Destination image: Do top-of-mind associations say it all?

Abstract Researchers generally assume that top-of-mind (TOM) brand associations represent a unique body of brand knowledge. However, this assumption has not been sufficiently tested and substantiated. This study investigates how unique TOM brand associations actually are and examines the differences between TOM and other spontaneous recalls by adopting quantitative measures from other disciplines, primarily biology. The empirical data are obtained via a large survey of past and potential Chinese outbound tourists regarding how they view the U.S. as a destination. The results indicate that TOM brand association information may effectively capture a large portion of overall brand knowledge. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

[1]  S. Tamer Cavusgil,et al.  Conceptualization and Operationalization of Destination Image , 2007 .

[2]  S. Pike.  Destination Image Analysis: A Review of 142 Papers from 1973-2000 , 2002 .

[3]  Ching-Fu Chen,et al.  How destination image and evaluative factors affect behavioral intentions , 2007 .

[4]  Seyhmus Baloglu,et al.  Association meeting planners' perceptions and intentions for five major US convention cities: the structured and unstructured images , 2005 .

[5]  Jenni Romaniuk,et al.  Conceptualizing and measuring brand salience , 2004 .

[6]  L. Cai.  Cooperative branding for rural destinations , 2002 .

[7]  I. Bosque,et al.  Exploring the cognitive–affective nature of destination image and the role of psychological factors in its formation , 2008 .

[8]  E. C. Pielou.  An introduction to mathematical ecology , 1970 .

[9]  M. Oppermann.  Travel horizon: a valuable analysis tool? , 1998 .

[10]  G. E. Kelley,et al.  An investigation of consumer reactions to the use of different brand names , 1998 .

[11]  M. Kozak,et al.  Destination brands vs destination images: Do we know what we mean? , 2006 .

[12]  W. Arlt.  China's Outbound Tourism , 2006 .

[13]  John R. Anderson.  A spreading activation theory of memory. , 1983 .

[14]  Kyriaki Kaplanidou,et al.  The Impact of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on China’s Destination Brand , 2013 .

[15]  Seyhmus Baloglu,et al.  Tourism destination images of Turkey, Egypt, Greece, and Italy as perceived by US-based tour operators and travel agents , 2001 .

[16]  Andrew M. Chan,et al.  A qualitative and quantitative assessment of Hong Kong’s image as a tourist destination , 1999 .

[17]  Charlotte M. Echtner,et al.  The meaning and measurement of destination image. , 2003 .

[18]  Jonathon Day,et al.  Image selection in destination positioning: A new approach , 2002 .

[19]  A. Kirilenko,et al.  Facilitating Content Analysis in Tourism Research , 2009 .

[20]  G. King,et al.  Ensuring the Data-Rich Future of the Social Sciences , 2011, Science.

[21]  Y. Hwang,et al.  Modeling Tourism Advertising Effectiveness , 2005 .

[22]  L. Chernatony.  Creating Powerful Brands , 2010 .

[23]  Viktor Mayer-Schnberger,et al.  Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think , 2013 .

[24]  Svetlana Stepchenkova,et al.  Chinese Outbound Tourists’ Destination Image of America , 2011 .

[25]  S. Stepchenkova,et al.  Chinese Outbound Tourists’ Destination Image of America , 2012 .

[26]  Nigel Morgan,et al.  Reconstruing place image A case study of its role in destination market research , 1996 .

[27]  Jean-Noël Kapferer,et al.  The Underlying Structure of Brand Awareness Scores , 1995 .

[28]  L. Jost.  Entropy and diversity , 2006 .

[29]  Leo Bogart,et al.  What Makes a Brand Name Familiar? , 1973 .

[30]  Ş. Baloğlu,et al.  Gaming Destination Images: Implications for Branding , 2010 .

[31]  Alastair M. Morrison,et al.  Dazed and confused? An exploratory study of the image of Brazil as a travel destination , 2003 .

[32]  Kevin Lane Keller.  Conceptualizing, Measuring, and Managing Customer-Based Brand Equity , 1993 .

[33]  Robert H. Whittaker,et al.  Evolution of Species Diversity in Land Communities , 1977 .

[34]  Bing Pan,et al.  The long tail of destination image and online marketing , 2011 .

[35]  Charlotte M. Echtner,et al.  The Measurement of Destination Image: An Empirical Assessment , 1993 .

[36]  C. Dev,et al.  Managing Hotel Brand Equity , 2000 .

[37]  Yuan Zhou,et al.  Towards a Conceptual Framework of Tourists' Destination Knowledge and Loyalty , 2008 .

[38]  Patrick De Pelsmacker,et al.  The advertising effectiveness of different levels of intensity of humour and warmth and the moderating role of top of mind awareness and degree of product use , 1998 .

[39]  Manoj K. Agarwal,et al.  An empirical comparison of consumer-based measures of brand equity , 1996 .

[40]  Paul Feldwick,et al.  What is Brand Equity Anyway, and how do you Measure it? , 1996 .

[41]  Kuldeep Kumar,et al.  Virtual Destination Image: A New Measurement Approach , 2007 .

[42]  Bettina Grün,et al.  Validly Measuring Destination Image in Survey Studies , 2013 .

[43]  B. Till,et al.  Comparing a customer-based brand equity scale with the Implicit Association Test in examining consumer responses to brands , 2010 .

[44]  Martina G. Gallarza,et al.  Destination image: towards a conceptual framework. , 2002 .

[45]  S. Miller,et al.  Brand Salience versus Brand Image: Two Theories of Advertising Effectiveness , 1998 .

[46]  Lisa Hyunjung Kim,et al.  A model of destination branding: Integrating the concepts of the branding and destination image , 2011 .

[47]  A. Magurran.  Ecological Diversity and Its Measurement , 1988, Springer Netherlands.

[48]  Kun Lai,et al.  CORE-PERIPHERY STRUCTURE OF DESTINATION IMAGE Concept, Evidence and Implication , 2012 .

[49]  D. Boyd,et al.  CRITICAL QUESTIONS FOR BIG DATA , 2012 .

[50]  Svetlana Stepchenkova,et al.  Russia's destination image among American pleasure travelers: Revisiting Echtner and Ritchie , 2008 .

[51]  A. Chao.  Nonparametric estimation of the number of classes in a population , 1984 .

[52]  Y. Ekinci.  From destination image to destination branding: An emerging area of research , 2003 .

[53]  G. Parra,et al.  Mayer Schönberger, Viktor; Cukier, Kenneth. Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work and Think. London: John Murray, 2013 , 2015 .

[54]  W. Kim,et al.  The relationship between brand equity and firms’ performance in luxury hotels and chain restaurants ☆ , 2005 .

[55]  Javier Sánchez,et al.  Tourism image, evaluation variables and after purchase behaviour: inter-relationship , 2001 .

[56]  Kevin Lane Keller.  Strategic Brand Management: Building, Measuring, and Managing Brand Equity , 1997 .

[57]  N. Morgan,et al.  Contextualizing destination branding. , 2002 .

[58]  John R. Anderson.  The Architecture of Cognition , 1983 .

[59]  M. Uysal,et al.  Estimating the size of the Chinese outbound travel market: A demand-side approach , 2010 .

[60]  Russell I. Haley,et al.  Testing Thirteen Attitude Scales for Agreement and Brand Discrimination , 1979 .

[61]  R. W. Pratt,et al.  Stability of Appliance Brand Awareness , 1971 .

[62]  Michael Grosspietsch,et al.  Perceived and projected images of Rwanda: visitor and international tour operator perspectives , 2006 .

[63]  D. Aaker.  MEASURING BRAND EQUITY ACROSS PRODUCTS AND MARKETS , 1996 .

[64]  Allan D. Shocker,et al.  Managing Brand Equity , 1991 .

[65]  Juline E. Mills,et al.  Destination Image: A Meta-Analysis of 2000–2007 Research , 2010 .

[66]  Daniela Schulz,et al.  The sliding window correlation procedure for detecting hidden correlations: existence of behavioral subgroups illustrated with aged rats , 2002, Journal of Neuroscience Methods.

[67]  S. O’Leary,et al.  People, pace, place: Qualitative and quantitative images of Ireland as a tourism destination in France , 2003 .

[68]  J. Alba,et al.  Salience Effects in Brand Recall , 1986 .