Identifying Market Potential: The Application of Brand Development Indexing to Pleasure Travel

Abstract

Tourism and travel marketing executives have historically been faced with challenges related to the accurate measurement of market demand and the accurate identification of market potential. Market demand and market potential differ from each other. It is there fore important to understand how they differ with respect to tourism and hospitality services marketing. This study applied brand development indexing (BDI) to tourism. This marketing tool, traditionally used for identifying market potential and resource allocation for goods and products, was found to be very successful in identifying pleasure travel market potential when combined with the proposed opportunity matrix. The study suggests that the utility of brand development indexing for the travel and tourism industry has tremen dous potential for destinations, attractions, and other hospitality services.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Arbitron Audit Reports 1992. New York.

Bonn, Mark A. , Richard R. Brand , and Jane B. Ohlin (1994) "Site Selection for Professional Meetings: A Comparison of Heavy-Half vs Light-Half Association and Corporation Meeting Planners." Journal of Travel Tourism Marketing, 3 (2): 59-84.

Fodness, Dale (1992). "The Impact of Family Life Cycle on the Vacation Decision-Making Process." Journal of Travel Research, 31 (Fall): 8-13.

Guiltinan, Joseph P. , and Gordon W. Paul (1994). Marketing Management. 5th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Jam, Subhash (1993). Marketing Planning and Strategy. 4th ed. Cincinnati: South-Western Publishing.

Keller, Kevin L. (1993). "Conceptualizing, Measuring, and Managing Customer-Based Brand Equity." Journal of Marketing, 57 (January): 1-22

Kotler, Philip (1991) Marketing Management. 7th ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Loker, Laurie E. , and Richard R. Perdue (1992). "A Benefit-Based Segmentation of a Nonresident Summer Travel Market." Journal of Travel Research, 31 (Summer): 30-35.

O'Leary, Joseph T. , Muzaffer Uysal , and Gerald Bailie (1993). "Indexing High Propensity Travel in Canada." In Proceedings of the 24th Annual Conference of the Travel and Tourism Research Association. Wheat Ridge, CO: Travel and Tourism Research Association, pp 62-73.

10.

Schewe, D.C. , and R.J. Calantone (1978). "Psychographic Segmentation of Tourists." Journal of Travel Research, 16 (Winter): 14-20.

11.

Schultz, Don (1990). Strategic Advertising Campaigns. Linewood, IL: NTC Business Books.

12.

Shih, D. (1986). "VALS as a Tool of Tourism Market Research: The Pennsylvama Experience." Journal of Travel Research, 24 (Spring): 2-11.

13.

Sissors, Jack Z. , and E.R. Petray (1976). Advertising Media Planning. Chicago: Crane Books.

14.

State of Florida (1992). Domestic Marketing Plan 1993. Tallahassee: Division of Tourism, Florida Department of Commerce.

15.

Tampa/Hillsborough Convention and Visitors Association (1993 ). 1992 Visitor Profile.

16.

Uysal, Muzaffer , Daniel R. Fesenmaier , and Joseph T. O'Leary (1994). "Geographic and Seasonal Variation in the Concentration of Travel in the United States." Journal of Travel Research, 32 (Winter): 61-64.

17.

Uzzell, D. (1984). "An Alternative Structuralist Approach to the Psychology of Tourism Marketing." Annals of Tourism Research , 11 (1): 79-99.

18.

Waters, Somerset R. (1988). Travel Industry World Yearbook: The Big Picture . New York: Child and Waters, p. 18.

19.

Wilkie, William L (1994). Consumer Behavior. New York : John Wiley and Sons.