Examining the Antecedents of Brand Engagement of Tourists Based on the Theory of Value Co-Creation

Tourist engagement in marketing activities for destinations has been seen as a new driving force for the sustainable development of such destinations and as an effective way to improve their brand equity. Based on the theory of value co-creation and the theory of consumer-based brand equity for destinations, this paper examines the antecedents of brand engagement and the causal paths among them and compares the estimated values of different paths with brand image, brand awareness, and brand quality as the independent variables; brand value and brand trust as the mediating variables; and brand engagement as the dependent variable, taking Shandong Province as an example. The final results show that brand image, brand awareness, and brand quality are all key antecedents of brand engagement; however, they play different roles. The total effect of brand quality is the largest, the total effect of brand awareness follows, and the total effect of brand image is the smallest. Furthermore, the mediating effect of brand value is larger than the mediating effect of brand trust. The results provide empirical support for promoting the management of brand equity for similar destinations and encouraging tourists to participate in value co-creation activities.