Brand management – standing out from the crowd

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of how brand management research has evolved to inform future hospitality research agendas that are both theoretically and practically innovative and relevant. Design/methodology/approach A review of leading tourism and hospitality journals, augmented by a review of leading mainstream marketing and services journals, over the past 20 years was undertaken. Focusing on papers with an emphasis on the brand, as reflected in the title, over 263 articles were reviewed. Findings In contrast to the more established mainstream literature, brand management research in the hospitality literature is limited in both its depth and breadth. In seeking to go beyond mere replication, and in consideration of industry needs, the review informs the articulation of an integrative research framework that reflects the extant literature and illuminates new research pathways that, in anticipation of making a significant contribution to brand management theory, will enhance hospitality academic and practitioner understanding of brand management. Research limitations/implications The comprehensive critical review affords insight into areas of brand management research innovation, both from a topic and methods perspective. The proposed research agenda not only reflects industry priorities but also responds to gaps within academia’s current understanding of brand management theory, particularly within a service context. Grounded in classical theories and industry insight, the pursuit of topics advanced in the research agenda are expected to make a significant contribution to the theoretical understanding of the brand management concept in an applied setting, in addition to providing timely and relevant insight to practitioners seeking to stand out from the crowd. Originality/value With brands dominating the hospitality landscape, insight derived from thought leading and innovative research is needed. With no comprehensive review of brand management research within the tourism and hospitality literature, clarity with respect to what is known and, more importantly, what is not known is not apparent. This paper addresses this paucity and, in doing so, gives hospitality academics a clear pathway to conducting meaningful and relevant brand management research from both theoretical and practical perspectives.

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