Positioning Warrington for Day Trip Tourism: Assessing Visitor and Non-Visitor Images

The paper reports the results of exploratory research into visitor and non-visitor Images of Warrington in the Northwest of England, a project designed to Inform the development of the town's day trip tourism product and its positioning strategy. Warrington's visitor and non-visitor images were largely undifferentiated on the basis of socio-economic and behavioral variables. In general, visitor images were more positive than non-visitor images and Warrington's image improved with increasing visitation and familiarity. Five factors explain just over 60% of the variance in visitors' image attribute ratings and just under 55% of the variability in visitors' overall satisfaction. Visitor perceptions of Warrington's negative attributes have the largest impact on satisfaction. Opinion is divided on the town's suitability for a day trip, although there is general agreement about its potential. The limitations of the research and the implications of the results are discussed and recommendations are made.