All that jazz! Festival-specific predictors of service quality, satisfaction and repurchase intentions'

[Abstract]: With growing consensus that performance-only constructs may serve as better predictors of service quality (SQ) than the original SERVQUAL scale, this research developed a FESTPERF instrument to investigate the questions of: whether the SQ factors at a jazz and blues festival were the same or similar to the generic SERVPERF factors; and, what festival specific SQ factors, if any, were predictors of overall service quality, visitor satisfaction and repurchase intent. Results of this study at the Brisbane Jazz and Blues Festival showed that FESTPERF with a three factor solution differed from the generic SERVPERF instrument and did not replicate the SERVQUAL factors. Here, the factors of Professionalism of festival organisers/personnel, the Core Service and the festival's Environment were salient. Of these, the two factors of Professionalism and the Environment predicted visitor satisfaction that might, in turn, lead to repurchase. The festival's Core Service (primarily musical performance) did not predict intent to revisit, either directly or through the mediating satisfaction variable

Exploring the motivations of Asian working holiday makers travelling to Australia

The Australian Working Holiday Maker (WHM) program provides a unique opportunity for Asian youths to have an extended overseas experience. Although the program has existed for more than 40 years, the number of Asian youths participating in the program has increased considerably since the early 2000s. Asian WHMs now represent a sizeable proportion of the Australian WHM market; however, they have received limited research attention from tourism scholars. In fact, their motivations for coming to Australia have not been well researched. To address this shortcoming, this study presents an analysis of six focus groups of Asian WHMs from the three major Asian source markets: Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. Employing the push-pull framework, four push factors (improving English, overseas travel/living experience, earning money and escape from routine) and four pull factors (visa arrangement, English-speaking country, positive perception of Australia and job opportunities) were identified and the underlying reasons for each motivational factor were explored. The findings of this study extend the current understanding of Asian WHMs in Australia, a growing cohort within the WHM program. In accordance with the exploratory nature of this study, future research opportunities are also discussed

Differentiating Asian working holiday makers from traditional backpackers on the basis of accommodation preferences

Abstract The Australian working holiday maker (WHM) program has contributed to the international youth travel market in Australia for many years. Despite a recent increase in the number of participants from Asian countries, their travel behaviours, including accommodation preferences, have not yet been fully explored. In fact, Asian WHMs have often been treated as backpackers in previous studies. The purpose of this study was to explore whether Asian WHMs differ from traditional backpackers on the basis of accommodation preferences. The study employed a sequential mixed methods design consisting of six focus groups followed by a self-administered questionnaire survey. Analyses of both the qualitative and quantitative data revealed that similar to European WHMs, backpacker accommodation was used by many Asian WHMs. However, a sizeable proportion of this market did not stay at this type of accommodation for reasons such as concerns about cleanliness and safety, cultural and language barriers and unfamiliarity with the style of accommodation. Whereas, shared accommodation with people from similar cultural backgrounds was a preferred accommodation style. The main implication of this study is that Asian WHMs cannot be fully understood when they are simply categorised as part of the wider backpacker market. Further consideration of their unique characteristics is required to obtain a comprehensive understanding of this cohort in the current youth travel market

Take me to church: what ministries are of perceived value for attendees from a nonprofit marketing perspective?

Church can mean different things to different people. Whilst the opportunity to hear preaching within a conventional church building has traditionally represented the key driver of church value, other ministries such as contemporary worship music, fellowship with others, and small group bible studies are relevant for church attendance amongst certain church attendees. In addition, these church ministries of perceived value may vary on the basis of whether a church attendee is involved in a ministry role or not and if the church is located within an urban or a regional context. To identify the perceived value of church ministries as perceived by church attendees, data from 8,000 respondents of the Australian 2011 National Church Life Survey were analysed. Although sermons and communion represented the church items of perceived value for both leaders and nonleaders regardless of their location, respondents varied considerably in what they deemed as most important for their church in the future. This study provides theoretical and practical implications for religious nonprofit organisations (e.g., churches) relating to the perceived value of church experiences and provides future research opportunities. Specifically, through appropriate market segmentation, target marketing, and positioning, these organisers can design and promote specific ministries to precise church attendee segments

Saving an Australian icon: koala (Phascolarctos cinereus)

In February 2022, the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) was upgraded to an endangered species in Queensland (QLD), New South Wales (NSW) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) due to flooding, bushfires and urban development causing significant decline in this marsupial’s numbers in these locations. This paper presents a call for tourism action to save an Australian icon through sustainable tourism initiatives. Studies demonstrating the role that the tourism sector can play in koala conservation are minimal, suggesting there is considerable room for improvement to ensure koalas can be experienced by current and future generations. Through applying a triple bottom line approach, an agenda for sustainable tourism action to conserve koalas is outlined

A vacationer-driven approach to understand destination image: a Leximancer study

Destination image studies have largely centred upon conceptualizing destination image through a variety of methods that are predominantly researcher driven. Whilst this has furthered our understanding of how vacationers perceive a destination(s) on key reference criteria, the researcherdriven process may artificially increase the salience of some attributes. The purpose of this study was to showcase how a vacationer-driven approach employing Leximancer may be used to understand destination image by enabling vacationers to drive the attributes and sentiments of importance. Based on a sample of 517 vacationers to the Fraser Coast, respondents were able to identify nine themes. Theoretical, methodological and practical implications are presented and recommendations and future research opportunities are outlined

Religious tourism and spiritual leadership development: Christian leadership conferences

Christian leadership conferences are an increasingly relevant form of special events for leaders within ministry roles. Despite considerable anecdotal research, it is largely unknown what intrinsically motivates these leaders to attend a Christian leadership conference and if this motivation/s is homogenous. Through employing spiritual leadership and core competencies to identify intrinsic motivations to attend a Christian leadership conference, five segments are conceptualised. Whilst two motivations that mirror the key event theme and manifest the internal reward for most respondents, the segments differ significantly on key criterion, most notably their usual place of residence. Tourism and event academics and practitioners should carefully use the research findings when seeking to develop theory or attract attendees to Christian leadership conferences

Indonesian healthy living intentions: Segmentation study insights

Obesity is a global epidemic. The very rapid growth rates of obesity prevalence observed in developing countries is alarming. Segmentation is under applied in social marketing and, when it is applied, it is based primarily on demographic data in samples drawn from developed nations. The current study adopts psychographic segmentation to understand lifestyle attitudes and intentions towards exercise and weight loss among an Indonesian sample. TwoStep cluster analysis (n = 499) identified 4 distinct segments (At risk, Conscious healthy, Overweight, and Tryers). The results of this study demonstrate that different groups exist in the larger population and that consideration of these groups may assist social marketers in creating service/intervention offerings that meet the needs of a broader range of people in the market, thus extending penetration of campaigns that address obesity

No pain, no gain: insights into changing individual volitional behaviour

Physical activity is an important component of a healthy lifestyle. The purpose of this study is threefold: first, to empirically examine the effect of attitudes on people's intentions towards starting a new physical activity in three weight groups; second, to explore differences within various demographic groups; and finally, to offer research and practical implications for social marketers who are working in the area of physical activity. A total of 1459 respondents participated in an online survey. Our findings indicate that when individuals hold both negative and positive attitudes towards physical activity, they will have higher intentions to start a new physical activity. Empirical examination identified that overweight and obese people have more negative and less positive attitudes than healthier people toward physical activity. The results indicate that overcoming negative attitudes and reinforcing positive attitudes remain as a necessary condition to influence volitional behaviours such as physical activity, which requires cognitive processing and actions in order for the behaviour to be changed. People engaging in physical activities understand both positive and negative effects of physical activities, and they may engage in physical activities despite knowing there are short-term costs