Samantha Murdy

Visitor Relationship Orientation of Destination Marketing Organizations

The proposition underpinning this study is that engaging in meaningful dialogue with previous visitors represents an efficient and effective use of resources for a destination marketing organization (DMO), compared to above-the-line advertising in broadcast media. However, there has been a lack of attention in the tourism literature relating to destination switching, loyalty, and customer relationship management (CRM) to test such a proposition. This article reports an investigation of visitor relationship marketing orientation among DMOs. A model of CRM orientation, which was developed from the wider marketing literature and a prior qualitative study, was used to develop a scale to operationalize DMO—visitor relationship orientation. Owing to a small sample, the partial least squares method of structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. Although the sample limits the ability to generalize, the results indicate that the DMOs’ visitor orientation is generally responsive and reactive rather than proactive.

Delivering the Past: Providing Personalized Ancestral Tourism Experiences

Heritage tourism is increasingly viewed as both an individual and experiential phenomenon as well as being related to specific attributes of a destination. Ancestral tourism fits the former perspective and centers on tourists traveling to sites which they perceive to be a “homeland” where, during the visit, they attempt to discover more about their own heritage. This study explores ancestral tourism from a provider perspective focusing on the delivery of tourist experiences and relationships between tourists and the place visited. The research is based on a qualitative study of tourist and nontourist specific providers across Scotland with data collected using in-depth interviews. This study reveals a phenomenon that delivers deeply personal experiences to visitors and where encounters involve intense, often lengthy, interactions between visitors and providers. Ancestral tourism experiences are also often centered on tourism provision within local communities, which can present challenges to both provider and tourist alike.

Evaluations of a Destination Across Travel Contexts: Examining the Evoked Set

Given consumers have an almost limitless number of destinations to choose from (Pike, 2006) it is crucial for destination marketers to differentiate the destination they are responsible for to encourage visitation. It is proposed that a destination must first make it into a consumer’s consideration set for it to be competitive. Woodside and Sherrell (1977) examined the number of destinations within consumer decision sets, as well as the likelihood to visit and attitudes of the leisure traveller toward vacation destinations within their evoked set. They asked participants to evaluate destinations they had personally elicited. It was identified that those within the evoked set received more positive evaluations. The purpose of this study was to further examine attitude evaluations and intent relative to the destination brand, comparing the elicitation of destinations against destinations provided by the researcher. Both the Theory of Planned Behaviour and branding constructs previously used to assess destinations (Boo et al., 2009; Konecnik & Gartner, 2007; Sparks & Pan, 2009) were considered. This research aims to further test Woodside and Sherrell’s (1977) proposition that attitudes of a destination are overall more positive if the destination sits within a consumer’s consideration set. Overall, it is proposed that if a destination is in a consumer’s evoked set they will likely have a more favourable evaluation of the destination, and be more inclined to visit the destination. Furthermore, travel context is a crucial element to consider as differences have previously been identified in the evaluation of destination image (Gertner, 2010). Pike’s (2006) proposition that different contexts will yield different destination decision sets is of interest given there is little empirical data on the topic of decision sets. Therefore, this study also aims to identify if any evaluation differences exist based on the travel context the evoked set has been developed for.

Role conflict and changing heritage practice: ancestral tourism in Scotland

ABSTRACT Developing mutually beneficial outcomes in service encounters can be challenging due to resource asymmetry within co-created experiences. Such encounters can result in role conflict for service providers. Limited attention has been paid to the effect on service providers of highly collaborative exchanges which require specific customisation. An example of this is ancestral tourism, a dimension of heritage consumption, in which visitors actively participate in the co-creation of experience at museums, archives and related heritage sites. These institutions, previously seen as repositories of historical information, now act as conduits for visitors to investigate their ancestral past. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between changing professional discourse in the cultural heritage sector, specifically ancestral tourism, and role conflict amongst staff. Through interviews conducted with professionals, the extent and outcomes of role conflict in complex and collaborative exchanges are explored.

Community destination branding: potential and paradox

For destinations to compete in a context of global competition, they rely on their destination image as a way to position themselves and resonate with prospective visitors. The image of the destination is created in part through the identity of the community. Despite longstanding efforts to move community-based initiatives more to the centre of tourism planning (Hall 2008; Jamal and Getz 1995; Murphy 1985), research on community involvement in tourism activities can often result in pessimistic conclusions. Concerns are usually centred on efforts to involve communities which are driven by multinational corporations and, as such, are largely top-down processes. In these cases, only lip service is paid to involving local residents in planning and as such community involvement may suffer from tokenism. Alternatively, doubt is also placed on the ability of communities to make a valuable contribution (Aas et al. 2005; Campbell 1999; Simmons 1994) or the lack of cohesion within communities (Burns 2004; Simpson 2008). Hamilton and Alexander (2013) suggest that success can be achieved through a more organic co-created approach, where communities are given the freedom to develop their own identities.