DESTINATION BRANDING: A NEW CONCEPT FOR TOURISM MARKETING

Derrick D. Deslandes, University of the West Indies

Ronald E. Goldsmith, Florida State University

ABSTRACT

This paper describes the emerging concept of destination branding, which although it is not yet widespread,
holds tremendous potential for both new and existing tourism destinations. While researchers have recognized the
possibility of branding destinations, the concept has never been formally proposed or clearly delineated, nor have
the difficulties of doing so been explicated. One of the major issues of concern to tourism managers has been the
issue of control of the destination brand given the complexity of the tourism product and the numerous parties
involved in its operation. This paper begins the process of developing an understanding of the destination branding
process as well as the factors influencing its applicability.

INTRODUCTION

For centuries producers have used marks or brands to identify their products and to distinguish them from
the products of others. By identifying their products, they provide consumers with a means of recognizing and
specifying them to facilitate repurchase or to recommend the product to others (Murphy 1987). A brand has been
variously defined as:
• "An identifiable product, service, person or place, augmented in such a way that the buyer or user
perceives relevant unique added values which match their needs most closely" (de Chematony and
McDonald 1992).
• "A name, term, sign, symbol or design or a combination of them intended to identify the goods and
services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competition" (Kotler
2000, p. 404).
• A brand is also regarded as "representing a unique combination of product characteristics and added
values, both functional and non-functional, which have taken on a relevant meaning, and which are
inextricably linked to that brand, awareness of which might be conscious and intuitive" (Morgan and
Pritchard 1998).

Although these definitions suggest that virtually anything can be branded, traditionally the focus in
marketing has been on branding tangible products. More recent innovations over the last 25 years (Taylor 1987)
have, however, seen the concept of branding being applied successfully to intangible products such as financial,
retail and other types of services such as hotel and airline services. Taylor notes that one of the reasons for this
growth has been the general acceptance by consumers of the view that services can be packaged, branded,
advertised, and promoted in the same way as tangible products, despite the variability of the human component. As
Keller (1998, p. 14) notes, "some ofthe greatest branding successes has come in services."

According to Murphy (1987), branding has increasingly embraced non-tangible factors in addition to
tangible factors as elements of differentiation in order to distinguish one producer's product from another. This has
had the effect of increasing the subtlety of the qualities on which brand choices are made and has shifted branding
activities to a product's "gestalt" (Murphy 1987), an imagery involving concrete sensory representations of ideas,
feelings, and memories (Macinnis and Price 1987). The idea of a gestalt is that the unique properties of a product or
service do not necessarily result from the sum of its parts (Knapp 2000), which allows a brand to deliver exceptional
perceived value to its customers. This change has had the effect of blurring the lines of differentiation between
traditional physical products and their service counterparts, since both types of products are increasingly using both
tangible and non-tangible cues in their respective marketing and branding programs.

With the acceptance by consumers of service brands, the last decade has seen more and more tourism
marketers beginning to examine and to explore the possibility of branding destinations, and although this is possible

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as the definitions suggest, there is a concern of how to translate this nascent idea into meaningful marketing
programs. According to Morgan and Pritchard ( 1998), one of the major factors behind this examination is the strong
branding success of several tourism products, such as hotels and airlines. They point out examples such as Virgin
Airlines and Hilton Hotels and resorts, suggesting that these entities have managed to evoke strong emotional
commitment and brand loyalty and suggest that the potential to evoke such emotional commitment would be even
greater for a tourism destination such as a resort, city, or even country (Morgan and Pritchard 1998). If this is so,
why then have we not seen an explosion of destinations engaged in destination branding activities?

The purpose of this article is to examine this question and to suggest possible ways in which a destination
might be successfully branded. The paper will examine prior research on branding, but within the context of its
applicability to resort destinations. The paper will also examine some of the obstacles to destination branding,
particularly some of the factors that differentiate the branding of products from branding destinations as well as
those that differentiate branding services.

RATIONALE FOR BRANDING DESTINATIONS

The tremendous interest and growth in branding that we have seen in recent times has been driven by a
number of factors as well as perceived benefits. A major factor driving the branding of products and services has
been the growth of competition. This is no less important for tourism management. The last half of the 20th century
witnessed tremendous growth in the number of companies, towns, cities, and countries engaged in the production of
consumer products and services, not only from the traditional developed regions of the world, but even more so
from the lesser developed countries of Latin and South America, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia as well (Mowforth
and Munt 1998). As Kotler, Haider, and Rein (1993) point out, in the new world economy every place (city, town,
and country) must compete with other places for economic advantages. The also argue that places are products
whose identities must be planned, designed, and marketed if they are to be successful.

The increasing production of goods and services has led to overcapacity, leading to an increased emphasis
on price as a major decision criterion for value conscious consumers as well as increasingly powerful retailers and
middlemen (Aaker 1996). In the case ofthe tourism industry, the development of a tourism sector in virtually every
country of the world, offering services largely undifferentiated from those offered by their competitors, represents a
major competitive challenge. In addition, destinations also face increasing competition from cruise ships, which can
be regarded as huge floating destinations. Faced with such challenges, tourism officials seek ways to differential
their products. In this context, branding if successful, can provide a point of differentiation allowing companies and
destinations to insulate themselves to some degree from competition, particularly that driven by price.

Successful branding generates customer equity, which is defined by Knapp (2000, p. 3) as '"the totality of
the brand's perceptions including the relative quality of products and services, financial performance, customer
loyalty, satisfaction, and overall customer esteem towards the brand." Keller (1998) argues that brand equity can be
both negative and positive and points out that positive brand equity results in a more favorable response to a product
that is branded than one that is not. Brand equity is also regarded as an asset that has value, the presence of which is
viewed as resulting in better earnings and profit performance for firms and creates greater value for shareholders
(Keller 1998).

Branding also helps to reduce the risk associated with purchasing products or services (Tepeci 1999). In
addition, as Aaker (1991) states, brands introduce stability into businesses, help guard against competitors, and
allow customers to shop with confidence in an increasingly complex world. Brand creation also enhances the ability
of firms to create customer loyalty, which although counted as a key element of brand equity (Aaker 1996; Kapferer
1992; Keller 1998), is important in its own right. Tepeci (1999) argues that within the tourism and hospitality sector
Joyal customers are preferred because they are easier to serve. Reichheld (1996) lists several advantages of brand
loyalty:
• Long-term profits
• Reduced marketing cost

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 • Increased revenue growth per customer
• Decreased operating cost
• Increased referrals due to positive word-of-mouth effect
• Increased price premiums
• Generates competitive advantages

Moreover, Keller (1998) points out that brands are a means of endowing products with unique associations,
a means of legally protecting unique features, signal a level of quality, tend to have a more inelastic demand curve
for price increases but an elastic demand curve for price decreases, and also allow brand owners to generate greater
trade cooperation and support. Brands are not limited by the lifecycle concept, which generally affects products and
services (Murphy 1987), are fairly robust, and are enduring as long as they continue to offer customers the value
they require.

Despite the impressive benefits of successful brands, not many new brands succeed. From a new product
development perspective eight out of every 10 new products fail and new product development has become an
increasingly complex, expensive, and hazardous business (Blackett and Denton 1987; Clancy and Krieg 2000, p.
25). They also point out that the cost of failure in terms of cash, labor, and other costs can be quite substantial. To
reduce the risk associated with new product development it is important for a product to offer a blend of quality and
distinctiveness or have a unique selling point (Blackett and Denton 1987). As Knapp (2000) argues, the more
differentiated a brand is, the easier it is to communicate efficiently with consumers and thus the more likely it is to
be successful.

DESTINATION BRAND DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

Although the branding process is not well developed for destinations, there are examples, notably Majorca,
Spain, and Wales (Morgan and Pritchard 1998). Moreover, there is encouragement for this idea from marketing
experts: "Everything can be branded because every product, every service can offer something more than price ... "
(Clancy and Krieg 2000, p. 27). The process used for product and service branding is applicable except for a few
differences that will be developed in the next section. For now we argue that a destination offers a service that
requires both tangible and intangible features in order to effectively satisfy its customers. There are several major
stages in the branding process, namely:
• The pre-identity stage
• Developing the brand identity
• Awareness creation

The Pre-Identity Stage

The pre-identity stage involves an examination of factors affecting the brand creation process. As Morgan
and Pritchard (1998) suggest, a destination such as a city or even country is a complex multidimensional entity
consisting of a bundle of different components. Unlike a product or service with an obvious core to which they can
be anchored (Morgan and Pritchard 1998), destinations require careful study to determine what should be the unique
selling proposition and to have that proposition accepted by the multiple entities involved in the process. An
important element of this stage is understanding the existing cultural infrastructure of the destination. In addition,
before the brand identity can be determined, the existing national image of the country must be considered. Kotler
eta!. (1993) argue that there is an important link between a country's national image and its tourism image. This
argument is further strengthened by Echtner and Ritchie (1991) who point out that many aspects of a country's
national image are incorporated into its destination image, and thus an individual can have an image of a destination
without every visiting or being exposed to commercial sources of information. In addition, the image that local
residents of the destination have of themselves must also be taken into account, since their interaction with the
potential tourist will be an important element of the tourist experience and thus an important factor determining the
level of satisfaction.

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 Other important elements of this stage would be the type of political, social, economic, and technological
system in the particular destination as well as the existence of various interest groups that could have an impact on
the type of brand created. As Morgan and Pritchard (1998) state, "the nature and development of tourism in any
destination is the product of a number of complex, interrelated economic and political factors." The pre-identity
stage provides an assessment of the destination's possibilities and the factors that need to be managed if the brand is
to be successful. Destination branding unlike an ordinary product or service has to deal with the political realities of
the destination before the product can be offered to the market. An understanding of these important ingredients is
critical to developing the brand's identity, particularly ifthe identity created is to have long-term sustainability. It is
from this understanding that the unique selling proposition of the brand will emerge.

Developing the Brand Identity

The unique proposition of the brand represents the brand's core identity. But as (Kapferer 1992) notes, few
companies are aware of what this consists of, what he terms "a brand's unique quality, its singularity, and its
identity." Developing a product or service brand allows its creators to develop any identity they desire. With
destinations, however, this may not be as easy. The difficulty arises because, unlike products and services that are
nonexistent before they are created, a destination may have already developed an identity, which may or may not be
compatible with the branding exercise. This may often be reflected in the existing country image. Fortunately for
destination marketers, in general, such an image can be modified (Moutinho 1987).

The brand's identity is at the core of the brand. It is what makes the brand unique, differentiated from its
competitors, and endows it with the quality of permanence and continued relevance to the lives of its customers. As
Aaker (1996) points out, the core identity is central to meaning and success of the brand and contains associations
that are likely to remain constant as the brand is extended to new markets and products.

Kapferer (1992) suggests six questions that brand creators must ask themselves if they are to determine the
essence of the brand's core identity. These are:
1. What is the brand's individuality?
2. What are its long-terms goals and ambitions?
3. What is its consistency?
4. What are its values?
5. What are its basic truths?
6. What are its recognition signs?
Along the same lines, Aaker (1996) also suggest a number of questions that like Kapferer (1992) can be used in
developing an understanding of a brand's core. These are:
I. What is the soul of the brand?
2. What fundamental beliefs and values drive the brand?
3. What are the competencies of the organization behind the brand?
4. What does the organization behind the brand stand for?
The questions posed by both Kapferer (1992) and Aaker (1996) suggest three important factors in the brand
identity process. These are:
I. Developing the meaning of the brand
2. Building brand associations
3. Developing or modifying the imagery of the brand

Creating brand meaning involves developing a system of values with which the brand will be endowed.
The meaning of the brand provides a clear indication of the brand's intentions and ultimately the group of customers
it intends to target. This process involves designing features into the brand that will reflect its meanings. Given the
intangible nature of the product offered by destinations, it is important to develop visual cues to support the brand's
meaning. As Kapferer (1992) suggests, intangible services can be tangibilized by presenting them in a packaged
form, assigning a name, and creating a physical existence. Developing the brand meaning also entails developing
the brand's persona. The development of the brand's personality allows potential tourists to match their self-concept

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with that of the destination in the search for self-congruity. Self-concept has long been used as cognitive reference
tool in evaluating brand symbols and cues (Sirgy and Su 2000). The greater the level of self-congruity between a
person's self-concept and the perceived image of a destination, the greater the likelihood of that person visiting the
destination (Sirgy and Su 2000). Developing the brand personality can also assist managers to develop the
appropriate communication program for the intended target audience (Aaker 1996). The essence of branding is an
attempt to position products so that they are perceived by the consumer to occupy a niche in the marketplace
occupied by no other brand. Brand managers try to differentiate their brands by stressing attributes they claim will
match the target market's needs more closely than other brands as well as creating an image consistent with the
perceived self-image of the targeted consumer segment.

In creating a brand, care must be taken in determining the desired levels and types of associations required.
The types of associations chosen must be consistent with the identity to be portrayed. Associations may include
product attributes, celebrity spokespersons, or a particular symbol (Aaker 1996). Of course the symbols, attributes,
or spokespersons chosen must themselves have an image that is consistent with what the brand stands for. The
brand associations can also perform a very important communication tool and can be useful in helping consumers to
better process information about the brand.

The image of the brand refers to how the brand is perceived by potential customers. Unlike a new service
or product brand, a destination brand invariably already has an image derived from perceptions of the country by
potential visitors (Kotler 2000). According to Echtner and Ritchie (1991) many aspects of a country's national
image are incorporated into its destination image. Thus potential travelers can have an image of a destination
without ever visiting or being exposed to commercial sources of information.

The image created by these beliefs, ideas, beliefs, perceptions, or impressions can be formed on two levels
(Gartner 1989}, which Gunn (1972) refers to as organic and induced. Gartner (1989) suggested that organic image
relies on non-commercial sources of information such as the general media, educational sources, and family and
friends. Induced image formation on the other hand relies on information from commercial sources such as travel
agents and brochures in the case of a destination, in addition to other common forms of induced agents such as paid
promotion or advertising (Gartner 1989). The aim of induced agents would be to construct or modify in the minds
of consumers an image of a product or destination that would lead to a favorable evaluation in a purchase context.

Creating Brand Awareness

Once the brand identity has been created, it becomes necessary to communicate the brand to potential
customers. Morgan and Pritchard (1998) define place promotion as "the conscious use of publicity and marketing to
communicate selective images of specific geographical localities or areas to a target audience." Awareness is
defined as the presence of the brand in the mind of customers (Aaker 1996). Without awareness any new product
will fail. Awareness is also an important element in building brand equity by positively influencing the perceptions
and attitudes of consumers. Kapferer ( 1992) describes three types of awareness:
• Top of mind awareness
• Unaided awareness
• Assisted awareness
Of the three, top of mind awareness is the most difficult to achieve because it requires heavy investment in
advertising and other communication activities. For smaller destinations with limited budgets, this may be an
expensive undertaking, and managers may need to seek more creative approaches to gaining awareness for their
products. Examples of such approaches may include event promotion and sponsorship of sporting events (Aaker
1996).

DIFFICULTIES OF BRANDING A DESTINATION

The three major difficulties with branding a destination stem from (1) the complexity of the destination
compared to more traditional physical products and services, (2) the lack of control managers have over many of the

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influences of brand image, and (3) the need for cooperation/coordination among the many parties connected to the
destination.

A destination is seen as a composite product, consisting of a bundle of different components including

accommodations, catering establishments, tourist attractions, the natural environment, and cultural activities
(Morgan and Pritchard 1998). A destination may be "embedded" with a larger destination, (e.g., Ocho Rios is part
of Jamaica), so that the country image influences the brand image. These complexities require mangers to study a
variety of components that form the destination and to develop branding strategies that take them into consideration,
a more complex job than branding a running shoe or catering business.

Branding a destination is also difficult because brand managers may have little control of the product, the
image of which can be affected by activities within the country that detract from the promoted image and attract
negative publicity. In some cases the image of the destination that is portrayed may also be inconsistent with that
held by local residents of themselves. For most countries, there may also be a diverse range of agencies involved in
the promotion and maintenance of the brand's image (Morgan and Pritchard 1998). In addition, there may be
political conflict owing to competition between local and government agencies, private business interests, as well as
international and local environmental groups.

Brand managers of destinations must make especial efforts to identify the various agencies and
constituencies who have a vested interest in the destination or form part of it. They will need to explicitly find ways
to ensure cooperation among these parties in the branding strategy. Thus, they should consult with these groups
prior to developing the brand image in order to achieve "buy in" from them for the execution of the strategy. Ways
will need to be found to share decision-making and benefits so that all relevant parties will work toward a consistent,
unified brand strategy.

Finally, for many destinations, lack of resources is a problem because it restricts the kind of support that
can be offered to the brand, given other competing needs. Unlike many other productive activities with which
countries are involved and which provide relatively quick return, building a destination brand requires long-term
investment and commitment, while most politicians require quick payoffs (Morgan and Pritchard 1998). This issue
is particularly important where politicians are required at periodic intervals to prove the results of their stewardship.
To complicate this even more, it is difficult to isolate revenue earnings, to determine the real benefits of a
promotional campaign, or a destination's return on investment.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

The idea of destination branding has only recently come to interest tourism managers, driven by an increase
in the level of competition and the need to differentiate their products from other resorts. This has become urgently
important given the fragmentation of both the media and the marketplace, rendering old approaches to attracting
visitors obsolete. In addition, countries have taken a more businesslike orientation in their attempt to expand their
economies to respond. to changes brought on by globalization. Branding a destination has thus become another
important strategic tool of interest to tourist managers in their attempt meet the needs of existing and potential
customers, who have become increasingly sophisticated in making vacation selection decisions (Morgan and
Pritchard 1998). The purpose of this paper was to describe some of the benefits and needs of the destination
branding process.

The benefits and challenges of destination branding are numerous. This activity entails to understand the
differences between destinations and ordinary products and services. For example, although product and service
brands can be bought or sold, the same is not true for resort destinations, which are collectively owned and are
limited by the geography, history, and culture of a location. Ways should be developed to measure destination
images and brand equity for destinations. Research is also needed to understand the impact of the branding decision
on various interest groups within the resort destination. A thorough understanding of the concept of destination

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branding should stimulate research efforts to answer such questions and help tourism managers achieve their goals
as well.

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Reichheld, F. F. 1996. The Loyalty Effect. Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA.

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