Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Hotel, Restaurant, Institution Management & Dietetics / Ki-Joon Back / Understanding association members’ meeting participation behaviors is the key to the well-attended meeting, which is a common goal of both associations and host destinations. However, little research has contributed to theoretical development in this area, and the lack of a theoretical framework has negatively influenced the validity of existing research. Thus, this study attempted to explain association members’ meeting participation behaviors, using a conceptually sound model of meeting participation, which was developed based on existing human behavior theories: the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB). Another main objective of this study was to test the validity of the meeting participation model (MPM). By comparing the utility of three competing models (TRA, TPB, and MPM), this study confirmed the effectiveness of the meeting participation model (MPM) in explaining association members’ intentions to attend the annual meeting. The proposed meeting participation model was empirically examined using the data collected from 245 members of the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education (CHRIE). The results of model development revealed that the MPM fits the data very well, providing a systematic view of the decision-making process of association meeting participation. In addition, the findings of the model comparison using the structural equation modeling (SEM) revealed that all three competing models successfully provide a theoretical base for understanding association members’ meeting participation behaviors. Specifically, the MPM provided a fuller understanding of meeting participation intention by adding two predictor variables (destination image and past meeting participation experience) to the TPB. This study is the first research effort to investigate what makes association members attend, or not attend, association meetings based on theoretical frameworks. TRA and TPB provided the necessary theoretical ground to develop the meeting participation model (MPM). By adding a domain specific predictor variable (destination image) and a non-volitional habitual construct (past experience) to the original latent constructs conceptualized in pure TRA/TPB models, the MPM emerged as a theoretically strong and parsimonious framework for understanding association members’ meeting participation behaviors. The results of the current study present a strong step toward providing practical as well as theoretical implications for future convention research.

This qualitative study has examined how Sigtuna with its local businesses works to create a united destination image and what challenges that arise in this creation. The methodological approach to collect data consists of qualitative interviews and text and image analyzes. There have been seven interviews with local businesses operating in Sigtuna and they are included in the same network. Analyzes of websites and social media, such as Facebook and Instagram, as well as videos identified as important in the process of communicating the Sigtuna image have been performed. Three theories have been applied in the study to explain what destination image includes as well as significant factors in the creation of image, networking between companies and how image can be conveyed. The results has shown that there are some improvement areas for the destination's common creation of an image. The areas that need to be developed primarily are communication between businesses and the follow up of its common goals. The presentation of the image is mainly through social media, where the historical aspects are presented as an important part of Sigtuna's image. The results also shows that there are challenges and the greatest challenge for the destination is to find a common approach that all business will work towards. / Denna kvalitativa studie har undersökt hur Sigtuna med aktörer arbetar för att skapa en gemensam destinationsimage samt vilka utmaningar som uppstår i detta skapande. De metodologiska tillvägagångssätten för att samla in data är kvalitativa intervjuer samt text- och bildanalyser. Det har genomförts sju intervjuer med aktörer som är verksamma i Sigtuna och ingår i samma nätverk. Analyser av hemsidor och sociala medier, såsom Facebook och Instagram samt videoklipp som utsetts som viktiga i arbetet att förmedla Sigtunas image har utförts. Tre teorier har tillämpats i studien för att förklara vad destinationsimage innefattar samt betydande faktorer i skapandet av image, nätverk mellan företag och hur image kan förmedlas. Resultatet har visat att det finns en del förbättringsområden för destinationens gemensamma skapande av en image. De områden som främst behöver utvecklas är kommunikationen mellan aktörerna samt uppföljningen av dess gemensamma mål. Förmedlingen av image sker främst genom sociala medier där de historiska aspekterna presenteras som en viktig del av Sigtunas image. Resultatet visar även att det finns utmaningar och den största utmaningen för destinationen är att hitta ett gemensamt förhållningssätt som samtliga aktörer ska arbeta utefter.

Marketing on the level of public administration and local government is becoming to be more important in last years. This thesis deals with one of the area of marketing, specifically destination marketing. In the Czech Republic, destination marketing is implemented at several levels -- national, regional and local. Attention in this thesis is devoted mainly to the regional level of destination marketing. The first part provides with a theoretical basis for this issue and explain concept of "destination marketing" as well as marketing and communication mix of the region. Than marketing strategy, brand and image of the region are described. The main part of the thesis consist of evaluating and comparing the implementation of destination marketing in Central Bohemia, Pilsen region and Liberec region. Regional tourism strategies are analyzed first, followed by investigation research of the real implementation, attention is also focused on the ways of promoting the regions.

Destination image is of great importance in the decision-making process when selecting a tourist destination. This thesis analyzes the approaches to the image, the possibilities of evaluation and measurement of destination image. The aim of this thesis is to measure image of selected tourist destination Republic of Sakha Yakutia based on existing knowledge and measurement models.

This study provides an integrated approach to understanding the relationship between destination branding and tourist behavior, and attempts to extend the theoretical and empirical evidence about the structural relationships among the following constructs: destination image, perceived quality, destination awareness (elements of destination branding), tourist satisfaction, and tourist loyalty (elements of tourist behavior) in the leisure tourism market. This study develops and empirically tests a destination branding model and its relevant components from the perspectives of tourists, so that it will help destination marketers to build more competitive tourism destinations. The destination brand model is based on relationship marketing theory, signaling theory, and brand equity theory. The model proposed four major hypotheses: 1) destination branding has a direct positive influence on tourist loyalty; 2) destination branding has an indirect positive influence on tourist loyalty through tourist satisfaction; 3) tourist satisfaction has a positive influence on tourist loyalty; and 4) the relationship between destination branding and tourist satisfaction is moderated by trip types. A sample population consisting of residents of Virginia was surveyed. A stratified sampling method and a random sampling method were used to select the sample. A total of 304 usable questionnaires out of 2,000 questionnaires were collected. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test hypotheses in this study. The results revealed that: 1) cognitive destination image and destination familiarity had a direct influence on tourist loyalty as well as an indirect influence on tourist loyalty through tourist satisfaction; 2) affective destination image had only an indirect impact on tourist loyalty through tourist satisfaction; 3) tourist satisfaction had a significant relationship with tourist loyalty; and 4) cognitive destination image, affective destination image, and destination recognition were moderated by trip types. This study can initiate the development of theoretical foundations for destination branding. Also, the implications of these findings can help destination managers and marketers build competitive strategies for destination branding in order to ensure long-term relationships between tourists and their destinations. / Ph. D.

IKEA is a brand that is known around the world and because it features many markers in their products, operations, and marketing that showcase its country of origin, Sweden has gained worldwide recognition simultaneously. The tourism industry could benefit from this positive image that Sweden has gained through IKEA’s popularity, by marketing themselves among the brand’s consumers using that positive image. Recently, Visit Sweden, the national DMO of the said country, has developed the campaign ‘Discover the Originals’ that responds to IKEA’s link with Sweden and tries to include tourism in that image among consumers. This quantitative study aims to see whether such campaigns that respond to the product-country image of private companies are effective in impacting the travel intention of the companies’ consumers. The first research question aims to find out the impact of IKEA’s product-country image on the intention of Belgian IKEA customers to travel to Sweden. This will be analysed by interpreting the correlation between brand image and country image as the independent variable and travel intention as the dependent variable. The second research question on the other hand will evaluate whether the ‘Discover the Originals’ campaign that is developed by Visit Sweden to respond to IKEA’s strong relationship with its country of origin, is increasing intention to travel to Sweden. The study confirms the applicability of previous research on the specific case of Belgian IKEA customers, given that the positive product-country image of IKEA on other foreign markets was already supported. Using the results of an online questionnaire that was distributed in relevant Facebook groups with members that were residing in cities spread over Belgium, analyses were made and interpreted. This delivered results that are aligned with the findings from existing literature. Positive product-country image impacts visit intentions after being exposed to the campaign, which indicates that the campaign is in particular valuable when targeting IKEA customers as brand familiarity and -image play an important role in how the audience reacts to it. These results reveal the opportunity for DMOs and private companies to work together and strengthen each other’s brands while contributing to the further development of the country as a tourist destination.

The process of watching a movie is a common way to be entertained in this day and age. There are multiple ways in which people can enjoy a movie ranging from the big screen at a commercial theater, on their home's television, or even in a car while driving. One outcome associated with watching a destination movie might be that the viewer will be compelled to visit or not the location portrayed in the movie. It is a primary assumption of this thesis that movies have the ability to create or change an individual's image of a destination by its portrayal within the motion picture. This study was conducted in an effort to examine this global phenomenon called movie tourism and contribute to the tourism literature. This study focused on determining the differences between pre and post measures resulting from watching a destination specific movie. The research method was a pretest-posttest experimental design conducted to a convenience sample of 247 hospitality management students enrolled in a major metropolitan university located in the southeastern portion of the United States. The research instrument was a pre and posttest questionnaire that included structured and unstructured questions in order to capture the complex destination image. The treatment between the pre and posttest was a destination specific movie. A 100% response rate was obtained from the pretest group and a 99.2% response rate from the posttest group. Results of the study revealed that: 1) certain perceived destination images were different before and after the movie; 2) level of interest in visiting the destination was not different before and after the movie; 3) destination image had a positive relationship with the level of interest in visiting the destination; and 4) certain audience characteristics had an impact on destination image and interest in visiting the location. Implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research are discussed in the final chapter.

No description available.

Means of information have drastically changed during the last decades due to the evolution of technology and the development of social media, which have gained crucial relevance in the tourism industry. As a consequence, efficacy of traditional information sources is being challenged. The aim of this research is to determine, analysing photographs, what destination images of a particular country are projected by both traditional and digital information sources, in order to compare them identifying main similarities and differences in the projected images. For the purpose of this study, the selected destination is Italy and the analysed images will beretrieved from Swedish, Danish and Norwegian tour operators’ tourism catalogues and their respective social media accounts. Therefore, main similarities and differences between the three countries will also be identified and analysed. The images will be analysed using a thematic analysis method, following an inductive approach, meaning that themes and codes will be generated from the data itself. In order to generate conclusions, five Swedish, five Danish and five Norwegian tour operators were selected, and their catalogues and social media accounts were analysed, for a total of 1,306 images illustrating Italy as a destination. Findings suggest how images retrieved from catalogues mainly illustrate Italy by the generated themes of hidden mass tourism, notorious Italy, and culture. On the other hand, images retrieved fromsocial media accounts mainly represent Italy with the generated themes of mass tourism, unfamiliar Italy, and culture. As the names of the themes suggest, the first two themes generated from the two information sources represent opposite ways of illustrating the destination, while the theme of culture represents the main similarity between the traditional and digital information sources. Regarding the three countries, it was noticed that each Scandinavian country focused on specific features of Italy, with Swedish tour operators focusing on the history and culture of the destination, Danish ones focusing on sea, beaches and urban areas, while Norwegian tour operators concentrated on natural landscapes and countryside areas of Italy.

Skapandet av en destinations image och varumärke är idag en effektiv positioneringsstrategi. Destinationer lägger fokus på att skapa en attraktiv destination och därmed leverera ett värde till besökaren. Det finns däremot färre empiriska studier om hur samarbetet på en destinationer och hur ett multi-aktörsperspektiv spelar in i att skapa en attraktiv destination och därmed ett starkt varumärke. Det leder studien in på dess forskningsfråga: Hur samarbeten på en destination kan främja destinationsvarumärket? som också kommer besvaras med underfrågor: Hur Destination Management Organisations och aktörer skapar en dynamik och samverkan för att de ska samarbeta gentemot destinationens brand identity? och Hur aktörer förhåller sig till att arbeta gentemot destinationers gemensamma mål samtidigt som de beaktar egna intressen? Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur aktörer i Kalmar samverkar för att skapa en attraktiv destination och stärka dess varumärke, samt att skapa en större förståelse för hur samarbetet fungerar för att stärka varumärket. För att besvara studiens forskningsfråga har en kvalitativ metod använts med en deduktiv ansats. Studien bygger på intervjuer med sju respondenter från områden som anses relevanta för att besvara forskningsfrågan och uppnå syftet. En tematisk analys har genomförts för att se mönster i respondenternas svar. Dessa har sedan tolkats tillsammans med teorier som leder fram till vissa slutsatser. Slutsatser som kunnat dras i studien är att samarbetet på en destination kräver en organisation, möjligen en Destination Management Organisation, som kan samordna aktörerna och främja destinationsvarumärket. Studien har även visat på aktörernas egna vinning och att de fortfarande kan ta egna intressen i beaktning och ändå arbeta för destinationens mål och enhetliga varumärke. / The creation of a destination image and brand is an effective positioning strategy. Destinations focuses on creating an attractive destination and thereby delivering a value to the visitor. There are, fewer empirical studies on how the collaboration on a destination and how a multi-actor perspective plays into creating an attractive destination and thus a strong brand. This leads the thesis into its research question: How collaboration at a destination can promote the destination brand? Which will also be answered with these questions: How does Destination Management Organizations and actors create a dynamic collaboration in order for them to cooperate towards the destination brand identity? and: How actors relate to working towards destinations´ common goals while considering their own interests? The purpose of the thesis is to investigate how actors in Kalmar work together to create an attractive destination and strengthen its brand, and to create an increased understanding of how the collaboration works to strengthen the brand.