Factors that influence the intentions to recommend Johannesburg as a tourist desti-nation :an international students perspective

Abstract

The research investigated the use of the three potential predictors of intention to recommend (city brand identity, city perception and destination image) as a means of establishing whether these were related to city rejuvenation, which ultimately lead to intention to recom-mend. The study reviewed prior literature on intention to recommend. Probability sampling was used to select respondents, and a research model was developed to measure the con-structs used for the study. A field study was conducted in Johannesburg at the University of the Witwatersrand, and research data was collected from 375 registered students of the Uni-versity of the Witwatersrand, 18 years and older. Using the SPSS 24 and AMOS 24 software programs, structural equation modelling (SEM) was performed to analyze the data set. Based on the findings of the study, city perception, destination image and city brand identity all have a positive impact on students’ intention to recommend Johannesburg as a tourist desti-nation. Another contribution to the literature made here was to confirm that city rejuvenation and city brand identity both have a direct and positive impact on destination image. This was confirmed by what Braun, Kavaratzis and Zenker, (2013) stated that in building the city’s im-age, architecture is one of the key elements, which truly needs some visual and concrete fac-tors to catch people’s attentions. Finally, the last contribution to the literature of destination marketing made by the current study is that destination image has a positive relationship on the student’s city perception. This supported Lee and Xie’s, (2011) statement that destination image has a positive effect on city perception.