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Goal and objectives of the dissertation Goal
The primary goal of the study was to develop a competitiveness and attractiveness assessment framework for brand Zimbabwe as a tourism destination. In pursuance of this goal, the study formulated four key objectives as follows:
S To evaluate destination branding as a strategy for building competitive and attractive destination brands.
S To analyse and examine the aspects of competitiveness and attractiveness from a destination perspective.
S To examine factors that influence the competitiveness and attractiveness of brand Zimbabwe as a tourism destination
S To draw conclusions and make practical recommendations concerning the application of the study's proposed framework.
Methodology
The study followed a quantitative research approach. Two surveys were done, using both the demand and supply perspectives. On one hand, the demand survey was conducted to assess the attractiveness of Zimbabwe as a tourist destination. On the other hand, the supply survey was conducted to assess the competitiveness of Zimbabwe as a tourism destination. The measuring constructs of both surveys were based on literature as well as new constructs that were self-generated by the researcher where possible. Branding constructs were added as new constructs in both surveys and were tested specifically for this study. Demand data were collected from 500 international tourists that visited Zimbabwe's popular tourist attractions such as Victoria Falls, Harare, Eastern Highlands and Great Zimbabwe. Supply data were collected from 320 tourism and hospitality establishments from the same destinations. Both surveys were done at the same time in all the four tourism destinations.
Descriptive statistics were used to describe both the demand and supply profiles. Exploratory factor analyses were used to identify competitiveness and attractiveness factors for brand Zimbabwe as a tourism destination. The relationship between attractiveness and competitiveness factors was established using Spearman's rank order correlations. Additional relationships between destination attractiveness and competitiveness with other variables were established using independent t-tests and ANOVA. Significant contributors for destination brand loyalty as well as prosperity of destination residents and investment were analysed by means of multiple stepwise regression analysis.
Results
From the demand results, 12 attractiveness factors were revealed while 14 destination competitiveness factors were identified. The demand results showed that the most important destination attractiveness factors for brand Zimbabwe include destination ambiance, destination attractions and...