Consumer‐based brand equity for Australia as a long‐haul tourism destination in an emerging market

Abstract

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -Although the branding literature emerged during the 1940s, research relating to tourism destination branding has only gained momentum since the late 1990s. There remains a lack of theory in particular that addresses the measurement of the effectiveness of destination branding over time. The purpose of this paper is to test the effectiveness of a model of consumer-based brand equity (CBBE) for a country destination. Design/methodology/approach -A model of CBBE was adapted from the marketing literature and applied to a nation context. The model was tested by using structural equation modelling with data from a large Chilean sample (n ¼ 845) comprising a mix of previous visitors and non-visitors. The model fits the data well. Findings -The paper reports the results of an investigation into brand equity for Australia as a long-haul destination in an emerging market. The research took place just before the launch of the nation's fourth new brand campaign in six years. The results indicate Australia is a well-known but not compelling destination brand for tourists in Chile, which reflects the lower priority the South American market has been given by the national tourism office. Practical implications -The paper suggested that CBBE measures could be analysed at various points in time to track any strengthening or weakening of market perceptions in relation to brand objectives. A standard CBBE instrument could provide long-term effectiveness performance measures regardless of changes in destination marketing organisation staff, advertising agency, other stakeholders and budget. Originality/value -The paper contributes to the nation-branding literature by being one of the first to test the efficacy of a model of CBBE for a tourism destination brand.

Brand Equity of Lahore Fort as a Tourism Destination Brand

“…A number of studies supported the notion that core branding principles can be replicated to investigate destination brands (Konecnik & Gartner, 2007). Although some significant research has been performed to unearth the nuances of destination brands, this field within the discipline of marketing is still in its infancy (Pike, Bianchi, Kerr, & Patti, 2010). A better understanding of brands from the perspective of consumers living in a developing country will surely help destination brand marketers to devise competitive strategies in order to sustain market share (Pike, 2009).…”

“…Major stakeholders include: the government, international funding bodies, and the society. Despite this opposing view concerning replication, the investigation of destination brands has been well acknowledged in the literature (Pike et al, 2010). A critical review of literature on destination branding presents some critical success factors such as: brand identity and personality; selection of appropriate target market; brand positioning; and mutual relationships among the partners delivering the service (Im, 2003, p. 76).…”

“…The brand management literature started to appear in the journals in the early 1940's (Guest, 1942). However, the concept of destination branding emerged as a discipline for marketing researchers in the late 1990's (Pike, Bianchi, Kerr, & Patti, 2010). Since then, branding researchers have started to highlight various issues pertaining to destination brands.…”

“…However, the theory underlying brand equity and its application to destination brands from a measurement perspective is scarce (Pike et al, 2010).…”

“…This perspective recognizes the critical role of employees in contributing to the brand equity of a service organization. However, the model lacks empirical generalization, and contemporary researchers recommend using CBBE to measure brand equity (Bianchi, Pike, & Lings, 2014).The Customer Based Brand Equity Model (CBBE) has been widely acknowledged (Pike et al, 2010;Im et al, 2012). It has been proposed by Aaker (1991Aaker ( , 1996 and Keller (1993Keller ( , 2003 to measure the familiarity and superiority of brand identity.…”