Evaluating and Categorizing Cruise Lines by ship attributes: A Comparison Between Cruisers and Experts

Electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM) is an important information source used by consumers to make travel decisions. However, eWOM from travel experts and everyday travelers can be inconsistent, potentially leading to blurred product evaluations and market positioning. This paper examines this issue in the context of the cruise industry with the goal of identifying differences in the evaluation of cruise brands by cruise experts and consumers, as well as the product factors that influence these judgements. The research used a data-driven empirical approach and secondary data from a leading cruise review site consisting of scaled ratings across 9 ship attributes and 24 brands by more than 150,000 cruisers and 174 experts. Data analysis using the TOPSIS method and regression and multigroup models shows that experts and cruisers evaluate cruise brands differently and are influenced by different ship attributes when forming evaluations. For example, value-add attributes (e.g., service, enrichment activities, fitness/recreation) significantly influence overall evaluations for cruisers, while core attributes (e.g., cabin, dining, entertainment) significantly influence overall evaluations for experts. Discussion of the empirical results highlights these differences in cruiser vs. expert perceptions as revealed online, as well as the need to update traditional cruise industry categorization to optimize brand positioning and better align product-marketing strategies for effective target marketing.     

FDI对我国民族品牌的消极影响及对策分析

本文深入分析了改革开放以来FDI对我国民族品牌产生的消极影响,强调了民族品牌是促进我国经济腾飞的重要保证,提出了"中国人用中国品牌"的观点,建议政府运用法律支持、政策保障、舆论宣传等手段扶持民族品牌发展,倡导全社会形成"以用国货为荣"的民族意识。     

From Family Business Management to Professional Management in a Time-Honored Brand: The Case of Fu Yuan Guan

This case describes the development process of Fu Yuan Guan, a Chinese time-honored brand. Through privatization, Fu Yuan Guan survived and rapidly captured its market. However, the family business management style proved to be a bottleneck during further expansion. There is a need to recruit qualified professional managers to improve the overall management of the firm but it seems there are challenges in doing so. This case describes the daily operationalization of this family firm together with the approach of top managers, with the purpose of exhibiting how its internal management is implemented.     

Is a $200 Nordstrom Gift Card Worth More or Less Than a $200 Gap Gift Card? The Asymmetric Valuations of Luxury Gift Cards

Gift cards account for a $200 billion market in the US, yet little is known about consumers’ preferences and valuations of different gift cards. We examine how average US consumers feel about exchanging luxury brand gift cards (LGCs) versus non-luxury brand gift cards (NLGCs). Using secondary data analyses, surveys, and experiments, we demonstrate two asymmetries: between valuations of LGCs versus NLGCs and between valuations of gift cards by givers versus recipients. We show that LGCs are valued less than NLGCs with identical price tags. LGCs are more likely to be swapped or sold. Resellers demand and buyers pay lower prices for LGCs. These effects are mediated by the perceived utility of the gift cards as gifts and moderated by a person’s role in the gifting process. Gift givers value and prefer to give LGCs more, whereas recipients prefer and value NLGCs more.     

The ‘disguised’ foreign investor: Brands,trademarks and the British expatriate entrepreneur in Brazil

Abstract

This article examines the impact of the British expatriate entrepreneur, and his processes of knowledge transfer, on the industrialization and economic development of Brazil between 1875 and 1914. It focuses on the textiles industry, and combines original trademark data with conventional trade and investment statistics, and also case study analysis about firms and their entrepreneurs. It argues that British investment in Brazil was higher and had a deeper impact on economic development than considered by existing research, as expatriate entrepreneurs ‘disguised’ a substantial amount of foreign investments by acting as shareholders and top managers of newly established local businesses.     

Royalty: marketplace icons

The term “royalty” connotes people who either occupy the role of monarchs in society, or who are related to these figures by blood or marriage. Although many royal houses around the world occupy a symbolic/ceremonial rather than a political role, royalty and the “human brands” royal families contain remain important sources of aspirational and conspicuous consumption. In this essay, we focus on how the British Royal Family Brand (BRFB; Otnes, Cele C. and Pauline Maclaran. 2015. Royal Fever: The British Monarchy in Consumer Culture. Berkeley: University of California Press.) has remained the most visible and impactful royal variant in the world, even as its economic and political influence, and that of Britain, has waned. We discuss the influence of the BRFB in fueling consumption practices pertaining to commemorative purchasing and collecting, heritage management, perpetuating mass and social media narratives, supporting and perpetuating brands, and spawning and maintaining touristic trends. We observe that successful royal influence is due in part to the ability to leverage key universal narratives (e.g. the triumph of the underdog) and to tap into consumers’ desires to vicariously or actively engage with lifestyles typically accessible only to people who occupy the highest social stratum in their respective cultures. We discuss the implications of royalty on consumer culture, and suggest areas of future research.     

广东老字号品牌文化内涵及形成机制研究

本文从文化解释的角度对广东老字号品牌文化的内涵进行研究。通过对24家知名度高、代表性强的广东老字号的相关品牌信息做内容分析,总结出10个代表广东老字号品牌文化内涵的词语,然后对它们进行了归类和分层,接着提练出广东老字号品牌精神的词语——神秘、永恒和可信。在此基础上结合“天地人”品牌营销模型进行了解释,最后从儒家文化、超自然崇拜和岭南文化的影响三方面对广东老字号品牌文化内涵的形成原因进行了解释。     

品牌娱乐化传播与品牌价值关系的实证研究

本文基于品牌娱乐化传播的视角来研究品牌价值,主要探讨了娱乐显性广告、娱乐隐性广告、娱乐软性广告、赞助和参与媒体娱乐节目、品牌娱乐秀及品牌名人代言等六种品牌娱乐化传播形式与品牌价值的关系。在研究过程方面,本文在提出了研究假设的基础上,选择了适合于娱乐传播的品牌作为研究的刺激物,并设计了量表体系,通过收集数据、使用SPSS13.0统计软件,对数据进行了分析。在研究方法上,本文使用了均值比较法、层次分析法以及模糊评价法对研究假设进行了论证,揭示了六种品牌娱乐化传播形式对提高品牌价值作用的大小。最后,在数据分析结果的基础上,提出了基于品牌娱乐化传播的品牌价值提升策略。     

华商文化传播与中国品牌国际化发展研究

华商文化应是一种弘扬传统华商文化之精髓、吸纳全世界文化之优点、创新、融合、发展中的文化集合体。华商文化应当是中国品牌的灵魂,而中国品牌应当是华商文化的主要载体。在华商文化国际化与中国品牌国际化的进程中,华商文化是神,中国品牌是形,按自然界的规律,只有神形合一,神形相谐,二者才能实现较好的发展,也才能实现最终的中国品牌国际化的目标。     

Performance Analysis of Lodging REITs in Relation to Market Segments

This article examines the financial performance of lodging real estate investment trusts (REITs) in relation to their market focus. Secondary data were collected for from 2004 to 2008 from lodging REITs that were traded on major U.S. stock exchanges. Data envelopment analysis (DEA) was used to assess the efficiencies of market segments to generate financial performance. The results showed that two lodging REITs were consistently efficient during the study period relative to other lodging REITs. In particular, lodging REITs investing and/or operating in one or more relatively similar market segments and those focusing on the upper-upscale segment were more efficient than others. This study could provide managers, owners, and investors of lodging REITs preliminary evidence of the relationship between market segments and firm performance. This article also proposes a framework for future investigations to assess the performance of REITs.