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Attaining digital advocacy behaviour through destination image and satisfaction

Shefali Saini (Department of Business Management, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Rotorua, New Zealand)
Chris Niyi Arasanmi (Department of Business Management, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Rotorua, New Zealand)

International Journal of Tourism Cities

ISSN: 2056-5607

Article publication date: 29 September 2020

Issue publication date: 24 February 2021

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the consequences of tourism destination image and satisfaction on digital advocacy in a touristic environment. The study also tested the mediation role of satisfaction in the relationship between the tourism destination image and tourists’ advocacy.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopts a quantitative research design, suing the intercept survey method to collect data from 185 international tourists in New Zealand. The process macro regression method was used to analyse the collected data.

Findings

The findings from this study are: firstly, the study demonstrates that tourism destination image influenced tourists’ digital advocacy behaviour. Secondly, tourists’ satisfaction significantly changed tourists’ advocacy behaviour. Thirdly, tourists’ satisfaction mediates the relationship between the tourism destination image and tourists’ advocacy behaviour in this study.

Research limitations/implications

This study examined tourism destination image and satisfaction as predictors of tourist digital advocacy behaviour; the findings have some valuable impacts for organisations, especially the destination marketing organisation’s tourism strategies. The result also implies that customer satisfaction is a predictor of advocacy behaviours; and the need to focus on increasing tourist satisfaction by putting in place well-crafted tourism products and services.

Practical implications

The finding also implies that customer satisfaction is an important antecedent of advocacy behaviours; and the need to focus on increasing tourist satisfaction by putting in place well-crafted tourism-based strategies.

Originality/value

This study is one of the few investigations on tourists’ digital advocacy behaviour. The study also assessed the mediating impact of customer satisfaction in the relationship between tourism destination image and tourists’ advocacy behaviour, an area, which suffers from a languor of research.

Keywords

Citation

Saini, S. and Arasanmi, C.N. (2021), "Attaining digital advocacy behaviour through destination image and satisfaction", International Journal of Tourism Cities, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 119-134. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJTC-07-2019-0108

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, International Tourism Studies Association.

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