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Experiential Marketing as a Moderating Effect on Exhibitor Performance at International Tourism Trade Shows

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Travel and Tourism: Sustainability, Economics, and Management Issues

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Abstract

International tourism trade shows are an essential instrument for the marketing of goods and services. Trade shows establish direct relationships between supply and demand and provide the opportunity for specific marketing activities. A growing body of academic and practitioner trade show literature has highlighted the relationship between trade show marketing strategies and trade show performance. However, the effect of exhibitor experience on the international trade show marketing strategy and performance relationship has not been addressed in the literature. This paper, therefore, fills the research gap by examining the moderating role of exhibitors’ trust, commitment, and satisfaction during their trading experience at selected trade shows. The purpose of this study is (1) to identify the experiential marketing concepts at international tourism trade shows, (2) to determine the dimensions of exhibitors’ trading experience at international tourism trade shows, (3) to develop a conceptual framework regarding the relationship between the exhibitors’ trading experience and trade show performance, and (4) to propose a new perspective on exhibitors’ performance at international trade shows from an experimental point of view. A theoretical model of the effect that exhibitors’ experience has on trade show performance was developed, drawing on research regarding exhibitor behavior, experiential marketing, government support, and trade show performance. A questionnaire consistent with a positivist methodology was developed and tested, data was collected from 100 respondents, and structural equation modeling was used to test the theoretical and other competing models. This study provides an initial understanding of the nature of exhibitors’ experiences at international trade shows. By reporting exhibitor responses, this study also contributes to research on trade show performance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Hotel and Tourism Management, Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Puncak Alam Campus, Shah Alam, Malaysia

    Zauyani Zainal Mohamed Alias & Nor’ain Othman

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  1. Zauyani Zainal Mohamed Alias
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  2. Nor’ain Othman
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Correspondence to Zauyani Zainal Mohamed Alias .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Tourism, Anadolu University, Tepebaşı, Eskişehir, Turkey

    İnci Oya Coşkun

  2. Faculty of Hotel and Tourism Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Selangor, Malaysia

    Nor’ain Othman

  3. Department of Tourism Management, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka, Belihuloya, Sri Lanka

    Mohamed Aslam

  4. Department of Geography, Planning and Recreation, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA

    Alan Lew

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Alias, Z.Z.M., Othman, N. (2020). Experiential Marketing as a Moderating Effect on Exhibitor Performance at International Tourism Trade Shows. In: Coşkun, İ., Othman, N., Aslam, M., Lew, A. (eds) Travel and Tourism: Sustainability, Economics, and Management Issues. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-7068-6_3

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