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Prior research has investigated a number of drivers of consumers' perceived product attractiveness, such as a product's shape and color. The context, in which a product is presented, has so far been largely neglected in examining consumers' aesthetic appraisal of products. Drawing on social cognition theory, this research investigates how the attractiveness of the visual context (e.g., websites, advertisements) influences consumers' perceptions of product attractiveness and product quality for familiar versus unfamiliar products. Results of two experimental studies show that consumers perceive unfamiliar products as more attractive and, consequently, of higher quality when products are placed in an attractive context than when they are placed in an unattractive context. No differences in consumers' perceived product attractiveness and perceived product quality exist for familiar products. The findings extend our theoretical knowledge of product aesthetics and provide managers with insights into the effective communication of their offerings' attractiveness.

This study investigates the impact of place perception on tourist well-being to provide an understanding of how destination attributes influence tourists’ response behaviors. Data were collected in a self-administered survey from 631 respondents in three Austrian tourism destinations. Factor analysis and structural equation modeling (Mplus 7.0) were employed to test the hypothesized relationships. Results provide empirical evidence that tourists perceive destination settings holistically and will report higher levels of psychological well-being if a destination provides an adequate combination of sensemaking (i.e. access and amenities) and exploratory attributes (i.e. attractions and activities, entertainment options, and local community). Findings also show that tourists’ well-being has a significant, positive impact on their intention to return and their desire to engage in positive word of mouth about the destination. Most importantly, an indirect-only mediation of well-being on the relationship between both sense-making and exploratory attributes and behavioral outcomes was found. An integrated view of the results can provide important considerations for tourism research and fruitful suggestions for destination management organizations.

This paper outlines the methodology and results of an attempt to assess infl uences on the emotional states of hotel guests. When consuming tourism products, tourists do not only expect professional services but also desire satisfying experiences. According to Pine and Gilmore (1998), goods and services must be 'experientialized' because customers seek for rewarding, memorable and pleasurable consumption experiences. Quality management research suggests that traditional service quality measures are insuffi cient in evaluating the satisfaction of the 'new' tourists with consumed services. In order to measure customer satisfaction, it is important to take into account factors concerning the psychological environment such as subjective personal reactions or feelings experienced by consumers. Thus, experience quality should be the starting point for developing models to assess emotions in tourism industry. After reviewing the latest literature in the fi eld of service and experience measurement in leisure and tourism, the paper presents an experience model highlighting causalities measuring fl ow experience during the consumption of activities. The results show that the hotel setting has strong infl uence on the emotional state of the guests and that the staging of the service environment as well as the service process constitutes a crucial part of the hotel strategy. Copyright

Despite the growing attention brand credibility attracts in recent marketing literature, little is known about the credibility of place brands and their relationship with consumers’ loyalty. The present study builds on brand signalling and attachment theory to investigate whether credible place brands affect consumers’ attachment formation, their subsequent word of mouth (WOM) and intention to return. Survey data from an Alpine winter sport destination reveal that place brand credibility is a key antecedent of consumers’ attachment. Moreover, consistent with brand signalling theory, credible place brands exert a particularly strong direct effect on consumers’ WOM. A positive effect on their intention to return, however, will result only if they feel attached with the place brand beforehand. Implications for marketing scholars and brand managers are offered.

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