs Dolnicar, 2005; Reisinger and Mavondo, 2005,
and Reichel, 2006; Jonas et al., 2011). Although 2006). Regarding personal experience, previous
the concept was found to be multidimen- research suggests that rst-time and repeat
sional, it was evident that the fear of safety travellers show differences in terms of
and security incidents plays a signicant role their perceptions of risk (Rittichainuwat and
in shaping the overall risk perception of a Chakraborty, 2009; Fuchs and Reichel, 2010). As
destination, and in the decision making of the tourists experience with a destination increases,
tourists and shaping their behaviour (Tsaur their risk perception level decreases and their
et al., 1997; Snmez and Graefe, 1998a,b; Dol- attitudes towards international tourism
nicar, 2005; Kozak et al., 2007; Jonas et al., improve (Snmez and Graefe, 1998b). Similarly,
2011). As soon as tourists experience a certain previous travel experience with a particular
level of risk, their behaviour changes. The destination also enhances feelings of safety
tourists that are already in the affected desti- (Pinhey and Inverson, 1994).
nation either move to a safer place or evacu-
ate the destination and return home. Tourists
that are in the process of planning their trips
will either change the destination of their Impact of safety and security incidents
booking or cancel their booking altogether. on the destination
They might also try to reduce the level of risk
to tolerable by using strategies such as con- Pizam (1999) found that the spectrum of
sulting with previous visitors to the destina- effects on tourism demand resulting from
tion, gathering information from friends and violent acts occurring at destinations ranges
relatives, travel agents and the Internet from no effect (when the crimes are petty and
Importance of Safety and Security 307

infrequent) to a slight decrease in demand, to entrepreneurs become redundant, leading to


a signicant decrease, to a drastic decrease a lower quality of service and lower mainte-
and even to the cessation of all tourist visita- nance in general; these then affect the level of
tion (when there is constant terrorism and satisfaction of tourists who have taken the
war). Generally, with the exception of very risk to visit the destination. In the long term,
drastic and serious security incidents such as there will also be a need for large sums of
mass terrorism and war involving local resi- money to rehabilitate any damaged struc-
dents, the acts committed against tourists at a tures once the security situation is over.
tourist destination affect tourism demand International hotels and restaurant
much more than the acts committed against chains tend to remove their global networks
locals (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). in affected areas and thus cause major dam-
When a crisis occurs at a certain destina- age to all the people and infrastructures con-
tion, it might affect proximate regions. Differ- cerned. Similarly, airlines and cruise lines
ent ndings emerge from the literature on the might either cut short or discontinue their
subject. One of the ndings states that neigh- services to affected destinations owing to
bouring countries are negatively affected as reduction in demand and an increase in insur-
regards tourist demand and also experience a ance premiums, both of which affect their
strong negative impact on their image and level of protability.
attractiveness (Enders et al., 1992; Drakos and
Kutan, 2003), while another nding demon-
strates that there is a pattern of inverse impact Impact of safety and security incidents
of terror event that leads neighbouring coun- on the destination governments
tries to a benet when they are chosen by
visitors as a replacement destination because
Pizam and Mansfeld (2006) concluded that
they are perceived as safer (Mansfeld, 1996;
tourism is a major sector in the economy of
Araa and Len, 2008).
every country; therefore, security incidents
that directly and severely affect tourism are a
Impact of safety and security incidents major concern locally, regionally and nation-
on the tourism industry ally for the countries affected. Governments
monitor and assess the impact of security
incidents on a dynamic basis in order to draw
According to Pizam and Mansfeld (2006),
effective conclusions. They might consider
security and safety incidents affect two stake-
the future of this sector due to its fragility and
holders in the tourism system: tour operators
instability, and might initiate new and/or
in the generating markets, and tour operators
improved security measures aimed at pre-
in the receiving destinations. Both will be
venting or diminishing the occurrence of
highly interested in reducing the damage
future security incidents. Governments might
deriving from the change in the security cli-
assist in the process of damage control, and
mate of a given situation. Numerous sectors
decide to offer nancial assistance in order to
and people are nancially affected as a result
cope with the tourism crises; they might even
of security and safety incidents, which may
get involved in the marketing of tourism.
end, occasionally, in total business failure.
Tour operators are severely affected
nancially, either because they have to nd
alternative solutions for tourists who have Impact of safety and security incidents
already booked their trips, or because they on the generating markets and their
have large investments connected with their governments
operations that might perish following the
security incidents. Security incidents result in Governments in tourism-generating coun-
diminishing tourist arrivals which, in turn, tries monitor international security risks and
lead to the need to restructure human issue frequent advisory bulletins that assess
resources. Professional employees and the risk involved in traveling to affected
308 G. Fuchs and A. Pizam

destinations (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). Mansfeld, 2006; Bentley and Page, 2008;
They do this for different reasons, one of them Rittichainuwat and Chakraborty, 2009).
being to reduce the necessity of evacuating Pizam and Mansfeld (2006) emphasized
their citizens from affected destinations or that the media is not always objective. It often
assisting them in times of crises. Travellers, as takes upon itself the role of interpreter and
well as host destinations, are affected by these not only assesses the risk involved in travel-
bulletins. Most travellers trust advisory bul- ling to affected destinations in a biased man-
letins and act accordingly, while the affected ner, but even exaggerates it. The level of
destinations struggle with the consequences coverage of safety and security incidents
of these warnings and also to mitigate them. weakens with time, although in any recur-
Owing to the high visibility of these travel rence of incidents in which visitors are
advisories, it can be suggested that govern- severely injured or killed, the medias contin-
ments in generating markets have a signi- uous coverage and interpretation of the con-
cant inuence on the choice of destinations ict deepen to xation on a long-term
for their citizens. The bulletins cause a rise in negative image of such affected destinations.
insurance premiums and, ultimately, result in This pattern occurs even in the case of safety
an overall increase in the cost of travel. incidents where some of the accidents are
Finally, if governments ban travel to certain caused by tourists themselves (Pizam and
destinations, insurance companies will not Mansfeld, 2006; Bentley et al., 2010). Negative
issue policies, thus making travel to those images might cause potential tourists to can-
destinations an impracticality. cel their bookings or choose to book alterna-
As mentioned earlier, the media plays a tive and more secure destinations because of
major role in shaping the image of tourism unacceptable risk levels. Therefore, it is in the
destinations in times of safety and security interests of the tourism industry and host
incidents. The next section deals with media governments to try to balance the negative
coverage and image perception management images created by the media by conveying
during those incidents. their own more accurate, less biased and
marketing-oriented messages. They should
also choose the right strategy in pursuit of
better perception management, by detecting
Media Coverage and Image and analysing the perceived images and their
Perception Management During interpretation by their potential markets
Safety and Security Incidents (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006).

Safety and security incidents are a media sta-


ple as they are regarded as important news
generators. Owing to its high credibility and Prevention, Reduction, Mitigation and
ability to reach large audiences in a short Recovery from Safety and Security
period of time, the media is particularly inu- Incidents
ential in changing peoples perceptions of a
destination by providing them with the most In an increasingly insecure and threatened
vivid and explicit information and analyses world, destinations have to anticipate and
of these incidents (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006; prevent major security and safety incidents
Tasci and Gartner, 2007). Intensive mass and their consequences, because a peaceful
media coverage of negative tourist incidents and secure environment is necessary to the
increases the feelings of fear and anxiety in survival of tourist destinations.
potential travellers, and plays a major role in Past experience shows that the better a
forming perceived risks about the affected destination is prepared, the more effective is
destinations. As a result, decline of tourist its response to security crises. There are
visitation in affected destinations can easily two ways to deal with security incidents:
turn an incident into a crisis for a destination (i) before occurrence by developing appro-
(Sommez et al., 1999; Cavlek, 2002; Pizam and priate plans; and (ii) after occurrence by
Importance of Safety and Security 309

implementing those plans (Pizam and Mans- of wars and terrorism (Pizam, 1999). How-
feld, 2006). For effective results, reducing ever, Pizam (2002) suggests the tourism
tourism-related risks requires cooperation industry should undertake certain activities in
from a number of parties the affected desti- order to minimize the occurrence of terrorist
nations, the generating markets, the tourist attacks that may occur at tourism destina-
industry, public policy makers and the tour- tions, and in order to recover quickly from
ists themselves (Peattie et al., 2005; Pizam and their devastating effects. He divides his sug-
Mansfeld, 2006; Dwyer et al., 2009). gestions into two: those aimed at the private
As stated before, security incidents and sector and those aimed at the public sector. In
safety incidents differ regarding who or what the private sector, Pizam (2002) proposes
causes them. Security incidents can be turning all tourism employees into security
dened as incidents where tourists suffer employees by training them in security pre-
harm as a result of the deliberate actions of vention and emergency operations, advises
others. Those incidents can be reduced. the setting up of commissions that will certify
Pizam (1999) and Pizam and Mansfeld (2006) tourism enterprises as meeting minimum
have presented a number of strategies aimed security measures, and points out the neces-
at the prevention and reduction of acts of sity of preparing crisis plans aimed at over-
crimes and violence at tourist destinations. coming the negative publicity in the aftermath
These strategies are: (i) legislative measures, of incidences of terrorism. Pizams (2002)
such as laws that make crimes against recommendations to the public sector are to
tourists a serious offence and laws that pro- initiate and support a number of activities,
vide funds to cover the travel expenses of such as improving the security and safety of
victims who are required to testify against all public modes of transportation and their
their perpetrators; (ii) the creation of special terminals, educating and training citizens to
police units that are trained to protect and be aware and vigilant concerning the poten-
assist tourists and tourism businesses; (iii) tial occurrence of terrorist activities in their
improvement of private sector security mea- communities, and establishing tourist police
sures such as training employees in security units adjacent to large tourist destinations; he
and safety measures, upgrading security also suggests promoting and institutionalizing
devices (electronic locks, monitored video international cooperation in order to reduce
cameras); (iv) warning and educating tour- the negative effects of terrorism against
ists by distributing safety and security bro- tourists.
chures or by providing guidelines, through As mentioned earlier, safety incidents,
in-house television or radio, that direct tour- unlike security incidents, are occurrences
ists to safe roads; (v) increasing the aware- where tourists are injured accidentally and
ness of local citizens by making the residents unintentionally. Therefore, it is the stakehold-
aware of the great damage caused to the ers responsibility to improve tourist safety
community by criminal activities and violent by, for example, installing various devices
acts, and asking for their cooperation in pre- intended to prevent or detect safety incidents
venting those crimes and acts by being on the such as res, accidents, health hazards,
lookout and by reporting the crimes to the etc. (Okumus, 2005). Peattie et al. (2005) point
law enforcement authorities; and (vi) intro- out that the provision of information
ducing social changes by narrowing social about risk and risk-reduction strategies for
gaps by means of providing locals with jobs tourists is important for minimizing risks.
in the tourism industry (Pizam, 1999; Pizam The tourist industry can play an important
and Mansfeld, 2006). part in informing tourists concerning health
Concerning wars and terrorist attacks at and safety, but the industry depends on pub-
tourist destinations, political settlements and lic agencies, and these agencies have little
international cooperation are advised, but incentive to alert customers to health or other
with a clear awareness that no amount of hazards present at the destination. In order
security mindedness and advanced prepara- for the supplied information to be effective,
tion can provide protection from the horrors the multicultural tourists also need to
310 G. Fuchs and A. Pizam

understand it. The subject of the unfamiliar also be minimized by the purchasing of
language barrier resulting in communication earthquake insurance (Tsa and Chen, 2010).
difculties is highlighted by Peattie et al. The development of risk management
(2005) and Rittichainuwat and Chakraborty strategies is crucial to a reliable business man-
(2009). They emphasize the importance of agement in the face of uncertainties. Dwyer
multilingual information and advice in pro- et al. (2009) noted that the ability to deal with
tecting tourist health and safety, and suggest, continuous but unpredictable change requires
therefore, training more multilingual service exible, quick and condent decision makers.
workers and increasing the number of multi- What is clear is that with no regard to the
lingual signs and multilingual hospitality/ source of security and safety incidences, tour-
tourism websites. ists need to be assured that concern for their
Tourists might suffer safety incidents as a safety is paramount, and that all appropriate
result of their behaviour and the activities measures are being taken in this respect. As to
that they choose to embark upon. In the case the recovery efforts of different tourism stake-
of adventure activities, it is the operators holders, it has been shown that those that
responsibility to control the risks associated conducted well-coordinated efforts to regain
with latent errors through meticulous assess- tourists trust when a security or safety crisis
ments, and to ensure careful and wise organi- was over, and managed to increase tourist
zation, wise operating decisions, and active demand, revitalize the industry and, there-
management of the client experience (Page fore, recover in a relatively short time (Pizam,
et al., 2005). Risk management must be an 1999; Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). Destina-
integral part of the operation in activities tions that are able to effectively recover from
with a high level of risk (e.g. bungee jumping, the aftermath of security and safety incidents
skydiving), but sufcient control should also use a variety of strategies such as information
be undertaken regarding relatively low haz- dissemination, marketing schemes and nan-
ard activities such as horse riding, wilderness cial assistance programmes.
hiking, etc. (Bentley et al., 2010). Information dissemination consists of
Bentley et al. (2010) suggest a number of acknowledgement by the public authorities
dimensions of control for tourist safety: tech- that problems exist and a promise to correct
nological, behavioural and locational. How- them as soon as possible. The authorities
ever, they emphasize the dimension of safety issue daily updates to the media, local tour-
culture and work organization (good com- ism businesses and their employees, and to
munication, sensible operating decisions, a the tourists in the generating markets, reas-
reasonable balance between safety and pro- suring everyone that the destination is safe or
ductivity) as having a major inuence and is on its way to recovery. They also establish a
being the most crucial in the management of mechanism composed of coordinated public-
tourist safety. They conclude that this dimen- ity and public relations activities, aimed at
sion applies to all adventure and ecotourism creating positive public opinion among the
activities and, in particular, to those activities media, local community and customers. As a
where other aspects of control may be dif- result of the above, the destination gains
cult to manage. They warn, though, that if all trust, credibility and sympathy (Pizam, 1999;
of the risks and adventures are minimized or Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006; Rittichainuwat
taken out, the experience becomes less excit- and Chakraborty, 2009).
ing and, therefore, less attractive. Marketing schemes are used to convince
Although some safety incidents are the general public that things are back to nor-
unavoidable, such as in the case of natural mal. The range of schemes includes the initia-
disasters, they can be handled, reduced and tion of reassuring campaigns, reduction of
their consequences mitigated. For instance, in prices, sales promotion, packaging (i.e. all-
earthquake-prone areas, buildings and facili- inclusive vacations) and product repositioning
ties can be strengthened and various stan- (i.e. from heritage tourism to Sun Sea and Sand
dard operating procedures should be tourism) (Pizam, 1999; Pizam and Mansfeld,
practised. In addition, economic losses can 2006; Rittichainuwat and Chakraborty, 2009).
Importance of Safety and Security 311

Notwithstanding, Rittichainuwat and governments following terrorism and war is


Chakraborty (2009) remark that the govern- vital in the physical reconstruction of the
ment should insist that service providers do tourism industry, in rebuilding the infrastruc-
not trade off safety in low-cost tour packages. ture and in promoting tourism in existing and
An additional marketing scheme new (generating) markets. Following crime
intended to help a destination recover from a waves, governments have to nance public
decline in international tourism is the identi- relations campaigns in addition to designing
cation and development of new market seg- new safety and security rules and regulations
ments (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). One such (Pizam, 1999).
segment is domestic tourists, who can be In conclusion, providing a safe and secure
encouraged by reducing prices, scheduling environment is an absolute necessity for suc-
special events and appealing to their sense of cessful tourism development at the destina-
patriotism (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006; Para- tion level. Therefore, it is important for the
skevas and Arendell, 2007). Other segments ofcials of every destination marketing orga-
to attract after safety and security incidents nization (DMO) to fully understand the
are the repeat visitors segment (Rittichainu- impact that such incidents might have on
wat and Chakraborty, 2009; Fuchs and tourism demand to the destination and devise
Reichel, 2010) and the business travellers the appropriate strategies to prevent, mini-
segment (Pizam and Mansfeld, 2006). mize or ameliorate the frequency and impact
Recovery actions are expensive and can of their occurrence. In those cases where such
succeed only if they are backed by sufcient strategies will not be effective and incidents
nancial assistance from local, state and/or will occur, destination managers must
national governments in the form of grants, develop recovery methods that will enable the
tax holidays and/or subsidized loans (Pizam destination to return to normal conditions in
and Mansfeld, 2006). Funding provided by an expeditious and speedy manner.

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19 Destination Crisis Management

Lori Pennington-Gray and Abraham Pizam

Introduction multiple tourism businesses, a crisis can have


overwhelming and constant long-term
General importance of crisis and tourism impacts for destinations and the industry, as
well as for the nations economy (Heath, 1998;
Tourism is arguably the largest and fastest Faulkner, 2001; Blake and Sinclair, 2003;
growing industry in the world (WTTC, 2008). Santana, 2004).
In 2007 alone, according to the United Nations Recently, it has become apparent that the
World Tourism Organization (UNWTO, tourism industry has been affected by an
2008), international tourist arrivals reached a increased number of crises and disasters
record high of 903 million with US$ 856 bil- around the globe (Faulkner, 2001; Ritchie,
lion in tourism receipts, and stated by the 2004; Santana, 2004). The frequency, strength
World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC, and destruction of disasters and crises have
2008), contributed to 238.3 million jobs. By been augmented, with dramatic environmen-
2010, tourists arrivals are expected to exceed tal, social and economic consequences to
1 billion, with a gure of 1.6 billion forecast affected communities (Pizam and Smith,
by 2020 (WTO, 2008), while 9.2% (296.3 2000; Faulkner and Vikulov, 2001; Huang and
million) of total worldwide employment will Min, 2002; Blake and Sinclair, 2003; Drakos
be related to the travel and tourism industry and Kutan, 2003; Miller and Ritchie, 2003;
by 2018 (WTTC, 2008). Prideaux et al., 2003; Wall, 2005; Bonham et al.,
The signicance of tourism is attributed 2006; Robinson and Jarvie, 2008). Besides
to its economic worth given that visitor these effects, public interest in safety, security
expenditure infuses throughout a mixture of and crisis management has been dramatically
sectors of the economy in consequence of the heightened because of those catastrophic
multiplier effect in income and employment events (Floyd et al., 2004; Hall et al., 2004; San-
through its interrelated business, which tana, 2004). Additionally, the damage caused
includes lodgings, attractions, restaurants, has brought to the fore the need for advanced
cruise lines, car rentals, travel agents, tour levels of crisis management from governmen-
operators and so forth (Goeldner and Ritchie, tal and non-governmental agencies. Conse-
2009). None the less, the tourism industry is quently, it is crucial for the tourism industry
perhaps one of the most susceptible industries to focus on crisis management for safeguard-
due mainly to crises and disasters (Santana, ing the tourism industry from any likely
2004). Given the interconnectedness of these crises (Ritchie, 2004; Gurtner, 2005).
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
314 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Destination Crisis Management 315

Signicance and importance 5. The opportunity to transfer technology


of tourism crisis management to newer, developing destinations that will
enable them to improve their preparedness
The absence of some form of crisis manage- and mitigation strategies.
ment planning is often a decisive mistake
made by organizations (Spillan and Hough, Given the sensitivity and volatility of the
2003). Strategic management relates to a set tourism industry to crises, there is an obvious
of strategies to manage unexpected events need for guidance and strategies on how to
in which organizations have no control deal with and overcome the impacts of crises
(Faulkner, 2001). Pearson and Mitroff (1993, in the tourism industry (Gurtner, 2005; Pforr
p. 59) suggest that the purpose of crisis man- and Hosie, 2008). Tourism organizations need
agement is not to produce a set of plans; it is to be prepared to assist tourists when exposed
to prepare an organization to think creatively to crises or catastrophic events, so the assess-
about the unthinkable so that the best possi- ment of current practices and managerial
ble decisions will be made in a time of crisis. decision-making behaviour within the tour-
Although crises management is a require- ism industry with respect to crisis manage-
ment for most organizations, and business ment is of signicant importance. In fact,
leaders recognize the importance of crisis crisis and disaster management should be the
management, many do not undertake pro- main competency for tourism destination
ductive steps to address crisis situations managers (Ritchie, 2004).
(Kash and Darling, 1998). Nevertheless, deci- Within the context of the tourism indus-
sions undertaken prior to a crisis will enable try, there are several benets to having crisis
more effective management, rather than management planning. First, comprehensive
permit the crisis to manage the organization crisis planning will allow a tourism organiza-
(Burnett, 1988; Kash and Darling, 1998; tion to reduce the potential loss of revenue
Cloudman and Hallahan, 2006). Proactive following a crisis (Faulkner, 2001). Secondly,
measures through the use of strategic plan- the availability of crisis management has
ning may help to decrease risk, wasted time, been found to increase the competitiveness of
poor resource management, and decrease the organizations and destinations (Ritchie,
impact of crises (Heath, 1998). 2009). Thirdly, the availability of some form
of crisis management measures will assist in
rebuilding customers condence to visit or
Why is crisis planning needed revisit the destination following a crisis (Beir-
in tourism destinations? man, 2003). Finally, the availability of a plan
will increase the organizations credibility
(Fink, 2000).
According to the United Nations World
In tourism, having a comprehensive
Tourism Organization (WTO; as it was then)
crisis management practice has been found to
and the World Meteorological Organization
reduce the severity of the crisis impacts
(WMO) (WTO/WMO, 1998, p. 1), crisis plan-
(Glaesser, 2003, 2006). It is recognized that
ning is important and needed in tourism
while it is complex to foresee or manage cri-
destinations for the following reasons:
ses and disasters, tourism organizations can
1. The global reach and large size of the still ease the risks through thorough prepara-
tourism industry. tion, which allows for more effective incident
2. The fact that much tourism development management (Faulkner, 2001). Fundamen-
occurs in areas vulnerable to natural disasters tally, planning includes removal of much of
(such as beach resorts in coastal areas and ski the identied risk and uncertainty in low
resorts in snowy mountains). probability and high impact events so that
3. Difculties posed by language barriers organizations can gain control over manage-
between tourists and their hosts. ment operations (Fink, 1986). Crisis manage-
4. The potential for long-term negative ment in the tourism industry basically entails
impacts on a destination resulting from disaster. planning for, responding to and recovering
316 L. Pennington-Gray and A. Pizam

from the crisis and/or disaster. Therefore, (i.e. accidental release of harmful biological
proactive measures such as the development agents into the air, ground or water); (iii)
of tourism crisis management plans that stra- chemical accidents (i.e. accidental releases
tegically emphasize communication and of harmful synthetic chemicals or gases into
training, visitor evacuation and economic the air, groundwater and sea, such as the
recovery are a prerequisite to alleviating the accident in Bhopal, India in 1984); (iv) nuclear
negative social and economic impacts of accidents (i.e. a breach of a nuclear reactor
likely crises. core which causes large amounts of radiation
In the context of the tourism industry, to be released into the atmosphere, such as
several strategic management frameworks the accidents at Chernobyl, Russia or Three
have been advanced (Faulkner, 2001; PATA, Mile Island, Pennsylvania); and (v) hazard-
2003; Ritchie, 2004; Santana, 2004; Evans ous material spills (i.e. oil spills released into
and Elphick, 2005; Huang et al., 2008; Para- the sea or coastal waters from tankers or ma-
skevas and Arendell, 2007); however, the rine oil rigs, such the Exxon Valdes in Alaska
crisis management planning framework in 1989 and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in
proposed by the Pacic Asia Tourism Asso- 2010).
ciation (PATA, 2003) offers the most appro- 3. Health-related disasters can be divided
priate application to tourism managers into: (i) epidemic diseases (infectious dis-
(Huang et al., 2008). The PATA framework eases that spread quickly to many people,
relies on an action-oriented approach and such as inuenza); (ii) pandemic diseases
segments the elements of a crisis manage- (diseases that spread through human
ment plan into several activity phases in populations across large regions, such as
order to gain control over a crisis. The model cholera and smallpox); and (iii) endemic
constitutes four phases in tourism crisis diseases (infectious diseases that occur
management: reduction, readiness, response frequently in a specic geographical loca-
and recovery. tion, such as malaria in Africa). Diseases can
also be subdivided into: (i) airborne diseases
(e.g. legionnaires disease), SARS (severe
Denitions and Explanations acute respiratory syndrome), avian u;
(ii) waterborne diseases (e.g. cholera,
Types of disasters typhoid, dysentery); (iii) food-borne dis-
eases (e.g. Norwalk virus, salmonellosis,
botulism).
Disasters can be divided into those with natu-
4. Conict-based incidents can be divided
ral causes, those that are technological or
into: (i) riots (e.g. the 1992 Los Angeles race
man-made, those that are health related and
riots in California); (ii) wars (e.g. the Yom
those that are conict-based.
Kippur (ArabIsraeli) War in 1973 and the
1. Natural disasters can be further divided 2003 Iraq war); (iii) revolutions and civil
into climate-oriented and geophysical disas- wars (e.g. the East and Central European
ters. Among the most common climate- revolutions in 1989, and the Afghan civil war
oriented disasters that can have serious in 19891992); (iv) acts of terrorism, which
impacts on tourist destinations are: (i) hurri- be subdivided into: bombings (e.g. Oklaho-
canes and tropical storms; (ii) tornadoes; (iii) ma City in April 1995, and the 9/11 World
oods; (iv) snow avalanches; (v) wildres; Trade Center attacks); airline and ship
and (vi) other extreme weather conditions. attacks (e.g. the hijacking of the Achille Lauro
Geophysical disasters include: (i) earth- in October 1985); chemical/biological
quakes; (ii) tsunamis; (iii) volcano eruptions; attacks (e.g. the sarin attack in Tokyo in
and (iv) landslides. March 1995, and the 2001 anthrax attacks in
2. Technological or man-made disasters can the USA); infrastructure attacks (e.g. com-
be subdivided into those that are: (i) transpor- puter networks); and violence and crime
tation related (e.g. airplane crashes, ships waves (e.g. those in Rio de Janeiro in 2004,
sinking, railroad wrecks); (ii) biological and in Mexico in 2010).
Destination Crisis Management 317

Types of disaster impacts Orleans lost on an average of $15.2 million


per day (Pearlman and Menik, 2008).
There are several types of disaster impacts.
This section will outline the characteristics of Social impacts
individual impacts, economic impacts, social
impacts and institutional impacts. The third type of impact of a disaster is the
social impact. It is challenging to measure the
social impact of a disaster for tourists because
Individual impacts
they are a transient population (Phillips and
The impacts of a disaster on an individual are Morrow, 2007). Most of the social impacts of a
varied. Tourists are concerned with human- disaster are experienced by residents, so this
induced crises more than with nature- section outlines some of the social impacts of
induced crises (Plog, 2005). They are also a disaster on local residents. These may
more likely to modify their travel behaviour include fatalities, injuries and displacement
in the event of a crisis (Valencia and Crouch, of people. For instance, in addition to the over
2008). This modication includes travelling to 1300 fatalities caused by Hurricane Katrina in
a safer place, the cancelling of travel plans, 2005 over the state of Louisiana, there were
shortening travel plans, or even requesting a thousands of people, and as many animals,
refund for evacuation. who rode out Katrina and were left without
The impact of a disaster felt by tourists clean water, food and shelter. In addition, the
depends on several factors, including the dis- often chaotic situation following a disaster
tance travelled between the tourist and the as evidenced in the Katrina situation and in
location in which the tourism experience is Haiti following the 2010 earthquake triggers
offered, and familiarity. For instance, when a loathing and an increased crime rate. In the
ood hits a small country in Micronesia, it long run, the degradation of social fabric that
will be perceived differently by visitors in the may emerge can lead to the decline of resi-
countrys major markets. However, when a dents quality of life and need a long term of
hurricane strikes Florida, people from other recovery to return to normalcy.
states and key European markets will be
more likely to modify their travel plans to Institutional impacts
Florida. These impacts are also heavily inu-
enced by media coverage. The more coverage The fourth type of impact arising from
the crisis receives from international mass disasters is institutional. Given that tourism
media the more it has been shown to affect products are mostly service based, the impact
individual behaviour. of a disaster relates to the quality of the
experience felt by the customers. As a service,
Economic impacts the image of the product or the destination is
pivotal in attracting customers (Beirman,
The second type of disaster impact is eco- 2003; Kozak et al., 2007). Given this, as dis-
nomic. This impact is one of the greatest, asters hit a destination, that image may be
mostly because tourism is largely empha- adversely affected. Tourism organizations
sized owing to its economic signicance need to give special attention to protecting
given that visitor expenditure permeates their destination/organization image. In fact,
throughout various sectors of the economy as protecting the destination image is an impor-
a result of the multiplier effect in income and tant goal in tourism crisis management
employment (Goeldner and Ritchie, 2009). (Faulkner, 2001; Cavlek, 2002). Once the
Consequently, the economic impact of a image is tarnished through media coverage in
disaster is often quantied by the decline in the event of a crisis, it may need a long time to
tourist arrivals. For instance, in 2005 Hurri- return to normality. In addition, other desti-
cane Katrina caused 1409 tourism and hospi- nations that offer similar products to a similar
tality businesses to shut down in Louisiana market may use the event to their own
(Pearlman and Menik, 2008), while New advantage.
318 L. Pennington-Gray and A. Pizam

Measurement of disaster impacts at the wrong time, and because they are
visitors, the media reacts to their victimiza-
Measuring disaster impacts is very complex, tion more strongly.
as a disaster is a multidimensional situation
(Rohrmann, 1995). There are some indicators
that are commonly used to measure disaster Tourists as vulnerable populations
impacts, for example, the number of casual-
ties, cost of damage and environmental
Tourists are a special population that requires
impact. With regard to measuring disaster
a different level of attention from residents,
impacts for the tourism industry, some indi-
particularly so because they may not know
cators that often used to measure the severity
the local language, or understand where to
of the impact are tourist casualties, travel
nd information (the local newspaper or TV
adversity, media perceptions and decline in
station), or know where to go if they need to
tourist arrivals following the disaster.
be evacuated (WTO, 1998; Buckle et al., 2001).
The multidimensionality of a disaster
Hoogenraad et al. (2004) noted that indepen-
and the complexity of the tourism industry
dent travellers and tourists are more vulner-
pose a challenge for the industry in measur-
able to natural hazards as they travel outside
ing the actual impacts of a disaster on the
their social groups and often take more risks.
industry. The most commonly used method
Similarly, Murphy and Bayley (1989) argued
for measuring impact severity is the survey
that tourists tend to ignore risk and show a
(Ritchie, 2009).
low level of natural hazard awareness. A
study by Johnson et al. (2007) indicated that
among visitors in the USA, 46% were unaware
Primary threats to tourists of tsunami warning systems compared with
28% of locals, and only 19% of visitors has
Research indicates that people often act reck- seen tsunami hazard maps.
lessly when they are on vacation. As a result,
they are often targets for crime either soft
targets or hard targets (Tarlow, 2006). How- The Functions of Crisis Management
ever, in addition to being targets for criminal
activities, tourists can also be a soft target for
Crisis management has four main functions:
terrorists (Snmez, 1989). Targeting tourists
preparedness, response, mitigation and
can help terrorists achieve their strategic
recovery.
objectives. These objectives encompass
using excitement and commotion at tourist 1. Preparedness: the purpose of prepared-
centres as a cover for terrorism activities, ness is to lessen disaster damage, enhance
destabilizing economies or gaining desired disaster response operations and prepare
media attention. Large groups of foreign- organizations and individuals to respond.
speaking and foreign-looking tourists can 2. Response: the purpose of the response
act as camouage by allowing terrorists to function is to provide emergency assistance,
hide within a crowd. In addition, terrorists reduce probability of additional injuries or
can also circulate among travellers and carry damage and speed recovery operations.
out nancial transactions in foreign currency 3. Mitigation: this function should occur
without creating suspicion. As tourism before the emergency or disaster takes place
represents a signicant economic activity, so and is intended to eliminate or reduce the
terrorist attacks on tourists can cause foreign probability of occurrence. It includes appro-
exchange receipts to decline. Finally, by priate actions to postpone, dissipate or lessen
targeting tourists, terrorists can gain media the effect of the crisis. The function may also
exposure which can increase their proles take place after a disaster as ofcials seek to
and amplify their messages. Most of rebuild better and implement lessons
the time, visitors are just in the wrong place learned. Examples of mitigation strategies
Destination Crisis Management 319

include revised building codes, new or Queenslands Tourism Crisis Management


revised land-use management regulations Plan provides a template for the develop-
such as ood zoning restriction, and public ment of the National Tourism Incident
education programmes such as a tsunami Response Plan, which establishes a process
awareness campaign. for delivering a coherent national response
4. Recovery: the purpose of the recovery aimed at minimizing the impact of crisis
function is to return systems to normal levels. events.
Examples of recovery strategies include dam-
age assessment, crisis counselling, provision Washington, DC
of temporary housing, etc.
The Washington, DC Convention and Tour-
ism Corporation (WCTC) is the primary
organization responsible for promoting the
Cases of Applied Crisis Management Washington, DC area as a tourism, conven-
Plans tion and special event destination. In the
event of a crisis affecting the DC area, the
Examples of comprehensive crisis corporations main responsibilities include:
management plans by destination (i) a central point for gathering and dissemi-
management organizations (DMOs) nating information to travel, tourism and
news media about the status of Washington,
Queensland DC as a travel destination; (ii) a central infor-
mation point of public information for
Queensland was the rst Australian state to destination conditions and accommodation
have a comprehensive tourism crisis manage- status; and (iii) organizing a central clearing
ment plan to ensure a whole government and house for hotel availability to assist with the
industry response to impacts on the tourism placement of evacuees, emergency workers
industry. Following the events of 9/11, a or displaced conventions, meetings or indi-
multilevel government Tourism Crisis vidual visitors.
Management Plan was developed to enable The crisis plan is designed to aid WCTC
government to respond more effectively to staff and the tourism industry in the event of
industry shocks. The Plan was developed crises in extraordinary working conditions
using interdisciplinary approaches to address or forced evacuation from ofces. The
all facets of crisis management. It is generic, strength of the plan lies in its colour codes,
and can be initiated quickly in the event of a which are used to measure the severity of
signicant shock. The Plan has three levels of the incident. Green refers to a low condition
activation: Level one is a short-term local or of crisis. Examples of situations that may
regional impact; Level two is a reduction in trigger activation of green code include
domestic and/or international travel to potential protest or boycott, or terrorist
Queensland; and Level three is a signicant attack or natural disasters. Anyone on the
long-term negative consequence for the WCTC Crisis Response Team can identify a
industry. Code Green situation. In this situation,
The Plan is broken into four core stages: WCTC staff members should consider the
prevention, preparedness, response and following general measures: check/restock
recovery. It includes an action plan detailing all emergency supplies, review and update
proposed pre-shock and post-shock responses emergency preparedness guides, test the
in four key theme areas: communications, toll-free number assigned to the crisis team,
research, marketing and business/industry and monitor reports and updates from
development and assistance. The dissemina- sources including the media, emergency
tion of the Plan includes help for tourism operations and outside sources.
businesses and workers, employment and The WCTC uses a Code Yellow situation
training incentives and initiatives, and special to refer to an elevated condition of crisis. This
small business workshops following a crisis. code is declared only when the crisis response
320 L. Pennington-Gray and A. Pizam

team has found enough information. Only whether Orlando sustains a direct hit or is
senior members of the crisis response team used as an evacuation centre during an emer-
may elevate the warning to a Code Yellow gency such as a hurricane landfall, the major
situation. When this code is declared, the role of the CVB is primarily the inventorying
following measures will be implemented: and communication of availability of accom-
(i) coordination of emergency plans with modation. The CVB also functions as an
external partners as appropriate; (ii) impart- information source from evacuees, the media
ing the contingency and emergency response and general visitors.
plan to various stakeholders; and (iii) prepar- The CVB plan clearly indicates the mem-
ing to move to an alternative location if bers of the crisis response team, the depart-
deemed necessary. ment responsibilities and activities that will
The highest colour code used by the be carried out to overcome the crisis. The
WCTC is red. A Code Red situation is declared external operations outlined in the crisis plan
when the circumstances have escalated to a include: procedures to alert staff, for trans-
severe condition. Only executive manage- portation and room availability and for the
ment members of the crisis response team notication of pending groups; procedures to
may declare this code. Once a Code Red is communicate with the general public, includ-
declared, the following measures will be ing visitors; and procedures to communicate
implemented: (i) the crisis response team will with the media. Internal operations in the
be gathered as soon as possible to allow quick case of an emergency include, but are not lim-
and accurate communications and decisions; ited to: ensuring the safety of CVB property
(ii) staff should be assigned to address critical and its employees through back-up data such
needs as outlined in the crisis communication as critical industry contact information; emer-
plan; and (iii) communication takes place gency supplies; and the procedures to ensure
with partners to gain updated information the safety of employees. By dividing the crisis
with regard to the incident. response operation into internal and external
Finally, to support the function of the operations, the CVB is able to operate more
WCTC, the crisis management plan also effectively.
includes specic activities for each code and
type of incident, the responsibilities of each
department, information on contacts and Best practices for DMO crisis
methods of communication, and an evacua- management plans
tion plan.
Mexico
Orlando, Florida Convention and Visitors
Bureau In 2009, the tourism industry in Mexico
suffered from an outbreak of swine u (swine
One of most comprehensive tourism crisis origin H1N1 u virus). As a result of the
plan at the county level is the Orlando outbreak, several countries issued travel
Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB). The restrictions for Mexico. Following the travel
strength of Orlando CVBs crisis manage- advisories, and as part of the containment
ment plan lies in the detail that it presents effort of the epidemic, the Mexican govern-
with regard to the steps required to manage ment decided to shut down the countrys
any plausible crises that occur in Orlando. airports. The result of the shutdown was
In the event of incidental emergencies, severe. With no international tourists entering
the CVB is positioned as the goodwill ambas- Mexico, many businesses had to close in the
sador for Orange County, where the city of short term, which caused a signicant loss
Orlando makes sure that victimized tourists of revenue. Following the shutdown, the
are taken care of. Orlando CVB serves as a Mexican Tourism Board worked with the gov-
source of information for the tourism indus- ernment (the Tourism Secretariat, SECTUR) to
try with regard to all crisis incidents. In provide updated information on the situation
a severe event, such as natural disaster, through its website and mass media. The use
Destination Crisis Management 321

of mass media and the Internet played a one was from New Zealand and one from
signicant role in releasing up-to-the-minute Indonesia. More than 50 people were injured
information to the general public. in the blasts. Both blasts were caused
When the outbreak declined, the Mexi- by suicide bombers, who checked into the
can Tourism Board launched three phases of hotels as paying guests several days earlier.
recovery programmes (eTurbonews, 2009). This attack shocked Jakarta and the entire
The rst phase of the three-part multimedia country.
campaign entitled Believe It ran for a series In order to minimize the negative impact
of 2 weeks and consisted of television adver- of the incident, the Indonesian government,
tisements in markets across the USA. In through the Ministry of Culture and Tourism,
addition to using conventional mass media, took several immediate actions. Right after
Mexico used social media to entice travel- the incidents, the Ministry activated a crisis
lers back to Mexico. The campaign carried team that comprised representatives from the
strong impacting statements and featured Ministry, several hoteliers and a group of tour
leaders such as President Barack Obama. operators. The Ministry established a crisis
The campaign highlighted the success of centre which provided comprehensive infor-
Mexico in tackling the H1N1 outbreak. The mation and the latest updates of the situation
second phase, entitled Welcome Back to the media, partners, visitors and other
reminded Americans of past times which parties. The Minister of Culture and Tourism,
had bonded them to Mexico. In the third Jero Wacik, activated the Emergency
phase, a cooperative campaign entitled Response System and the Standard Opera-
Mexico Its Time To Go lured travellers tions Procedures, which followed the
back to Mexico with great deals and pack- UNWTO guidelines for crisis in the tourism
ages. As part of the campaign, Mexicos industry.
National Institute of Anthropology and The result of this quick response was
History signed an agreement with Google positive. Ministry of Culture and Tourism
Mexico to promote archaeological and and Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Asso-
historical sites. In addition to partnering ciation data indicated that there was not an
with Google to showcase the plethora of his- obvious exodus from Jakarta, Bali or any
torical gems in Mexico, the Institute also other tourism destinations in Indonesia. On
started a channel on Youtube.com to further 22 July 2009, Xi Jing, the UNWTO regional
showcase historical landmarks. Finally, it representative for the Asia Pacic indicated
launched advertising campaigns in 12 major that the city was recovering rapidly from the
US markets and six in Canada. The result of attack and congratulated the Government of
this quick response and recovery plan was Indonesia and the tourism industry for the
an increase in the number of visitors to professional approach taken and efcient
Mexico after the airports reopened. capacity in handling the crisis (Tourism
The Mexico case indicates that the role Directory, 2009).
of the Internet and social media in dissemi- The Indonesian governments response
nating updated information following a to the bombings offered a lesson on how to
crisis is critical. The social media have manage perceptions and mitigate the impact
become one of the most effective ways to of unfavourable mass media reports or
convey messages to the general public in the foreign government travel advisories and
event of a crisis. warnings in response to a crisis at a tourism
destination. The government effectively
Jakarta, Indonesia addressed these concerns by activating the
crisis centre right after the incident, and the
On 17 July 2009, a tragic bombing occurred in crisis centre provided positive information to
the JW Marriot Hotel and Ritz Carlton in the public and the media. As a result, there
Jakarta, killing seven tourists. Three of the was no indication that tourism arrivals were
seven victims who were killed were affected in Jakarta, Bali and other tourism
Australians, two were from the Netherlands, destinations in Indonesia.
322 L. Pennington-Gray and A. Pizam

The USA Future Crisis Management Research


Issues
Following the second Iraq war in 2002, the
Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) For tourism destinations, crisis management
launched a special website for its members, is part of tourism destination management.
the media and the general public. The web- Crisis management and crisis marketing need
site contained six main sections. The rst was to be integrated into strategic planning for the
the travel industry crisis position and mes- destination. Challenges and issues in destina-
sage points; this section contained a state- tion management have a signicant impact
ment from the TIA CEO acknowledging a on crisis management. Among those chal-
crisis and justifying the need for the website. lenges, limited nancial resources and
The second section was the travel industry increasing demand from internal constituen-
crisis performance update; this contained cies have important impacts on future crisis
industry overviews of performance by key management efforts.
segments. The third section was the travel Crises of all kinds have triggered reac-
industry crisis research page; this contained tions among many DMOs. Common
information from surveys and the results of responses include budget cutbacks and
past studies on the impacts of a crisis on con- renewed emphasis on local markets (Gretzel
sumers and the industry. The fourth part of et al., 2006). Budget cutbacks could be viewed
the website was the travel industry support as necessary when a crisis hits, and as a fore-
section for security enhancements; this seeable consequence of reduced revenue.
contained information for Americans and vis- Thus, it is politically savvy to demonstrate
iting travellers. The fth section outlined the scal responsibility. However, budget
impacts on the travel industry of the Gulf War cutbacks could pose a long-term threat to
(19901991), of 9/11 and of SARS, and efcient crisis management; crisis manage-
described how the industry responded to the ment efforts that prepare for the future might
aforesaid crises. The last section presented rank lower on the priority list than more
the travel industry crisis recovery plan. This immediate concerns.
outlined the objectives of the plan and pro- Two important future research issues
gramme actions, e.g. press releases, talking should be noted by researchers and practitio-
points, opinion pieces, letters to editors, ners. First, it is critical to plan how to commu-
speeches, campaign logos, advertising art- nicate more efciently with internal and
work and templates, and public service external stakeholders about the importance of
announcement artwork. The section also con- investing in crisis management. For example,
tained details of legislative actions, such as internal marketing strategies and tools could
the multipoint recovery plan presented and be utilized to shore up support for crisis man-
sample letters to Congress. Most of the items agement. Secondly, how can annual budgets
on the website were static, but several that allocate monies for crisis management more
were time sensitive were updated frequently. effectively? New technologies for modelling
To ensure the use of the website and maintain crises have important implications in this area.
both past and current information, it DMOs need to investigate the marketing
remained live for about 6 months and was not requirements and consequences of the
protected by password. While it was difcult alternatives identied by recovery plans.
to measure the effectiveness of the website, it Although alternatives may vary among
received positive attention and a great deal of different destinations, a common practice is to
activity from the industry. shift marketing efforts away from traditional
The case outlines the importance of hav- markets to new markets, either temporarily or
ing a solid information source in the event of a permanently. For example, after the 9/11
crisis. In addition to having a crisis centre, terrorist attacks, many domestic destinations
activating an informational crisis website refocused on short-distance and local markets
plays a signicant role in lling the informa- to cope with the disruption caused by percep-
tion vacuum before it is lled by other parties. tions of safety and security. Different sectors
Destination Crisis Management 323

of the travel and tourism industry might have community. The leadership role of DMOs
different perceptions of the destination, and requires their managers to be equipped with
industry sectors such as hotels and attractions current knowledge and the managerial tools
could be affected differently by the proposed to make strategic decisions and execute man-
strategy to focus on the local market. Under- agement plans. Although organizational
standing the long-term impacts of different learning has been proposed as a model for
alternatives is another topic for future study. knowledge creation and sharing within
Future studies on crisis management DMOs (Ritchie, 2004; Blackman and Ritchie,
should provide an easily useable knowledge 2008), a knowledge gap might still exist. Fur-
base for DMO managers to base their crisis thermore, managers from a traditional mar-
management efforts on. Most existing research keting background might lack the necessary
is on an ad hoc basic and lacks a holistic training for crisis management. Certicate
approach towards crisis management (Carlsen programmes such as those provided by the
and Liburd, 2008). Isolated case studies and Tourism Crisis Management Institute at the
reports of best practices tend to provide spe- University of Florida are an important rst
cialized information, but their ndings cannot step. Future studies are needed to evaluate
be easily applied in different communities the collaboration between DMOs and aca-
under different scenarios. To resolve this issue demic institutes on training and other human
calls for efforts from both researchers and resource management frontiers.
practitioners. Researchers need to take a step
back to look at the current state of crisis man-
agement studies and start to develop a broad
and common knowledge base (e.g. Laws and Acknowledgment
Prideaux, 2006). Practitioners should demand
more practice-oriented research and elaborate Special thanks are extended to Ignatius
on their requirements. Cahyanto, a PhD student in the Tourism
DMOs clearly take centre stage with Crisis Management Institute at the University
regard to crisis management planning and of Florida, for all his hard work associated
preparing, particularly for visitors to the with this chapter.

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20
A Model of Destination
Competitiveness and Sustainability

J.R. Brent Ritchie and Geoffrey I. Crouch

Introduction tourism destination competitiveness and


sustainability.
This chapter will review the understanding While the majority of the chapters in this
we have gained from several years of research book are original works, we have been asked
and from several more years of ongoing dis- to submit this extracted summary from a
cussions with industry leaders regarding the major research-based book which identied
nature of competitiveness among tourism the factors that the CEOs of major North
destinations. This understanding has been American DMOs believe determine the com-
captured, in summary form, in the model of petitiveness and the success of a sustainable
Destination Competitiveness and Sustain- tourism destination (Ritchie and Crouch,
ability (Ritchie and Crouch, 2003). This model 2003). Before launching into the examination
contains seven components which we have of our model of destination competitiveness,
found to play a major role, from both policy we provide a brief review of the concepts of
and management perspectives, in determin- competitiveness and sustainability, because
ing the competitiveness and sustainability of they provide the foundations for the model.
a tourism destination. In addition to the
understanding which these seven compo-
nents provide from a policy perspective, the
specic elements of each of the major compo- The Nature of Tourism Destination
nents provide more useful/practical guid- Competitiveness
ance to those who are responsible for the
ongoing management of a destination man- How tourism destinations develop, maintain,
agement organization (DMO). protect or strengthen their competitive posi-
With this overview in mind, the chapter tions in an increasingly competitive and
will provide a detailed review and explana- global marketplace is a challenge that has
tion of the model that I have developed with risen to prominence in the tourism industry
my colleague, Dr Geoffrey I. Crouch of (Blanke and Chiesa, 2007). This challenge is
Latrobe University in Melbourne, Australia. characterized by a number of signicant com-
Based on previous presentations through- plexities. The rst of these is that a tourism
out the world, it has proven very helpful destination, by its nature, is very different
to both academics and practitioners who from most commercially competitive prod-
seek to understand the complex nature of ucts. The product of the tourism sector is an
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
326 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability 327

experience that is delivered by a destination Sustainability from a Tourism


to its visitors. This experience is produced not Destination Perspective
by a single rm but by all players who affect
the visitor experience; namely, tourism enter- It is perhaps not surprising that much of the
prises (such as hotels, restaurants, airlines, interest in managing tourism from a sus-
tour operators, etc.), other supporting indus- tainability perspective focuses on the eco-
tries and organizations (such as the arts, logical dimension of sustainability, given
entertainment, sports, recreation, etc.) and the level of concern expressed globally
DMOs (whether private, public, or private about humankinds pressure on the earths
public partnerships). environment. However, we contend that
The more traditional reviews of competi- there are four primary pillars of sustainable
tiveness have focused primarily on the eco- tourism and that appropriate policy and
nomic dimensions of destination strength management solutions must be found for
and performance. While economic perfor- each of them if true sustainability is to be
mance is certainly an important dimension of achieved. These four primary pillars of sus-
tourism competitiveness, it is only one tainability are, in our view, the ecological,
dimension (see Fig. 20.1). Because of the economic, sociocultural and political/gov-
unique nature of tourism, the true ability of a ernance environments.
tourism destination to compete also involves The ecological or natural environment is a
its social, cultural, political, technological and major attraction for many destinations. Often,
environmental strengths. In summary, what the experience of a unique natural environ-
makes a tourism destination truly competi- ment represents the core of a destinations
tive is its ability to increase tourism expendi- tourism product the African savannah, the
ture, to increasingly attract visitors while Canadian Rocky Mountains, the Australian
providing them with satisfying, memorable outback and coral reefs, the South American
experiences, and to do so in a protable way, rainforests, the Norwegian fjords, the canyon
while enhancing the well-being of destination lands of America. For many destinations,
residents and preserving the natural capital these natural phenomena represent the life-
of the destination for future generations. blood of their tourism industries, and any

Environment Economic

Technological Social

Political Cultural

Fig. 20.1. The multidimensional strengths of a tourism destination.


328 J.R. Brent Ritchie and G.I. Crouch

decline in their value will have an adverse sustainable, it will probably be acceptable
effect on the destination. Residents of these politically. But there is often little consensus
destinations have the most at stake in the pro- or agreement about how one determines sus-
tection and preservation of their natural envi- tainability and, consequently, there is much
ronments. But the tourism industry has an room for disagreement. This is often a philo-
important role to play too, not just in terms of sophical question, but it creates much politi-
ensuring that any tourism development mini- cal debate.
mizes harm to the ecology, but also by pro-
viding an economic incentive that encourages
preservation and protection.
In addition to protecting the environ- Model of Destination
ment, the tourism policy and management Competitiveness and Sustainability
strategy must be capable of meeting the eco-
nomic needs and aspirations of residents over As noted earlier, the research on which our
the long term. If it is to do so, the following model (see Fig. 20.2) is based extended over
considerations may be inuential in deter- an 8-year period, and consisted primarily of a
mining economic sustainability. These include series of qualitative interviews with the CEOs
being of benet to many, not just a few, the of DMOs, mostly in North America but also
utilization of local labour, job security, and Europe and elsewhere. These CEOs were
attractive wages, salaries and benets. asked to identify and prioritize the factors
To be sustainable, a tourism develop- that they believed determined the competi-
ment strategy for the destination must also tiveness and success of tourism destinations.
address its sociocultural impacts. When tour- In this regard, the model seeks to explore two
ists travel, the desire to see, experience and different, but highly related, types of compet-
learn something of the destinations socio- itive advantage.
cultural fabric is typically a central element First, comparative advantages (based on
of their motivation. Notwithstanding the resource endowments) are those with which a
fact that the culture which tourists experi- destination has been blessed by God and/or
ence is often somewhat articial or inau- nature as well as those which the destina-
thentic, the presence and inuence of tourists tion and its society have developed and
may create impacts on the host society and accumulated over time. These include its
its culture. These impacts may be temporary historical and cultural resources, its economy,
or permanent, positive or negative, minor or its human and physical resources, its knowl-
substantial, and are often greatest when the edge and conceptual resources, the cumula-
cultural distance between the host and guest tive basic infrastructure which visitors expect
cultures is considerable. In any case, policies to be available even though it probably does
and programmes that minimize adverse little to attract them and, nally, the elements
social and cultural impacts (such as crime, of the tourism superstructure that have been
prostitution, alienation of certain segments put in place specically to attract and satisfy
of the population, trivialization of culture the interests of visitors.
and the disintegration of a way of life), while Secondly, the effectiveness and efciency
fostering an interest and pride in those with which a destination deploys its resource
things that dene a culture or society with- endowments (or resource deployment) leads
out placing it in a time warp, present sus- to growth and development in its tourism
tainable choices. sector, thus contributing to the creation of
Finally, although political sustainability is competitive advantages. Together, the destina-
rarely identied as one of the pillars of sus- tions comparative advantages and its com-
tainability, we feel that it is potentially critical petitive advantages in tourism create its
to the acceptability of tourism within any des- overall ability to compete in the tourism mar-
tination. One might argue that if a strategy ketplace and, ultimately, its ability to reach
for tourism destination development is eco- the levels and types of success that it realizes
logically, economically and socioculturally in the tourism eld.
Comparative Competitive
advantages advantages
(resource Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability
(resource
endowments) deployment)
Human resources
Physical resources Audit and inventory
Knowledge Maintenance
resources Growth and
QUALIFYING AND AMPLIFYING DETERMINANTS

Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability


Capital resources
COMPETITIVE (MICRO) ENVIRONMENT
development
Infrastructure Location Safety/security Cost/value Interdependencies Awareness/image Carrying capacity Efficiency

GLOBAL (MACRO) ENVIRONMENT


and tourism Effectiveness
superstructure
DESTINATION POLICY, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
Historical and
Competitive/
cultural resources System Philosophy/
Vision
Positioning/
Development collaborative
Monitoring and
Audit
definition values branding evaluation
Size of economy analysis

DESTINATION MANAGEMENT
Customers--- Quality Human Finance
of Information/ resource and Visitor Resource Crisis
Organization Marketing venture ---Economy
service/ research development management stewardship management
Suppliers--- experience capital
---Technology
International--- CORE RESOURCES AND ATTRACTORS
facilitators Physiography ---Ecology
and climate Culture and history Mix of activities Special events Entertainment Superstructure Market ties

Competitors--- ---Political/legal

Destination--- ---Sociocultural
culture
SUPPORTING FACTORS AND RESOURCES ---Demographic
Interfacing--- Infrastructure Accessibility Facilitating resources Hospitality Enterprise Political will
publics

Fig. 20.2. The Ritchie/Crouch conceptual model of destination competitiveness and sustainability (Ritchie and Crouch, 2003).

329
330 J.R. Brent Ritchie and G.I. Crouch

An Overview of the Components and forces that lie within the destinations
of the Model immediate arena of tourism activities and
competition. As a general rule, these close-in
The global (macro) environment elements of the environment tend to have a
more direct and immediate impact than do
elements of the global (macro) environment.
The tourism system is an open system. That
The micro environment, because of its
is, it is subject to many inuences and pres-
proximity and greater sense of immediacy,
sures that arise outside the system itself. This
often occupies the attention of managers
is the global or macro environment. It consists
owing to its ramications regarding the desti-
of a vast array of phenomena that broadly
nations ability to serve visitors and remain
affect all human activities and which are not
competitive.
therefore specic to the travel and tourism
Apart from the destination itself, the
industry in their effects. By comparison, the
competitive (micro) environment includes
competitive or micro environment is part of
other entities that together form the so-called
the tourism system because it concerns the
travel trade, in addition to the various tour-
actions and activities of entities in the tourism
ism markets, competing destinations and a
system that directly affect the goals of each
destinations publics or stakeholders. As
member of the system whether they be indi-
components of the tourism system, they shape
vidual companies or a collection of organiza-
the immediate environment within which a
tions constituting a destination.
destination must adapt in order to compete.
The macro environment is global in its
These components include suppliers who are
scope. Events in one part of the world today
connected to tourists through tourism mar-
can produce an array of consequences for a
keting channels and consist of intermediaries
destination. Global forces can alter a destina-
and facilitators. These include: tour packagers,
tions attractiveness to tourists, shift the pattern
who assemble tourism products or experi-
of wealth to create new emerging origin mar-
ences from among the vast alternatives sup-
kets, adjust the relative costs of travel to a par-
plied; retail travel agents, who provide
ticular destination, and disrupt relations
information and reservation convenience and
between other cultures and most of a destina-
expertise to tourism markets; specialty chan-
tion. These forces present the destination with
nellers, such as incentive travel rms, corpo-
a number of special concerns, problems or
rate travel ofces, meeting and convention
issues that it must either adapt to, or overcome.
planners, etc., who, by their nature, provide
The global (macro) environment is in a
specialized forms of travel planning and
constant state of change and evolution. Desti-
organization; and the facilitators, who assist in
nation managers need to regularly monitor
the efcient and effective functioning of the
the environment if they are to understand the
tourism system by improving the ow of
big picture and anticipate and pre-empt
information, money, knowledge, services and
changes altering the tourism landscape. Mar-
people.
keters will recognize this as the need to avoid
Customers, that is, travellers and tourists,
marketing myopia.
are, or at least should be, the focus and
Macro environmental factors are often
source of the driving force in the competitive
categorized into six principal groups related
(micro) environment. Another element of the
to the economy, technology, ecology, political and
competitive environment is the competitors
legal developments, sociocultural issues and the
themselves; that is, other destinations, orga-
constantly evolving demographic environment.
nizations or rms with which an entity
competes because they offer broadly similar
products to essentially the same group of cus-
The competitive (micro) environment tomers, at least in part. Traditionally, these
competitors have been regarded as adver-
A destinations competitive (micro) environ- saries. Increasingly, however, in these days
ment is made up of organizations, inuences of downsizing, partnerships and virtual
Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability 331

corporations, a new word, coopetition, is also dene much of the aesthetics and visual
being added to the lexicon of the business appeal of the destination and because they
world to reect the fact that other organiza- are factors over which destination managers
tions or entities can present both cooperative have little or no control, much of the built
and competitive challenges. tourism environment is constrained by their
A destinations internal environment or characteristics. Thus, to a great extent, a desti-
internal culture is also an element of the micro nations physiography and climate make up
or competitive environment that affects its the one parameter of core attractiveness
competitiveness. To be competitive, a desti- around which other factors must be creatively
nation must function as a real entity. That is, it developed.
must have a sense of itself. In other words, it Similarly, the culture and history of a des-
should have a purpose and be managed in a tination can be an enormously important fac-
way that promotes the pursuit of that pur- tor as well. Although these aspects may be
pose. In the case of many destinations, this viewed as somewhat more malleable than
attribute probably plays a strong and unique physiography and climate from a manage-
role in shaping a destinations tourism image, ment perspective, the culture and history of a
as well as its reality. destination are also determined by factors
The nal element of a destinations com- well outside the scope of tourism. Indeed, it
petitive (micro) environment involves the can be argued with great justication that lit-
many publics with which a destination must tle or no attempt should be made to alter local
contend and which it must satisfy. These culture and history for the purpose of tourism
include the media, government departments, development. Once this constraint is
the general public, local residents, nancial accepted, however, a destinations culture
institutions and citizen-action groups. and history furnish a basic and powerful
attracting force for the prospective visitor.
This force appears to be growing in signi-
cance for many segments of the travel market,
Core resources and attractors particularly in todays world of homoge-
nized tourism, where one destination often
This component of the model describes the seems to resemble another. So, if a destination
primary elements of destination appeal. It is can provide visitors with a unique setting
these factors that are the key motivators for within which to experience lifestyles outside
visitation to a destination. While other com- their day-to-day routines, it has a clear com-
ponents are essential for success and prot- petitive advantage. If this lifestyle is comple-
ability, it is the core resources and attractors mented by historical environments that
that are the fundamental reasons that pro- contrast with those found in the home situa-
spective visitors choose one destination over tion, the destination has a clear competitive
another. These factors fall into seven catego- advantage in efforts to create a memorable
ries; physiography and climate, culture and experience.
history, market ties, mix of activities, special The market ties component of destination
events, entertainment and the tourism super- attractiveness is also outside the direct con-
structure. trol of tourism destination managers. Never-
Because so much of the tourism experi- theless, it is one that evolves over time, and
ence is associated with the physical resources one that can be inuenced to varying degrees
of a destination, the physiography and climate by those responsible for managing a tourism
of a destination can be so important that they destination. The term market ties includes
dominate other factors of competitiveness. As several dimensions along which a destination
these include the overall nature of the land- establishes and builds linkages with the resi-
scape and the climate of the destination, dents of tourism originating regions. Ethnic
together they dene the nature of the envi- ties resulting from immigration patterns that
ronmental framework within which the visi- have evolved over time often long periods
tor exists and enjoys the destination. They of time provide the strongest and perhaps
332 J.R. Brent Ritchie and G.I. Crouch

most enduring linkages for building system- of both visitors and residents. The spectrum
atic and predictable travel ows to a destina- of possible special events ranges from modest
tion. The visiting friends and relatives (VFR) community festivals to large-scale interna-
segment of the travel market, while not nec- tional mega events such as the Olympic
essarily the most protable segment, pro- Games, World Expositions and global sport-
vides a rm foundation for building tourism ing championships. Each end of the spectrum
within a destination. Even more important, it has an important role to play. Local festivals
often leads to the establishment of business provide the opportunity to involve residents
ties that can generate a steady ow of visitors in events of particular relevance to their daily
and create other forms of economic develop- lives, and may also draw visitors from nearby
ment. Other ties include religion, sports, regions. Mega events (Ritchie, 1984) demand
trade and culture. a much higher level of commitment, while
The range or mix of activities within a des- providing a much greater opportunity to
tination represents one of the most critical establish a destinations tourism credentials
aspects of destination appeal, and one over at the international level. While generally
which destination managers do have exten- more commercial and professional in nature,
sive inuence and control. While the activi- the decision to host a particular type of mega
ties within a destination may be dened to a event should not ignore the interests and
large extent by physiography and culture, potential for involvement of members of the
there is, none the less, considerable scope for local community.
creativity and initiative. The activities dimen- Entertainment is another category of des-
sion of destination attractiveness appears to tination core resources or attractors. The
be growing in importance as the traveller entertainment industry is a major supplier to
increasingly seeks experiences that go beyond travel and tourism. Apart from gambling, the
the more passive visitation practices of the Las Vegas experience is based on entertain-
past. In The Experience Economy: Work Is The- ment. Many visitors to New York or London
atre and Every Business a Stage, Pine and Gilm- include a live show in their travel itineraries.
ore (1999, p. 2) argue that customer experience Entertainment can even attract tourists inter-
rather than customer service is a hallmark of nationally. New Zealand is an important
new economic growth: Experiences are a market for theatre productions in Melbourne
fourth economic offering [the others being and Sydney, which are too expensive to stage
commodity, good, or service], as distinct from in the smaller New Zealand market. The
services as services are from goods. The chal- theatre, concerts, comedy festivals, operas
lenge facing the tourism destination manager and circuses such as Cirque du Soleil are
is to develop those activities that take advan- examples of the contribution that the enter-
tage of the natural physiography of the desti- tainment sector can make toward a destina-
nation while remaining consistent with the tions competitiveness.
local culture and its value. For example, a The nal core dimension of destination
nature-based destination should take the attractiveness, tourism superstructure, is
opportunity to strengthen its appeal by devel- another over whose development destination
oping activities that build on this strength; a managers can exert a considerable amount of
historical/cultural destination should cre- control. In fact, it is the tourism superstruc-
atively identify and develop activities that ture, which primarily comprises accommoda-
reinforce this foundation of its appeal. tion facilities, food services, transportation
The attractor dened as special events rep- facilities and major attractions that many
resents a distinctive extension to that of the view as the tourism industry. Certain ele-
activity mix. It is of particular managerial ments of the tourism superstructure may be
interest because it is one over which destina- categorized by some as supporting factors of
tion managers have a great degree of control. destination appeal, in that visitors do not, for
The term special events refers to a wide example, normally choose a destination just
range of happenings that can create high to eat and sleep. They do, however, visit a
levels of interest and involvement on the part destination largely because of the appeal of
Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability 333

its attractions. Despite the possible legitimacy inuence on destination competitiveness. For
of the view that excludes accommodation example, transportation services and facili-
and food services from the tourism super- ties are vital to travellers. Highways, rail-
structure, it can also be argued with consider- ways, bus services, airports, ferries, etc.
able force that the quality of these factors can convey travellers to and from desired points
represent in itself a signicant percentage of of interest. The quality of transportation
the overall appeal of a destination. For this infrastructure is as important as its mere exis-
reason, the present model denes them as tence. A destination is more competitive
components of core attractiveness. when transportation systems are reliable, ef-
cient, clean, safe, frequent and able to take
travellers to the locations and attractions of
Supporting factors and resources greatest interest. In fact, the infrastructure ele-
ments important to all economic and social
Whereas the core resources and attractors of a activity such as sanitation systems, commu-
destination constitute the primary motiva- nication systems, public facilities, a reliable
tions for inbound tourism, supporting factors and potable water supply, legal systems, etc.
and resources, as the term implies, support or also provide the basis for an effective and
provide a foundation upon which a success- efcient tourism industry.
ful tourism industry can be established. A Successful tourism development also
destination with an abundance of core depends on a range of other facilitating
resources and attractors, but a dearth of sup- resources and services, such as the availability
porting factors and resources, may nd it and quality of local human knowledge and
very difcult to develop its tourism industry, capital resources, education and research
at least in the short term, until some attention institutions, nancial institutions, various
is paid to those things that are lacking. This areas of public services, etc. The labour mar-
may not be easy in a location or region that is ket in terms of available skills, work ethics,
poor, undeveloped or underpopulated. The wage rates, union demands and government
question then becomes, how can the destina- regulations is particularly important in a
tion begin to use, albeit in a modest way, its sector of the economy where customer ser-
abundant attractions to build gradually a vice is critical. The availability of capital
tourism industry that will create the wealth, resources will depend on the extent of local
taxes, employment and investment necessary wealth and savings for investment, competi-
for the provision of the missing supporting tion for capital from other industries, govern-
elements? ment constraints on foreign investment, and
In a region that already enjoys a broad the return investors expect to be able to gen-
economic base, this question may not arise. erate from investment in tourism develop-
Even so, the quality, range and volume of ment. The lack of these sorts of resources may
supporting factors and resources are still severely limit a destinations competitive
likely to signicantly shape the realization of potential.
tourism potential. Where the question does The health, vitality and sense of enter-
arise, however, particularly careful planning prise, entrepreneurship and initiatives in
and management is required to ensure a developing new ventures in a destination
proper balance between tourism growth and contribute to its competitiveness in a number
the development of infrastructure and other of ways. These include competition, coopera-
facilitating resources. Without such a balance, tion, specialization, innovation, facilitation,
economic, social, ecological, and perhaps investment, growth, income distribution and
even political systems, might be placed equity, risk taking, productivity, gap lling,
at risk. product diversication, seasonality manage-
One of the most important supporting ment and disequilibria (Crouch and Ritchie,
factors of a destination is the condition and 1995). The tourism industry is replete with
extent of its general infrastructure. Some ele- many small-to-medium sized enterprises,
ments of infrastructure have a very direct and the extent to which tourism development
334 J.R. Brent Ritchie and G.I. Crouch

advances economic prosperity and the qual- of political will. Many destination executives
ity of life of residents depends signicantly we have spoken to have noted how their
upon the actions and success of these rms. efforts to develop their destination have
Porter (1990, p. 125) noted that Invention and either been assisted or frustrated by an abun-
entrepreneurship are at the heart of national dance or lack of political will, respectively.
advantage, and he also argued that the role The saying, where there is a will, there is a
of chance does not mean that industry success way, captures the important role that politi-
is unpredictable, because entrepreneurship is cal support can exert in facilitating efforts by
not a random phenomenon. the tourism industry to create a competitive
The accessibility of a destination, too, is a destination. Political will is not just a function
supporting factor as it is governed by a wide of the attitudes and opinions of politicians
variety of inuences, many of which depend alone. All community leaders shape political
on broad economic, social or political con- attitudes towards the contribution that tour-
cerns. For example, regulation of the airline ism might make in helping to stimulate eco-
industry, entry visas and permits, route con- nomic and social development and the
nections, airport hubs and landing slots, air- resultant quality of life in the destination.
port capacities and curfews, competition
among carriers, etc. all affect the accessibility
of a destination in more complex ways than Destination policy, planning
its mere physical location might suggest. and development
Within a destination as well, the accessibility
of tourism resources is also a competitive A strategic or policy-driven framework for
issue. Although the accessibility of resources the planning and development of the destina-
such as beaches, mountains, national parks, tion with particular economic, social and
unusual land formations, scenic regions, other societal goals as the intended outcome
lakes and rivers, etc. will undoubtedly be can provide a guiding hand to the direction,
inuenced by the needs of the tourism indus- form and structure of tourism development.
try, other economic, social and sometimes In order to formulate a strategic frame-
political needs often govern the location of work, it is rst necessary to decide or agree on
roads and railway lines, for example. A desti- the frameworks subject. That is, precisely
nations resources are hardly relevant to the what is the framework meant to govern?.
issue of competitiveness unless they are This requires an explicit recognition and com-
accessible to potential tourists and tourism mon understanding across those stakehold-
operators alike. ers involved in the process concerning the
The operating sectors of tourism are system denition of the tourism destination
responsible for delivering high-quality, mem- involved. Before different parties can agree or
orable experiences. Care must be taken, how- come to some consensus on what needs to be
ever, to wrap these experiences in a warm done, they must rst agree on the entity for
spirit of hospitality. Quite simply, it is not which the strategy is to be developed.
enough to deliver all the attributes of an expe- In the process of developing a policy-
rience in a cold and detached manner. Each driven framework for destination develop-
individual visitor must feel that they are more ment, various philosophical perspectives are
than a source of cold cash revenue for the likely to emerge among the stakeholders
business or destination. Rather, visitors have a concerned. A communitys philosophy on the
natural human desire for warm acceptance as best way to address economic, social, envi-
they seek to enjoy the range of experiences the ronmental and political goals through tour-
destination has to offer. As such, the challenge ism development will shape the policy
facing destinations is to deliver their experi- framework. This philosophy needs to t the
ences in a way that enables visitors to believe circumstances, but there also needs to be
they are welcome; that they are truly guests. some consensus agreement among stake-
A further factor that can support or hin- holders as to the right or at least the prevailing
der destination competitiveness is its degree philosophy.
Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability 335

The destination vision (Ritchie, 1993) is a Destination policies for tourism develop-
statement or understanding of what such a ment should be formulated as an integrative
philosophy logically suggests makes most system of mechanisms designed to work in
sense as to what the destination should be concert, such that overall competitiveness
like in 10, 20 or 50 years. The same general and sustainability goals can be achieved.
philosophy might, for example, suggest dif- Development policies should address the full
ferent visions in different circumstances. range of important issues that govern desti-
Where a philosophy is a way of looking at a nation competitiveness, including both
problem, a vision is more a specic denition demand- and supply-oriented concerns.
of what the destination should become The nal element comprising destina-
when adopting a particular philosophical tion policy, planning and development con-
perspective. cerns the need and importance of the
A tourism development policy, if monitoring and evaluation of policies and their
grounded in reality, ought to be based upon outcome. The effectiveness and impact of
an audit of the destination and its attributes, policies in a complex system can neither be
strengths and weaknesses, problems and forecast nor predicted with a high degree of
challenges, past and current strategies, etc. condence when initially formulated. Add to
Without some fundamental data on the sig- this the fact that the eventual outcome is as
nicant attractions and resources of the desti- much a function of how well the policies are
nation, its historical performance, current implemented as it is a function of the policies
visitors and other vital information, the for- themselves. Hence, the task of policy formu-
mulation of a policy framework for develop- lation, planning and development must con-
ing the destination remains an abstract tinue to include research into how well such
exercise. policies are performing, whether improve-
Similarly, competitive/collaborative analysis ments to implementation are needed or,
is an evaluation of how the destination relates indeed, whether circumstances have changed
to and compares with other destinations and rendering the policies no longer relevant or
the international tourism system. Because effectual.
competitiveness is a relative concept, deci-
sions about the most appropriate policy or
strategy for developing a destination must be
made in the context of what other destina- Destination management
tions are doing and how they are performing.
A comparable issue involves the market- The destination management component of
ing concept of positioning. An athletic sprint the model focuses on those activities that
event is a one-dimensional race from a start- implement, on a daily bias, the policy
ing point to a nish line. But destination com- and planning framework established under
petitiveness is not one-dimensional, and the destination policy, planning and develop-
positioning is all about where, in cognitive ment component, enhance the appeal of the
rather than physical space, a destination is core resources and attractors component,
positioned vis--vis its competitors. Position- strengthen the quality and effectiveness of
ing is all to do with how unique a destination the supporting factors and resources compo-
is perceived to be in ways that tourism mar- nent, and adapt best to the constraints or
kets value or regard as desirable or impor- opportunities imposed or presented by the
tant. Destination positioning entails knowing qualifying and amplifying determinants compo-
how different market segments currently per- nent. These activities represent the greatest
ceive that destination against competing des- scope for managing a destinations competi-
tinations, which market segments it makes tiveness as they include programmes, struc-
most sense to covet and therefore target, and tures, systems and processes which are
how the destination might be effectively and highly actionable and manageable by indi-
feasibly repositioned with respect to these viduals and organizations, and through col-
segments. lective action.
336 J.R. Brent Ritchie and G.I. Crouch

Perhaps the most traditional of these specialized information for particular deci-
activities is the function of marketing the sions. Finally, each DMO also has the respon-
destination. In practice, destination market- sibility to disseminate key market and
ing has tended to focus on the task of pro- performance information to its members on a
moting and selling the destination. That is, timely basis.
the concept of marketing has only been The concept of the DMO where the M
applied to the destination in very limited emphasizes total Management rather than
ways. As a result, there is much scope for simply Marketing is a somewhat recent con-
improving the application of a true market- ceptualization of the organization function for
ing philosophy. Beyond promotion and sell- destination management. Within this refo-
ing, marketing responsibilities and activities cused philosophy, a broader view is taken of
are manifold. the organizational structure of the destina-
The importance of the service experience tion, which, in the opinion of Nadler and
dimension of destination management has Tushman (1997), may be one of the last
also been recognized for some time. Tourists remaining sources of truly sustainable com-
are buying experiences, and experiences are petitive advantage. This broader view sees
made up of all of the interactions, behaviours management as responsible for the well-
and emotions which each tourist permits his/ being of all aspects of the destination.
her ve senses to perceive and absorb. The While nancial institutions will normally
choice of hotels, restaurants, attractions, fund most private sector tourism develop-
tours, etc. is incidental to the choice of the ment, nancial markets and investors, and
destination. Efforts to enhance the quality of some public sector support or programmes
service (QOS) provided to visitors have can assist the availability of nance and ven-
recently been complemented by recognition ture capital to tourism developers.
of the need to take a total quality of experi- Similarly, destination management can
ence (QOE) approach to visitor satisfaction play a key role in human resource development
(Otto and Ritchie, 1995). This approach by further encouraging and stimulating edu-
emphasizes the need to examine the total cation and training programmes designed to
travel experience of visitors. Essentially, pro- meet the specic needs of the tourism and
viding individual high-quality service trans- hospitality industries. Although quality edu-
actions is not enough. To the extent possible, cation systems are a fundamental element of
destination managers must attempt to ensure the facilitating resources under the supporting
a seamless, hassle-free interface among all factors and resources component of the model
elements of the total travel experience. In (see above), education programmes are
practical terms, this means paying close required that specically address the skills
attention to such aspects as the convenience required by employers in tourism and hospi-
of intermodal transfers and travel agents tality, just as other industries or economic sec-
responsibility for each component of the tors have cooperated with educational
travel packages that they sell. In brief, on-site institutions to develop graduate skills in
and transaction-specic visitor service is not other elds. Australia is an example where
enough. educational institutions have responded to
The information/research component of the needs of the industry at both secondary
destination management pertains to the and tertiary levels, and in terms of both
development and effective use of information vocational and professional education and
systems that provide managers with the training.
information required for understanding visi- As the travel and tourism industry con-
tor needs, and for effective product develop- tinues to grow rapidly, concerns have been
ment. This also involves the regular expressed in various destinations which are
monitoring of visitor satisfaction and the subject to large number of visitors that poli-
tracking of industry performance. This moni- cies and systems are required for visitor man-
toring function must be complemented by agement in order to exert some inuence over
special research projects designed to provide visitor impacts.
Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability 337

Another increasingly important chal- which we have called qualifying and amplify-
lenge for destination managers involves crisis ing determinants, might alternatively have
management. Destinations have always, from been labelled situational conditioners because
time to time, had to deal with various crises it represents factors whose effect on the
affecting visitors at the time of the crisis, as competitiveness of a tourist destination is to
well as the after-effects in terms of a tarnished dene its scale, limit or potential. These qual-
destination image. Anecdotally, in recent iers and ampliers moderate or magnify
years, it seems that crises have become more destination competitiveness by ltering the
problematic for destinations. The impact of inuence of the other four groups of determi-
the 11 September 2001 terrorism in New York nants. They may be so important as to repre-
and Washington was an extreme example, sent a ceiling to tourism demand and
with some visitors to New York or passengers potential, but they are largely beyond the
on board the hijacked planes losing their control or inuence of the tourism sector
lives. The New York Convention and Visitors alone to do anything about them.
Bureau has had to contend with the signi- For example, a destinations location
cant aftermaths of that crisis ever since, but clearly has much to do with its ability to
the events had broader impacts for the entire attract visitors. A physically remote destina-
US tourism industry as well. It is easy to think tion, one that is far from the worlds major
of numerous other acts of terrorism which originating markets for tourism, is clearly at a
destinations have also had to contend with distinct disadvantage to begin with. In con-
over the years. However, crises may arise for trast, another destination perhaps as equally
many different causes, and when such crises attractive to potential travellers, but which
occur, destinations need to be able to respond neighbours major markets, is in a much stron-
in an effective way to deal with the immedi- ger position to be able to convert latent inter-
ate impact of the event as well as its longer est into actual visitation because it has the
term consequences. advantage of familiarity and lower travel cost
The nal component of destination (both monetarily and in terms of the opportu-
management in our model of destination nity cost of travel time).
competitiveness is a new, but increasingly A related but nevertheless different phe-
signicant, one. Resource stewardship is a con- nomenon concerns the interdependencies that
cept that stresses the importance, indeed the exist between destinations. In other words,
obligation, that destination managers have to the competitiveness of any destination is
adopt a caring mentality with respect to the affected by the competitiveness of other desti-
resources that make up the destination. This nations. This can best be illustrated if we con-
caring mentality involves effective mainte- sider the situation of stopover destinations
nance of those resources and a careful for a moment. You can probably think of des-
nurturing of those that are particularly vul- tinations that depend, at least to some signi-
nerable to damage that may be caused by cant extent, on travellers who break their
tourism. journey to or from more distant destinations.
If the attractiveness of those distant destina-
tions changes, either positively or negatively,
the stopover destination is sure to experience
Qualifying and amplifying determinants some consequent impact. Another example
concerns the impact of terrorist events, wars
Finally, the potential competitiveness of a and crime in a neighbouring region. There are
destination is conditioned or limited by a many examples of how events such as these
number of factors that fall outside the scope have had a dramatic impact on the destina-
of the preceding four groups of determinants tion choices of travellers.
(core resources and attractors; supporting fac- This leads us to the specic issue of safety
tors and resources; destination policy, plan- and security. Nothing can inuence the
ning and development; and destination choices of travellers more powerfully and
management). This nal group of factors, patently than concerns over safety and
338 J.R. Brent Ritchie and G.I. Crouch

security. Of course, there will always be the to incorporate it into any of the other four cat-
intrepid tourist who disregards travel advi- egories of destination competitiveness deter-
sories, warnings or adverse media coverage minants. The monetary cost of a destination is
of events in dangerous destinations. Indeed, governed by three factors: (i) the cost of trans-
some travellers might even seek out danger- portation to and from the destination; (ii) the
ous or risky experiences for the excitement currency exchange rate (in the case of interna-
and challenge that they represent. In fact tional travel); and (iii) the local cost of tour-
though, most people tolerate only a limited ism goods and services. Many aspects of the
degree of uncertainty and risk. The need for global (macro) environment (e.g. interna-
safety, along with the physiological needs of tional trade balances, relative interest rates,
food and shelter, represent primary motiva- relative ination, taxes, etc.) and the competi-
tional forces behind human behaviour. If tive (micro) environment (e.g. competition,
potential visitors are gravely concerned productivity, cost of supplies, labour rates
about crime, the quality of drinking water, and agreements, etc.) will affect costs. Conse-
the risk of natural disasters, the standards of quently cost is largely governed by economic
medical services, etc., other competitive structures within the destination and its com-
strengths may amount to very little in parative international position.
the minds of these people. Tourism authori- Finally, a destinations carrying capacity,
ties may launch recovery programmes in if close to or in excess of its sustainable limit,
response to these problems, which may help can clearly serve not only to restrict the fur-
somewhat, but problems such as these often ther growth and/or the competitiveness of a
dwarf the tourism industrys ability to over- destination, but also result in a deterioration
come them. of conditions at the destination, or a decline
The awareness and image of a destination in its apparent attractiveness. Venice, for
can also qualify or amplify its competitive- example, is clearly an extremely popular des-
ness. The image of a destination can take time tination that is under stress in terms of its car-
to change even though the reality at a destina- rying capacity. It remains very popular, but
tion no longer accords with a negative or struggles to cope with visitors at certain times
positive image. Hence, a negative image will of the year. Indeed, the restricted system of
qualify improvements at a destination and a access to Venice effectively serves as a ceiling
positive image will cushion the effect of on visitor numbers during these peak periods.
problems such as crime or high living costs.
Low awareness will also ensure that destina-
tion image changes slowly, but the effect of
awareness also affects the likelihood that a Concluding Remarks
potential tourist will even consider visiting a
destination. In conclusion, while any model is a simpli-
We have also included cost/value as a cation of reality and, as such, incapable of
qualifying and amplifying determinant. Now, fully capturing the complexities of a tourism
at rst it may seem strange as to why we have destination and its performance, we are grati-
classied cost in this way when the cost of a ed by the reactions we have received from a
destination can be associated with the specic broad range of both academics and practitio-
range of goods and services consumed by ners regarding the assistance that the model
visitors to the destination, and the efciency has provided in understanding and operating
with which those products are produced. various tourism destinations. In addition,
However, although this is true, because the these reactions have provided many sugges-
cost of a destination to a foreign visitor is tions for further improvement to the model.
driven by a broad range of local, domestic Those who have provided their suggestions
and global forces, and because cost, in itself, can be assured that we are most appreciative
is so fundamental to the question of competi- of these suggestions and that we shall make
tiveness, it makes more sense to treat cost as a every effort to integrate them into the model
qualifying and amplifying determinant than so as to further enhance its value.
Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability 339

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30 March 2011).
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ing and Management, Volume 4. JAI Press, Greenwich, Connecticut, pp. 3761.
Pine, B.J. and Gilmore, J.H. (1999) The Experience Economy: Work is Theatre and Every Business a
Stage. Harvard Business School Press, Boston, Massachusetts.
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Ritchie, J.R.B. (1984) Assessing the impact of hallmark events: conceptual and research issues. Journal of
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Ritchie, J.R.B. (1993) Crafting a destination vision: putting the concept of resident-responsive tourism into
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CAB International, Wallingford, UK.
21 Destination Management: Challenges
and Opportunities

Alan Fyall

Introduction moreover, that serves as the necessary catalyst


for both the practitioner and academic com-
The breadth, diversity and depth of the munities to move the agenda forward. Before
material covered in the earlier chapters of this this though, it is imperative for those market-
book demonstrate that the marketing and ing, managing and studying destinations to
management of destinations, both in a practi- fully understand the challenges and opportu-
tioner and academic sense, is beginning to nities facing destinations if they are to be able
come of age. One might argue that this is not to develop suitable strategies for the long-
before time, as commented recently by Born- term development of destinations and to sus-
horst et al. (2010, p. 572), in that while the tain and enhance their competitiveness in
tourist remains the single most important what is increasingly becoming a highly com-
focal point that we seek to understand and petitive arena of activity (Dwyer et al., 2009).
satisfy with the complex phenomenon we call Recent publications by Fyall et al. (2009)
tourism, it is critical to recognize that the and Kozak et al. (2010) have contributed much
tourism destination is the primary unit of to the above agenda in that both represent the
study and management action. One of the outcomes of international conferences (one
reasons, perhaps, for the late arrival of desti- held in Valencia, Spain, in 2007, and the other
nations on the academic stage, as compared held more recently in Bournemouth, UK, in
with other arenas of tourism activity, is the 2009) where the destination was the primary
extent to which they are considered complex unit of study. So too, has recent work by Pike
and difcult to manage; a common theme (2005, pp. 258259) in which the contention is
throughout the academic literature. Harrills made that the geographical and political
(2009, p. 448) recent comment that progress boundaries that dissect many destinations
is slow in showing how the various and often render considered management theory
highly varied characteristics and issues fac- irrelevant, while the consistent lack of fund-
ing tourism destinations can be integrated for ing and the need to maintain a healthy bal-
effective destination management, rather ance between the demands of visitors and
than the piecemeal approach that appears to residents introduce challenges that are out-
be the status quo is not an uncommon view side the scope of more traditional consumer
and one that, it is hoped, this book has begun and business marketing challenges. The aim
to reverse. Yes, destinations are challenging to of this chapter is thus to introduce those spe-
market and manage. It is this challenge alone, cic challenges and opportunities that have
CAB International 2011. Destination Marketing and Management
340 (eds Y. Wang and A. Pizam)
Challenges and Opportunities 341

an impact on the future marketing and man- the research areas of growing importance
agement of destinations. To achieve this, the throughout the 1990s was that of image and
chapter builds on a framework rst devel- related perception studies in the context of
oped by the author a few years ago, which destinations (see for example Chon, 1990,
came about in response to the need for a route 1991; Baloglu and Brinberg, 1997; Seaton,
map for practitioners and researchers in the 1997) with a further corpus of research devel-
eld (Fyall et al., 2006). The framework pro- oping in the broader domain of consumer
posed did not arise from any one particular behaviour (such as Goodhall, 1988, 1991; Gil-
study, but was the outcome of both practitio- bert, 1990; Ryan, 1997). More recent demand-
ner and academic frustration over a number led research has begun to explore destination
of years in trying to present the challenges choice and the modelling of tourist move-
and opportunities facing destinations in a ment with work by Huybers (2003), Lam and
more unied manner, as well as serving as the Hsu (2006) and Decrop (2010) contributing
foundation for further study. Before present- much to the debate. More pertinent to the
ing the revised framework, however, the fol- content of this chapter, however, is research in
lowing section provides a brief overview of the domain of destination marketing by the
the research to date that underpins the mar- likes of Ashworth and Goodhall (1990) and
keting and management of destinations that Heath and Wall (1992), which helped to set
contributed much to the initial development the foundations for more contemporary work
and more recent renement of the framework on particular aspects of destination market-
presented in this chapter. ing, such as branding (Morgan et al., 2002),
target marketing (Lee et al., 2006) and niche
marketing developments at destinations
Background (Novelli, 2005). This research also paved the
way for studies that explored the nature and
Academic research in the domain of destina- role of destinations as providers of experi-
tions is a relatively recent phenomenon and, ences, which generally built on the seminal
for the most part, remains in its infancy. Even publication by Pine and Gilmore (1999) on
so, the breadth and depth of research into the the wider phenomenon of the Experience
marketing and management of destinations Economy.
is worthy of synthesis for a chapter of this In response to the earlier work by the late
genre. The rst studies were concerned with Neil Leiper on tourism as a system of actors
the conceptualization of destinations and the and networks (Leiper, 1979, 1990, 1995), more
implications of this for the use of resources. recent studies have focused on the examina-
Early studies by the likes of Gunn (1972) con- tion of the relationships among actors and
tributed much to setting the broader context stakeholders within destinations, and the
for research, while work by Butler and others means by which they can collectively manage
in the early 1980s and 1990s provided the the destination experience better for con-
catalyst for two decades of research into the sumers (see Fyall and Garrod, 2005; Sheehan
conceptualization of tourism and destination and Ritchie, 2005; Dredge, 2006). In the con-
planning with the introduction of the concept text of destinations, such networks bridge the
of the Tourist Area Cycle (later called the gap between macro and micro systems, help
Tourist Area Life Cycle) (Butler, 1980; Ins- to highlight the relative power of actors and
keep, 1991, 1994; Shaw and Williams, 1997). organizations as they interact and come into
In the mid 1990s, studies began to focus on conict over policies, and bring together the
the environmental impacts of destination local and the global. Jamal and Jamrozy
development with work by Garrod and Willis (2006) also suggest that destinations can be
(1992), Archer (1996), Laarman and Gregersen viewed as complex in that where there are
(1996), Pigram (1996) and Faulkner and multiple stakeholders with varying degrees
Tideswell (1997), contributing much to the of inuence over decision making, no one
debate. In addition to the many studies individual stakeholder can fully control
focusing on specic destination types, one of development and planning. They add that
342 A. Fyall

key stakeholders are not always located at the together continue to reshape the broader
destination and places may have to deal with tourism landscape are sufcient in them-
impacts locally that stem from actions and selves to reect upon and revise the rst iter-
pressures exerted elsewhere in a localglobal ation of the 15 Cs framework for research
tourism system. In this instance, systems rst developed by Fyall et al. (2006) to pro-
thinking becomes an imperative in that it vide a suitable synthesis of the key chal-
requires an understanding of tourism as a lenges facing the domain of destination
networked system of interrelated and interac- marketing and management. Moreover,
tive components (Jamal et al., 2004). In sum- rather than focusing solely on the challenges
mary, Jamal and Jamrozy (2006, p. 168) state faced by destinations, the reections and
that the destination environment represents revisions discussed below also reect the
a complex planning system due to: the inter- opportunities that lie ahead for those mar-
dependence among multiple stakeholders keting and managing destinations across the
and industries; the fragmented control over world. As with the rst iteration of this
planning/development; culturally diverse framework, the degree of importance of each
values and different views; the traditional of the Cs will vary according to the type and
role of tourism destination marketing focused location of destination in question. Notwith-
on growth and rapid development; and, the standing, the failure to recognize, consider
interrelated impacts in a localglobal system. and act upon even one of the Cs in the
To conclude this brief synthesis, the development of destination marketing and
maturing nature of many destinations and management strategies will undoubtedly
the changing and growing complexity of hinder the broader development and sus-
forces in the external and internal environ- tainability of the destination, as is evident
ments for destinations have served as a cata- from Fyall and Leask (2007). The remainder
lyst for the emergence of research into the of this chapter explores each component of
management of destinations per se, and the the framework in more depth and sheds light
closer examination of destination manage- on those opportunities arising from what on
ment structures and relationships both within the surface appears to be a very challenging
and external to destinations and the myriad landscape for those marketing and managing
of actors and stakeholders that collectively destinations.
constitute a destination. The recent text by
Ritchie and Crouch (2003) provides a valu-
able overview of the management of destina- Complexity and control
tions in the wider context of sustainability,
and introduces a suitable conceptual frame- While the rst component of the rst iteration
work upon which to build much future of the 15 Cs framework focused on complex-
research (see Chapter 20) while recent studies ity in isolation, the extent to which complexity
by Wang and Fesenmaier (2007), Wang and and control are so closely intertwined means
Xiang (2007) and Wang (2008) provide valu- that it makes more sense for the two to be
able theoretical discussion and case material considered as one. As evidenced in numerous
which will continue to move this exciting parts of this book, the amalgam nature of
agenda forward and cement destinations destinations ensures that they are not the eas-
more fully as the primary unit of research and iest of products to manage. With their
management action. unique set of characteristics it is likely that
this will be the case long into the future. For
example, those marketing and managing
The 15 Cs Framework: Reections destinations need to balance the extent to
and Revisions which they are promoters, image and/or
brand developers for the destination, creators
Although 4 years may not seem a particularly of destination products, destination champi-
long period of time, the extent to which the ons or advocates, partnership builders or
current nancial crisis and global recession destination planners in a more holistic sense
Challenges and Opportunities 343

(Wang, 2008). Similarly, those designing orga- the globe, the need for a greater nancial
nizational forms to market and manage desti- input from the private sector is likely. This
nations will need to consider the extent to does, however, often result in the overall rais-
which such forms serve economic, commu- ing of expectations on the part of many within
nity, industry, public sector or visitor needs the destination who, more often than not,
(Morrison et al., 1998). The complexity of des- falsely believe that the private sector will
tinations is perhaps best evidenced by the immediately ll the nancial void left by the
means through which visitors frequently dif- public sector (Wang, 2008). Instances where
fer in their perceptions and expectations of pressure from within the DMO to raise rev-
and desired satisfactions from the destina- enue from members and stakeholders, who
tion, and the fact that most destinations then have a particular interest in how their
demonstrate multiple stakeholders, multiple resources are to be spent, and in the extent to
components and multiple suppliers, as well which the DMO is free to develop strategies
as conveying multiple meanings to multiple that appeal to the desired target market, are
markets and visitor segments. not uncommon, with it being a particular
In many parts of the world destination challenge for many stakeholders to endorse
management organizations (DMOs) are the collective vision for the destination when
increasing in their importance, in part as a autonomous action in the short term may be
result of the exponential growth in the reli- more benecial to themselves. A similar
ance on the service sector in many developed conict occurs when considering top down
and developing economies, but the exact centrally-funded or bottom-up member-led
composition of stakeholders and diversity of organizational forms for the marketing and
the constitution of the DMO is very much an management of destinations.
inexact science in that different organiza- Closely related to the above is the issue
tional structures as well as their associated of control in that the amalgam nature of the
governance mechanisms make the denition destination ensures that unless all elements
of the responsibility of such organizations are owned by the same body, then the inabil-
difcult and complex, which can possibly ity to control and inuence the direction,
lead to disappointment or unrealistic expec- quality and development of the destination
tations of the local tourism industry (Wang, pose very real challenges. Harrill (2009,
2008, p. 192). Harrill (2009, p. 452) continues p. 462) makes the point that fragmentation of
this theme by suggesting that todays DMOs control is further exacerbated by the element
have evolved to take an active management of public and social good contained in tour-
role in their own environs as well, both built ism development and marketing, which
and natural, the suggestion being that the enhances public sector involvement in tour-
importance of the destination goes well ism, but provides for different goals, policies
beyond meeting the needs, wants and expec- and desired outcomes. The reality is that in
tations of visitors. Harrill (2009, p. 452) con- the majority of cases, no one individual or
tinues by indicating that this evolution has organization controls the destination; Scott
occurred from simple recognition that the et al. (2000, p. 202) add that the difculties of
very tourism product that DMOs market co-ordination and control have the potential
must be sustained and maintained, not only to undermine a strategic approach to market-
out of moral and ethical concerns, but to con- ing based on destination branding because
tinue a healthy tourism revenue stream. This campaigns can be undertaken by a variety
sense of duty reects the more holistic view of tourist businesses with no consultation or
of the marketing and management of a desti- co-ordination on the prevailing message or
nation as espoused by Ritchie and Crouch the destination values being promoted.
(2003), who believe that the role of the DMO Although such challenges appear deep
goes well beyond marketing, as it does once rooted, there is evidence to suggest that new
again reect the complexity of the manage- and innovative organizational forms are
ment task. With less public sector investment taking shape such as the recently launched
likely in the current economic climate across Destination Edinburgh Marketing Alliance
344 A. Fyall

(DEMA) in Scotland (see www.edinburgh- the strategic tourism planning goals of a com-
brand.com) that are confronting such chal- munity, are not well understood and neither
lenges head on and are very much putting the are the organizational structures that might
needs, wants and expectations of the visitor at be optimal for managing such a challenging
the forefront of their intentions. It is perhaps setting. If the latter is true, then there is a con-
painful to accept at the current moment in siderable opportunity on the part of destina-
time that the nancial constraints being faced tions to be far more proactive, innovative and
by many destinations, and the increasingly genuine in their attempts to engage more pos-
competitive and ckle nature of many visitor itively and productively with the resident
markets, suggest that opportunities for change community. More than anything else, the
need to be grasped with both hands rather local community represents electoral votes
than sneered at. For the future, destinations and local taxation revenue, while many mem-
need to be innovative and exible in the way bers of the local community are integral to the
they are managed. They also need to be success of many destination development ini-
responsive to the needs of the market rather tiatives, most notably perhaps through the
than to the internal demands of stakeholders hosting of festivals and events. In many
(in particular those in the public sector), as instances, the local community is the attrac-
they need to fully embrace the technologies tion and, as such, the onus is very much on
available (which can assist considerably in those marketing and managing destinations
their ability to control the destiny of destina- to ensure that they are fully informed, grasp
tions), rather than leave them under the inu- the economic signicance of visitors to their
ence of eet-footed, revenue-driven web destination and are encouraged to play an
developers with no heritage, loyalty and par- integral part in the broader development of
ticular interest in the destinations themselves. the destination in the form of destination
ambassadors, champions or evangelists.

Community
Change
While excluded in the rst iteration of the 15
Cs, the need to consider the broader needs of Even though change is ubiquitous and not
the destination community, hosts or residents, unique to the marketing and management of
is signicant, as not only does this represent destinations, the pressure for destinations to
the payers of local taxes, but the host commu- respond to it positively grows daily. Internal
nity in many instances is also critical to the to destinations, change is being driven by the
success of the overall visitor experience. The need for greater levels of funding from the
importance and impact of tourism extends private sector, most notably in the UK, where
well beyond visitors, with many commenta- tourism represents a non-statutory function
tors arguing that you ignore the needs of the of local government, and the pressure is for
local community at your peril. Jamal and the public sector to either maintain or pre-
Jamrozy (2006, p. 168), for example, suggest serve as much as possible the budgets for
that the objectives of new approaches to des- health, education and social services. Even in
tination development are not to design a destinations where the visitor economy is
product, price, place and promotion of a tour- critical to economic success, it is a very brave
ist destination, but to ensure quality of life politician who places tourism ahead of the
and environments through tourism develop- needs of often vulnerable groups in the local
ment. The importance of community rela- community.
tions in the context of destinations was raised One of the biggest forces for change evi-
more recently by Bornhorst et al. (2010), dent in the external environment is the ageing
though Harrill (2009, p. 448) suggests that the of the population and the ability of destina-
processes by which the local community can tions to adapt to the changes in visitor behav-
work most effectively together with other iour driven by changes in generational
actors and stakeholders, in order to achieve patterns of demand. Studies by Glover and
Challenges and Opportunities 345

Prideaux (2009) on Baby Boomers and by destinations, irrespective of their type and
Benckendorff et al. (2009) on Generation Y location, are affected either in a positive/neg-
are indicative of the increasing importance of ative or direct/indirect manner. Studies by
this phenomenon. Glover and Prideaux (2009, Beirman (2002, 2003), Baral et al. (2004),
p. 27) suggest that destination managers will Ritchie (2004) and Carlsen and Hughes (2007)
need to decide if they wish to focus their have begun to examine the dynamics of cri-
products and marketing on a particular (age- ses, be they natural or man-made, while more
ing) generation or a xed age group. They go recent work by Fletcher and Morakabti (2008)
on to add that since tourism products are and Reichel et al. (2010) have begun to exam-
inseparable from the places at which they are ine the links between perceptions of crises
consumed, a modication of tourism prod- and travel risk. The recent trend towards
ucts to meet changing consumer demand more restrictive immigration and visa con-
implies that destinations will undergo trols in the USA and the UK is for the most
change. Although Dwyer et al. (2009) identify part driven by the fear of crises, with quite
a host of external pressures for change dramatic reactions in visitation from certain
(including macroeconomic policies, deregula- markets, i.e. the reduced number of Russian
tion, rising trade, climate change and the visitors now visiting the UK generally and
increasing diffusion of technology, to name London in particular. The fear of crime is one
but a few), Middleton et al. (2009) identify the of the factors driving the migration toward
shift of geopolitical power to the East and the staycations, in that only one event or bad
impact that this is going to have on visitation experience is required to have a negative
patterns, the popularity of certain destina- impact on the destination. The 9/11 attacks
tions, and alternative market systems and on New York, the London bombings of July
approaches to the marketing and manage- 2007 and the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 all
ment of destinations. Opportunities clearly made headlines, and in the short- to mid-term
exist, especially with regard to the massive had a signicant impact on demand, but
growth of the middle classes in China and street crime, theft or attacks on tourists can
India, and the additional propensity for have an even more damaging impact. Though
increasing travel among Russians and Brazil- safety is an issue for all markets, older mar-
ians. Most pressing, perhaps, is the pressure kets are particularly vulnerable, so it is imper-
on the worlds resources, the gradual deple- ative that in these circumstances destinations
tion of which represents a considerable chal- make every effort possible to render such
lenge for many destinations. Fluctuating oil fears irrelevant. Even for less sensitive mar-
prices, economic uncertainty and fears of cli- kets, security at the destination represents a
mate change are all contributing to the phe- growing dilemma for those marketing and
nomenon of staycations with the imperative managing destinations. For example, what
of politicians to raise carbon taxes and reduce level of security is deemed appropriate, and
emissions making long-haul travel a potential to what extent do destinations actively pro-
social taboo in the years to come. More than mote security, as there is always the chance
anything else, however, the combination of that such a move will actually exacerbate the
all of the above identies a clear opportunity problem? For all destinations, the need to
for those marketing and managing destina- maintain the public realm is one means by
tions to focus on nearer markets, markets less which criminal behaviour can be minimized.
susceptible to the burden of heavy travel A further opportunity for some destinations
costs, and the local community! is the extent to which they can develop and
market themselves as safe destinations and,
in turn, create a competitive edge in the
Crisis marketplace.
Crime aside, the current economic crisis
Crises and the fear of crises have been omni- is damaging to many destinations around
present across the tourism industry for much the world owing to its stagnating effect on
of the past two decades, to the extent that all demand from core originating markets such
346 A. Fyall

as Germany, the UK and Japan. If the eco- less predictable now, more so than ever
nomic downturn continues, the nancial before, is the extent to which destinations are
squeeze is likely to have an impact on longer able to accurately predict where their market
term investment, with tourism in a number of is likely to come from. In reality, markets con-
markets continuing to be viewed as a low- tinually change and, as access opens, they
return and high-risk industry. Added to this, will change even quicker in years to come.
climate change, or the fear of climate change, Fyall and Leask (2007) commented on the
is already affecting travel patterns, while the changing visitor composition of both London
attraction of long-haul travel in a low-carbon and Edinburgh in the UK, while the dramatic
world is causing pause for thought among decline in UK tourists to Spain in recent years
climate-sensitive markets. is a result of it being not sufciently foreign
Irrespective of the crisis in question, enough as a holiday destination (Qureshi,
crises represent a classic case where destina- 2010); these changes are signicant in that
tions need to adopt a holistic approach to both these destinations have traditionally
their management, with strong coordination relied on relatively stable markets in the past.
and connectivity among all stakeholders. All The same could also be said to be true of
destinations now need to incorporate some many islands in the Caribbean, which have
form of crisis management in their plans and relied on core colonial markets; with the
strategies, as to not do so would represent a migration away from long-haul to short-haul
gross dereliction of duty. That said, aware- travel, destinations in the Caribbean, Indian
ness of crises is one thing, being able to and Pacic oceans have much to fear. That
understand the likely impacts is far more dif- said, considerable opportunity now exists to
cult, with many destinations still coming to reinvent, reposition and relaunch to new
terms with the changing tourist ows that markets, most notably in Asia, where the
accompany crises and their related spend leading Asian emerging economies are show-
and accommodation requirements (Ladkin ing accelerated growth. In Europe, it is sig-
et al., 2006). nicant that while many Germans are still
travelling, nearly half of all outbound holi-
days are inclusive package tours rather than
Complacency organized trips; the cost-effectiveness of
travel and value for money sought are driv-
The global economic downturn, the earth- ing the market and breaking through the
quakes in Haiti and Chile, and the nancial complacency that has existed for decades
collapse in Greece, with a strong possibility of (ETC, 2009).
similar chaos in Spain, Portugal and Ireland From a supply perspective, the tradi-
in Western Europe, are just a selection of tional rigidity of destination infrastructure
recent crises that are already affecting the needs to be remedied at the beginning of the
demand for and supply of tourism. Such planning cycle, while the design of hotels and
shocks, although not caused by tourism activ- attractions of the future needs to incorporate
ity, will have profound impacts on the a exibility of purpose which takes into
demand for and supply of tourism for many account likely future changes in the market.
years to come. More than anything else, these There is also a need for the organizational
events serve to dilute the complacency with structures put in place to market and manage
which many destinations rely on traditional, destinations to be able to withstand turbu-
core or repeat custom. Whereas in previous lence in the external and internal environ-
decades, where growth from many origin ments and be t for purpose (Gretzel et al.,
markets was almost as simple as a straight- 2006). Perhaps the biggest single source of
line projection, many destinations are now complacency, however, is the paucity of edu-
susceptible to dynamic, ckle and highly cation for those professionals responsible for
price-sensitive markets with limited loyalty the marketing and managing of destinations.
to the destination. Tourism has proved to be a This issue was raised recently by Harrill
highly robust phenomenon. What though is (2009, pp. 461462) who commented that
Challenges and Opportunities 347

while graduates receive good training to marketing raised by Li and Petrick (2008) has
research why people travel and how tourism not quite inltrated the majority of destina-
is perceived by prospective travelers and resi- tions that remain complacent, product driven
dents, the broader strategic picture (e.g. the and lacking in innovation. For experiential
inter-organizational contexts of tourism mar- marketing to succeed fully, service delivery
keting and development, and managing the by front-line staff ought to mirror the staging
diversity of stakeholders and interests) of experiences where memorable encounters
appears to receive less attention. Those grad- that are personal to each visitor are evident,
uating from the elds of planning, public and where visitors are active participants
policy, and management studies, should be rather than passive receivers of such an expe-
better equipped to understand the complex rience to the extent that all participants are
tourism domain and the organizational cul- buying into and enhancing further the desti-
ture of tourism businesses, including the vari- nations brand values. Such co-produced
ous evolving forms and functions of DMOs. experiences, while highly relevant to all desti-
Quite simply, destination management needs nations, are at present of primary value to
to be taken far more seriously and profession- developed destinations in that those desti-
ally in the future if destinations are going to nations new to the market have yet to experi-
be able to attract those people with the neces- ence declining interest and a need to focus
sary skills, experiences and professional fully on the experiential needs of visitors. For
attributes at a sufcient standard to lead these new generations, the fact that the
destinations in what is likely to be a very product is new is sufcient in itself, albeit
turbulent and challenging future. only in the short term, for interest to be gener-
ated from the marketplace.

Customers, co-creation and the visitor


experience Culture

One signicant development that builds on The issue of culture is relevant to both
the initial framework advanced by Fyall et al. demand-side and supply-side perspectives of
(2006) is the extent to which experiential mar- destination marketing. For example, as iden-
keting has come to the fore (Middleton et al., tied in the change component of the 15 Cs,
2009). Although many destinations are hav- the cultural division between the public and
ing to come to terms with new customer private sectors within tourism continues to
groups, such as the Chinese, Indian and Rus- represent a barrier for progress across many
sian middle classes, and Generation Y, the countries. Even though there is evidence to
primary focus of an increasing number of suggest that change is beginning to happen,
destinations is the recognized need to reduce albeit slowly, the particular characteristics of
the emphasis on the destination and focus the destination and its fundamental reliance
more on the contemporary consumers them- on public goods as part of its wider appeal
selves who use their consumption to make are likely to ensure that the two cultures will
statements about themselves . To create have to continue working alongside each
identities and develop a sense of belonging other for the foreseeable future (Harrill, 2009).
through consumption (Williams, 2006). This Over the past decade, in parts of the UK some
theme was taken up by Morgan et al. (2009) in destinations have been in receipt of consider-
a study that undertook a comparative exami- able sums of investment that have been
nation of the implementation of experiential directed toward the changing organizational
marketing at destinations in three different structures of DMOs. While considered to be a
countries. What this study quite clearly dem- success by some (see Middleton et al., 2009,
onstrates is the diversity of interpretation of p. 494), the extent to which such structures
the initial seminal text, The Experience Econ- continue to rely on the public sector is
omy by Pine and Gilmore (1999), and the disappointing in that their longer term
extent to which the paradigm shift in tourism sustainability in the austere years that lie
348 A. Fyall

ahead are very much open to debate. That Competition


said, Middleton et al. (2009) stress that the
public and private sectors, and their respec- Competition among destinations continues to
tive cultures, are inextricably linked as it is grow at an alarming rate in that destinations
destinations in their entirety that provide the everywhere are under intense pressure to pre-
stage for visitor experiences, and although serve, and where possible grow, their eco-
both sectors are involved ultimately, the suc- nomic return from tourism in the difcult
cess of destinations depends on the manage- years that lie ahead. This point was raised
ment of the public realm. A well-managed recently by Bornhorst et al. (2010) who also
public realm is essential for the underpinning argued that close substitution among destina-
of a successful visitor economy because it is a tions is going to become even more pervasive.
core contributor to the quality of life for local Competition is perhaps most prevalent in the
residents. Middleton et al. (2009, p. 485) add context of the Mediterranean, where tradi-
that the quality of the experience achieved by tional destinations such as Spain, France, Italy
visitors is at least as much and often more and Greece are now facing stiff competition
dependent on the role of the public sector as it from non-euro destinations such as Turkey.
is on the role of the suppliers of individual Much of the competition within Europe and
components of travel, accommodation and Asia has escalated in response to the dramatic
attractions. They go on to add that there is a growth over the past decade of the low-cost
growing need for better understanding and airlines. This phenomenon has opened up
collaboration between the two sectors at des- many previously inaccessible destinations to
tinations, recognizing their mutual depen- the masses and has contributed signicantly
dence on the visitor economy and the to the growth of residential tourism in a num-
importance of providing quality experiences ber of countries. The surge in ownership of
in competition with other destinations. Simi- second homes does in fact serve as an indirect
larly Dwyer et al. (2009, p. 63) suggest that the competitive threat in that an increasingly sig-
challenge for tourism stakeholders in both nicant percentage of the tourist market now
private and public sectors is to account for no longer needs variety in their choice of des-
these changes proactively to achieve and tinations as via their purchase of a second
maintain competitive advantage for their home they have expressed their loyalty
organizations. albeit to varying degrees to a particular des-
One of the means by which destinations tination (Fyall et al., 2006). Although low-cost
can change their organizational culture is airlines are now prevalent across the world,
through the quality of the people they employ. the extent to which they are able to retain their
Hence, the need for a robust, recognized and low-cost focus in the years to come will in
widely accepted qualication in destination part determine the extent to which many des-
management, which explores all the dynamic tinations will be able to retain their newly
themes and issues referred to in this chapter, found markets or lose them as a direct
is more pressing than ever as a cost-effective response to the competitive, nancial and
vehicle with which DMOs can successfully low-carbon threat facing many airlines. More
navigate the troubled waters that lie ahead. than anything else, all destinations need to be
In contrast, from a demand perspective, even clearer as to how they are positioned in
many destinations have already begun to the marketplace, with the need for a very clear
diversify their core propositions via the proposition more evident than ever before.
development of niche tourism strategies,
often with a strong cultural avour. Work by
the likes of Connell (2006) and du Rand and
Heath (2006) provides just two examples of Commodication
how destinations have become creative in
their use of health and food tourism experi- As competition becomes more intense, the
ences, respectively, in developing a new ease with which many destinations are sub-
sense of purpose for destinations. stitutable and struggle to seek differentiation
Challenges and Opportunities 349

in crowded markets represents formidable corpus of literature in this domain, building


challenges for their future management and and managing destination brands is no easy
marketing. The increase in competition task, with the limited ability to build
across all regions of the world is such that destination-wide brands one of the biggest
over periods of time more and more destina- impediments to destination marketers eager
tions are likely to share similar if not identi- to differentiate their propositions. Destina-
cal selling points. In response, destinations tions of all shapes and sizes are inuenced by
need to work even harder to avoid the ease the broader political environment, while
with which they can be substituted. Whether most destinations are subject to very tight
this is through experiential marketing, the budgets and a slow decision-making environ-
creation of niche market opportunities, the ment which inhibits creativity in the market-
search for new and alternative markets, place. Many of these issues have begun to be
reduction in emphasis on traditional markets examined in the literature, with studies by
or the adoption of creative forms of brand Morgan et al. (2002, 2003), Caldwell and Freire
development is to some extent secondary. (2004), Konecnik (2004), Prideaux et al. (2004)
What is more pressing is the need for those and White (2004) arguing for a step change in
marketing and managing destinations to the means by which destinations can more
fully recognize the perpetual threat of sub- professionally develop, manage and enhance
stitution and that the need to develop their approaches to the branding of
and maintain a perennial competitive advan- destinations.
tage is paramount. The ease with which More recent work by Hankinson (2007),
many destinations can be so easily substi- however, has begun to introduce the benets
tuted is in part a consequence of the Internet of more corporate approaches to branding for
revolution and the ease with which visitors destinations. The distinction between corpo-
can compare offers and prices online, and rate and more traditional branding is high-
select commodity-driven purchases in a mat- lighted in Table 21.1: corporate approaches to
ter of minutes. Substitution can also be attrib- branding are driven by the need for single-
uted, however, to a lack of imagination on component, cohesive-stakeholder relation-
the part of those marketing and managing ships and lower organizational complexity,
destinations, and the speed with which so they are functional and individual in orienta-
many destinations are eager to adopt me tion and tolerate sub-brands; perhaps most
too low-risk strategies, most notably in the signicant is the lack of an overt role for gov-
area of festivals and events. This issue was ernment, the reliance on private enterprise
raised by Fyall and Leask (2007) when com- and the need for consistent product or des-
paring London and Edinburgh in the UK. tination attributes.
While Edinburgh has built much of its Although perhaps a little ambitious for
domestic and international appeal on its many destinations, the benets to be accrued
world-renowned festivals and events, the from a more corporate approach are such that
me too adoption of such a strategy by many it is only a matter of time before the march of
cities across the UK alone, most actively per- such approaches to branding on the destina-
haps by the likes of Liverpool, Manchester tion landscape becomes widespread. For this
and London, provides a now very real threat to occur, though, destinations will be required
to what was for many years a unique selling to critically appraise every aspect of their orga-
proposition. nization and marketing, and the people they
employ, as the likely impact on the current sta-
tus quo and incumbent political situation is
Creativity likely to be signicant. One of the key chal-
lenges of such an approach is the extent to
One of the primary means by which ease of which the community view is considered. Edin-
substitution can be challenged is via the burgh in the UK represents an excellent exam-
adoption of creative approaches to destina- ple of such an approach, as it reects a strong
tion branding. As is evident from the growing community dimension in its endeavours
350 A. Fyall

Table 21.1. Corporate versus place branding (Source: Allen, 2007, p. 61).

Corporate brand Place brand

Single component product/service Multiple component product/service


Cohesive stakeholder relationships Fragmented stakeholder relationships
Lower organizational complexity Higher organizational complexity
Functional Experiential/hedonic
Individual orientation Collective orientation
Sub-brand coherence Sub-brand inequality and rivalry
Private enterprise Publicprivate partnerships
Lack of overt government role Overt government role
Product attributes consistent Product attributes subject to seasonality
Flexibility of product offering Inexibility of product offering

(see www.edinburgh-inspiringcapital.com). Communication


The newly formed DEMA (Destination Edin-
burgh Marketing Alliance) represents a coor- The increasing adoption of both online and
dinated, focused and community-sensitive ofine marketing by destinations is testament
approach to destination branding with the to their growing condence and experience in
themes of Visit, Invest, Live and Study integral utilizing such tools and the wave of customer-
to its corporate cohesiveness as a brand. The centric demand emerging from the increasing
need to retain the interests of the local com- use of Web 2.0, blogs and online social net-
munity is crucial in that many of them either works (such as Facebook and Twitter and such
work in the industry or are crucial to the like) by an increasingly connected and con-
delivery of the visitor experience. They also dent market. While a disproportionately high
represent local taxpayers and are, after all, the percentage of marketing budgets in many des-
determinants of local democracy. Many tinations remains spent on traditional print-
opportunities exist for those who are market- based media such as brochures and leaets
ing and branding destinations, but it is imper- (see Dore and Crouch, 2003; Foley and Fahy,
ative that all have a strong understanding of 2004), destinations are increasingly beginning
the process and drivers of image formation, to adopt more electronic and web-based forms
as this will have a direct impact on brand of communication. Although more cost effec-
identity, service and stakeholder alignment, tive, the extent to which such new media are
and on the overall destination marketing truly effective has yet to be determined, as the
strategy. After all, destination choice is pri- metrics by which such media are monitored
marily based on destination image and, as are not always as robust as would appear to be
such, it is increasingly important to create a the case in the rst instance. Hence, even if the
compelling virtual brand experience outside likes of King (2002) advocate a much greater
of the physical space (Allen, 2007, p. 62). emphasis on the need to create and communi-
For an increasing number of destina- cate holiday experiences that link key brand
tions, especially those with limited budgets, values and assets with the holiday aspirations
new, more innovative and creative and needs of key customers, the extent to
approaches to branding are required. Televi- which this can be truly accommodated by
sion and lm-induced tourism are certainly online forms of communication alone has yet
throwing up many opportunities (see Pratt, to be determined. He does, however, go on to
2010) and these represent an excellent add the need for a move away from a rela-
example of a highly cost-effective approach tively passive promotional role to include
to the branding and broader communication greater intervention, facilitation and direction
of a small, resource-tight destination on a in the conversion process. The migration to an
global scale. economy based on experience opens the
Challenges and Opportunities 351

door to the establishment of ongoing, direct, the Internet in recent years opens up even
two-way and networking consumer commu- more opportunities for those marketing and
nication channels, and for key customer rela- managing destinations. The particular use of
tionship strategies to take place with the online social networks such as Facebook and
eventual development of mass customization TripAdvisor has transformed the customer-
marketing and delivery capabilities (Fyall centric orientation of some destinations,
et al., 2006). whereby the ability to create news, post
opinions and inuence the travel of others
has served to stimulate even the most reac-
Channels tive conservative into action. While it can be
argued that the likes of Expedia, Travelocity,
Opodo and others continue to represent a
One of the primary means by which destina-
threat to destinations in that their expertise
tions can seek a competitive edge in the mar-
and scope of operation bring signicant
ketplace is the means by which they can
economies of scale that consolidate further
proactively engage with distribution channels
their status in the marketplace, the opportu-
and be innovators, rather than laggards, in
nities now evident for destinations them-
the use of destination management systems.
selves to use what can only be described as
Much of the early development and innova-
easy-to-use everyday technology are such
tion in distribution channels emerged else-
that Middleton et al. (2009) identify consid-
where across the broader tourism industry,
erable opportunities to be gained from the
but the relative ease with which the technol-
use of blogs, Twitter, Web 2.0 generally and
ogy is now available provides a signicant
viral marketing more broadly. More than
opportunity for destinations to engage more
anything else, the Internet has served as a
directly with their visitor base. Many destina-
key driver for customer-centric orientation
tions, London being a particularly good
across most sectors. This is certainly true for
example, are already using a whole range of
destinations that ignore the impact of such a
channels to seek greater engagement with
phenomenon at their peril. While the com-
and control over their markets around the
plexity of the destination product and the
world. London does, though, have the
co-ordinating role practised by destination
resources and people at its disposal to take a
marketers clearly makes the development,
lead. Much smaller destinations with lesser
implementation and management of desti-
budgets at their disposal continue to struggle,
nation-wide websites particularly challeng-
although one could argue that even without
ing (Fyall et al., 2006, p. 82), the time has
large budgets a simple reorientation of priori-
arrived where such activity ought now
ties would open up a window of opportunity
to be as common as developing desti-
to engage more fully with the channels now
nation brochures and the selling of post-
available to them. As rst mentioned by Fyall
cards!
et al. (2006) in the initial version of the 15 Cs
framework, irrespective of the location, scale
and type of destination in question, the devel-
opment of a suitable destination management Consolidation
system whether unilaterally or with other
like-minded destination(s) is a priority that
Middleton et al. (2009) highlight the very
can no longer be ignored.
pressing problem facing all components of
the wider tourism industry, that of globaliza-
tion and the increasing consolidation and
Cyberspace polarization that is evident in the industry.
They go on to add that the process of polar-
The initial iteration of the 15 Cs framework ization is creating a small number of very
did include cyberspace as one of its core large, international and often globally
components, but the exponential growth of branded corporations while at the same time
352 A. Fyall

very small or micro-enterprises continue to marketing mix and system of delivery.


dominate numerically the experiences most Referred to by King (2002) as the network
customers will get at every destination; the economy and by Wang (2008) as the value
reality of such a trend is a growing supply- network, in that DMOs will probably enter
side division between company-centric, top into strategic relationships with industry
down, efcient but inevitably bland big inter- partners who can together provide a seamless
national corporations versus small and experience for the customer, the move
micro-businesses at destinations (Middleton towards the need for greater collaboration
et al., 2009, p. 482) where the opportunities within and among destinations is such that
mentioned in many of the preceding elements Fyall and Garrod (2005) suggest that, rather
of the 15 C framework are actually beyond than being viewed as a luxury, collaboration
the reach and budget of smaller destinations. is a prerequisite for destinations to survive in
This suggests that the future marketing and the face of considerable competition and
management of destinations is to be deter- environmental challenges irrespective of
mined by scale, with the development of des- whether one is referring to intra-destination
tination resorts by consolidated giant networks (von Friedrichs Grngsj, 2003),
corporations and their consequent benets of relational brands (Hankinson, 2004) or forms
technology, budgets and reach into the of collaboration governance (Palmer and
domains of the private sector, overpowering Bejou, 1995; Palmer, 1998). Recent work by
the ability of smaller, more traditional, Wang (2008) reinforces this line, but he does
community-based and publicly managed at the same time highlight the fact that the
destinations to succeed. Indeed, according to broader concept of collaboration in the con-
Wahab and Cooper (2001) it is the develop- text of destinations can be challenged on two
ment of new integrated corporate structures fronts which can hinder the creation of the
as a result of alliances, mergers and acquisi- necessary inter-community cooperation and
tions that is likely to cause the greatest struc- collaboration necessary for the successful
tural impact on the tourism industry. Indeed, marketing and management of destinations.
for the good majority of destinations around Wang (2008, p. 192) suggests rst that the
the world, consolidation and polarization destination marketing task is characterized
throw up a number of quite considerable by the fragmented nature of the tourism
challenges in their struggle to overcome the stakeholders who are responsible for compo-
balance of power which, although not always nents of the total offer and second, that no
the intention, is in fact often the outcome of single agency can control and deliver a rich
such developments. combination of tourism product and service
portfolio at a destination.
The emergent nature of collaboration per
Collaboration se and the importance attached to contextual
factors, as highlighted by Fyall et al. (2010),
One means by which the above dominance of make comparison and the learning from
the corporates can be confronted is via collabo- good practice very difcult, as even though
ration, either within or among destinations. collaboration and cooperation may improve
The importance attached to collaboration in a DMOs marketing skills and operations
the context of destinations is not new, as work they may also result in particular learning
by Palmer and Bejou (1995), Buhalis and Coo- problems, such as uncontrolled information
per (1998), Telfer (2001) and Prideaux and disclosure (Harrill, 2009, p. 452). There is also
Cooper (2002) testies. However, many of the the worry of individual components of the
aforementioned components of the 15 Cs destination product free riding, a theme that
framework serve as the catalyst for collabora- Wang (2008, p. 207) argues has bedevilled
tion as a means by which destinations are destination marketing for many years. He
able to compete effectively by bringing continues, however, by being explicit in that
together all the relevant individual partners interdependence and the smallness of
to offer a more effective and integrated many tourist operators force united action,
Challenges and Opportunities 353

particularly given the costs and difculties of competition within and among destinations,
penetrating distant markets (Wang, 2008, although offering short-term competitive
p. 207). In short, destinations across the world benets, will seriously hinder their longer
need to do everything they can to actively term development and sustainability as the
engage all destination stakeholders in desti- destination in its broadest sense will be lost as
nation marketing and management pro- a result of short-term, corporate and nance
grammes while reducing at every occasion driven incentives. Irrespective of how one
the opportunity for individual stakeholders, looks at destinations, collaboration really is a
most notably corporate-branded hotels or natural response to their future development,
large corporately owned attractions, to free marketing and management (Wang, 2008),
ride. More than any other form of collabora- and really does represent the sine qua non for
tion, though, that which is most pressing in successful destination marketing in the future
all destinations is the need for greater con- (Fyall et al. 2006). Over time, both practition-
nectivity, where special focus should be ers and academics have come to appreciate
given to improving the connections between that there are very few, if any, alternatives to
all the levels, providing greater clarity about greater collaboration within and among des-
individual roles and responsibilities; and tinations. The more troublesome question is a
most important of all using modern IT solu- case of how best can forms of collaboration:
tions to ensure that the information ows effectively cope with the complexity of desti-
between organisations, and from the industry nations; enable destinations to regain control
to the consumer, are the very best they can be of their product destiny; accommodate the
(Hemphill, 2009, p. 9). needs of the local community, and also accom-
modate continuous change and crises, and
complacency something that is inherent in
the marketing and management of so many
Summary and Conclusions destinations. In addition, various forms of
collaboration can: contribute greatly in
There is little doubt that all of the individual attracting new and repeat customers as they
components of the 15 Cs framework offer help to encourage the growth of co-creation
considerable opportunity for future research with visitors in the overall enhancement of
and academic scrutiny. However, as with the the visitor experience; encourage a change of
rst iteration of the framework, collaboration culture, most notably between public and pri-
remains the glue that bonds all other com- vate sector stakeholders; and combat individ-
ponents together. This will especially be so in ual competitive strategies by bringing together
the difcult years to come for all those econo- all key destination stakeholders with a uni-
mies affected so heavily by the continuing ed message and vision for the future, in part
world economic crisis. Forecasts for recovery by encouraging former commodied destina-
vary signicantly, but there is little doubt that tions to seek new routes to market and more
the next few years are going to remain chal- creative approaches to branding, as well as by
lenging. In a recent article in The Guardian the use of a greater variety of communication
newspaper in the UK, a reader commented techniques and channels of distribution.
on the letters page (albeit in a political rather Finally collaboration is omnipresent in the
than a tourism context) that to compete to use by destinations of cyberspace, and it is also
survive is a simple, robust, and seductive one very successful means of challenging and
concept, but it exacerbates problems in the holding back the competitive threat of corpo-
long term. The letter continued by stating rations that (via globalization) have come
that to cooperate to survive is a more dif- together as a consequence of merger and
cult concept, and obviously much harder acquisition activity and are testament to the
work for politicians, but it produces more trend of concentration and consolidation across
sustainable solutions (The Guardian, 2010). the broader tourism industry.
This is exactly the situation facing destina- To conclude, if this revised framework
tions across the world in that individual is to have any impact at all, researchers
354 A. Fyall

interested in the future marketing and man- migrate away from piecemeal approaches to
agement of destinations need to scrutinize marketing and managing destinations and
each component more thoroughly and gauge adopting more effective collaborative strate-
the extent to which each can be managed gies has been open to question. Destinations
more effectively in the face of incredible envi- are challenging to market and manage, of that
ronmental change and economic turbulence. there is little doubt but it is these challenges
At the beginning of this chapter, Harrill (2009) that serve as the necessary catalysts for both
was quoted as having commented that prog- the practitioner and academic communities to
ress has been slow within the academic com- move the agenda forward, identify the most
munity in demonstrating how the various appropriate strategies for the future market-
characteristics and issues facing tourism des- ing and management of destinations and
tinations come together. Similarly, the means make them worthy of being the primary unit
by which practitioners have been able to of study and management action in tourism.

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Index

Page numbers in bold type refer to gures and tables

accidents see safety global distribution systems (GDS)


accommodation introduction of 167
competition between businesses 276 subsequent relationships 169170, 172
hotel check-in experiences 88, 90, 91 relationship with travel agents 171
hotels as terrorist targets 305 alliances (networks)
online hotel reservations 169, 178, 210, conceptual framework 260, 261, 262
213214 formation stages 267269
residents housing costs 157, 285 outcomes 269270
seasonal booking, related to universities motivation for relationships
159160 cluster competitiveness 266267
self-catering 161 community social responsibility 267
activities (at destination) costs and learning resources 266
choices, planned and unplanned 63 holistic destination portfolio strategy
as element of destination appeal 332 265266
information sources 6970 preconditions
see also golf tourism adverse events and economic conditions
advertising 263
credibility, cost and market penetration 139, changing demands of tourists 263264
140, 236 increasing competition 264
destination marketing campaigns organizational and technical support
crisis recovery (Mexico) 320321 264265
focus and visual images 93, 9394, 94, relationship conguration
119, 121122 driving factors 275276, 352353
role of CVBs 12, 276 forms of business relationships 270275,
range of promotional media 119120 273
revenue opportunities of web technology 177 maturity and leadership 276277
affective reaction pattern 85 strategic choices 277278, 278
afliations 270, 274 Australia
airlines cities, mental image sketch maps 139
air fare information sources 69 Constitution and Government
direct selling to consumers 168, 169170, 208 establishment and structure 31
frequent ier mileage points 57, 60, 62 tourism planning policies 23, 3132

359
360 Index

Australia continued IT implementation


local government planning frameworks budget resources 193194
3436, 35 employee knowledge and competence
New South Wales, RTO strategies 3234 194195
regional boundaries and destination Internet commerce adoption model
denitions 24 (eMICA) 186
research studies life cycle model, applied to destinations
destination management 22 149
events and branding 245246, 247249
sustainability policies, consequences 27
see also Queensland Canada, visitors photo analysis 138139
catering see food
China
beaches and seaside resorts 151, 154 British newspaper content analysis 136
factors inuencing current appeal 160161 Golden Weeks holiday periods 49
links with transport infrastructure 153154 image attributes studies, for US visitors 135,
surng events 245 142
benets of tourism Macau SAR, brand equity measurement 121,
economic and social 28, 125, 285 124, 125
travellers perceptions of 40 Olympic Games (2008, Beijing) 117, 245
blogs see also Hong Kong
content and usage 233 civil and political unrest 142, 303, 316
micro-blogs 233234 co-branding 125, 247
usefulness in market research 110 Cohen, Erik 48
branding collaborative networks 271, 274275, 352353
adoption by communities 105, 117 communication
concepts and terminologies 113, 114, 115 in collaborative marketing 268269
consumer awareness 109, 246247 electronic resources 4, 7778
denition and origins 113 compared with traditional media,
destination brand management evaluation 105, 350351
assets and challenges 116117 interactive queries and dialogue
monitoring 120 188189
positioning 118119 supplierconsumer commercial links
promotion 119120 167, 208
stakeholders 117118, 349350, 350 marketing strategies 7477, 79, 101, 350
distribution intermediaries, websites 175176 target identication 105
examples of application word-of-mouth, manipulation of 141
Australia, sporting events 251252, 254 communities see residents; virtual travel
national identity, logos and slogans 121, communities
121122, 123 competition
Oregon, case study 120121 balance with cooperation 175, 270278, 273,
experiential quality focus 93, 9394, 94 278, 352353
future research directions 125126 competitiveness and sustainability model
impact of initiatives 96, 122125, 124 328, 329
personality and character 122, 292 destination resources and attractors
as responsibility of CVBs/DMOs 11, 15, 126 331333
scale and levels of branding 115116, 116 development policies and planning
value and importance 246, 349350 334335
British travellers, information search patterns 74 macro (global) environment factors 330
businesses management actions 335337
absorptive capacity (knowledge) 196, 266 micro (competitive) environment factors
collaborative relationships, types 270272, 330331
279 situational factors 337338
employee training and human interactions supporting infrastructure and services
9192, 334 333334
globalization 351352 differentiation by branding 113, 115, 118119,
innovation abilities 195196 251
Index 361

globalization 151, 206 convention and visitor bureaus (CVBs)


attraction of major world events 244 American, survey of destination marketing
corporate consolidation 351352 systems
destinations, increasing range 103, 115, implications for management 198201
345, 348 methods 196197
internal and external competition 264, results 187, 197198
330331 denition 67, 185
information sources, competition between 3, history and evolution 14
174 marketing focus on visitor experience quality
for resources, between residents and visitors 9394
292293 roles and responsibilities 813, 10, 106,
complaints, online handling 209 185186
computer reservation systems (CRSs) 167, 205 use of web technologies in marketing 192,
conict 193
political, in resident populations 158 coopetition concept 175, 272, 273, 280281,
tourism and resource-based interests 28, 29, 330331
286, 292293 coordination (between organizations) 271, 274
constructive choice theory 55 costs
consultants comparison shopping by customers 175,
professional, as information sources 69 177178, 217
traveller motivation studies 4243 destination marketing research 105, 109
see also travel agents information search (nancial and time) 72,
consumers 76, 77
characteristics of consumer behaviour 54, online reductions 208
206 price value, strategic positioning 119, 338
constraints on travel 49 travel costs and motivation impacts 49,
durable goods and tourism product searches 6162
compared 68, 82, 226 crime
human relationships and encounters 86, dangers, at destinations 302, 305306, 316
9192, 125 vulnerability of tourists 304305, 318
virtual (Web 2.0) 228230 effects on tourism 303304
individual variation in responses 88, 91, 92 increased risk, residents perceptions 287288
preferences, range and scope 3, 53 policing measures 309
response to physical surroundings 87, 91 crisis management
trust of websites, inuencing factors 176, 208 and collaborative marketing 263
consumption experiences disaster impacts and measurement 317318
components 82 tourist vulnerability and threats 318
concepts and denitions impact on brand image 120, 317
context and individual input 8586, 347 image correction measures 143, 310311,
denitions and diversity of experiences 321
83, 8485, 85 importance and needs
generation and dimensions of experience proactive and reactive strategies 315
8688 reasons for crisis planning 315316
descriptive framework research issues 322323
elements and inuencing factors 8889, scale of problems 314, 337, 345346
89 types of disasters 316
individual characteristics and situational incident reduction measures 308310
factors 92 elements of management 316, 318319
objective (cognitive)subjective public policies and planning 29
(emotive) axis 9091 best practice, national examples 320322
ordinaryextraordinary axis 8990 comprehensive DMO plans, examples
physical and human interaction 9192 319320
implications for destination marketing 9295, Crompton, J 44, 46
93, 94, 332 cultural tourism 103, 135, 292
research requirements 9596 culture
time phases 100, 101 entertainment industry 332
content analysis 134, 136 and market communication strategies 77
362 Index

culture continued see also destination marketing systems


national differences, information search destination marketing systems (DMSs)
patterns 74, 207, 209 functions
positive and negative effects of tourism deployment and purposes of DMSs
285286, 290 186188, 206, 216
strategic t of hosted events 250251, 253 functions and information needs of
sustainability, for tourism 328 CVBs 185186
tourist experiences, market involvement 86, virtual communication space (VCS)
331 188189
customers see consumers virtual information space (VIS) 188
cybermediaries, denition 166167 virtual relationship space (VRS) 190191
virtual transaction space (VTS) 189190
survey and implications, American CVBs
Dann, G 4445 196201
decision making web marketing, sophistication and success
approaches to study of tourist behaviour absorptive capacity 196
5354 adoption of IT by DMOs/CVBs
consumer choice theories and models 5455, 184185, 187, 187
7074 commercial development stages
conative component of destination 191193
image model 133, 133 nancial commitment 193194
dynamic process model, leisure travel innovativeness 195196, 211215
5758, 59 technology competence 194195
factors inuencing tourist decisions 5557, destinations
56, 70 attractiveness
destination image 130 appeal elements, image and branding
information quality and availability 188, 103104, 132, 331333
225227 control of building developments 160
online recommender systems 209 decline over time, without active
peer reviews and social networks management 149150
235236 evaluation and monitoring 104, 335
marketing decisions natural environment 327328
shared, stages of collaboration 267269 competitiveness and sustainability 326
support systems (MDSS) 186 denition and scope of term 23, 2425, 115,
process stages (tourists) 206210 247
research methods development cycles and evolution 99,
data collection 60 149151, 163
evaluation of methods and results 6364 impacts of tourism 2123, 108
grounded theory approach 5859 marketing and management
Helmut and Helga (case study) 53, activity components 335337
6063, 61 concepts and scope, holistic framework
Destination Edinburgh Marketing Alliance 5, 6, 9
(DEMA) 343344, 350 denition 3
Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) driving forces 35, 275277
business models and governance 7, 277, 336 resources and research needs 102103,
historical evolution and directions 1314, 14 340341
organization types 57, 343344 promotion, role of DMOs 89, 277, 280
relevance, focus and visibility 18, 184185 development projects
roles and responsibilities 713, 10, 17, 82, 343 collaborative marketing strategies 259260
crisis contingency planning 322323 evaluation and evolution 269
market research 106 design exibility 346
marketing information systems 185188 investment and planning requirements 27
strategic (future) planning agendas 1517, 16 location and access 104, 293, 337
competitiveness and sustainability 326 natural progress, life cycle (TALC) model
degree of cooperation 277278, 352353 150151
place branding and positioning 115, 126, new resorts and community building
130 295296
Index 363

positive and negative impacts on local area evaluation of alternatives 208


284286 information search behaviour and tools
scale, and attitude of residents 291292 207208
disaster management see crisis management needs and sources used 206207
disintermediation, denition 166 post-purchase behaviour 209210
distribution channels purchase decision 209, 235237
consumer perspective 174175, 176, 225227 security and privacy risks 210
evolution and transformation 216217, 351 stages of purchase decision-making 206
before web use (pre 1993) 167, 167168 website accuracy and response time
early commercial Internet use 210211
(19931998) 168, 168169 global impact of ICT on tourism 205206, 351
Google and disintermediation industry functions
(20052009) 173, 173174 online marketing 216217
meta-search engines and global new strategic management 215216, 217218
entrants (20002005) 172, interoperability, technical features 211213
172173 technological innovation management 211,
online travel agents (19952002) 215
169170, 170 tourist data forecasts, modelling methods
reintermediation efforts 170172, 171 214215
importance and research studies 165166 website design and performance analysis
intermediation terms and denitions 166167 213214
protection of brands 175176, 178179 events
revenue opportunities 177 community support, importance of 249251
value of human interaction 174, 177178 contribution to brand equity 246247, 249,
Destination Marketing Association International 332
(DMAI, formerly IACVB) 3, 7, 15 evaluation and planning model 249, 250
denition of CVB roles 185 further research needs 254255, 256
marketing research, process outline 103106 size, spatial and timing issues 245,
251252, 253
impacts on destinations 244246
e-mediaries, denitions 167 on communities and human capital 253,
ecological concerns see sustainability 255
ecological systems theory 55, 56 economic benets to local businesses
economics 162
disruptive events and conditions long-term legacy 245, 254
contingency planning 34, 315316 management, cooperation and integration
global downturn, effects 345346 252253, 254, 255
impetus for collaboration 263 media coverage 252
insurance costs and safety/security research methods (Australian study)
incidents 307 data gathering 248249
economic benets of tourism 28, 162, 285, 314 method 247248
impacts of event hosting 245 research questions 247
local impact of universities 160 workshop structure 248
national (country) branding 113, 115 unexpected experiences, individual responses
negative impacts of tourism 285 to 88
tourism revenues experiences, tourism see consumption experiences
global 1, 314 experientialist theory and research 5354, 55, 341
local 262, 290 extended model of Internet commerce adoption
tourism sustainability 328 (eMICA) 186
Eiffel Tower (Paris) 117, 132
elicitation methods, destination image research
136, 138 Facebook 233, 234
Elkhart County (Indiana) 262, 277 family and friends
enterprises see businesses as information sources 6970, 75
entertainment industry 332 VFR (visiting friends and relatives) market
eTourism 331332
consumers and demand dimensions festivals 250251, 253, 332
364 Index

lms, impact on tourism 141, 142, 160 health issues


Florida as motive for business collaboration 263
hurricanes 317 risks to tourists 143, 302, 316
Orlando, tourism marketing 9394, 94, 264 swine u outbreak management (Mexico)
Tampa Bay image attributes study 134 320321
see also Orlando/Orange County CVB hedonic experience pattern 85, 231
food services (restaurants), use of Internet searches hedonism 41
208 heritage tourism 103
France St Andrews, Scotland 151
Eiffel Tower 117, 132 educational products 152153, 159160
French travellers, information search patterns religious history, tourist products 152,
74 153, 159
friends and relatives see family and friends see also cultural tourism
funding resources hierarchical model (destination image) 133, 133
budgets for technology investment 193194, home region (tourists)
199 denition 2
for crisis management 322 risk advisory bulletins 307308, 322
CVBs as sources 12 honeymoon destinations 57
for destination marketing research 106 Hong Kong
government support for RTOs, New South brand logos and slogans 119, 121, 121
Wales 3334 image components, complimentary study
135136, 137
as shopping destination 125
generating markets see home region (tourists) hurricane Katrina, impacts 317
geographical information systems (GIS) 105
German travellers
changing travel patterns 346 image
information search patterns 74 identication decisions 104105, 118119, 130
global distribution systems (GDSs) 167, 169170, measurement
205 complimentary approach 135136, 137
new entrants (GNEs) 172 consecutive approach 134135
golf tourism (St Andrews, Scotland) structured analysis techniques 133134
current popularity and economic benets 162 unstructured qualitative methods 134,
facilities and reputation 151, 159 136, 138139
history of development 154156, 156 nature and characteristics 131
local government management 158, 161162 models 131133, 132, 133
Google search engine services 173, 173174, 177, preconceptions and change
207 corrective measures after adverse events
bookmarking 238 143, 144, 310311, 317
maps and mash-ups 240 effect and reliability of media coverage
government agencies (GAs) 7, 24 308
green issues see sustainability improvement, methods and speed
guidebooks 141142, 251, 253
effects on destination image 140 negative image impacts 7677, 142143,
objectivity status 227 307
podcasts 239 resistance to change 150151, 338
use by tourists 6970 promotion and competition 95, 143146
sources and image formation agents 139141,
140, 142
Happy Happens marketing campaign (San see also branding
Diego) 93, 93 information
Hawaii availability, for surveys of traveller
collection of visitor prole information 53 motivation 4243, 105106
factors inuencing tourist decisions 5556, destination marketing systems (DMIS) 186,
57, 6063, 61 336
opportunities during vacations (tours and pre-travel and on-site planning, by tourists
trips) 62, 63, 64 6162, 63, 100
Index 365

provision, role of CVBs/DMOs 11, 17 government frameworks, political agendas


search behaviour patterns 6768, 206207 45
cultural differences 7374, 209 to override local planning regulations 27
strategies 6870, 207208 Leipers tourism system model 2, 341
theoretical models 7073 Lewin, Kurt 4142, 48
website surfers and shoppers 188, 208, lifestyle
236 inuence on information search strategies 71
sources contributing to destination image resorts, resident populations 157, 284286
139141, 140 local government
infrastructure 116117, 250, 285, 333 in Australia
for new tourist developments 295 Master Class destination management
integrated marketing communication (IMC) 116, plans 35, 3536
120, 122 powers and responsibilities 31, 3435
International Federation for IT and Travel and relationship with RTOs 34
Tourism (IFITT) 241 reorganization (UK), effects 158
Internet uses transfer of control to state/central
booking and payments 189190, 206 government 27
coordination in branding initiatives 117 Local Tourism Ofces (LTOs), denition 7
destination marketing research 105106, location-based services (LBS), Internet 213
109110 logos, country branding 121, 121122
information source for travellers 69, 7778,
141, 206207
comparison of destinations 151, 349 Malaysia, branding slogans 119, 123
pre-travel planning of leisure activities management
63 approaches to innovation 195196, 200, 211,
price comparison 208 215
quality and updating 188 complacency 346347
review sites 209, 235237 complexity and control 342344
safety and security information 322 conict and collaboration 29, 252, 264265,
international wireless access (WiMAX) 352353
212213 measures to gain residents support
marketing tool for DMOs 184185, 321 291295, 292, 294, 344
suppliers, commercial use 167, 208 customer relationships (CRM) 190, 211, 347
see also distribution channels; social destination branding 116117, 120, 126
networking; Web 2.0 creativity of approaches 349350, 350
interviews use and value of events 249, 250
Cromptons travel motivation research 44 image, monitoring and promotion 141143,
McCrackens long interview method 54, 60 145146, 246247
Iso-Ahola, S E (arousal/boredom theory) 45 knowledge and absorptive capacity 196,
Israel, media coverage and image improvement 199200, 346347
143, 144 networks, organization by CVBs/DMOs 13,
1819, 267, 281
safety and security control 301, 308311,
Jakarta (Indonesia), terrorist attack recovery 321 318319, 345
Japanese travellers marketing research
destination choice, motives 57 branding and image promotion, return on
information search patterns 74 investment 125, 145
goals and challenges 99, 108110
practical destination marketing research
land use, planning and policies 28 denition and focus 102103
language barriers needs and functions 103
health and safety information 309310, process steps 103106
318 research areas 106108, 107
website use 212, 214 role of DMOs 106, 190
lastminute.com 169, 175 stakeholder surveys and analysis 117118
legislation value chain enhancement opportunities
and crime reduction 309 101102, 102
366 Index

markets tourist data forecasts, text- and data-mining


changes and evolution, contributing factors methods 214215
83, 143, 225227, 240241, 344346 Montana ski area, image analysis 138
extent of involvement in tourism experiences Murray, Henry 4142
86, 331, 347
linkages to destinations 331332
segmentation national branding and image 113, 115, 130, 146
based on consumer search patterns 67, impact of major events 244245
7475 National Tourism Ofces (NTOs)
destination differentiation for consumers denition 6
190191, 251, 347348 use of information systems in marketing 186
priority target identication (visitor natural disasters
prole) 105 destination marketing collaboration after
supply and demand interactions 99100, 109, severe events 263
125126 risk awareness of travellers 318
mash-ups (web content) 239240 tourism impacts 143, 301, 302, 317
Master Class, Managing Local Tourism (Australia) types of disaster 316
35, 3536 nature-based tourism 103, 135
McCracken, G (long interview method) 54, 60 networks see alliances
media New South Wales (Australia) tourism 3234
inuencing methods, by tourism New Zealand
organizations 143, 144 domestic traveller survey 138
publicity and destination image 136, 141 market for Australian theatre productions
reporting of online complaints 209 332
reporting of unrest and disasters non-prot organizations
142143, 308, 317, 318 funding basis (GFNPO/DFNPOs) 7
sporting and cultural events coverage liaison role between residents and local
161, 252 government 158
members-only trade associations (MOTAs) 7
memories
design and delivery of memorable Olympic Games
experiences 8688, 93 destination marketing value 117, 244245,
dynamic nature of interpretation 58 254
as internal information source 6869 as stimulus for urban development 244
meta-search engines 172, 172, 173, 175, 177178 Open (golf) tournament 155, 156, 158, 161, 162
Mexico, crisis response and recovery 320321 optimal-arousal perspective, intrinsic 45
models orchestrated (staged) experience 88, 90
competitiveness and sustainability (Ritchie Oregon Tourism Commission, branding campaign
and Crouch) 326, 328, 329 120
customer experience of tourism 8892, 89 Orlando/Orange County CVB (OOCVB) 262
decision-making 54, 55, 5758, 59 crisis management plan 320
destination development, TALC model marketing campaigns 9394, 94
149151, 341 safety and security issues 263
destination image theme park and attractions, competition 264
hierarchical model 133, 133
three continuum model 131132, 132
event evaluation and planning 249, 250 Pacic Asia Tourism Association (PATA) 316
information search behaviour peak experiences 83, 85, 90
comprehensive model 7273 photography
contingency model 7172 elicitation technique 136, 138
strategic model 7071 visitor-employed, as image research method
Internet commerce adoption 186, 192193 138139
networks and alliances web-based sharing 110, 237
conceptual framework 260262, 261 planning
degrees of relationship 272275, 273 approaches 2931, 30
residents attitudes, Jurowskis model applied (domain-based) 2829
288 value-based 2728
Index 367

Australian Government policy framework Punta Cana resort (Dominican Republic) 295296
23 push and pull factors, travel motivation 4445, 49
denition and relationship with policy 2627
disasters, management needs 315316
events, management and evaluation model qualitative research methods
249, 250 content analysis 134, 136
local destination management planning 35, elicitation, free word and photo 136, 138
3536, 334335 sketch maps 139
Plog, Stanley (travel motivation model) 4344 triad elicitation 138
podcasts 238239 visitor-employed photography (VEP) 138139
policy see also interviews
denition and characteristics 2526 quality standards
online community behaviour 230 evaluation by marketing research 104
political and stakeholder environment 4, 24, improvement of destination services 336
2931, 30, 328 self-imposed, in virtual communities 232
regulation and protection for host website accessibility and ease of use 213214
communities 289, 296297 quantitative pattern analysis
related to planning outcomes 2627, 335 Likert scale surveys, brand and image 124,
research requirements 21, 108 134
strategic roles of DMOs 17 travel motivation 46
positioning 118119, 335 Queensland (Australia)
prices see costs crisis management plan 319
private sector Woodford Folk Festival 251, 253
commercial consultants, tourist survey
information 4243
relationships with CVBs 8 rational choice theory 5455
tourism funding needs (UK) 344 recreation see activities
products, tourism Regional Tourism Organizations (RTOs)
collaborative marketing 259260 Australian, establishment and roles 3234, 36
historical origins and development 152156 denition 67
planning and development research 108 see also convention and visitor bureaus
prior knowledge components 7172, 78 reintermediation, denitions 166
quality control and visitor perceptions 104 religion
services compared with goods 68, 82, 226 motive for terrorist attacks 304
see also consumption experiences pilgrimage destinations 151, 152, 159
psychographics see lifestyle repertory grid approach (RGA), research method
psychology 138
benets and incentives of virtual research
communities 231, 232 analysis of travel motivations 3940
identication of peak and nadir experiences experiential approach 5354, 55
83 limitations of questionnaires and
travel motivation studies 4142 surveys 4849
public sector principal components analysis 46
government advice on safety/security issues study relevance 4950
307308, 322 Australian case studies and research 22
government role in branding initiatives 117, data quality
126 forecasting accuracy, tourist ows 21
investment in tourism 347348 geographical and demographic
involvement in policy-making 2526, 343 specicity 105
publications destination management studies
bias 227 15 Cs framework 342353
content analysis, for image research 136 disciplines involved 2324, 27
information needs of expert travellers 76 extent and range 341342
traditional and electronic media compared emic and etic viewpoints 55, 59
105 methods
used for information searches 6970, 207 case studies 64
see also guidebooks choice of 108, 134
368 Index

research continued self-imposed, by tourists 302, 318


methods continued improvement measures 309310
components 29 media coverage 308, 317
data-mining 214 search engines 173174, 178
interviews, methods and organization keywords and sponsored links 176177
60, 64, 262, 328 query analysis 207208
workshops and groups 247249 tagging 237238
policy and planning research approaches security threats
2729 crime, residents risk perceptions 287288
meta-analysis 2931, 30 denition and types of incidents 300301,
Web 2.0-related, current needs 241 302303
website quality analysis 213214 frequency and severity, and recovery time
residents (local community) 303304
attitudes to tourism development 344 impact of
effect of physical resort isolation 157 on destinations and their governments
effects of policies and intensity 289291 306307
existing research and future needs 296 on tourism and tourists 142143, 263,
opposition to marketing 158159 306, 307, 345
predictors of perceptions 286289 locations prone to attack 305306
support for events 245, 249250, 294 motives of perpetrators 304, 318
use of St Andrews golf courses 155156, online payment protection 210
158, 162 prevention and mitigation 308309, 321
interpersonal interactions and visitor targets and vulnerability 304305, 318
experience 95, 145, 286 semantic web technologies 211
liaison with visitors, role of CVBs 11, 267 semi-structured decision-making model
population sectors 157 (Woodside and MacDonald) 58, 59
attached citizens 291292, 292 sketch maps analysis technique 139
environmentalists 293294, 294 slogans
resource users 292293, 294 positioning decisions 118, 119
positive and negative tourism impacts uniqueness and clarity 121, 122, 123
285286 social capital 249, 270, 287
Punta Cana Resort and Club (case study) social networking (virtual communities) 176
295296 benets to participants 230231
roles in branding efforts 118, 292 origins and growth 234235
tourist use of resident-oriented products 100, sharing complaints and recommendations
293 209210, 235237
risks sociology
actual dangers to tourists 300303, 316 interpretation of travel motives 4445
tourist awareness of 318 perspectives on tourism experiences 83
management strategies 308311, 318319 St Andrews (Scotland), tourism products
online payment security 210 contemporary tourist products
perceived culture and heritage 159160
effect on tourist behaviour 306, 317, 345 leisure activities 160162
and information searches 68, 122123, context issues
226 residents, attitudes to tourism
of tourism development, residents development 156159
perceptions 287288 setting and assets 151152
Royal and Ancient (R&A) Golf Club 151, 155156, history of product evolution 152156, 153,
158, 162 154, 156
RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feeds 239 staged (orchestrated) experience 88, 90
stakeholders
collaboration and participation 1112,
safety 117118, 252
denition and types of risks 301 in marketing and promotion 259260
natural conditions and disasters 301, 302 outcomes 269270
related to management standards public and private sectors 347348
301302, 316 stages of process 267269
Index 369

engagement in policy-making 28, 334335, tour operators 168, 170, 217, 226
341342 impact of security incidents on business 307
support for CVBs/DMOs 8, 15 Tourism Area Life Cycle (TALC) model,
State Tourism Ofces (STOs), denition 6 destination development 149151, 341
statistical surveys tourism industry
customs departments, travel purpose advocacy role of CVBs 12
information 42 benets and planning values 28
structured analysis, destination image components 99100, 117, 330331
assessment 134 distribution channels 165166, 226
staycations 345 partnerships 1213
stopovers service provider sectors 2, 100
destination competitiveness 337 support factors 333334
in long-haul travel decision-making 6061, global development 1, 1314, 23, 314
62 competitiveness factors 330
strategic tourism networks 271, 275 impact of ICT 205206, 215216
superstructure (institutions and heritage) 117, importance of safety and security 301,
332333 315, 337338
sustainability understanding of consumption experience
green issues 9295, 96, 108109
balance with tourism development 5, see also eTourism
286, 293294, 337 tourists
changing tourist demands 263264, 345 activity drivers 57, 58, 119120
integrated planning for 28, 295296 characteristics 107
destination components 327328 behaviour 107108
multidimensional nature in tourism 326327, current changes 226227, 344345, 346
327 socio-demographic 106107
comparative and competitive classication (types of tourist) 2
advantages 328 Cohens categories 48
policies, impact on tourism developments 27 decision-making styles 54
visitor carrying capacity 338 Plogs model 43
denition 12
expectations and motives 4041
technology active generation of experiences 90, 93
nancial commitment 193194, 199 cultural and life-cycle differences 46,
industry competence and innovation 7374
skills 194196, 199, 265 destination loyalty 109, 123124
information and communication (ICT) international and domestic visitors
impact on distribution channels 165, compared 134
167174, 225227 involvement and expertise 73, 76
mobile and wireless networks 212213 responses to unexpected experiences 88,
multimedia presentation 211212, 237 306
value and challenges to consumers trip planning 6162, 72
174175, 177178, 208 impacts on destinations 2123, 108, 289291
sophistication and development 4 see also consumption experiences
adoption by DMOs 184185, 192193 transport
organizational progression 186187, 187, information sources 69
191192 no-frills (low-cost) airlines 208, 348
see also eTourism; Internet uses quality and destination competitiveness 333
television programmes, inuence on destination resort accessibility 157, 334
choices 57, 141 service providers 100
terrorism 304, 316, 337 stopovers 6061, 62, 337
impact and recovery 143, 303, 306, 321 trafc congestion related to tourism 287
security measures 309 transit route region, denition 2
targeting and vulnerability of tourists 303, travel agents 226
305, 318 corporate (travel management companies)
three continuum model (destination image) 171172
131132, 132 incoming 167168
370 Index

travel agents continued cognitive and emotive responses 87


inuence on destination image 140141, 233 inuences on tourist behaviour 40
online 169170, 170, 177, 208 video sharing 237
size and economic success 170171 videotex services 167, 168, 169
traditional, disintermediation by Web use virtual travel communities (VTCs) 229, 230
169, 206 incentives to contribute 231232, 235, 240
value of human interaction to consumers nature and operational elements 229230
175, 178 participation benets 230231, 240
travel career patterns (TCP) conceptual scheme symbolic dimension 228229
4547, 47 use and relevance to tourism industry 210
Travel Industry Association of America (ITA) 322 virtual place qualities 228
travel motivation see also social networking
assessment and analytical challenges 4749 visitor-employed photography (VEP) 138139
postmodern perspective 48 visitors see tourists
characteristic elements 4041 voice browsers 214
psychological roots, understanding of 4143
research approaches 3940
theories 4347, 47 wars, impact on tourism 303, 316, 322
uses of research studies 4950 Washington, DC (crisis management plan)
see also decision making 319320
traveller-generating region see home region WAYN (Where Are You Now?) website 217, 234
(tourists) weather issues see natural disasters
triad elicitation (destination image study) 138 Web 2.0
TripAdvisor website 209, 217, 238, 240 characteristics and origin 227228
Turkey, branding logo and slogans 121, 121, 122 contribution incentives 230, 231232
Twitter 233234, 239240 opportunities and output types
blogs 233
mash-ups 239240
United Nations World Tourism Organization micro-blogs 233234
(UNWTO) 1 photos and video sharing 237
crisis management guidelines 321 podcasts 238239
denition of organizations 6, 9 real simple syndication (RSS) 239
survey information on tourist motivation relevance for tourism industry 217,
42 232233
tourism statistics 314 social networks 234235
universities tagging 237238
crisis management training 323 user reviews 235237
involvement in marketing research 106, 110 wikis 238
St Andrews (Scotland) 151, 152153, 159160 participation benets 230, 230231
sustainability education 295296 virtual tourist community features 228230,
unstructured decision-making model (Mintzberg 229
et al.) 58, 6364 wikis 238
user-generated content, growth and acceptance wireless technologies 212213
225, 240241 Woodford Folk Festival (Queensland) 251, 253
see also Web 2.0 word association (survey method) 136, 138
word-of-mouth (WOM) communication 141, 209,
235
value chain (tourism) 101102, 102 writers, travel 41
values
basis for policy and planning, range of types
2728 ZIP codes, use in marketing research 105

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