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Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality

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A Marketing Approach to the Tourist

Experience
a
Lena Mossberg
a
Norwegian School of Management, Norway
Published online: 11 Apr 2007.

To cite this article: Lena Mossberg (2007): A Marketing Approach to the Tourist Experience,
Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, 7:1, 59-74

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 Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism,
Vol. 7, No. 1, 59–74, 2007

A Marketing Approach to the Tourist

Experience

LENA MOSSBERG
Norwegian School of Management, Norway
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ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to present and discuss two frameworks about tourist
experiences from a marketing point of view. The first one illustrates the co-production of tourism
products across the tourism and the creative industries. The second indicates some important
factors influencing tourists’ experiences. No matter what kind of tourism product we have in mind
(e.g. a medieval festival, or a visit to a museum), the tourist will be influenced by the
experiencescape, wherein personnel, other tourists, physical environment, products/souvenirs and
theme/story play a major role.

KEY WORDS: Tourist experience, marketing, experiencescape

Introduction
Why the boom in the experience industry is occurring right now is a question that
both academia and industry ask. Many argue that saturated markets exist in many
branches and the changed consumption patterns of customers makes it necessary for
companies to find new concepts and marketing strategies (Schulze 1992; Pine &
Gilmore 1999; Föster & Kreuz 2002).
Wikström (1999) argues that the focus of business development is moving away
from products to the processes taking place around the customer. This leads
Prahalad and Ramaswamy to suggest that ‘‘a new point of view is required; one that
allows individual customers to actively construct their own consumption experiences
through personalized interaction, thereby co-creating unique value for themselves’’
(Prahalad & Ramaswamy, 2003, p. 12). Likewise Wikström recognizes that
customers have become co-producers, which implies that the interaction between
seller, buyer and the environment creates more value for the customer. Jensen (1999)
suggests that people do not want to buy the products, but rather the stories and the
experience behind the product.

Correspondence Address: Prof. Lena Mossberg, BI Norwegian School of Management, Department of

Innovation and Economic Organization, Nydalsveien 37, NO-0442 Oslo, Norway; Tel.: +47 464106600.
Email: lena.mossberg@bi.no
1502-2250 Print/1502-2269 Online/07/010059–74 # 2007 Taylor & Francis
DOI: 10.1080/15022250701231915
 60 L. Mossberg

In marketing a tourist experience is seen as such a consumer experience

(Moutinho, 1987; Swarbrooke & Horner, 1999; Woodside et al., 2000). The tourist
is a consumer, and the marketing significance of the tourist activity lies in the
tourists’ consumption (Quan & Wang, 2004). Tourists consume or experience all the
times during the journey. According to Carlson (1997) an experience can be defined
as a constant flow of thoughts and feelings that occur during moments of
consciousness. However an organization is not able to give an experience to the
consumer; organizations can only create the circumstances and the environment in
which consumers could have an experience (Schulze, 1992; Mossberg, 2003). An
experience is made up inside a person and the outcome depends on how an
individual, in a specific mood and state of mind, reacts to the interaction with the
staged event (Csı́kszentmihályi, 1990; Schulze, 1992; Pine & Gilmore, 1999; Wang,
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2002; Mossberg, 2003). Therefore, for a provider of tourism services to be successful,

it is fundamental to know how companies can provide circumstances that enhance
the customers’ experiences.
The aim of this paper is to present and discuss two frameworks about tourist
experiences from a marketing point of view. The first one illustrates the co-
production of tourism products across the tourism and the creative industries.
The second indicates some important factors influencing tourist’s experiences. The
paper consists of three parts. The first part discusses tourism in the creative
industries and what is offered to the tourist. The second part highlights the
concept of experiencescape, i.e. the place where the tourist’s consumption takes
place and some important aspects of tourist consumption seen from a marketing
perspective. A conceptual model of the tourist experience is proposed. The third
part discusses how the circumstances and environment for tourist experiences can
be created.

Tourism and the Creative Industries

The tourism industry in Sweden is included in the so-called experience industry
(www.kks.se). The industry is defined as a collective concept for people and
organizations with a creative approach. Its main task is to create and/or deliver
experiences in some form (ibid.). Many concepts are used around the world
describing the industry/industries, like cultural industries, copyright industries,
creative industries and entertainment industry with some variation in sectors
included. Other terms are used when talking about the society as a whole and the
economy; cultural economy, creative economy, experience economy and entertain-
ment economy (Nielsén, 2006). In Britain the term creative industries is mainly used.
Creative industries are those that are based on individual creativity, skill and talent.
They also have the potential to create wealth and jobs through developing and
exploiting intellectual property (www.culture.gov.uk). Tourism is not included in the
British version of the creative industries, which can be seen as an advantage since
tourism is not really one single sector – tourism goes across several. It is assumed
that tourism is important for all sectors within the creative industries. The tourists
stay in designer hotels, visit concert halls, enjoy performing arts at theatres, see new
movies, stroll around at antique markets, shop in designer stores etc, when visiting a
destination.
 Marketing Approach to the Tourist Experience 61

In the creative industries there are three types of products (Nielsén, 2006):
N The first type, are those produced on a large scale (mass produced) and which do
not demand consumer involvement when the production takes place.
N The second type, ‘‘live products’’ are produced in interaction with the consumer.
N The third type consists of value creating services, which increase the value of
another product.
In tourism the mass produced products of the first type are for example souvenirs.
However, most of the tourism products are ‘‘live’’ (the second type) and take place in
interaction with the consumer, like transportation, meals, accommodation, theme
parks, festivals and musicals. The attraction of a place often depends on the live
component (e.g. going to London for the theatres). The third type, value-creating
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services, like design and architecture are used a lot in e.g. hotels, restaurants and
man-made tourist attractions.
Tourism is commonly thought of as a combination of transportation,
accommodation, dining and activities. In Figure 1 the tourism parts are put together
with the creative industries. The tourism parts (transportation, accommodation,
dining, and activities) are shown on the horizontal axis – it goes across the creative
industries. The vertical axis shows what is included in the creative industries.
Together, these sectors offer many of the tourist products, i.e. what is actually sold
to the tourist (e.g. a dramatized tour at a historical site or a music festival).
Creative organizations and tourist organizations co-produce and take advantage
of each other’s knowledge, competence and strength. One example of this is ‘‘Astrid
Lindgren’s World’’ in Sweden. This is a theme park where Lindgren’s children books
are in focus. The tourist can visit Bullerbyn, Mattisborgen and most of the other
places that Astrid Lindgren wrote about in her books. In this fairy tale environment,
stories are played and performed. Over 60 role figures are performed in this open-air
theatre. The visitor can also eat at themed restaurants (including themed menus) and
stay nearby. Another example is when Göteborgs city museum shows one of its
heritages (Lilla Änggården) by means of drama. Visitors take part in guided tours
and play roles as if they were guests in a private home during the 19th century. Two
guides are dressed up and act according to their roles as a housewife and a maid.
Both of these examples mentioned above are networks built across industries and
originate from the view that networks, which include relationships and interactions
built on for example trust, create value for all the organizations involved. Astrid
Lindgren’s World and the museum in Göteborg work close with professional actors.
These attractions may be considered as ‘‘live products’’, according to Nielsén’s
categorization (2006) and are co-produced across culture and tourism. Many design
hotels hire artists to create the common spaces as well as the individual hotel rooms.
Creative services are used as value creators, i.e. the third type of products within the
creative industries.

The Experiencescape
An experience is a blend of many elements coming together (Shaw & Ivens, 2002)
and to involve the consumers emotionally, physically, intellectually and spiritually a
 62 L. Mossberg
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Figure 1. Co-production of tourism products across industries.

variety of the consumers’ senses should be stimulated, according to Föster and

Kreuz (2002). The experiencescape is a space of pleasure, enjoyment and
entertainment, as well as the meeting ground in which diverse groups move about
and come in contact with each other (O’Dell, 2005). Experiences occur ‘‘…in an
endless array of specific places, such as stores, museums, cities, sporting arenas,
shopping centers, neighbourhood parks and well-known tourist attractions. At the
same time they do not need to be limited to any single place’’, (O’Dell, 2005, p. 15).
 Marketing Approach to the Tourist Experience 63

The concept of experiencescape has an obvious parallel in what Bitner (1992) calls
the servicescape; a complex mix of environmental features around a service that
influences internal responses and behaviour. A servicescape is understood by Bitner
to be a commercial place, which aims at commercial exchanges and is under the
provider’s control. Since the focus in tourism settings is on the tourist’s consumption
and not service production in general (which e.g. include functional service such as
car repairs and dental services often aiming at solving problems), and since it is not
limited to only one company but instead includes a destination as an experience
environment, the concept of servicescape should, in my view, be substituted with the
concept experiencescape. We may conceive an experiencescape as nested products of
inputs from organizations and tourists. They are produced through substantive and
communicative staging.
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Also, most research projects focus on environmental influences in which the built
environment is seen as given, bounded and well defined, constructed only by the
architect or the space designer (Aubert-Gamet, 1997). But in tourism it is highly
relevant to consider the process of construction of the space as it is done by the
tourist and not only as a component element of the environment, but also as a co-
creator. When the tourist is experiencing, he or she can co-create the environment
(Gupta & Vajic, 2000), which gives new meaning to the place. The term ‘‘scape’’ is
relevant as the tourism literature too often is claimed to be linked to the categories of
visual, sightseeing and gaze (MacCannell, 1976) and ignoring the senses of the body
(Urry, 2002; Quan & Wang, 2004). Therefore, Urry and others suggest that tourism
should involve various sensescapes, like soundscapes, smellscapes (Dann &
Jacobsen, 2002), tastescapes (Hjalager & Richards, 2002), geography of touch, in
addition to landscapes. Steinecke (2000) uses the term mindscape, when he argues
that companies need to create dream worlds, which consumers can dive into. These
dream worlds contain stages, where tourists can play different roles, they represent
meeting places, where people can interact, and arenas, where tourists can experience
new things.

The Tourist Experience

In general, there are two approaches to the study of tourist experiences; the social
science approach and the marketing/management approach (Quan & Wang, 2004).
The first one is characterized as the tourist experience and is understood to be
something that is in sharp contrast or directly opposite to the daily experience. This
approach highlights that the tourist likes to experience something different from
their daily life. The tourist experience is understood as the peak experience and the
experiences that are regarded as the extension of the daily experiences to the tourist
journey, e.g. accommodation, food and transport, are mostly ignored (Quan &
Wang, 2004). A contrasting perspective is found in the marketing/management
literature, where the tourists are instead recognized as consumers because they are
involved in different commercial exchange relationships. These relationships, or
transactions, cover all types of services, no matters if the tourist gets a peak
experience or any supporting services. One common way to do studies in this
tradition is to study the tourists’ service quality perceptions regarding a number of
 64 L. Mossberg

services before, during and after the journey. However, in some studies on peak
experiences the ‘‘out of ordinary dimension’’ has been considered (Hanefors, 2001).
It is referred to as something that is not expected and includes some element of
surprise (Arnould & Price, 1993).
Quan and Wang (2004) use both frameworks when they develop their conceptual
model. The dimension of the supporting consumer experience and the dimension of
peak touristic experience constitute an organic whole but are separated conceptually.
A peak experience can be defined in many ways, but Quan and Wang described the
term as ‘‘… a way to experience something different from their daily lives’’ (2004,
p. 298). If the diving site, a major attraction for tourists, is perceived as great, the
result can be a peak experience. On the other hand, if it appears to be disappointing,
even high quality of supporting services like accommodation or eating can fully
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compensate for this deficiency. However, low quality or absence of supporting

services can lead to dissatisfaction and spoil the total experience. There are
circumstances when the peak touristic experience and the supporting consumer
experiences are interchangeable. For example, a tourist with the original motivation
to visit an art exhibition at the capital’s art museum meets an old friend at the hotel
(supporting experiences). The following dinner at the hotel with the friend turned out
to be the peak experience and the visit to the art museum becomes a supporting
consumer experience, secondary to the encounter with the friend. Hence, the total
quality of the tourist experience relies on both peak touristic experiences and
supporting consumer experiences. Quan and Wang argue that the tourist experience
is in sharp contrast to the daily experience (e.g. opposition to ordinary, routine,
familiar). It is also the extension and intensification of the daily experience (help to
intensify the person’s self-identity). One such example is when the tourist goes to
China and stays in a western hotel chain and eats western food.
In Figure 2 the peak touristic experience and the supporting experience is integrated
into a structured whole. Quan and Wang (2004) distinguished conceptually between
the two, but in Figure 2 the two dimensions are not separated because they are seen as
a blend of activities experienced during the whole journey. The interior of the hotel
might be perceived as extraordinary, the paella at the seafood restaurant as fantastic,
and the people met at the beach as extremely joyful. Also, a peak experience during
one week river rafting, diving, or skiing tour holiday might be hard to articulate. The
sharp contrast between the tourist experience and the daily experience is agreed upon
as most of the social science research in the area points out this relationship between
e.g. the ordinary and non-ordinary. Arnould and Price (1993, p. 41) describe a river
rafting experience as ‘‘…the opportunity to participate, in rites of intensification and
integration and to return to an everyday world ‘transformed’’’.
It is agreed that an individual’s experiences in leisure/tourist settings is directly
influenced by the physical surroundings (Wakefield & Blodgett, 1996) as well as by
the social surroundings, i.e. the personnel (Arnould & Price, 1993) and other
customers (Silkapit & Fisk, 1985). These three components are imported in the
experience environment (Prahalad & Ramaswamy, 2003) in which both functional
and emotional attributes play an important role (Kumar & Karande, 2000). Many
successful organizations and destinations have also coordinated and communicated
their offerings by means of a theme or a story and offer products and souvenirs
 Marketing Approach to the Tourist Experience 65
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Figure 2. Proposed factors influencing the consumer experience within the context of tourism.

related to the theme. The proposed factors influencing the tourists’ experiences are
shown in Figure 2.
In the following discussion it is argued why the selected factors are proposed to be
of importance for the tourist experience. Under each factor suggestions for further
research are outlined.

Creating the Circumstances and Environment for Tourist’s Experiences

The Effects of Physical Environment
The focus on atmosphere for creating a positive tourist experience has been
recognized over many years (Heide & Grønhaug, 2006). The pioneering work of
Kotler (1973) on atmospherics as a marketing tool was a starting point for
discussions concerning environmental influences on consumer behaviour. Another
inspiration source was the article by Belk (1975) on situational variables. Later on
Bitner did her work on servicescapes, which is one of the most referred to studies
(1992). She identified three main dimensions of the servicescape, which influence the
holistic perception of the consumers’ and employees’ perceptions. First, the ambient
conditions that affects the consumers’ behaviour, i.e. music, colour, lightning, and
scent. Second, the spatial layout and functionality, which refer to how equipment
and furnishing are arranged but also to how these items are able to facilitate the
social interaction of customers and employees. Third, signs, symbols, and artefacts,
which include labels for directional purposes, and also communicate behaviour and
rules. All these three factors, together with style and décor communicate and
enhance a certain image. This can be compared to the work of Baker (1986) who
distinguishes and separates the ambient elements, the design factors and the social
factors. Aubert-Gamet (1997) divides the surrounding in one physical and one
psychological part.
 66 L. Mossberg

The physical environment can serve; as a facilitator who enhances the activities in
the service setting; as a socializer who facilitates the interactions between the tourists
as well as the tourists’ interactions with the personnel; as a differentiator when
comparing to competitors (Zeithaml & Bitner, 2003). The same authors point out
that the environment is the outward appearance and external image of the company
and these are critical when it comes to the consumers’ perception of the total service.
This is not only relevant for one organization but also for a destination, i.e. the
experiencescape as was discussed earlier. This is obvious if we look at a tourist
attraction like Kjerag in Norway; a BASE-jumping Mecca. Besides the wild cliff,
factors such as the training facilities, the club, the safety programme, and the
accommodation facilities play a major role in establishing the distinctive image of
Kjerag (Hallin & Mykletun, 2006).
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Bitner (1992) argues that perceptions of the physical environment can lead to
positive (or negative) beliefs and attributions associated with the organization, its
people, and its products. Many organizations working with tourism do not know in
what way the physical environment affect visitors’ behaviour and oftentimes the
physical environments are developed without professional expertise. Even though
substantial research has been carried out in retail settings further knowledge is
needed on how tourism organizations can develop stimulating physical environments
that can lead to a stronger positive consumer experience.

The Effects of Personnel

Service encounters have been an object for research within different theoretical areas,
primarily in consumer behaviour and service marketing. In the latter it is foremost
intertwined with service quality, which focuses on determinants of quality in
different service settings, for example tourism. Recently more research can be found
influenced by approaches such as symbolic interaction or dramaturgy. In these
studies performance, conduct and communicative concepts are added to the service
management field of research (Echeverri, 2000). Research about service encounters
has been conducted based on different methods and research techniques. Examples
are critical incident technique (e.g. Meuter et al., 2000; Bitner, Booms & Mohr,
1994); customers’ perceptions by questionnaires (e.g. Burgers et al, 2000; Mossberg,
1995); laboratory studies (e.g. Surprenant & Solomon, 1987); video-recordings
(Echeverri, 2000); and telephone-recordings (Salomonson, 2005).
The subtle role of the guide in orchestrating delivery of an extraordinary
experience was pointed out by Arnould and Price (1993) in their study about river
rafting. Generally, a tour guide can be regarded as one of the key frontline players in
the tourism industry (Ap & Wong, 2001). Several studies have also shown that a tour
guide’s performance affects a tourist’s satisfaction with both the tour as a whole and
the tour operator (Mossberg, 1995). Not only tour guides but also all front line
personnel have service roles of increasing importance for the tourists. ‘‘Emotional
outcomes associated with extraordinary experience are embedded in relationships
between consumer and service provider’’ (Arnould & Price, 1993, p. 41).
To facilitate continuous learning and accumulation of competencies in a tourist
organization where the front line personnel come and go, and where some personnel
 Marketing Approach to the Tourist Experience 67

are employed by outside firms are problematic (Gjelsvik, 2002). Some front line
personnel working in tourism organizations are not trained at all for the duties they
are paid to carry out. This is quite common among seasonal workers. When training
is offered, it is often done by the organizations own HRM departments. In a hotel
study it was found that training for skilled workers was focused on organization-
specific knowledge and for un-skilled workers on technical knowledge and service
attitudes (Furunes & Mykletun, 2005). In organizations training for service quality
purposes the emphasis should be on training interactive skills rather than technical
skills (Furunes, 2005). In creative industries there are professionals like actors
trained in performance, body language, gestures etc. People with such backgrounds
could probably be fruitful in many roles such as educators for tourism organizations,
but also as entertainers and value creators. Examples of the two latter are opera
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singing waiters and chefs (e.g. Hanefors & Mossberg, 2003), and actors performing
in theme parks like in Astrid Lindgren’s World (Karlén, 2004). Studies have focused
on employees’ experiences and perceptions of service encounters (e.g. Bitner, Booms
& Mohr, 1994; Gremler, Bitner & Evans, 1994; 1995) but further research in tourism
contexts need to be carried out about perceptions and service roles.
The characteristics, which enable a description of service encounters in general, are
for example customer participation, frequency, availability, durability, degree of
standardization and technology. Despite the research tradition from the mid 1980s
on service encounters, further research is needed on service encounter characteristics
in various tourism contexts but also on methodological approaches. So far most of
the service encounter research has been carried out in other industries.

The Effects of Other Tourists

Service encounters often occur in the presence of other customers (Baker, 1986) and
these can increase or decrease tourist satisfaction and the perception of service
quality (Lehtinen & Lehtinen, 1991; Grove & Fisk, 1997; Zeithaml & Bitner, 2003).
Lovelock (1996) argues that an exciting and stimulating audience can enhance the
experience. Certain researchers also point out positive aspects of togetherness with
other consumers and how it influences their willingness to be co-producers (Silkapit
& Fisk 1985; Gummesson, 1993). Finkelstein (1989) looks at eating out as sociology
of modern manners where consumers imitate each other, in response to fashions, and
act with artifice and pretence. Gustafsson et al. (2006) point out how meetings
between people influence the atmosphere and satisfaction in various hospitality
contexts. Also Andersson and Mossberg (2004) show this when they assess how
important various aspects (cuisine, restaurant interior, service, dining company, and
other consumers) are for the dining experience. Both dining company and other
consumers in a restaurant were both important for the consumers’ satisfaction.
Others who recognize the importance of companions in a dining context are
Valentine (1999), Mennell and van Otterloo (1992), Askegard and Madsen (1998) as
well as Crompton and McKay (1997).
Some products can be seen as an entrance ticket to a social group, a sense of
community, argues Söderlund (1999). In the marketing literature, this is for example
described in relation to motorbikes and subcultures (see e.g. Schouten &
 68 L. Mossberg

McAlexander, 1995). Other typical subcultures are sports activities, which demand a
lot of equipment, such as diving, climbing, golfing, skiing, and flying, or subcultures
where the participants have a strong interest of e.g. nature and culture in common.
This is also pointed out by Hallin and Mykletun (2006, p.108) and they cite one
experienced BASE jumper: ‘‘Social gathering in the BASE jumping community
means everything’’. A subculture can enhance value if the participants are members
in a club. When consumption is the key to the kinship it is described in the literature
as a consumption community (Oliver 1999, pp. 39–40). It is based on a sense of
community among participants as well as a sense of belonging to the group felt by
the participants, as they share the same consumption values and behaviours (Oliver,
1999). Another concept is brand community, a specialized, non-geographical linked
community based on relationships between consumers who appreciate the same
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brand (Muniz & O’Guinn, 2001). The consumers might like to show similar lifestyles
that can include living conditions, body, clothes, media habits, etc.
Other tourists who are consuming the same services at the same time can be
compared to what has been called the audience (Silkapit & Fisk, 1985) in the creative
industries. The consumers/audience can all be recognized as co-producers as they are
necessary for the performance and production.
It might be tempting to disregard other tourists (see Figure 2) on the ground that
this factor often is beyond control of the organizations. However, it is more than
likely that, organizations can influence the factor of other tourists a great deal and
that successful organizations also do so. The aspect of other tourists (e.g. influence
on satisfaction and service quality and perception of belonging) has not yet got the
research attention it merits.

The Effects of Products and Souvenirs

Developing a successful product is one of the main areas of the marketing function
and the marketing managers’ main task is to design a product-service combination
that provides real value to targeted consumers, motivates purchase, and fulfils
genuine consumer needs (Kotler et al., 1999). Products and souvenirs are seen as a
tangible symbol in the tourists’ consumption. The product can for instance be a book
at a theme park, perfume in a tax-free store at an airport, and paints, brushes, and
papers in an art museum. In a restaurant the product consists of the combination of
food and beverage. The product is tangible but also intangible aspects such as the
room, the meeting, and the atmosphere has to be considered when assessing a meal
experience (Hansen et al., 2005). In a restaurant familiar products, such as jars of
marmalade and boxes of chocolate might be brought home as gifts or souvenirs.
There are at least five types of souvenirs (Gordon, 1986): pictorial, such as images on
postcards, piece of the rock, a natural item like coral, symbolic shorthand, a
manufactured item such as a porcelain replica of a Chinese temple, markers, like
inscribed t-shirts, and local products, which for instance can be peanuts from
Gambia.
Onderwater et al. (2000) argue that souvenir purchasing is an important element
of tourism consumption, affecting the tourism experience of the visitors themselves.
The souvenir is a reminder of an experience that differs from daily routine and that
 Marketing Approach to the Tourist Experience 69

otherwise would remain intangible (Gordon, 1986). The same author claims that the
souvenirs can remind of people, places, and events. In another study it was found
that souvenirs prompted tourists to contrast trips with everyday experiences, to
expand their world view, to differentiate the self from others, and to collect authentic
cultural life (Littrell, 1990). Wallendorf and Arnould (1988) even argue that
products/souvenirs purchased on trips are among individuals’ most valued
possessions.
Purchasing a product or a souvenir serves as a tangible way of capturing or
suspending in time an otherwise intangible experience (Swanson, 2004). Studies have
focused on souvenir-purchase behaviour of women tourists (Anderson & Littrell,
1995) and the major reason behind the selection of women is that they make the
majority of gift and souvenir purchases during trips (Littrell et al., 1993).
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Limited research has been conducted about tourists’ products and souvenir
purchase behaviour (Anderson & Littrell, 1995), and the motivations that drive
tourists to purchase particular souvenirs (Onderwater et al., 2000). According to the
latter most previous research has been conducted in the US, where studies have
shown the importance of authenticity as a crucial factor in determining souvenir
choice. Further research is needed on how products, such as food and wine and
souvenirs in general and linked to a theme/story in particular are influencing on
consumer experiences.

The Effects of a Theme or Story

Both a theme and a story can be used to promote products, services, and brands if
all the signals communicated to the customers are well coordinated. A good story
needs to have an arena, characters, and a structure. The arena is the experiencescape
where the action/consumption takes place and the characters can be both the
personnel, but also other tourists consuming simultaneously. The structure often
consists of the presentation of the story, the conflict, and the solution (Mossberg &
Johansen, 2006). This can be compared to a guided tour, where the guide can be
seen as the storyteller (Wynn, 2005). The tour follows a structure and the arena is
where the tour takes place. A theme, on the other hand, often lacks characters and/
or structure.
According to Gilmore and Pine (2002) a service turns into an experience
automatically when using a theme. In their view, a theme is the underlying concept
for everything staged in a particular place. Many approaches can be found in
building new concepts, but it seems that a theme or story, for specific hotels,
restaurants, or even whole destinations, can be a successful way to connect various
services and products. Lately a lot of focus is put on the so-called literary tourism
connected to destination development (Müller 2006) with for example the Da Vinci
Code, The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter in mind. A Swedish example is ‘‘In
Arn’s Footsteps’’ in Arnrike (www.arnmagnusson.se), which is built upon a story
around a series of books and connects through the medieval history a number of
sites in one area of West Sweden (Mattsson & Praesto, 2005). The visitors can go on
guided tours, visit churches, see plays, listen to stories, eat Arn-cakes and so on
(Mossberg & Johansen, 2006). Another phenomenon can be found in so called
 70 L. Mossberg

Kingdoms around textile, cheese, gold, meals, iron, bears, furniture, etc when
companies are marketing the region together around the same theme. One example is
Kingdom of Crystal (www.glasriket.se), which offers visitors the opportunity to see
the creation of glass in front of the oven. The area includes 15 different glassworks,
which all are accompanied by shops and most of them also have a museum.
However, if many successful examples can be given from the tourist industry only
very limited research has been carried out in the area. Further research concerning
themes and stories related to concept development is needed but also how tourists
perceive the theme/story and how the theme/story is linked to the tourist’s experience
and satisfaction.
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Conclusion
To develop products in tourism a new form of understanding is needed and the
challenge is to develop a crosscutting framework. Drawing on analysis of the tourism
industry as well as of the creative industries in terms of structure and trends together
with literature from mainly marketing provides theoretical grounding for a
framework, which has been presented in the paper (Figure 1). The framework
illustrates the integration between the tourism industry and the creative industries. It
goes beyond the traditional ways of packaging the same type or different types of
products together. The new way is to co-produce the products, which add value to
the tourists. This way of producing is also recommended by the authorities in many
countries, which can be seen in specific programs and projects for tourism and
creative industries (e.g. in Britain, Denmark and Sweden). One example is the
EDDA project – Experience Development of Danish Attractions, which unites 39
very different attractions in a joint development initiative. The goal with this project
is to develop competences in a manner targeted to create solid and strong attractions,
which offer a good experience as the core product and are in a position to meet the
requirements of the future. The project is supported by the Labour Market Holiday
Fund and the Development Fund for Tourist Attractions. The EDDA project
creates the framework for a joint development initiative by the Danish attractions.
The attractions encompass for example art museums, zoos, water parks, city
museums, and gardens. Each attraction proceeds with its own-targeted development
and reaps advantages by doing so as part of interplay with other attractions. The
overall project results lead to knowledge and tools which can benefit many more
than just these included attractions. The aim is that all Danish attractions and the
whole of the Danish tourist business will benefit from the EDDA initiative
(www.odaweb.dk). Another example is FUNK, a growth model for the experience
industry in Sweden (Nielsén, 2006). The model explains how the development of the
creative industries (including tourism) can be stimulated. The key factors in the
model are research, education, enterprises, culture and cooperation between these.
The attempt with the framework in this paper (Figure 1) is to show and discuss a
trend in tourism product development based on what happens in the tourism and the
creative industries today. The main point is to show integration between the
industries in taking advantage of each others knowledge and by co-producing
tourism products.
 Marketing Approach to the Tourist Experience 71

Knowledge about what affects the consumers’ experiences are necessary when
developing tourism products – and that is what the second framework is about
(Figure 2). The tourist experience takes place within the experiencescape and no
matter if it is a destination like Arnrike, a factory experience or a visit to a
destination with independent players; the tourist will be influenced by physical
environment, products and souvenirs (Figure 2). The tourists will perceive visual
signals, colours, sounds, artefacts, et cetera and interact with personnel and other
tourists. Also, a theme or a story (real or fictive) about the organization or the
destination can give tourists a more meaningful experience. Themes and stories can
communicate the core values in an understandable and memorable way. The story
becomes a verbal and visual metaphor, which shows the total offering, the total
package, which for tourists hopefully is received as a positive experience. The
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framework provides directions for further research on the topic of enriching tourist’s
experiences. It invites application of the full range of consumer theories developed in
various disciplines to gain a better understanding of factors influencing tourism
experiences.

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