Can brand personality differentiate fast food restaurants?

This study examines brand personality as an approach to establish brand differentiation in the highly competitive fast food sector. A modified brand personality scale proposed by Musante et al. (2008) was used to develop a questionnaire which was distributed to customers to assess their perceived brand personalities for three well known fast food restaurants – McDonald’s, KFC and Subway. The results demonstrated that even though the overall perceived brand personality was different for all three brands, no individual personality dimension characterised any of the brands.Keywords: brand, brand personality, fast food, restaurant

Technology innovation and applications in sustainable destination development

This paper introduces information and communication technologies as an innovative approach to managing sustainable tourism development from a destination management perspective. Specific attention is focused on the how destination managers utilise the various forms of technology in addressing both the positive and negative impacts of tourism. Building on Hjalager’s (Tour Manag 18:35–41, 1997) analytical typology for sustainable tourism innovation, this research aims to advance tourism innovation research and demonstrate new uses of technology and the wider applications for sustainable tourism. Using a thorough literature review and primary research with destination managers, a collection of technology based tools and their uses were examined for sustainable tourism development and how these tools can foster destination innovativeness

An Investigation into Information and Communication Technologies-Based Applications for Sustainable Tourism Development of Destinations

Sustainable tourism is a heavily researched concept but in reality there has been limited implementation of the principles and practices of sustainable tourism for destinations. Adopting a destination focused perspective, this thesis presents research which expounded Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as a practical, new and innovative approach to sustainable tourism development i.e. computer-supported sustainability. A literature review revealed that there was no specific study focusing on the uses and applications of ICT for sustainable tourism development despite the mention and benefits of doing so. However it did identify that several opportunities existed in destination management for using ICT as well as a collection of ICT-based tools/applications which can be used for managing different aspects of sustainable tourism. Therefore an investigative analysis was necessary in building a solid body of work on the uses and applications of ICT for sustainable tourism as a practical approach for destination managers. These findings formed the input for the primary research which was conducted in two phases: surveys administered to destination managers and eTourism experts followed by semi-structured interviews with experts in this domain identified from the surveys. The primary research alongside the literature findings led to the development of a descriptive framework which identified, categorised and described the uses of these ICT-based tools/applications for managing tourism's impacts. Assessment procedures based on the sustainability goals of the destination were then developed in order assist destination managers selecting the ICT-based tools/applications that were best suited for managing the sustainable tourism development of their destinations. The conclusion of this research clearly identifies that destination managers' sophisticated application of ICT to sustainable tourism is the next logical and practical step they can take in making sustainable tourism a workable reality for their destinations. This research is the building block for prospective research in the ICT-sustainable tourism domain. Future research avenues would be to use the results presented to determine the suitability, applicability and feasibility of the ICT-based tools/applications presented for destination managers. This existing research can be used to develop a more co-ordinated approach to theory development and engage in more empirical research to address tourism challenges with regards to using ICT for sustainable tourism development.sub_behunpub150_ethesesunpu

ICT for sustainable tourism: a challenging relationship?

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A Spatial 3 X 3 Average Filter for De-Noising in Digital Images with the Help of Median Filter

Digital image processing includes many factors like Image enhancement, segmentation, object recognition, removal of noise and many more. Noise removal is the one of the hot area of image processing. Noise can be minimized but cannot removed completely. Scientist and researchers has established many filters, which can minimize the noise in the image and enhance its quality. There are many types of noise and many types of filter for the removal of noise. Many types of noise are used. To remove these types of noise, 3 x 3 average filter is used in this paper and its efficiency is measured. The simulations are performed on the MATLAB

The Role of Private Label Brands in Enhancing Service Satisfaction in the Hotel Industry: Comparing Luxury and Boutique Hotels

This research proposes private label branding as a strategy that can have a positive effect on guest satisfaction and loyalty in hotels that cater to travelers seeking a special hotel experience. We test this using the well-established SERVQUAL model of service quality, based on a sample of guests in two hotels: a five-star luxury hotel (N=225) and a boutique hotel (N=101). The findings show that in the luxury hotel but not the boutique hotel, perception of a private label had a direct impact on loyalty, and an indirect impact on loyalty through its effect on guest satisfaction. The theoretical implications and recommendations for hoteliers based on the findings are discussed

The importance of personal values and hospitableness in small foodservice businesses’ social responsibility

This paper investigates the relationship between personal values, hospitableness and social responsibility in small, independent foodservice businesses. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 owner-managers of these businesses located in Sheffield, United Kingdom (UK). The results established that hospitableness is expressed through the way in which these small businesses engage in social responsibility. In lifestyle and family businesses, personal values, such as altruism, friendliness and a passion for food, influence the hospitableness and social responsibility of the small foodservice business. In the long term, social responsibility actions expressing hospitableness add value to the business itself. This research contributes to the hospitality literature, by empirically demonstrating how hospitableness can be expressed through small business social responsibility, which can provide, in the long term, a competitive advantage for small, independent foodservice businesses

The importance of personal values and hospitableness in small foodservice businesses’ social responsibility

This paper investigates the relationship between personal values, hospitableness and social responsibility in small, independent foodservice businesses. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 owner-managers of these businesses located in Sheffield, United Kingdom (UK). The results established that hospitableness is expressed through the way in which these small businesses engage in social responsibility. In lifestyle and family businesses, personal values, such as altruism, friendliness and a passion for food, influence the hospitableness and social responsibility of the small foodservice business. In the long term, social responsibility actions expressing hospitableness add value to the business itself. This research contributes to the hospitality literature, by empirically demonstrating how hospitableness can be expressed through small business social responsibility, which can provide, in the long term, a competitive advantage for small, independent foodservice businesses

Increasing Student Employability through University/Industry Collaboration: A study in South Africa, the UK and Finland

Due to its high youth unemployment the study focused on South Africa but covered selected universities in the UK and Finland for the purposes of comparison and benchmarking. The purpose of the study was to determine the perceptions of industry, lecturers and students on the competencies gained at university and the benefits of university enterprise collaboration (UEC) to students. Data was collected through mixed methods: a structured survey and semi-structured interviews. UEC is shown to increase student employability and work-readiness but several challenges to implementing such collaboration exist, particularly in South Africa. Based on the results the paper proposes that technology can be used to overcome the gaps in achieving effective UEC and thereby increasing the employability of students in South Africa