Understanding Cleveland As a Sports Destination
! UNDERSTANDING CLEVELAND AS A SPORTS DESTINATION: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF BRAND PERSONALITY THEORY A thesis submitted to the Kent State University College and Graduate School of Education, Health, and Human Services in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science by Jiayi Wang May 2016 ! ! ! Thesis written by Jiayi Wang B.A., Shanghai Normal University, 2013 M.S., Kent State University, 2016 Approved by _______________________, Director, Master’s Thesis Committee Phillip Wang _______________________, Member, Master’s Thesis Committee Theresa Walton-Fisette _______________________, Member, Master’s Thesis Committee Ju Yup Lee Accepted by _______________________, Director, School of Foundations Leadership Kimberly Schimmel and Administration _______________________, Dean, College of Education, Health and Human Mark Kretovics Services ii! ! ! WANG, JIAYI, M.S., May 2016 Hospitality and Tourism Management UNDERSTANDING CLEVELAND AS A SPORTS DESTIONATION: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF BRAND PERSONALITY THEORY (76 pp.) Director of Thesis: Phillip Wang, PhD In this globalizing world, sporting events play an important role in improving the attractiveness and competitiveness of a city. Sports tourism and sporting events are viewed as a growing niche market. This is reflected by the contribution that sports tourism brings to a destination. As a consequence of sports being attractions or activities that tourists seek to experience in the destination, it is paramount for a destination to be able to offer them. Cleveland’s continuously increasing sports offering is making the city an appealing tourist destination to wider groups of tourists. Brand personality theory provides the theoretical support for the present study. The purpose of the study is to test the brand personality framework in the context of sports tourism, explore the brand personality of Cleveland as a sports destination, and apply the theory into destination marketing.
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