Turistindustrin är en viktig industri ur ett ekonomiskt perspektiv samtidigt som den är mycket sårbar för negativa händelser som sker runt om i världen. Då information och nyheter sprids snabbare än någonsin, på grund av den enkelhet som finns att ta till sig information, är det lätt att destinationers image påverkas av det som förmedlas via media. Föreliggande studie fokuserar därmed på att, ur ett producentperspektiv, försöka kartlägga på vilket sätt som destinationers image påverkas av negativ nyhetsrapportering. Detta görs genom att erhålla en förståelse kring vad det är som gör att en image förändras. Samtidigt ligger ett fokus på att försöka förstå om olika strategier tillämpas av researrangörer för att förändra destinationers image samt om de arbetar med att hantera medias påverkan på destinationers image. Det med ambitionen att erhålla en kunskap kring vad som kan göras för att minska att resmönster påverkas i lika stor utsträckning som det gör idag.   För att göra detta fokuserar studien på följande forskningsfrågor:   <ul type="disc">Hur påverkas destinationers image av negativ nyhetsrapportering? Finns det några strategier som researrangörerna tillämpar för att förändra en destinations image och i så fall vilka?   De slutsatser som studien kommer fram till är följande:   <ul type="disc">Destinationer påverkas av negativ nyhetsrapportering till följd av att personer påverkas av det media rapporterar om. Destinationer påverkas i olika utsträckning beroende på dess internationella status, geografiska läge, resenärernas familjära känsla gentemot platsen samt själva händelsens karaktär. Alla individer påverkas olika av massmedias rapportering, beroende på tidigare erfarenheter och kunskap om platsen. Alla kriser och händelser kräver olika strategier, både storleksmässigt och beroende på vad för typ av händelse som inträffat. Researrangörer hjälper destinationer under en kortsiktig period men under ett längre perspektiv så anpassar sig researrangörerna främst till efterfrågan på marknaden. Det är en skör balansgång vad gäller att tillämpa externa aktörer vid arbetet med att förändra destinationers image. Baserad på situation tilltas olika marknadsföringsstrategier i form av kampanjer, annonser och rabatter, vilket kortsiktigt kan påverka att försäljningen ökar och resmönster påverkas. Ansvaret ligger hos oss människor hur vi erhåller rätt information via rätt kanaler som följaktligen påverkar våra uppfattningar och därmed destinationers image. / The tourist industry is important to the industry economically. But at the same time it is very vulnerable to negative happenings and events from around the world. Since information and news is spreading faster than ever before, and due to the simplicity there now is to take parts of the information about a destination, it is easy for the destinations image to be affected badly by what is being mediated throughout the media. This study therefore aims to map out in what ways destinations images are affected by negative news, reporting through a producer perspective. This is done by examining what there is that makes an image change. At the same time this study focuses on trying to understand if different strategies are being used by tour operators in order to change the image of destinations and if they are trying to handle the media's effect on such image. Therefore the ambition is to gain knowledge about what can be done to minimize the effect media has on travel patterns and reduce the extent there is today.   In order to do this, the following study focuses on these two research questions:   How is destinations images affected by negative news reports? Are there any strategies that travel agencies apply in order to change destination images, and in that case which?   The conclusions that can be drawn are following:   Destinations are affected by negative news reports because people are affected by media reportings. Destinations are affected to various degrees depending on its international status, geographical location, travelers' family feelings towards the place and the nature of the event itself. All individuals are affected differently by the media reportings, depending on previous experience and knowledge of the site. All crises and events require different strategies, both in size and depending on what type of event that has occurred. Tour operators help destinations in the short term rather than the longer term perspective, as tour operators adapt primarily to market demand. It is a tough balance in terms of applying external factors in the process of changing the image of destinations. Based on situation, different marketing strategies are used in the form of campaigns, ads and discounts, which can shortly affect sales and travel patterns. The responsibility lies on each individual and how we get the right information through the right channels, which consequently affects our perceptions and thus the image of destinations.

<p>Успех у пословању зависи од способности предузећа да створи лојалне потрошаче, док у контексту&nbsp;туризма успех дестинације зависи од способности менаџмента и маркетинга дестинације да задовољи&nbsp;потребе туриста и на тој основу креира&nbsp; лојалне&nbsp; потрошаче&nbsp; који&nbsp; ће се поново вратити у дестинацију&nbsp;<br />или је усмено препоручити другим потенцијалним туристима. Истраживање у &nbsp;докторској дисертацији&nbsp;има неколико задатака. Први задатак је провера модела лојалности на примеру Србије.&nbsp; Применом&nbsp;модела лојалности анализиран је каузални однос између перцепције афективног и когнитивног имиџа&nbsp;дестинације, атрибутивног задовољства, укупног задовољства и дат је увид у предикторску моћ&nbsp;поменутих конструката у процени намере туриста да поново посете дестинацију или да је усмено&nbsp;промовишу. Други задатак рада је да &nbsp;се утврди да ли постоји разлика између намере туриста да&nbsp;поново посете дестинацију или да је усмено промовишу у односу на њихове социо демографске&nbsp;карактеристике (пол, старост, ниво образовања и ниво примања) и претходног &nbsp;искуства са&nbsp; дестинацијом. Трећи задатак рада је испитивање нивоа задовољства туриста перформансама&nbsp;туристичких производа и услуга у дестинацији применом анализе перформансе и важности.&nbsp; Анкетно&nbsp;истраживање је спроведено у Србији током шест истраживачки месеци од маја до октобра 2009.&nbsp;године. Циљну узорачку популацију чинили су инострани туристи који су у истраживачком периоду&nbsp; боравили у Србији. Пригодним узорковањем сакупљено је укупно 360 валидних анкета које су даље&nbsp;коришћене у статистичким анализама. За статистичку обраду коришћено је неколико статистичких&nbsp;техника и статистичких софтвера. Моделовање структуралних једначина (SEM), мултиваријантна&nbsp;анализа и анализа перформанси и&nbsp; важности су статистичке технике коришћене за истраживање.&nbsp;<br />Статистички софтвери SPSS 17.0, AMOS 18 и EQS 6.1 су коришћени за обраду &nbsp;података.&nbsp;Резултати су показали да перцепција имиџа Србије као туристиче дестинације не утиче директно на&nbsp;оцену укупног задовољства искуством у дестинацији.&nbsp; Према резултатима налаза Србија је на&nbsp;испитиваном узорку перципирана као јефтина дестинација, занимљивих природних и културних&nbsp; атрактивности међу којима су активности и догађаји оцењени са највећим оценама. Даље,&nbsp; између&nbsp;задовољства на нивоу појединачних атрибута у дестинацији и укупног задовољства искуством у&nbsp;дестинацији постоји јака директна позитивна веза.&nbsp; Укупно задовољство није показало директни&nbsp;позитиван утицај на дестинацијску лојалност.&nbsp; Иако у првобитном хипотетичком моделу није била&nbsp; претпостављена директна веза између имиџа и атрибутивног задовољства на дестинацијску лојалност&nbsp;у финалном моделу се показало да је имиџ дестинације директан позитиван предиктор намере&nbsp;испитаника да усмено препоруче Србију као туристичку дестинацију, док&nbsp; је атрибутивно&nbsp;задовољство најбољи предиктор намере туриста да поново посете Србију и да је усмено препоруче&nbsp;другим потенцијалним туристима. Овај однос може бити теоријски оправдан, јер Србија нема&nbsp;изграђен јасан, јак и препознатљив имиџ&nbsp; на међународном туристичком тржишту&nbsp; те задовољство&nbsp;туриста личним туристичким искуством у дестинацији игра најзначајнију улогу у креирању&nbsp;дестинацијске лојалности.&nbsp; Резултати су такође&nbsp; показали да је на испитиваном узорку старост&nbsp;директно негативно повезана са намером туриста да поново посете дестинацију и позитивно&nbsp;директно повезана са задовољством перформансама атрибута у дестинацији.&nbsp; На основу тестираног&nbsp;модела може се закључити да је на примеру Србије у тестираном узорку имиџ дестинације основно&nbsp;средство за привлачење туриста док је задовољство квалитетом производа, услуга, активностима у&nbsp;дестинацији алат за успостављање дугорочнијих&nbsp; односа са туристима. Кључ успеха у подизању&nbsp; дестинацијске лојалности је синхронизација деловања свих појединачних субјеката који су посредно&nbsp;и/или непосредно укључени у креирање аутентичног туристичког доживљаја.</p> / <p>Uspeh u poslovanju zavisi od sposobnosti preduzeća da stvori lojalne potrošače, dok u kontekstu&nbsp;turizma uspeh destinacije zavisi od sposobnosti menadžmenta i marketinga destinacije da zadovolji&nbsp;potrebe turista i na toj osnovu kreira&nbsp; lojalne&nbsp; potrošače&nbsp; koji&nbsp; će se ponovo vratiti u destinaciju&nbsp;<br />ili je usmeno preporučiti drugim potencijalnim turistima. Istraživanje u &nbsp;doktorskoj disertaciji&nbsp;ima nekoliko zadataka. Prvi zadatak je provera modela lojalnosti na primeru Srbije.&nbsp; Primenom&nbsp;modela lojalnosti analiziran je kauzalni odnos između percepcije afektivnog i kognitivnog imidža&nbsp;destinacije, atributivnog zadovoljstva, ukupnog zadovoljstva i dat je uvid u prediktorsku moć&nbsp;pomenutih konstrukata u proceni namere turista da ponovo posete destinaciju ili da je usmeno&nbsp;promovišu. Drugi zadatak rada je da &nbsp;se utvrdi da li postoji razlika između namere turista da&nbsp;ponovo posete destinaciju ili da je usmeno promovišu u odnosu na njihove socio demografske&nbsp;karakteristike (pol, starost, nivo obrazovanja i nivo primanja) i prethodnog &nbsp;iskustva sa&nbsp; destinacijom. Treći zadatak rada je ispitivanje nivoa zadovoljstva turista performansama&nbsp;turističkih proizvoda i usluga u destinaciji primenom analize performanse i važnosti.&nbsp; Anketno&nbsp;istraživanje je sprovedeno u Srbiji tokom šest istraživački meseci od maja do oktobra 2009.&nbsp;godine. Ciljnu uzoračku populaciju činili su inostrani turisti koji su u istraživačkom periodu&nbsp; boravili u Srbiji. Prigodnim uzorkovanjem sakupljeno je ukupno 360 validnih anketa koje su dalje&nbsp;korišćene u statističkim analizama. Za statističku obradu korišćeno je nekoliko statističkih&nbsp;tehnika i statističkih softvera. Modelovanje strukturalnih jednačina (SEM), multivarijantna&nbsp;analiza i analiza performansi i&nbsp; važnosti su statističke tehnike korišćene za istraživanje.&nbsp;<br />Statistički softveri SPSS 17.0, AMOS 18 i EQS 6.1 su korišćeni za obradu &nbsp;podataka.&nbsp;Rezultati su pokazali da percepcija imidža Srbije kao turističe destinacije ne utiče direktno na&nbsp;ocenu ukupnog zadovoljstva iskustvom u destinaciji.&nbsp; Prema rezultatima nalaza Srbija je na&nbsp;ispitivanom uzorku percipirana kao jeftina destinacija, zanimljivih prirodnih i kulturnih&nbsp; atraktivnosti među kojima su aktivnosti i događaji ocenjeni sa najvećim ocenama. Dalje,&nbsp; između&nbsp;zadovoljstva na nivou pojedinačnih atributa u destinaciji i ukupnog zadovoljstva iskustvom u&nbsp;destinaciji postoji jaka direktna pozitivna veza.&nbsp; Ukupno zadovoljstvo nije pokazalo direktni&nbsp;pozitivan uticaj na destinacijsku lojalnost.&nbsp; Iako u prvobitnom hipotetičkom modelu nije bila&nbsp; pretpostavljena direktna veza između imidža i atributivnog zadovoljstva na destinacijsku lojalnost&nbsp;u finalnom modelu se pokazalo da je imidž destinacije direktan pozitivan prediktor namere&nbsp;ispitanika da usmeno preporuče Srbiju kao turističku destinaciju, dok&nbsp; je atributivno&nbsp;zadovoljstvo najbolji prediktor namere turista da ponovo posete Srbiju i da je usmeno preporuče&nbsp;drugim potencijalnim turistima. Ovaj odnos može biti teorijski opravdan, jer Srbija nema&nbsp;izgrađen jasan, jak i prepoznatljiv imidž&nbsp; na međunarodnom turističkom tržištu&nbsp; te zadovoljstvo&nbsp;turista ličnim turističkim iskustvom u destinaciji igra najznačajniju ulogu u kreiranju&nbsp;destinacijske lojalnosti.&nbsp; Rezultati su takođe&nbsp; pokazali da je na ispitivanom uzorku starost&nbsp;direktno negativno povezana sa namerom turista da ponovo posete destinaciju i pozitivno&nbsp;direktno povezana sa zadovoljstvom performansama atributa u destinaciji.&nbsp; Na osnovu testiranog&nbsp;modela može se zaključiti da je na primeru Srbije u testiranom uzorku imidž destinacije osnovno&nbsp;sredstvo za privlačenje turista dok je zadovoljstvo kvalitetom proizvoda, usluga, aktivnostima u&nbsp;destinaciji alat za uspostavljanje dugoročnijih&nbsp; odnosa sa turistima. Ključ uspeha u podizanju&nbsp; destinacijske lojalnosti je sinhronizacija delovanja svih pojedinačnih subjekata koji su posredno&nbsp;i/ili neposredno uključeni u kreiranje autentičnog turističkog doživljaja.</p> / <p>Business success depends on the company&rsquo;s ability to create loyal customers, and in the context of tourism destination success depends on the ability of destination management and marketing to meet the needs of tourists and on this basis to create loyal customers who will return to the destination or recommend destination to other potential tourists. Doctoral thesis has three research goals. The first task is to test theoretical model of destination loyalty by analyzing the interrelationships among destination image, tourist satisfaction and destination loyalty on Serbia as a travel destination. Proposed hypothetical loyalty model analyze the causal relationship between affective and cognitive destination image, satisfaction on attributive level and&nbsp; overall satisfaction on destination loyalty. Additionally in model author analyzed predictive power of individual constructs mentioned above in the assessment of tourists intention to revisit tourist destination or spread positive word of mouth. The second goal is to analyze if the destination loyalty model varied among different tourist groups based on their socio demographic characteristics (age, gender, education and income level) and previous traveling experiences. The third goal of the thesis is to examine the level of tourist&rsquo;s satisfaction with tourism products and services provided by the hospitality and tourism industry in Serbia by&nbsp; applying Importance Performance analysis (IPA). The survey was conducted in Serbia during six research months from May to October 2009. The target population was all foreign visitors who visited Serbia during research months. A one stage convenient sampling&nbsp; approach was applied. Total number of 360 valid questionnaires was used in&nbsp; statistical analysis. Statistical techniques structural equation modeling (SEM),&nbsp;multivariate analysis and Importance performance analysis were used in the study. Statistical software SPSS 17.0, AMOS 18 and EQS 6.1 were used for data processing.</p><p>The results showed that perception of Serbian image as a tourist destination does not directly affect the assessment of overall satisfaction with the experience. According to the findings&nbsp; Serbia was perceived as a cheap tourism destination with interesting natural and cultural attractions. Among all attractions responded show the&nbsp; highest satisfaction with activities and events. Further results shows there is a strong direct positive relationship between attribute satisfaction and overall satisfaction. Overall satisfaction did not show a direct positive impact on destination loyalty. Although the initial hypothetical model was not assumed the direct relationship between image and attribute satisfaction on destination loyalty, final model shows that the destination image is a direct positive predictor of the respondents&#39; intention to recommend Serbia as a tourist destination, while the attributive satisfaction is the best predictor of tourists&nbsp; intention to revisit Serbia and to recommend Serbia to other potential tourists. This relationship can be theoretically&nbsp; justified because Serbia does not have clear, strong and recognizable image on the international tourism market so satisfaction with personal travel experience plays the most important role in the creation of destination loyalty. The results also showed that&nbsp; age is directly negatively associated with intention to revisit tourist destination and directly positively associated with satisfaction with performances of tourism products and services in the destination. Based on the tested loyalty model it can be concluded that destination image of Serbia is the primary mean for attracting tourists while satisfaction with products/services and activities in the destination is the tool for establishing long-term relationships with tourists. Therefore the key to succeed in establishing tourists loyalty to Serbia is synchronization of all activities of individual entities who are directly and/or indir ectly involved in creating the authentic tourism experience.</p>

Billion-dollar disasters are projected to increase at a statistically significant rate of 5% annually. Crises affect the viability and lucrativeness of tourism business and implicate destinations in the process. Crisis preparedness is vital to improving outcomes and reducing consequential effects in the tourism industry-a key contributor to socioeconomic progress and infrastructural development worldwide. The study was an exploration of the strategies used for crisis preparedness to reduce business interruptions and improve the image of destinations affected by large-scale natural disasters and human-induced crises. A multiple case study was conducted based on the cycle of preparedness framework. Data were gathered from organization documents and semistructured interviews by telephone with 6 executives of 6 destination management organizations located in the south and west regions of the United States. Transcribed data were coded and then validated via member checking, revealing 3 themes: organizational preparedness, operational preparedness, and strategic communication. Specifically, possessing a crisis mindset, predetermining crisis risks and responses, and managing information to safeguard the reputation of tourism organizations and destinations were attributed to preparedness at the local and organization levels. Tourism and hospitality professionals may benefit from devising crisis plans, establishing rapport with crisis leaders and teams, and partnering with the media to promote positive perceptions and travel behaviors of tourists. Implications for social change include identifying strategies to limit the impact of crises on individuals and communities to improve the perceptions of safety of a tourist destination after a crisis and thus enhance its economic growth.

Perceptions and attitudes can have a major impact on the motivations for countryside people to visit city destinations as tourists. The findings from this study present the two major motivations; extraordinary experiences and travelling for specific events, along with several further aspects, which motivate people in the countryside to visit cities. However, the motivations can change over time and are not necessarily the same for each visit, thus, the motivations are essential for the decision-making process, travel intentions, as well as meeting the personal wants and needs when travelling. But still, to research the motivations for countryside people to visit city destinations as tourists, it is important to learn their travel behaviour and understand their perceptions and attitudes toward cities, as these aspects have a major impact on the decision-making process, frequency of travel, and choice of destinations. Although, other perspectives impact the decision-making process as well, such as destination image, travel distance, transport, accessibility, economy, and time availability. This indicates that people who live in the countryside tend to travel to cities only for a shorter amount of time, such as weekends or long-weekends, to experience something they cannot in their everyday life, which in turn can feel luxurious. Therefore, the majority of the countryside people associate cities with positive experiences, but the general associations with cities are negative, due to the fact that they would not choose to stay here for longer than their travel intentions.    The purpose of this research is to investigate the motivations of people who live in the countryside to visit city destinations as tourists, study their perceptions and attitudes toward cities and how this impacts their decision-making process and general perspectives of cities. Interviews with 30 people who currently live in the countryside will support the research and answer the research questions, to provide results and connect this back to previous research, which have helped to support the results of this study as well. Suggestions are made for further research on this topic or similar aspects, which can help to improve the understanding of the countryside people’s travel behaviour. As a major theme in the tourism industry is to learn and understand the tourist and the travel behaviours, it is important to do so from all aspects, which could benefit both the traveller, suppliers and further research. The perspectives that have been investigated in this study, have not been researched before, and therefore, it may provide for new opportunities and knowledge about the topic that could benefit future research. Furthermore, future research can help to support the results and knowledge contribution from this research, providing similar results, and improve knowledge about city tourism in the future.

This study aims to create a greater understanding of how mega-sports events can be used as a means of nation branding to influence the destination image and travel intention of the host nation. In this thesis, the authors, through a deductive approach and a quantitative research strategy, conducted a survey of Swedish people interested in sports. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) program was used to process the collected quantitative data from the questionnaire. The empirical results of the thesis were analyzed with previous research to strengthen the study. The result of the study shows that mega-sports events can be a pull-factor for tourist’s travel intentions and mega-sports events can also be used as a means for nation branding. Furthermore, the study shows that interest in sports functions as a push-factor when traveling, for Swedish people interested in sports. However, the effects of nation branding on the destination image and travel intentions vary, and largely depend on whether people have visited the event or not. Media surrounding a mega-sport event also has an impact, as do the host countries' geographical and cultural differences to the targeted market. Differences in the empirical result mean that it is not possible to draw conclusions about how mega-sports events affect the destination picture.

Background: The tourism industry plays a crucial role in the global economy in developing countries such as Nicaragua, where it catalyzes development. Risk perception, safety considerations, user-generated content, and destination image significantly influence travel decision-making processes.    Purpose: The primary purpose of this thesis is to explore the intricate relationship between online travel planning, safety perceptions, and consumer behaviors in unexplored Central American destinations, with Nicaragua as a focal point.   Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 participants. 11 participants visited Nicaragua, and four residents within the tourism sector were interviewed for a broader overview of the tourism situation in the country of investigation. An inductive approach was used to conduct a qualitative analysis, followed by a thematic examination of the primary data.   Conclusion: This thesis illuminates the intricate relationship between online information, safety perceptions, and consumer behaviors in travel decision-making. By uncovering the significant impact of online travel planning platforms, visual communication, and UGC on shaping travelers' safety perceptions in Nicaragua, the study offers actionable recommendations to support the sustainable development of the country's tourism sector.

The number of festivals and events worldwide as well as in South Africa has increased significantly over the past decade. With more than 600 festivals being staged annually in South Africa, it is clear that festivals are competing with each other to attract and retain visitors in order to remain sustainable. For this reason, creating and sustaining a loyal visitor base through marketing and branding activities has become increasingly important for festivals. This, however, is a complex task since branding of a festival is challenging in several ways. Festivals are non-permanent tourism offerings with a variety of attributes that need to be considered when branding the festival. These include attractions, accommodation, entertainment and the natural environment. The competitive environment in which festivals operate and the complex nature of a festival as a brand require a specific approach whereby festivals can create and sustain brand loyalty. To remain a competitive and sustainable arts festival, marketers of festivals need to know how their marketing efforts can be applied to enhance visitors’ loyalty as well as the aspects that contribute to visitors’ loyalty. Although various studies have been concerned with brand loyalty in a tourism context, little research has focused on brand loyalty in a festival context and more specifically in a South African arts festival context. In the light of this, the following research question was formulated: “What are the components and the relationships between the components of a brand loyalty model for arts festivals in South Africa? The primary goal of this thesis was to develop a brand loyalty model for arts festivals. To achieve this goal, four objectives were formulated. The first objective was to analyse the role of marketing in creating and sustaining brand loyalty for arts festivals by means of an in-depth literature review. The definition of marketing and the distinguishing features of tourism offerings were analysed. It was indicated that aspects such as visitors’ motivation for attending festivals impacts on their loyalty. Furthermore it was established that marketing activities such as market research, market segmentation, positioning, branding and developing an effective festival marketing mix can assist marketers of festivals to achieve visitors’ loyalty. The second objective was to review the literature regarding brand loyalty and its constructs. Branding and brand loyalty were defined and the history of branding was discussed. More importantly, the constructs of brand loyalty and the items for measuring them were analysed. It was clear that a variety of constructs impact on festival visitors’ loyalty including brand attitude, brand personality, individuals’ characteristics, circumstances and purchase situation, organisations’ commitment to being customer orientated, brand equity, brand associations, brand awareness, product involvement, brand commitment, brand affect, quality, brand image, brand experience, brand trust, brand value and satisfaction. In addition, it was concluded that these aspects are related and affect one another. The third objective was to identify the components of a brand loyalty model, test the relationships between them and determine the variables influencing them. This was done with the aim of developing a brand loyalty model for arts festivals. For this purpose, data were collected by means of a self-administered questionnaire which was distritubuted to visitors at Vryfees and Aardklop. A total of 400 questionnaires were distributed at each festival with 355 questionnaires obtained at Vryfees and 352 questionnaires obtained at Aardklop. Selected statistical techniques were employed to achieve this objective. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was performed on the items for measuring brand loyalty. From this, six brand loyalty components were revealed. Spearman Rank Order Correlation was used to determine the relationships between these brand loyalty components. An independent t-test, one-way ANOVA and two-way ANOVA between groups were employed to determine the impact of selected variables on the components of brand loyalty. Finally, the brand loyalty components were used in Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to develop the model. The results of the study confirmed that brand loyalty for festivals such as Aardklop and Vryfees are multidimensional and consist of satisfaction, affective image, festival experience, loyalty, personal value and cognitive image. Affective image and satisfaction are also major components of visitors’ loyalty towards these festivals. It was furthermore confirmed that variables such as occupation, province of residence, frequency of attendance and home language have an impact on festival visitors’ loyalty. The final objective of this study was to draw conclusions and make recommendations concerning the compilation and implementation of the brand loyalty model for arts festivals. This research makes important contributions theoretically, methodologically and practically. Theoretically, this study is unique since it is one of the first to indicate the role of marketing in enhancing brand loyalty and to analyse various brand loyalty constructs that can be further investigated by future researchers. Methodologically, this study developed a reliable and valid questionnaire for the measurement of brand loyalty in a festival context which can be used by other festivals to determine visitors’ loyalty. In addition, this study investigated distinctive relationships between the festival loyalty constructs and other demographic and festival-related variables. The impact of demographic variables on festival loyalty constructs was also explored. The greatest contribution of this study, however, is its practical contribution by developing a brand loyalty model for arts festivals which can be used by marketers of festivals to create, maintain and increase visitors’ loyalty towards their festivals. / PhD (Tourism Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

The number of festivals and events worldwide as well as in South Africa has increased significantly over the past decade. With more than 600 festivals being staged annually in South Africa, it is clear that festivals are competing with each other to attract and retain visitors in order to remain sustainable. For this reason, creating and sustaining a loyal visitor base through marketing and branding activities has become increasingly important for festivals. This, however, is a complex task since branding of a festival is challenging in several ways. Festivals are non-permanent tourism offerings with a variety of attributes that need to be considered when branding the festival. These include attractions, accommodation, entertainment and the natural environment. The competitive environment in which festivals operate and the complex nature of a festival as a brand require a specific approach whereby festivals can create and sustain brand loyalty. To remain a competitive and sustainable arts festival, marketers of festivals need to know how their marketing efforts can be applied to enhance visitors’ loyalty as well as the aspects that contribute to visitors’ loyalty. Although various studies have been concerned with brand loyalty in a tourism context, little research has focused on brand loyalty in a festival context and more specifically in a South African arts festival context. In the light of this, the following research question was formulated: “What are the components and the relationships between the components of a brand loyalty model for arts festivals in South Africa? The primary goal of this thesis was to develop a brand loyalty model for arts festivals. To achieve this goal, four objectives were formulated. The first objective was to analyse the role of marketing in creating and sustaining brand loyalty for arts festivals by means of an in-depth literature review. The definition of marketing and the distinguishing features of tourism offerings were analysed. It was indicated that aspects such as visitors’ motivation for attending festivals impacts on their loyalty. Furthermore it was established that marketing activities such as market research, market segmentation, positioning, branding and developing an effective festival marketing mix can assist marketers of festivals to achieve visitors’ loyalty. The second objective was to review the literature regarding brand loyalty and its constructs. Branding and brand loyalty were defined and the history of branding was discussed. More importantly, the constructs of brand loyalty and the items for measuring them were analysed. It was clear that a variety of constructs impact on festival visitors’ loyalty including brand attitude, brand personality, individuals’ characteristics, circumstances and purchase situation, organisations’ commitment to being customer orientated, brand equity, brand associations, brand awareness, product involvement, brand commitment, brand affect, quality, brand image, brand experience, brand trust, brand value and satisfaction. In addition, it was concluded that these aspects are related and affect one another. The third objective was to identify the components of a brand loyalty model, test the relationships between them and determine the variables influencing them. This was done with the aim of developing a brand loyalty model for arts festivals. For this purpose, data were collected by means of a self-administered questionnaire which was distritubuted to visitors at Vryfees and Aardklop. A total of 400 questionnaires were distributed at each festival with 355 questionnaires obtained at Vryfees and 352 questionnaires obtained at Aardklop. Selected statistical techniques were employed to achieve this objective. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was performed on the items for measuring brand loyalty. From this, six brand loyalty components were revealed. Spearman Rank Order Correlation was used to determine the relationships between these brand loyalty components. An independent t-test, one-way ANOVA and two-way ANOVA between groups were employed to determine the impact of selected variables on the components of brand loyalty. Finally, the brand loyalty components were used in Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to develop the model. The results of the study confirmed that brand loyalty for festivals such as Aardklop and Vryfees are multidimensional and consist of satisfaction, affective image, festival experience, loyalty, personal value and cognitive image. Affective image and satisfaction are also major components of visitors’ loyalty towards these festivals. It was furthermore confirmed that variables such as occupation, province of residence, frequency of attendance and home language have an impact on festival visitors’ loyalty. The final objective of this study was to draw conclusions and make recommendations concerning the compilation and implementation of the brand loyalty model for arts festivals. This research makes important contributions theoretically, methodologically and practically. Theoretically, this study is unique since it is one of the first to indicate the role of marketing in enhancing brand loyalty and to analyse various brand loyalty constructs that can be further investigated by future researchers. Methodologically, this study developed a reliable and valid questionnaire for the measurement of brand loyalty in a festival context which can be used by other festivals to determine visitors’ loyalty. In addition, this study investigated distinctive relationships between the festival loyalty constructs and other demographic and festival-related variables. The impact of demographic variables on festival loyalty constructs was also explored. The greatest contribution of this study, however, is its practical contribution by developing a brand loyalty model for arts festivals which can be used by marketers of festivals to create, maintain and increase visitors’ loyalty towards their festivals. / PhD (Tourism Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

近年來觀光產業的快速發展，使相關業者面臨激烈的競爭，旅遊目的地行銷的概念應運而生。隨著產業結構的轉型，地方都市無不透過觀光行銷來吸引投資者或遊客之進入，以增加自身競爭力，因應全球化下的競爭。 　　觀光意象是遊客對於一旅遊目的地所持的知覺、看法與印象的重組，其傳達遊客腦海中對旅遊目的地遊憩屬性的偏好，具有宣傳與行銷的功能。一般而言，觀光意象在遊客對目的地之選擇行為過程中扮演了重要的角色，具有良好觀光意象的旅遊目的地通常具有較高的吸引力，且正向的觀光意象對都市透過觀光收益來促進都市發展及經濟成長亦有顯著效果。觀光意象包含了遊客的認知與情感面，遊客將據其偏好選擇喜歡的目的地作為旅遊地點。然而，過去研究較少探討遊客主觀感受與其對地方之情感連結等心理層面對選擇行為之影響，據此，本研究以台北市貓空地區為例，以觀光意象作為前因變數，探討其對遊客之地方依附、旅遊品質、滿意度、選擇行為之影響路徑及各變數間之交互影響效果。 　　本研究以遊客問卷之設計，對非當地居民之遊客作為抽樣調查之對象，並以因素分析與結構方程模式作為資料分析方法，所得主要結果為：觀光意象對地方依附、旅遊品質與選擇行為有直接正向影響，而影響遊客對旅遊目的地選擇行為最重要的因素為地方依附。 / With the change of industry structure, tourism industry has become one of important industries in a city. Facing the competition under the global age, the concept of destination marketing has widely aroused attention because of fast development of tourism industry and keen competition among relative industry proprietors. Destination image is sum of beliefs, ideas and impressions that a person has of a destination. Destination image has been shown to be vital influence on travelers' travel behavior, that is, the urban with a positive and good image perceived by tourists can bring out the urban a significant effect on urban development and economic growth. A tourist's intent to visit a destination is determined by a combination of cognitive and affective image. Tourists usually develop emotional associations with destination where they're lovely to visit. However, very limited research has been conducted personal emotional or meanings tourists attach to the places they visited and experienced. Thus, the study takes Maokong Area of Taipei city for example, and the purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship among destination image, place attachment, trip quality, satisfaction, and traveling behavior. In research method, the survey was quantitative research oriented in order to understand visitors' ideas toward the destination images of Maokong area. Both factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used to analyze for the study. The major results of this research were found that destination image directly has positive influence on place attachment, trip quality, and traveling behavior, and place attachment is the most important cause to influence tourists' behavior.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T16:45:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ana Paula Maiochi Silverio.pdf: 1989511 bytes, checksum: 10a5be105d7200e7fe6d3950dfe4a9dd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-05-25 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This dissertation had the primary objective of analyzing the relevance of associating tourism marketing to strategic image management in acquiring destinations and furthermore explores the tourism image of the city of São Paulo, aiming at providing a verification method for the phenomenon studied and lending more credibility to the work. To that end, we performed a bibliographical review on tourism marketing and the image of destinations and presented a case study about the image of São Paulo based on the work developed by São Paulo Turismo, a tourism and events company in São Paulo/SP. The principal results show that a progressive increase in tourism in the global market implies a competitive situation among locations interested in developing tourism, so that the efficient marketing management of the activities becomes a prerogative given market competitiveness; the results also show that the destination's image is ever more relevant given its recognition as one of the most important aspects in the process of selecting a destination, as well as in satisfaction and possible repeat visits. The theme has become prevalent internationally as an important research subject and existing investigations show that external and internal factors are extremely important and influence a tourism destination's image perception; therefore the strategic management of the destination's image is essential in the tourism marketing process. The case study evidenced the interest on the part of the tourism company in the city of São Paulo in expanding the city's image to encompass leisure and entertainment, given that the image is currently essentially focused on business and work, which hinders the full development of tourism in the city / Esta dissertação objetivou primordialmente, analisar a relevância da associação do marketing turístico à administração estratégica de imagem para aquisição de destinos e ainda, explorar a imagem turística da cidade de São Paulo, visando fornecer um meio de verificação do fenômeno estudado e conferir maior legitimidade ao trabalho. Para tanto, realizamos uma revisão bibliográfica acerca do marketing turístico e da imagem de destinos e apresentamos um estudo de caso sobre a imagem da cidade de São Paulo baseado no trabalho desenvolvido pela São Paulo Turismo, empresa de turismo e eventos da cidade de São Paulo/SP. Como principais resultados temos que a progressiva ascendência do turismo no mercado global implica um quadro de concorrência entre as localidades interessadas em desenvolvê-lo fazendo com que uma gestão mercadológica eficiente da atividade passe a ser uma prerrogativa ante a competitividade do mercado e ainda, que a imagem do destino torne-se cada vez mais relevante, ante o reconhecimento desta como um dos aspectos mais importantes no processo de escolha de uma destinação, bem como na satisfação e possível repetição dela. O tema vem impondo-se internacionalmente como importante área de pesquisa e as investigações existentes apontam que fatores externos e internos, são extremamente importantes e influenciam a percepção da imagem de um destino turístico e que, neste sentido a administração estratégica de imagens torna-se fundamental no processo de marketing turístico. O estudo de caso evidenciou o interesse por parte da empresa de turismo da cidade de São Paulo em expandir a imagem do município posicionando-a para o lazer e entretenimento, visto que o mesmo encontra-se fundamentalmente ligado a uma imagem de negócios e trabalho que impede o pleno desenvolvimento do turismo na cidade