Published Papers - SANO Kaede

Destination Management with Highly Competitive Advantages through Tourism Digital Transformation: From the Lens of Value Co-creation

佐野楓 （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

観光学評論   12 ( 1 ) 47 - 66   2024.04  [Refereed]  [Invited]

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Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many aspects of society, such as remote work and online meetings, have been rapidly digitized. In response to this abrupt change, the Japan Tourism Agency shifted its focus to the digital transformation of tourism (subsequently referred to as tourism DX). Against this backdrop, the purpose of this study is to investigate, through the lens of value co-creation, what changes the digital technology evolution is bringing to the tourism industry, as well as how to achieve highly competitive tourism destination management through the penetration of tourism DX. In conclusion, digital technology is causing significant changes in the tourism industry. To achieve highly competitive tourism destination management through tourism DX, emphasis should be placed on low-cost tourism DX promotion, the use of multiple data sources, the co-creation of value among all stakeholders in tourism destinations, and the protection of tourists' privacy. The following are some key issues that must be addressed. This study not only adds to the academic field of tourism management by consolidating existing research but also provides practical insight into the management of tourism destinations through tourism DX, a domain that has been gaining importance in recent years.

The effects of temporal distance and post type on tourists' responses to destination marketing organizations’ social media marketing

Kaede Sano, Hiroki Sano, Yuji Yashima, Hajime Takebayashi （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Tourism Management ( Elsevier BV )  101   104844 - 104844   2024.04  [Refereed]

DOI

The role of destination marketing and management organizations in promoting sake tourism: a case study of Japan

Masanao Tachibana, Kaede Sano

Journal of Place Management and Development ( Emerald )    2025.04  [Refereed]

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Purpose

Sake tourism is becoming increasingly popular among international tourists to Japan, and on December 4, 2024, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization registered the “traditional knowledge and skills of sake making with ‘koji’ mold in Japan” as an intangible cultural heritage. However, despite this attention to sake tourism, collaboration among stakeholders remains inefficient, highlighting the need for destination marketing and management organizations (DMOs) to promote content tourism. This study aims to explore the role of DMOs in developing a destination ecosystem (DE) in which various stakeholders collaborate efficiently.

Design/methodology/approach

For the study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 key persons in Myoko, Niigata Prefecture, a famous sake tourism destination.

Findings

The findings show that stakeholders strongly require the leadership of DMOs in creating destination ecosystems and DMOs’ multiple additional roles in developing sake tourism.

Research limitations/implications

Focusing on sake tourism, this study theoretically contributes to research on destination marketing and management by exploring the role of DMOs in culinary tourism and identifying the DMOs’ specific roles in DEs.

Practical implications

Regarding practical implications, this study highlights the importance of DMOs adopting both marketing and management roles in promoting culinary tourism.

Originality/value

Results indicate that major stakeholders expect the DMO to take roles as a marketer in addition to a coordinator between stakeholders in developing sake tourism.

DOI

Book Review

Kaede Sano （Part： Lead author )

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management     2025.03

DOI

Methodological Advances and Theoretical Gaps in Tracking Non‐Urban Tourism Mobility

João Romão, Kaede Sano

International Journal of Tourism Research ( WILEY )    1 - 18   2025.02  [Refereed]

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This perspective article aims at identifying topics for further research based on techniques for tracking the mobility of tourists in areas with low population density, characterized by scarcity of public transport often coexisting with sensitive natural ecosystems. Supported by a systematic scoping review, it identifies studies undertaken in four continents, even though all the articles were published during the last two decades. Marketing approaches and planning for sustainability are the main objectives identified. The works contribute for developing techniques and methodologies for data collection and analysis but the contribution for the emergence of new concepts or theories is limited. The results of this survey suggest that a shift from the focus on individual forms of mobility of tourists to a closer connection to collective forms of transport, mobility of resident populations or emergent concepts in transport studies may contribute for more innovative conceptual or theoretical approaches.

DOI

How Do International and Domestic Tourists Perceive the Service Quality of Japanese Ryokans? A Cross-Cultural Perspective

Fukumi Maki, Kaede Sano, Hao Sun （Part： Corresponding author )

Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality & Tourism ( Taylor & Francis )    1 - 24   2025.01  [Refereed]

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Though tourists’ cultural background is known to substantially influence their assessment of hotel service quality, how tourist and hotel cultures mutually affect each other remains understudied. Focusing on a representative Japanese ryokan as a heritage hotel, this article employs Hofstede’s cultural dimension model to investigate the mechanisms relating tourists’ cultural backgrounds and service quality assessment. From a theoretical perspective, it demonstrates that tourists’ uncertainty avoidance influences perceived quality in tangible aspects of service, while power distance matters for intangible aspects. From a managerial perspective, it shows that tourists’ cultural distance from the ryokan affects their service quality assessment.

DOI

Unveiling the distinctive characteristics of women entrepreneur networks in the tourism industry of developing countries: Insights from the literature

Nozomi Saito, Lisa Ruhanen, Kaede Sano, Seiko Shirasaka

Wakayama Tourism Review   5   6 - 9   2024.03

Sustainable Urban Tourism with Green-Slow Mobility: A Case of Ikebukuro, Japan

Sano, H, Sano, K, Kato, K

Journal of Responsible Tourism Management   4 ( 1 ) 94 - 106   2024.01  [Refereed]

DOI

Tourists' willingness to contribute to smart tourism: a construal level theory perspective

Hao Sun, Kaede Sano

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights ( Emerald )  ahead-of-print   2023.12  [Refereed]

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Purpose

Smart tourism has become an inevitable trend in future tourism development. However, despite significant investment in its technological foundation, little is known about whether and when tourists are willing to be involved in smart tourism. This study explores tourists' willingness to contribute to smart tourism development by empirically examining their intention to share personal information and use smart technology.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on construal level theory (CLT), a 2 (far/near spatial distance) × 2 (gain/loss persuasive information frame) × 2 (altruistic/egoistic value orientation) laboratory experiment with different contextual features was designed to examine tourists' willingness to contribute to smart tourism.

Findings

Tourists are most willing to share personal information and use smart technologies when spatial distance aligns with information framing, spatial distance aligns with value orientation and information framing aligns with value orientation.

Practical implications

This study provides essential insights for destination management organizations (DMOs) about tourists' perceptions of smart tourism, enabling DMOs to develop more precise marketing strategies to encourage tourists to contribute to smart tourism development and enrich tourists' travel experiences.

Originality/value

This study enriches theoretical knowledge of DMOs' boundaries in encouraging tourists to contribute to smart tourism and provides critical insights into future smart tourism development for researchers and practitioners.

DOI

The metaverse in the tourism industry: A new horizon after the COVID-19 pandemic

Kaede Sano, Hiroki Sano, Shuichi Nagata （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Wakayama Tourism Review   4   32 - 35   2023.03

DOI

Spatial Distribution of Accommodation Supply in Osaka City - A Policy Perspective

Sano, K, Nagata, S, Sano, H （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Journal of Responsible Tourism Management ( Sarawak Research Society )  2 ( 2 ) 90 - 102   2022.07  [Refereed]

DOI

Data-driven market segmentation by tourists' mobility patterns: A methodological approach.

Sano, K, Sano, H, Nagata, S （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Wakayama Tourism Review   2   49-51   2022.03

DOI

Exploring the constraints of women entrepreneurs in developing countries: Evidence from the literature

Sano, K, Saito, N （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Wakayama Tourism Review   3   14 - 16   2022.03

DOI

Developing a Smart Tourism Destination through Social Big Data: Multiple Case Studies from Wakayama Prefecture

大池洋史, 佐野楓 （Part： Corresponding author )

Tourism Studies   26   1 - 15   2022.03  [Refereed]

DOI

Current Trends, Issues, and Future Directions of Smart Tourism Development through Big Data.

Kaede Sano （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Journal of Information and Management   41 ( 4 ) 98 - 109   2022.02  [Refereed]

Tourism Destination Image : Lessons learned and ways forward

李思羽, 佐野楓 （Part： Corresponding author )

Tourism Studies   25   25 - 35   2021.09  [Refereed]

DOI

Value co-creation and open innovation in urban smart tourism ecosystem development: A lens from service-dominant logic

Sano, K, Sano, H （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Wakayama Tourism Review   1   9 - 11   2021.03  [Invited]

DOI

Mobility Patterns of International Tourisms: Implications for Responsible Urban Tourism

Kaede Sano （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

Journal of Responsible Tourism Management   1 ( 1 ) 88 - 111   2021.01  [Refereed]

Development of a System for Providing Disaster Prevention Information to International Tourists

志垣沙灯子, 吉野孝, 永井隼人, 佐野楓, RITCHIE Brent W., RITCHIE Brent W.

情報処理学会論文誌ジャーナル(Web)   62 ( 1 ) 204 - 213   2021.01  [Refereed]

Exploring the role of a local official cartoon character in DMO's social media marekting: The case of Wakapan in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan.

Sano, K, Yashima, Y, Wong, I. A, Takebayashi, H （Part： Lead author,　Corresponding author )

The proceedings of the council for Australasian Tourism and Hospitality Education (CAUTHE) 30th Annual conference a     2020.02  [Refereed]