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Theme factors that drive the tourist customer experience

Theme factors that drive the tourist customer experience PurposeThis study aims to investigate the factors that drive the tourist customer experience around theming. Theming is considered vital to creating a memorable customer impression.Design/methodology/approachThe cruise industry was chosen as the empirical setting. A total of 328 cruise travelers returned valid questionnaires during a cruise in March 2010. The questionnaire was developed based on a conceptual model of components (name, employee interaction, lighting, design and music) hypothesized to contribute to a themed cruise environment.FindingsName, employee interaction and lighting were found to be the most important drivers for the customer experience. Theming was less reliant on design and music.Research limitations/implicationsThis research was limited to one narrow context. Further research on other ships, itineraries and cruise lines should clarify whether factors affecting theme perception are the same across the cruise industry.Practical implicationsCruise industry decision makers should consider the naming of spaces, lighting and employee interaction when designing themed experiences.Originality/valueTheming has received little attention in the research literature. This study is a unique contribution to our understanding of this particular field. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research Emerald Publishing

Theme factors that drive the tourist customer experience

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Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © Emerald Group Publishing Limited
ISSN
1750-6182
DOI
10.1108/IJCTHR-07-2015-0070
Publisher site
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Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the factors that drive the tourist customer experience around theming. Theming is considered vital to creating a memorable customer impression.Design/methodology/approachThe cruise industry was chosen as the empirical setting. A total of 328 cruise travelers returned valid questionnaires during a cruise in March 2010. The questionnaire was developed based on a conceptual model of components (name, employee interaction, lighting, design and music) hypothesized to contribute to a themed cruise environment.FindingsName, employee interaction and lighting were found to be the most important drivers for the customer experience. Theming was less reliant on design and music.Research limitations/implicationsThis research was limited to one narrow context. Further research on other ships, itineraries and cruise lines should clarify whether factors affecting theme perception are the same across the cruise industry.Practical implicationsCruise industry decision makers should consider the naming of spaces, lighting and employee interaction when designing themed experiences.Originality/valueTheming has received little attention in the research literature. This study is a unique contribution to our understanding of this particular field.

Journal

International Journal of Culture, Tourism and Hospitality Research – Emerald Publishing

Published: Jun 5, 2017

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