Keywords

Overall destination brand equity, Tourism xenophilia, Customer-based brand equity

Abstract

Customer-based brand equity (CBBE) has been extensively applied to examine a variety of travelers' behavioral intentions and tourism destination choices. However, from the perspective of competition among destinations, the use of the overall destination brand equity (ODBE) dimension is still in its experimental stage. The objective of this research is to determine the impact of destination brand awareness (DBA), image (DBI), quality (DBQ), and value (DBV) on ODBE. Specifically, this study focuses on the case of Japan tourism from the view of American travelers. Moreover, this study aims to incorporate tourism xenophilia (TXI), which is an emerging concept in tourism study and indicates people's attraction toward the perceived foreignness of destinations. This study investigates the group difference in the CBBE model between low- and high-TXI groups.

Throughout an online self-administrative survey on Prolific, 408 questionnaires were gathered for data analysis. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was employed to determine the final measurement items. A series of multiple regression analyses tested the impacts of CBBE dimensions on ODBE and the differences of tourism xenophilic (low TXI vs. high TXI) groups on those relationships. The results of the EFA confirmed five key dimensions in CBEE (DBA, DBI, DBQ, DBV, and ODBE) as expected, except one measurement item (DBA6) excluded from DBA. The results confirm the positive impact of DBA, DBI, and DBV on OBDE, except the impact of DBQ on ODBE. The high TXI group had a stronger impact on the relationship between DBA and ODBE and between DBV and ODBE than the low TXI group, while the impact of DBI on ODBE was stronger with the low TXI group than the high TXI group.

Theoretically, this study extended a research framework of CBBE by incorporating ODBE and TXI. It deepens the understanding of TXI and its role in tourists' brand equity evaluation process. Practically, it helps Japanese destination managers design and implement effective international marketing strategies, especially for their primary target market of Americans. Marketing strategies that enhance their social/self-image and the value of travel can be more effective in gaining attention from target markets and persuading travel to Japan rather than appealing to the quality of attractions overall. Furthermore, highlighting cost effectiveness first and gaining awareness second could be one effective way to target high-TXI travelers, while another could be enhancing destination image for low-TXI travelers.

Completion Date

2023

Semester

Fall

Committee Chair

Kang, Juhee

Degree

Master of Science (M.S.)

College

Rosen College of Hospitality Management

Degree Program

Hospitality and Tourism Management

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

DP0028103

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0028103

Language

English

Release Date

December 2023

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Masters Thesis (Open Access)

Campus Location

Rosen Campus

Download

Share

COinS