Evaluation of the initiatives of the eastern Poland tourism brands cluster using a modified COO effect model

Abstract

Purpose – the main goal of tourism clusters is to attract more tourists to the region and improve the quality of regional tourism products. The aim of this paper is to verify whether the initiative of the Eastern Poland Tourism Brands Cluster has contributed to the development of tourism services and products offered by local firms. Research methodology – to achieve the goal, we described and evaluated cluster activities based on secondary sources of data and questionnaire interviews conducted with the representatives of entities involved in the cluster. We used the modified COO effect model to evaluate the services according to the following criteria: modernity, diversity, prestige and quality. We employed a 5-item Likert scale in our questionnaire. Findings – the results of the analysis showed that despite the increased recognition of tourist brands and products, the cluster did not survive. This experience shows that clusters operating in the tourism industry have less chance of survival than industrial clusters. Research limitations – main limitation of the research is the scarcity of source materials and a low number of surveys returned by cluster members. Personal meetings with respondents would add valuable information. Practical implications – the results of research can be used as an indication for the development and maintenance of tourist cluster initiatives on the market. In recent years, more and more studies focus on the development prospects of tourism clusters. Originality – until now, however, no study on cluster performance has employed the COO effect model or its derivatives, which makes our paper novel in this aspect.