Loyalty

Open Access Article

1 - The Impact of Perceived Value and Sense of Place on Tourist Loyalty (Case Study: Hamedan Province)
mostafa taheri

The objective of this paper is to analyze the factors that impact tourist loyalty from two perspectives: “perceived value” and “sense of place”. The study aims to answer the following questions: Are there any relations between the dimensions of perceived value and sense More

The objective of this paper is to analyze the factors that impact tourist loyalty from two perspectives: “perceived value” and “sense of place”. The study aims to answer the following questions: Are there any relations between the dimensions of perceived value and sense of place with loyalty to the destination brand? If so, to what extent are they correlated? Which dimensions play a more important role? Sample size was determined by using Cochran’s formula. A total of 384 questionnaires were randomly destributed between tourists in Hamedan Province during summer 2016. Given the Pearson correlation coefficients, the dimensions of perceived value (Functional, emotional, and social value) and sense of place (identity, dependence, and attachment) were found to be associated with tourist loyalty to destination brand. Standardized R2 was 45.9 and nearly 45 percent of the variation in tourist loyalty was explained by the model. Perceived Functional value and sense of dependence were the strongest predictors of loyalty, followed by perceived emotional value, social value, sense of attachment, and sense of identity, respectively. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

2 - The Impact of Co-branding Elements on Customers’ Satisfaction and Loyalty in Chain Restaurants in Tehran
Jafar Ahangaran رضا اصلاني

Restaurant management is one of the important subsets of the tourism industry that makes tourist destinations more attractive. Additionally, food can be a cultural signifier and promote different cultural perspectives. Emerging concepts like co-branding can develop and More

Restaurant management is one of the important subsets of the tourism industry that makes tourist destinations more attractive. Additionally, food can be a cultural signifier and promote different cultural perspectives. Emerging concepts like co-branding can develop and improve the status of restaurant management in Iran. This research surveyed the impact of co-branding elements on customers’ satisfaction and loyalty in chain restaurants in Tehran. This is an applied research. Data are qualitative. Methods of data collection are documentary and survey. The statistical population was chain restaurants in Tehran. Data were collected through 268 questionnaires with convenience sampling. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Pearson correlation coefficient, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling have been used for data analysis. Research conceptual model evaluation has been done through partial least square path analysis with PLS software. The results indicated the impact of 3 elements of co-branding strategy on customers’ satisfaction and loyalty. The elements are “Price advantage, rewards-based advertising, and support services.” Co-branding can be an effective marketing strategy for restaurant managers to increase their customers’ satisfaction, and to make a better policy to achieve their goals. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

3 - The Role of Social Responsibilities on Developing Brand Equity in Tourist Destinations: The case of Isfahan
فرزانه عبدالمحمدی

This research investigated the effects of social responsibilities on brand equity in tourism destinations. This is an applied study and follows surveying in goal and method. The statistical population of this study included foreign tourists who traveled to Isfahan and v More

This research investigated the effects of social responsibilities on brand equity in tourism destinations. This is an applied study and follows surveying in goal and method. The statistical population of this study included foreign tourists who traveled to Isfahan and visited Naqshe Jahan Square in summer 2017. Data-collection instrument was a researcher-developed questionnaire based on the literature and it included 40 closed questions. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire were examined and confirmed through content and construct validities, and Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient. To analyze the data and to test the hypotheses, both SEM and path analysis were used in the SPSS and LISREL, respectively. The findings showed that social responsibilities in tourism destinations significantly affected brand through brand awareness; perceived value; perceived quality of tourism destination; the brand image of tourism destination; loyalty towards tourism destination. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

4 - The Role of Brand Romance in Customer Loyalty in Hotel Industry: The case of five and four-star hotels in Mazandaran province
Amir Khazaei Pool Farhad Hanifi Vahid Reza Mirabi

Brand romance is an important construct in marketing. It refers to a potential mental state in response to the brand and is created based on a strong positive emotion, arousal, and the dominance of a brand in the subjective mind of the consumer. The aim of this study wa More

Brand romance is an important construct in marketing. It refers to a potential mental state in response to the brand and is created based on a strong positive emotion, arousal, and the dominance of a brand in the subjective mind of the consumer. The aim of this study was to test the effect of brand romance on the four types of customer loyalty, including cognitive, emotional, conative and behavioral loyalty. In the qualitative section, participants were customers who were selected using purposive sampling based on the saturation principle. In the quantitative section, the statistical population included the travelers of five and four-star hotels in Mazandaran province. Members of the statistical population were distributed based on the stratified sampling method. Classes were determined based on the number of hotel rooms. Collected data were tested using Smart PLS software. The results showed that brand romance had a positive and significant effect on the four types of loyalty in the hotel industry. The highest effect was on cognitive loyalty and the lowest was on behavioral loyalty. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

5 - The Role of Social Responsibilities on Developing Brand Equity in Tourist Destinations: The case of Isfahan
Mohammad ghaffari amirreza konjkav monfared

This research investigated the effects of social responsibilities on brand equity in tourism destinations. This is an applied study and follows surveying in goal and method. The statistical population of this study included foreign tourists who traveled to Isfahan and v More

This research investigated the effects of social responsibilities on brand equity in tourism destinations. This is an applied study and follows surveying in goal and method. The statistical population of this study included foreign tourists who traveled to Isfahan and visited Naqshe Jahan Square in summer 2017. Data-collection instrument was a researcher-developed questionnaire based on the literature and it included 40 closed questions. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire were examined and confirmed through content and construct validities, and Cronbach’s Alpha Coefficient. To analyze the data and to test the hypotheses, both SEM and path analysis were used in the SPSS and LISREL, respectively. The findings showed that social responsibilities in tourism destinations significantly affected brand through brand awareness; perceived value; perceived quality of tourism destination; the brand image of tourism destination; loyalty towards tourism destination. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

6 - The Impact of the Brand Management System on Employees’ Brand Performance in Travel and Tourism Companies
Ardeshir Shiri Maryam Mesbahi Amin Hemmati

Given the increasing level of competition among service companies, the role and the importance of intangible assets have increased. A brand is an intangible asset that is the most important factor in distinguishing a company and creating a competitive advantage for it. More

Given the increasing level of competition among service companies, the role and the importance of intangible assets have increased. A brand is an intangible asset that is the most important factor in distinguishing a company and creating a competitive advantage for it. In the competitive environment of the tourism industry, maintaining and developing the market share result from the brand performance. Since the role of staff is significant in transferring the company’s brand contracts to customers (in service companies), this research tried to understand why the brand management system was important. It also tried to empirically investigate the effect of the brand management system on brand performance at the employee level, and the mediation effects of brand identity, brand commitment, and brand loyalty. The statistical population of this research included employees of travel and tourism companies in Tehran. To get a sample size, the study used available sampling and Cochran’s formula. This is an applied research, and data analysis is descriptive and correlational. To analyze the data of the questionnaire, the study used confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation model. The results showed that the brand management system had no direct effect on the brand performance at the employee level. However, the brand management system indirectly influenced brand performance through brand identity, brand commitment, and brand loyalty. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

7 - Social Capital and Loyalty of Pilgrims from Isfahan to Sarshur Neighborhood in Mashhad
neda eidgahian kaseb Mozhgan Azimi Hashemi

A tourist behavior in the destination forms as a meaningful behavior in the form of a social action, of which relationship with others is the most important element. Through the description and analysis of the type and frequency of tourist relationships, and social capi More

A tourist behavior in the destination forms as a meaningful behavior in the form of a social action, of which relationship with others is the most important element. Through the description and analysis of the type and frequency of tourist relationships, and social capital resulting from them, one can predict a tourist behavior, attachment, and loyalty to the destination. This study examined the effect of the relationship network among pilgrims from Isfahan in the host community on their loyalty to Sarshur neighborhood in Mashhad. This research followed the survey method. In 2016, 150 pilgrims from Isfahan were selected during the day of Arbaeen and the week following it. Results showed that the average size of the relationship network of Isfahan pilgrims in Sarshur neighborhood was 2.11 People (range: 0 to 9). The average of the general index of Isfahan pilgrims’ attachment to Sarshur neighborhood was 4.31 (range: 3.06 to 5) and the loyalty index was 4.43 (range: 1 to 5). The results of the model of structural equations by AMOS software showed that two causal ways used in this model can explain 80% of the loyalty variance of Isfahan pilgrims. The social capital of the relationship network among Isfahan pilgrims in this neighborhood increased their attachment. This attachment (through increased satisfaction) caused an increase in tourists’ loyalty. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

8 - Sociological Analysis of Factors Influencing Destination Loyalty
طیبر ظیسبل

This paper is a part of a survey. It applies structural equal modeling techniques to analyze factors that influence tourism destination loyalty. The approach was “Tourism as a customer.” The customer buys leisure services from the provider and the destination. One model More

This paper is a part of a survey. It applies structural equal modeling techniques to analyze factors that influence tourism destination loyalty. The approach was “Tourism as a customer.” The customer buys leisure services from the provider and the destination. One model in this approach is the European Customer Satisfaction Index. Based on this model, variables influencing the loyalty of tourists to the host community are not just the service provided by the host community. Rather, loyalty is correlated to the image of the destination, and the related expectations of that image. The statistical population was the families and parents of the martyrs in Mashhad. The sample included 400 cases selected by stratified sampling. Based on regression coefficients, perceived value and perceived quality were factors that influenced trip satisfaction. The final model of path analysis showed perceived value and perceived quality influenced trip satisfaction. Perceived quality impacted life satisfaction both directly and indirectly. We considered this perceived value as a mediate variable. Perceived quality leads to a positive evaluation of travel achievement, and it increases trip satisfaction. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

9 - Sociological Analysis of Factors Influencing Destination Loyalty
طیبر ظیسبل سميه عفتی

This paper is a part of a survey. It applies structural equal modeling techniques to analyze factors that influence tourism destination loyalty. The approach was “Tourism as a customer.” The customer buys leisure services from the provider and the destination. One model More

This paper is a part of a survey. It applies structural equal modeling techniques to analyze factors that influence tourism destination loyalty. The approach was “Tourism as a customer.” The customer buys leisure services from the provider and the destination. One model in this approach is the European Customer Satisfaction Index. Based on this model, variables influencing the loyalty of tourists to the host community are not just the service provided by the host community. Rather, loyalty is correlated to the image of the destination, and the related expectations of that image. The statistical population was the families and parents of the martyrs in Mashhad. The sample included 400 cases selected by stratified sampling. Based on regression coefficients, perceived value and perceived quality were factors that influenced trip satisfaction. The final model of path analysis showed perceived value and perceived quality influenced trip satisfaction. Perceived quality impacted life satisfaction both directly and indirectly. We considered this perceived value as a mediate variable. Perceived quality leads to a positive evaluation of travel achievement, and it increases trip satisfaction. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

10 - The Effect of Water Conservation and Waste Reduction Management on Increasing the Customer Loyalty in the Hotel Industry
Maryam Mesbahi Shokrieh Taheri Zahra Akbari

Developing the tourism industry had both positive (creating employment and environmental aesthetics) and negative effects (making environmental pollution and destroying ecosystems). In recent decades, the awareness of the environmental impacts of tourism increased as a More

Developing the tourism industry had both positive (creating employment and environmental aesthetics) and negative effects (making environmental pollution and destroying ecosystems). In recent decades, the awareness of the environmental impacts of tourism increased as a sign of a change in attitudes towards the environment. This research investigated the effect of water conservation and waste reduction management on increasing customer loyalty to show the role of hedonic values in the hotel industry. The statistical population included the customers of four- and five-star hotels in Tehran. The study used random sampling and Cochran formula to get a sample. A standard questionnaire was used as a tool to collect the data whose validity and reliability was examined through the content validity and Cronbach’s alpha. Structural equation modeling was used for data analysis. The findings showed that water conservation and waste reduction management had positive and meaningful effects on hedonic values and customer loyalty. Hedonic values had positive and meaningful effects on customer loyalty. The results also showed that water conservation and waste reduction management through hedonic values had a significant positive effect on customer loyalty. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

11 - Investigating the Effect of Organizational Citizenship Behavior on Service Quality, and Customers' Satisfaction and Loyalty in the Hotel Industry: A Case Study of Mazandaran Province’s Parsian International Hotels
jafar bahari mehdi karoubi Shahla Bahari

10.52547/journalitor.35756.10.20.157

This study sought to investigate the effect of organizational citizenship behavior on service quality offered to and the satisfaction and loyalty of customers in the hotel industry, selecting the Parsian International Hotels in Mazandaran province, including the Parsian More

This study sought to investigate the effect of organizational citizenship behavior on service quality offered to and the satisfaction and loyalty of customers in the hotel industry, selecting the Parsian International Hotels in Mazandaran province, including the Parsian Azadi Hotel in Ramsar, Iran (four-star) and the Parsian Azadi Khazar Hotel in Namakabroud, Chaloos, Iran (five-star) as the cases of the study, which was conducted in summer 2017. The study is regarded as applied in terms of purpose, descriptive in terms of research method, and survey in terms of data collection method, using Structural Equation Modeling and the Smart PKS Software to analyze the collected data. The study’s statistical population comprised all employees and visitors of Persian International Hotels in Mazandaran province, out of which the sample size was selected via random sampling and the Cochran. Moreover, a standard questionnaire was administered to collect the required data, whose reliability was measured using Cronbach's alpha. The study’s results indicated that organizational citizenship behavior had a significant positive influence on service quality offered to and the satisfaction and loyalty of the customers. It was also found that the customers’ satisfaction had a significant positive effect on their loyalty and that the customers’ satisfaction had the greatest path coefficient value, exerting the highest influence on the customers’ loyalty compared to other variables. Finally, necessary recommendations were offered based on the results of the data analysis. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

12 - The Impact of Destination Image and Satisfaction on Heritage Tourists’ Loyalty: resenting a Conceptual Model (Case Study: World Collection of Sheikh Safi al-Din Ardabili)
Habib Shahbazi Shiran Roya Esmi

The restoration, preservation, and prosperity of historical monuments in Iran are directly related to the presence of heritage tourists. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the impact of destination image and satisfaction on heritage loyalty within a conc More

The restoration, preservation, and prosperity of historical monuments in Iran are directly related to the presence of heritage tourists. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the impact of destination image and satisfaction on heritage loyalty within a conceptual model based on the visitors of Sheikh Safi al-Din Ardabili collection in Ardabil, Iran. The research method was descriptive-survey and the sample size was determined to be 375 people by using available sampling method and Cochran formula (unspecified population size). Data were analyzed using the SPSS and AMOS softwares. Results showed that most respondents had relatively high satisfaction with their visit to the collection. According to the results of structural equations analysis, the most effective variables related to loyalty, destination image and tourist satisfaction were the variables of tourists' revisit of the collection, awareness and interest and tourism costs, respectively. The destination image also has a significant effect on satisfaction; But effect of destination image on the heritage tourists’ loyalty is mediated by the mediating variable of satisfaction. Therefore, the focus of heritage tourism marketing programs on improving the destination image among heritage tourists would not necessarily lead to an increase in tourists' revisit from the collection. But, attention to satisfaction variable, especially reducing tourism costs and increasing the security feeling, can have more effect on tourists’ loyalty. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

13 - Investigating the Influence of Human Resources Management Activities on Customer Loyalty in the Hoteling Industry Using a Multilevel Approach
zahra Nikkhah-Farkhani Mohammad shaykhzade

10.52547/journalitor.36121.11.21.1

Considering the fact that customer loyalty is regarded as one of the most important concerns of hotel managers, this study sought to investigate the influence of human resources management activities on customer loyalty using a multi-level approach. The statistical popu More

Considering the fact that customer loyalty is regarded as one of the most important concerns of hotel managers, this study sought to investigate the influence of human resources management activities on customer loyalty using a multi-level approach. The statistical population of the study comprised of managers, staff, and customers of four-star and five-star hotels in Mashhad. Moreover, the statistical sample size of the research at the organization level consisted of thirty-four, one-hundred and forty, two-hundred and forty managers, staff, and customers at organizational, staff, and customer levels, respectively. On the other hand, Sam’s 12-item questionnaire (2008) and the 17-item questionnaire developed by Al-Rafiei et al. (2013) were used to measure the human resources management activities and the staff’s satisfaction and loyalty, respectively, whose validity and reliability was tested using the Content validity method and Cronbach's alpha, respectively. Finally, HLM 7.02 and the SPSS software were used to analyse the collected data. The results proved the positive influence of human resources management activities on the staff’s satisfaction and loyalty, and in turn, on the satisfaction and loyalty of the customers. Therefore, it could be argued that hotel managers can increase the loyalty of their customers by emphasizing human resource management activities and improving their staff’s satisfaction and loyalty, which would increase the profitability of hotels in the long term by reducing marketing costs. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

14 - Investigating the Relationship between Service Quality and Customer's Satisfaction, Loyalty, and Trust: A Case Study of Tehran's Enghelab and Laleh Hotels
jafar bahari Shahla Bahari

10.52547/journalitor.36165.9.18.0

Today's business environment requires organizations to find new strategies to compete with their rivals. Therefore, maintaining customer satisfaction and loyalty is an important goal to achieve by organizations. In a world where competition among companies is constantly More

Today's business environment requires organizations to find new strategies to compete with their rivals. Therefore, maintaining customer satisfaction and loyalty is an important goal to achieve by organizations. In a world where competition among companies is constantly increasing, the immediate solution to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage is to improve the quality of services, which in turn leads to customer satisfaction. Many organizations have recognized that customer satisfaction can bring about their long-term success, and the entities involved in the tourism industry, especially the hotels, are no exception. Furthermore, many studies conducted in various industries have shown that providing quality services is a key factor in building customer loyalty. In other words, offering superior services to customers leads to customer satisfaction, which is necessary to establish customer loyalty. This functional survey study set out to investigate the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction, loyalty, and trust in the Enghelab and Laleh hotels in Tehran city. To collect the required data, some questionnaires were administered to the hotels' guests who were selected via the available non-random sampling method. The data were then analyzed via structural equation modeling using SMART PLS software. The results showed that service quality had a significant positive effect on customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty. It was also found that customer satisfaction had a significant positive effect on customer's trust and loyalty. The impact of customer's trust on customer's loyalty was also proved to be positive and significant. Manuscript profile

Open Access Article

15 - Investigating the Role of Residents' Support for Health Tourism Development in Marketing Using the Cognitive Mapping Approach: A Case Study of Isfahan’s Healthcare Town
mahnaz Doosti-Irani Mir Mohammad Asadi

10.61186/journalitor.36247.11.23.63

Focusing on "the residents' support for the development of health tourism" as a variable that could be considered by marketers to increase demands for this kind of tourism, this study sought to investigate the variables affected by the residents' support and prepare a f More

Focusing on "the residents' support for the development of health tourism" as a variable that could be considered by marketers to increase demands for this kind of tourism, this study sought to investigate the variables affected by the residents' support and prepare a fuzzy cognitive map of such factors using a systemic model. To this end, the aforementioned variables were identified using the Delphi technique. Then, the research model was developed and analyzed using fuzzy cognitive mapping. The findings of the study suggested that the residents' support affected factors such as the destination image, tourist satisfaction, tourist loyalty, positive advertisements by word of mouth, perceived quality of services, tourists' emotional solidarity with the residents, and spatial belonging of tourists to destinations. Moreover, the results of fuzzy cognitive mapping showed that in a system consisting of the above-mentioned variables, the residents' support played a significant role in tourist loyalty and positive word-of-mouth advertisement, with its impact being greater than that of satisfaction or even service quality. In other words, winning the residents' support is a priority in this regard. Moreover, residents' support affects other relevant factors, including perceived quality, tourist satisfaction, spatial belonging, and emotional attachment. Therefore, gaining the residents’ support is highly recommended to be considered in marketing health tourism. Considering the research gaps in this field, the results of the current study could be used for enriching the related literature. Manuscript profile

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