Julia E. Blose

Believe it or not: Credibility of blogs in tourism

This study examines the use of blogs as a means of tourism marketing communication. Using a scenario-based approach, an online experiment was conducted to test whether consumers perceive corporate and personal blogs to be credible sources of information and to compare the perceived credibility of blogs to that of traditional word-of-mouth. The findings suggest that while consumers do not generally equate the overall credibility of blogs with that of traditional word-of-mouth, some consumers do appear to attribute similar levels of authoritativeness, a dimension of credibility, to them.

Managing Service Quality Using Data Envelopment Analysis

This study introduces a new managerial tool for evaluating and managing service quality. This new approach treats service quality as an intermediate variable, not the ultimate managerial goal, and makes use of data envelopment analysis (DEA), a nonparametric technique that allows for the relative comparison of a number of comparable organizational decision-making units (Sexton 1986). Using data from 497 customer surveys collected at 13 different grocery store locations for a major supermarket chain in the southeast region of the United States, relative efficiency scores and prescriptive guidance for improvement were generated for each store. These results were then used to compare the benefits of this new approach to that of existing service quality performance evaluation techniques. The evidence suggests the DEA technique provides a unique and much needed perspective that would help a manager to obtain optimal levels of service quality dimensions that are directly linked to critical performance outcomes for the organization.

Linking dimensions of service quality to organizational outcomes

While market theorists have devoted a great deal of effort to the conceptualization of service quality, the practical guidance available to service providers continues to be very limited. Utilizing the emerging role of a new marketing entity, the retail electric service provider, as an illustration, the article discusses how data envelopment analysis might be used to analyze service quality at the retail service level. Specific dimensions thought to influence consumers’ perceptions of the quality of retail electric energy services are identified, and the potential use of data envelopment analysis as a diagnostic tool for effective management of service quality by retail electric service providers is demonstrated. Generalization to different types of service providers is suggested. Empirical studies to develop practical guidance along this line of analysis are encouraged.

The Influence of Message Framing on Hotel Guests’ Linen-Reuse Intentions

Hotels have attempted numerous approaches to encourage guests to participate in linen-reuse programs. One of the most promising methods is to use appropriate message framing. A study of 427 travelers to Charleston, South Carolina, examined the participants’ opinion of how they would respond to various message frames. A comparison of the messages that are framed as gains versus those framed as losses found that the guests generally responded to a message framed as avoiding a loss, in this case, one that said “don’t miss out.” However, the study also found that mentioning the destination city by name effectively trumped the loss framing. Particularly for first-time travelers, specifically mentioning Charleston in the message increased the respondents’ opinion that they would be likely to participate in a linen-reuse program. The destination name had less effect for returning travelers, who did, however, respond to the “don’t miss out” message.

The Impact of Denying a Direct-to-Consumer Advertised Drug Request on the Patient/Physician Relationship

Using a scenario-based approach, an experiment is conducted to test whether the decision a physician makes to deny a prescription request (when a patient has requested a drug he or she has seen in a direct-to-consumer [DTC] ad) significantly impacts patient outcomes such as patient satisfaction and compliance intentions. The results suggest physicians can expect patient response to the denial of such a request to vary by the patients gender in addition to the criticality of the condition being treated. The results also suggest, when treating less critical conditions, a physician can mitigate the negative effects of a denial with relatively little additional effort.

A multidisciplinary marketing profile of motorcycle tourists: explorers escaping routine to find flow on scenic routes

ABSTRACT This study advances a multidisciplinary marketing profile of US motorcycle tourists. The research analyses theoretical motivation measures from leisure, psychological and sociological sciences and descriptive attributes of motorcycle tourists’ travel preferences. Findings suggest that motorcycle tourists are motivated by their desire for personal escape, experiencing the flow state while riding, and transit routes congruent with their noninstitutionalised explorer self-image. Tourism marketing managers are advised to promote services that fulfil motorcyclists’ trip-related desires to escape their methodical routines and experience the flow state. Regional tourism organisations publicising transit routes that inspire an explorer imagery should attract more motorcycle tourists.

A top box analysis of DinEX to optimize restaurant resources

ABSTRACT This study examined the relative perceived importance of the various dimensions of the restaurant experience, as captured by DinEX. Over 1,000 U.S. restaurant patrons provided perceived importance ratings of six DinEX dimensions as they related to their most recent dining experience across a variety of meal periods and restaurant categories. To make comparisons, an innovative approach to analyzing top box data was utilized. The results indicate significant differences exist across each of the DinEX dimensions, with food quality emerging as the top concern of restaurant patrons. The results of the study offer valuable guidance to the restaurateur in terms of the distinct ordering of experience dimensions that were observed, as well as the straightforward methodology demonstrated for monitoring and evaluating customers’ importance perceptions.

Healthy Parks, Happy People: An Exploratory Study of a County Park System

Executive Summary: Happiness is a quality that nearly all people naturally desire. Happiness has been shown to have a host of positive features, including enhanced mental and physical health, more satisfactory relationships, increased earning potential, and even longer life. Park and recreation facilities have been normatively associated with happiness for over a century, yet research on the relationship of parks with happiness is scant—particularly from a social-psychological perspective. The literature has primarily dealt with the topic tangentially through investigations of leisure and subjective well-being. Given that park activities and happiness are aspects of leisure and subjective well-being, respectively, this study explored whether applicable relationships were also true for parks and happiness. Four hypotheses were investigated: a) park visitation will stimulate happiness; b) across park activity types, fitness activities will have the greatest impact on happiness; c) the diversity of park activities will be more positively associated with patron happiness than the quantity of time spent; and d) there will be a positive relationship between park satisfaction and happiness. Field research was conducted with the cooperation of a county park system. Park patrons in three demographically diverse municipalities in a southeast U.S. coastal region were sampled over a seven-month period. Three out of the four hypotheses were supported by the findings, which suggested that leisure’s relationship with subjective well-being largely holds for parks and happiness. This study’s findings indicate that humans’ innate desire for happiness may be fulfilled when visiting a park. Patrons indicated that they were happy during their park visit and even happier at the end of it. No particular park activity promoted more happiness than another. Study results propose that happiness is not necessarily augmented as much through additional time spent but, instead, by engaging in a greater diversity of park activities during a visit. Patrons generally reported being satisfied with the county parks. Also, patrons left the park happier when they were more pleased with its operation. This has positive implications for park management because happiness is a key component of quality of life, the improvement of which is central to the mission of many urban parks. Park management can leverage this mission success to cultivate greater public trust and support, which is instrumental to securing funding—a critical issue for park and recreation departments across the nation.