The relevance of visitors’ nation brand embeddedness and personality congruence for nation brand identification, visit intentions and advocacy

The identification with a brand enhances loyalty and purchase intentions. Little is known, however, if this relationship holds in a nation brand context and which variables drive nation brand identification (NBI). This study investigates the relevance of nation brand embeddedness (i.e., the social integration of the individual) and personality congruence (i.e., the congruence between an individual’s and a country’s personality) for NBI, nation brand advocacy and visit intentions. A study of 421 Germans as potential visitors of the Republic of Ireland as a holiday destination was conducted to test the proposed relationships. Results from structural equation modeling showed that NBI and personality congruence strongly influence visit intentions, while nation brand embeddedness is a strong predictor of brand advocacy. Important implications for destination management can be derived.