Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Co-creation of the tourism brand experience
A brand is the name or symbol or design or other characterizing feature of a product or service
which differentiates it from competing offerings, and which represents all of the consumer
goodwill built up towards the brand (Kotler, Keller, Brady, Goodman and Hansen 2009). It is
possible to brand anything, goods, services, ideas, organizations - and of course, destinations
(Kotler
et al
. 2009). In order to provide a rationale for discussing brand 'meaning', it is pertinent
to focus on the belief that a brand can have a personality; essentially 'human characteristics
associated with the brand' (Aaker 1997: 347). Consumers effectively humanize brands by
translating the brand into personality traits (Aaker 1997). Brand meaning is therefore complex
as brands can have different meaning for consumers over time (Allen
et al
. 2006). Organizations
therefore need to consider the role of both brand managers and consumers in the brand
co-creation process (Brown, Kozinets and Sherry 2003; Coupland 2005).
Consumers do not have to be necessarily excited or engaged by the brand, they simply
project certain personality traits onto the brand (Brakus, Schmitt and Zarantonello 2009) as part
of the brand experience co-creation process. If a brand can take on human personality charac-
teristics it also follows that a consumer can form a relationship with a brand (Allen
et al
. 2008).
This separate identity of the brand from the company which created or managed it removes the
brand from the realm of total control by the brand promoter. This was something that was
brought forcibly to the attention of Coca Cola in 1985, with the response to its ill-judged deci-
sion to change the formulation of Coke, in response to the growing threat of its main competi-
tor, Pepsi Cola. The launch of 'New Coke' created a tidal wave of protest, including the formation
of adhoc groups such as the 'Old Cola Drinkers of America', claiming 10,000 members, estab-
lished to vocalize opposition to the interloper (Coca Cola 2012). This phenomenon of consumer
loyalty to the brand and in opposition to the fi rm, possibly the most successful brand promoter
in marketing history, marked one of the fi rst signals that the company no longer has a monopoly
on brand management, and even less on the values of the brand, particularly consumers' identi-
fi cation with the brand. One clear message is that stronger brands result from greater involve-
ment with the brand by consumers - but also effective brand management involvement
(Coupland 2005). It is possibly less likely that the Coke marketing debacle would happen now,
as the marketing manager can more tangibly hear the voice of the customer, through the various
social media available. Therefore, while social media raises many challenges for the tourism and
hospitality fi rm, it importantly acts as a conduit to what the customer is thinking.
The centrality of experience is captured by Gilmore and Pine (2002) where they equate the
experience with effective marketing: 'the way to reach your customers is to create an
experience with them' (Gilmore and Pine 2002: 3). Tourism experience can be defi ned as 'an
individual's subjective evaluation and undergoing (i.e. affective, cognitive, and behavioural) of
events related to his/her tourist activities which begins before (i.e. planning and preparation),
during (i.e. at the destination), and after the trip (i.e. recollection)' (Tung and Ritchie 2011:
1369). The focus on stages of experience (pre, during and after) in this defi nition will be echoed
later in this chapter, when we investigate the impact of various Internet applications on the
tourism brand experience at different stages of consumption.
While brand involvement presumes a consumer need, brand experience is independent of
motivation, interest or involvement, and can also be differentiated from customer satisfaction or
delight, which occurs after consumption, unlike brand experience, which happens whenever
there is brand interaction (Brakus
et al
. 2009). The implication of the subjective and individual
nature of experience from a fi rm or destination perspective is that the tourism experience
cannot be directly manufactured or delivered (Tung and Ritchie 2011). The tourism brand
