1. I
MSc International Festival and Event Management
Master Dissertation
SESSION 2013/2014
TITLE
What role does food has in designing event experience and
how this influences the emotional connection of the attendees
to the event.
Author
Germán Nieto Sáenz de Santamaría
40127215
Supervisor: Senior Lecturer Joan McLatchie

2. II
What role does food has in designing event experience
and how this influences the emotional connection of the
attendees to the event.
By
Germán Nieto Sáenz de Santamaría
December, 2014
Thesis submitted in partial fulfilment
Of the Degree of
Master of Science
in
International Festival and Event Management

3. III
1 Consent Form
I confirm that this project is all my own work. I understand that my written permission is required for
the University to make copies of my project available to future students for reference purposes and
that my name may be evident. I hereby give my consent to my named work being made available. I
confirm that my work is not confidential.
Print name……Germán Nieto…………………………….
Signature…………………………………… Date……17/12/2014……………………
Faculty Business School, School of Marketing, Tourism and Languages.
Module: Masters Degree Dissertation
Title: What role does food has in designing event experience event and how this influences the
emotional connection of the attendees to the event.
Location in which to be held……Room 1/53 Craiglockhart Campus

4. IV
2 Declaration
I declare that the work undertaken for this MSc Dissertation has been undertaken by myself
and the final Dissertation produced by me. The work has not been submitted in part or in
whole in regard to any other academic qualification.
Title of Dissertation:
What role does food has in designing event experience and
how this influences the emotional connection of the
attendees to the event.
Name: German Nieto
Signature:
Date: 17/12/2014

5. V
3 Confidentiality in Use of Data Provided by Third Parties
The data received from the organisations listed below have been used solely in the pursuit of
the academic objectives of the work contained in this Dissertation and has not and will not be
used for any other out with that agreed to by the provider of the data.
Name: German Nieto
Signature:
Date: 17/12/2014
List of Data providers:
 Heritage Portfolio
 Assembly Rooms Edinburgh
 Edinburgh First
 Edinburgh Sheraton Grand Hotel & SPA
 Prestige Venues & Events

6. VI
4 Abstract
Purpose: recently, scholars have investigated the role of food in conferences and conventions
as an important factor in the program of events which generates an intention of returning to
attend other events. The purpose of this study is to investigate and analyse how food at an
event generates an emotional connection to the event and therefore loyalty. Likewise an
analysis of the main factors of food to create that emotional commitment has been carried
out.
Design/methodology/approach: the philosophy used is interpretative because it is more
focused on the interpretation of the data rather than quantitative analysis. The research
approach adopted in this paper has been an inductive approach. The research strategy which
was used to obtain the data is the qualitative method. The approach used has been thematic
analysis throughout; semi-structured interviews and a brief questionnaire were the processes
used to collect the data.
Findings: the suppliers and organiser of events become increasingly aware of the role of food
as an instrument which gives customers memorable experiences which drives an emotional
connection thus creating loyalty in them. In addition customer to customer meetings are
considered useful networking activities to obtain loyal behaviour.
Research Limitations: the time of completion for this study has been limited to four months
which has resulted in the geographic area being restricted to the area of the city of Edinburgh,
14 organisations were contacted, 5 of them accepted to take part in this research project, as a
consequence the validation and generalisation of the findings may be questionable due to the
small sample group.
Practical implications: this paper can help organisers and suppliers of events to create
memorable experiences in which their clients feel an emotional connection with them which
drives loyalty.

7. VII
Originality/value: this paper fills the gap of the role of food in events for several reasons. On
the one hand there are very few papers that address the relationship that exists between food
and how this creates a memorable experience and therefore make an emotional commitment
to the event which leads to loyalty, on the other, these studies are based on the point of view
the attendees, however, none of these studies investigates the function of the food as an
instrument to achieve that emotional connection from the point of view of suppliers, i.e. such
as the hosted venues, caterers and event organising firms.
Keywords: conference food factors and attributes, attendee satisfaction, emotional
commitment, co-creation value and loyalty.

8. VIII
5 Acknowledgments
I want to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor Joan McLatchie because she has
helped me to be able to focus at all times on different matters of this dissertation and her
knowledge has helped me to keep a straight path. In addition, I would like to declare my
thankfulness to my Study Support Sarah Terry who has been by my side along this process
and has been sharing with me a lot of hours of proof reading and understanding the structure
of this paper. Both of them were very sympathetic when I broke down and collapsed and they
advised me to stop studying for a while and restart when I had recovered. This advice was
very wise and useful because of the fact that I am now able to finish this paper. In addition I
am very grateful to my friend and classmate Miriam Canchado who has advised me to select
the best approach for doing the different chapters of this dissertation.
I would like to say that I am very grateful to all the scholars who have taken part in all of the
studies which I have read and used in this research project for several reasons; I have
acquired a lot of new knowledge about the role of the food and its emotional connection and
loyalty within the events industry, this has given rise to more doubts and issues to think about
in which in the world of academia is really good.
Finally I want to say that this paper is dedicated to the participants who have taken part in my
research project in particular, and all of the suppliers in event industry in general. I want to
express my gratitude to them for receiving me and giving me some of their busy time, sharing
their experiences and understanding of the industry, with me during the process of the
interviews. The data collection has been very enriching and interesting and has added more
and new findings to this field of knowledge. I have to say that they were very patient with me
for dealing with the all the e-mails I sent them in order that they were able to take part in this
study and arrange the appointments.
I hope this paper will be useful in the future for scholars.
Thank you very much.

9. IX
Table of Contents
1 Consent Form................................................................................................................................. I
2 Declaration...................................................................................................................................IV
3 Confidentiality in Use of Data Provided by Third Parties.............................................................V
4 Abstract........................................................................................................................................VI
5 Acknowledgments......................................................................................................................VIII
6 List of Tables and Figures............................................................................................................. 1
7 Introduction................................................................................................................................... 2
7.1 Research Context and Background ....................................................................................... 2
7.2 Aim and Objectives............................................................................................................... 4
7.3 Overview of the Methodology .............................................................................................. 5
7.4 Study Limitations.................................................................................................................. 5
7.5 Dissertation Structure............................................................................................................ 6
8 Literature Review ......................................................................................................................... 7
8.1 Satisfaction and Loyalty in Events........................................................................................ 8
8.2 Emotional Commitment, Delight Customers and Experience of the Event ......................... 10
8.3 Co-Creation Value .............................................................................................................. 13
8.4 The role of the food in Conferences .................................................................................... 16
8.5 Summary............................................................................................................................. 17
9 Methodology............................................................................................................................... 20
9.1 Philosophical Approach ...................................................................................................... 20
9.1.1 Research Approach ..................................................................................................... 21
9.1.2 Research Strategy........................................................................................................ 21
9.2 Research Design.................................................................................................................. 22
9.3 Research.............................................................................................................................. 23
9.3.1 Sampling ..................................................................................................................... 24
9.3.2 Measuring Instruments................................................................................................ 25
9.3.3 Pilot Study................................................................................................................... 27
9.3.4 Data Collection ........................................................................................................... 27
9.3.5 Analysis of Qualitative Data ....................................................................................... 29
9.4 Reliability, Validity and Generalisability............................................................................ 30
9.5 Ethical Issues ...................................................................................................................... 31
9.6 Research Limitations........................................................................................................... 31
10 Data Analysis.......................................................................................................................... 33
10.1 Profile of interviews............................................................................................................ 34
10.2 Factors and Attributes of the Food function in Events which Generate Satisfaction ........... 37

10. X
10.2.1 Factor 1. Food content quality..................................................................................... 37
10.2.2 Factor 2. Recognition of personal preference.............................................................. 38
10.2.3 Factor 3. Menu Selection............................................................................................. 39
10.2.4 Factor 4. Service Delivery........................................................................................... 40
10.2.5 Summary..................................................................................................................... 41
10.3 How Emotional Connection Affects Behavioural Intention................................................. 41
10.3.1 Satisfaction Leading to Behavioural Intention............................................................. 42
10.3.2 Emotional Connection................................................................................................. 43
10.3.3 Summary..................................................................................................................... 47
10.4 The Contribution that Food Makes to Satisfaction and Emotional Connection. .................. 47
10.4.1 Summary..................................................................................................................... 51
10.5 Co-Creation Value Model can Generate Emotional Commitment to Generate Loyalty ...... 51
10.5.1 Summary..................................................................................................................... 55
10.6 The Role of the Food in Meeting the Needs of Delegates, Creating Loyalty in Them ........ 55
10.6.1 Summary..................................................................................................................... 59
10.7 Summary of the Findings.................................................................................................... 60
11 Conclusions and Recommendations........................................................................................ 63
11.1 Conclusions......................................................................................................................... 64
11.1.1 The Key Factors of the food and their Attributes that Generates Satisfaction in
Delegates..................................................................................................................................... 64
11.1.2 Emotional Connection (EC) Affects Behavioural Intention.......................................... 65
11.1.3 The Contribution that Food Makes to Satisfaction and Emotional Connection .......... 66
11.1.4 Co-Creation Value Model can Generate Emotional Commitment to Generate Loyalty
67
11.1.5 The Role of the Food in Meeting the Needs of Delegates, Creating Loyalty in Them.. 67
11.2 Recommendations............................................................................................................... 68
11.3 Future Research .................................................................................................................. 71
12 References............................................................................................................................... 72
13 Appendices ............................................................................................................................. 79
13.1 Appendix 1 Self-administrated Questionnaire..................................................................... 79
13.2 Appendix 2 Design of the Interview ................................................................................... 82
13.2.1 Satisfaction.................................................................................................................. 82
13.2.2 Emotional Commitment .............................................................................................. 82
13.2.3 Co-Creation Value ...................................................................................................... 83
13.2.4 Food ............................................................................................................................ 83

11. XI
13.3 Appendix 3 Transcription of an Interview........................................................................... 84
13.3.1 Satisfaction.................................................................................................................. 84
13.3.2 Emotional Commitment .............................................................................................. 86
13.3.3 Co-Creation Value ...................................................................................................... 92
13.3.4 Food ............................................................................................................................ 97
13.4 Appendix 4 Summary of an Interview .............................................................................. 102
13.4.1 Satisfaction................................................................................................................ 102
13.4.2 Emotional Commitment ............................................................................................ 103
13.4.3 Co –Creating Value................................................................................................... 107
13.4.4 Food .......................................................................................................................... 109

12. 1
6 List of Tables and Figures
Table 1 Profiles of the Participants .................................................................................................... 35
Table 2 Factor 1: Food Content Quality............................................................................................. 37
Table 3 Factor 2: Recognition of Personal Preference....................................................................... 38
Table 4 Factor3: Menu Selection........................................................................................................ 39
Table 5 Factor 4: Service Delivery..................................................................................................... 40

13. 2
7 Introduction
This chapter will be divided into different sections. First, a presentation of the investigation
topic will be conducted in order to establish its text and background. Second, a statement of
the Aims and Objectives is going to be made in this paper, followed by a concise explanation
of the methodology that has been used, as well as the limitations of this research. Finally a
description of the overall structure of this study will be described in terms of facilitating the
reading it.
7.1 Research Context and Background
The act of eating is very important in our lives for various reasons. On the one hand,
throughout life humans’ need to be fed, on the other hand, humans found having in a meal is
one of the best ways to socialise (Mason and Paggiaro, 2012). Around food a wide range of
feelings and memorable experiences can be created because the main senses are involved
(Nelson, 2009). Through sight we imagine the flavour of the food and we awake the desire to
eat, by the sensation of smell, taste glands allows us to absorb the different aromas of the
ingredients used in the food and by taste allows people to savour a recipe differentiating the
different textures and flavours (Mason and Paggiaro, 2012). These authors state that it is
these memorable experiences in which all senses are involved, as opposed to those which
only involve the cognitive senses. With regard to the role of senses in event experience
Nelson (2009) states that aroma is a key driver which can manipulate emotions and
memories. Therefore, the author of this study aims to link the MICE industry with the role of
food in order that the event organizers’ firms acquire more competitiveness.
Today a symbol of economic progress in a country is the development of a knowledge
economy through the MICE industry (Wei and Huang, 2013). In this market, marketing
plans must be carried out to understand the reasons why delegates attend the meetings and
what is more important, the behaviours developed and what motivates them to repeat the
experience which in turn lead to benefits and maintains the sustainability of events (Kim,
Lee, and Love, 2009).

14. 3
The intention is to create in delegates a sense of loyalty that makes them want to repeat
attendance at the event (Wei and Huang, 2013). To get this loyalty several steps are necessary
to be taken. First, develop an emotional connection with the customer for that event and the
most appropriate way is to create the feeling of satisfaction (Mason and Paggiaro 2012).
Second, discovering which behavioural intentions are generated to create loyalty to the event
(Baker and Crompton 2000; Lee, Yoon and Lee, 2007; McDougall, G., Levesque, T., 2000).
Third, how to create an Emotional Commitment (E.C.) in the audience as this is one of the
most important factors in creating a sense of loyalty (Tanford, Montgomery and Nelson
(2012). However, E.C. has not been investigated enough in the M.I.C.E. Industry (Ibid).
Fourth, Berman (2005) states that one of the best ways to create a strong E.C. is through
delighting customers because this feeling is stronger than satisfaction; where the customers
are surprised by the unexpected provided by the organisation (Gwynne, 2002). Fifth,
according to Pine and Gilmore (1998), creating memorable experiences is an effective
instrument to generate emotional commitment because as more senses are involved in the
experiences the better to create loyalty. Sixth, some scholars found that throughout the
paradigm of Co-Creation Value this is a good method to engage the customer as a partner in
the firms which increase the degree of loyalty to the firm (Chathoth et al., 2013; Guren,
Osmonbekov and Czaplewski, 2007; Payne et al., 2009; Van Limburgh, 2008). Finally, it is
interesting to note that food is one of the key factors in the program of meetings in generating
behaviours of intent to return (Kim et al. 2009). With regard to the attributes of the food;
content, quality and local sourcing are the key drivers that create loyalty (Armer, 2004;
Servert et al. 2007; Tanford, Montgomery and Nelson, 2012).
However, the role of food to generate an emotional commitment has not been assessed
enough by the M.I.C.E only two articles have been found related to this topic (Kim et al.
2009; Wei and Huang, 2013). Moreover, networking activities are not satisfactory enough for
attendees, in which to develop socially (Tanford, Montgomery and Nelson, 2012). Keeping in
mind that the food at the events is where delegates can develop their networking connections
plays a fundamental role (Ha and Jang, 2010).
In the literature review several gaps have been found, therefore this paper needs to be written
for several reasons. First, there is little research that analyses the strategic plans undertaken
by organisers in order to enable attendees to develop their networking. Second, no literature
appears to exist which assesses how the organisers use the role of food to create an emotional
commitment to an event. Third, as said before the small number of scholars have studied the

15. 4
role of the food in generating emotional connection, those that have focused on the point of
view of the attendees, but not from the side of how the suppliers, hosted venues, hotels,
associations and caterers, take into consideration the role of the food to achieve loyalty by
their customers. Finally, this research will be very useful for the M.I.C.E. industry in
Edinburgh because there is not any kind of research on this field in the city.
7.2 Aim and Objectives
The proposed aim of this research is: What role does food have in designing an event
experience and how this influences the emotional connection of the attendees to the event.
The questions underpinning this research study are:
 What are the key factors of the food and their attributes that generate satisfaction in
delegates?
 Does food contribute to emotional connection, and affect behavioural intention?
 How can the Co-Creation Value model contribute to achieve a memorable experience
and generate loyalty?
 Is food a key factor in events in meeting the needs of delegates; creating loyalty in
them?
The objectives of this research proposal have been designed with the purpose of achieving the
main objective of this paper. Objective 1 relates to the literature review. However, objectives
2,3,4,5 and are linked to methodology and data collection.
Objective 1: To conduct a review of relevant research in the subject area.
Objective 2: Investigate the key factors of the food and their attributes that generates
satisfaction in delegates.
Objective 3: Examine the procedure of how emotional connection affects behavioural
intention.
Objective 4: Analyse the contribution that food makes to satisfaction and emotional
connection.
Objective 5: Evaluate how Co-Creation Value Model can generate Emotional
Commitment to generate loyalty.

16. 5
Objective 6: Explore the role of food in meeting the needs of delegates, creating
loyalty in them.
Objective 7: Draw conclusions and make recommendations based on the research
findings.
7.3 Overview of the Methodology
The purpose of a research project is to meet targets by collecting primary data (Saunders et
al., 2012). As mentioned above few articles have been found related to this topic, after
investigating the literature review the best method to obtain data about the role of the food in
events is qualitative methodology.
In this paper a thematic analysis design has been used in order to make an in-depth
assessment of the way food can generate emotional commitment to events, thus creating a
sense of loyalty by the attendees to events. The analysis of the data has been carried out
taking into consideration the individual characteristics of each case as well as the common
aspects across all the cases.
Two research methods have been used to gather the primary data. On the one hand, a self-
completed questionnaire and the other face to face interviews which most were made in the
firms’ offices, which employ the food as an element in the delivering and planning of events.
7.4 Study Limitations
The design of this research project was made in order to have a comprehensive and deeper
knowledge of how food is taken into consideration by suppliers as a factor in the program of
events which can influence attendees´ intentions to return, however some restrictions have
been found, these are as follow:
 The time period is not sufficient to conduct more interviews.
 The city of Edinburgh has been chosen as a specific sphere, which has played a very
small part in what had been desired; a wider scope as all Scotland or the UK as a
whole.

17. 6
 14 organizations were selected as a sample, however, only 5 of them agreed to take
part in this research.
 The backgrounds of the professionals come from senior positions of the different
firms, which affected the level of subjectivity which could be detected in the findings
of the investigation.
7.5 Dissertation Structure
The overall structure of this paper is divided into five chapters. First, is the introductory
chapter; the second chapter is focused on the literature review which is subdivided into
different sections which are related to the main subjects of the topic of this research project.
Third, this chapter discusses different matters related to the methodology such as the
explanation of the methods which have been chosen to collect the data and how these tools
have been employed. Moreover, issues with regard to reliability, validity and feasibility in
which ethical considerations are included in this chapter. The fourth chapter addresses the
data analysis which aims to compare the data obtained by scholars which has been considered
in the literature review and check on the collected data of this paper and discover how much
it matches or is different from them. In the final chapter a number of conclusions will be
given in order to provide several recommendations with the aim of improving the role of the
food in events as a key instrument throughout the suppliers generated an emotional
commitment, therefore loyalty, with their firms by the customers.

18. 7
8 Literature Review
In recent years, to attract delegates to congresses and conferences is one of the great
challenges of the marketing departments of companies (Palmer, 2011). Therefore firms
should update marketing tools in order to understand the factors that affect attendees’
attendance at conferences and conventions (Ibid.). King (2011) agues that for a growing
MICE industry it is necessary to boost the likelihood of customers repeating their attendance
at events which is known as loyalty. This could be achieved by using different methods.
Firstly, understanding the need to create satisfaction in customers (Baker and Cromptom
2000); Second, the relationship between satisfaction and the excellence of the product;
Third, understanding how Emotional Commitment (EM) is a key element of forecasting
loyalty (Bowen, and Shoemaker, 2003); Fourth, creating a memorable experience as a
predictor of satisfaction (Montgomery and Nelson 2012); Fifth, the role of co-creation value
as one of the drivers to personalise a memorable experience for the customer (Prahalad and
Ramaswamy 2004); and finally in the case of this paper the function food has in order to
ensure client satisfaction and therefore a likely return to an event (Kim et al., 2009).
Bryman and Bell (2011) state that a literature review is a key tool in the research process
because it helps understanding what has been researched about in this instance a topic in the
dissertation and gives a general idea of the main fields of research in this area. Therefore, in
this chapter, a literature review will be conducted for the purpose of achieving the objectives
of this paper. Consequently, through an analysis of the literature on the one hand a vision of
the main factors involved in creating loyalty to an event by attendance, and on the other an
assessment of the role of food will be made to achieve that loyalty. It is worth pointing out
that a very small number of reports and studies have been published related to the role of
food in congresses and conferences as a factor of gaining loyalty to a specific event.
Therefore in this chapter an overview will be taken just to cover the main objectives of this
research topic. Thus this chapter has been divided into four key areas which are related to the
themes within the subject. Firstly, an analysis of key factors influencing satisfaction and how
this has an effect on generating loyalty. Secondly, matters regarding Emotional Commitment
such as the Delight of Customers and Experience of the Event, will be carried out. Thirdly, an
assessment of the Co-creation value will be made paying particular attention to the Customer
to Customer model (C2C) as a one of the latest trends to generate commitment. Thereafter, a
review of the role of the food and its attributes to achieve the return of the customer to the

19. 8
event will be carried out. Finally, a summary of the main topics related to our subject will be
given.
8.1 Satisfaction and Loyalty in Events
A high level of customer satisfaction by the consumer is essential to have a privileged
position in the world tourism industry (Meng, Tepanon and Uysal, 2008). The level of
satisfaction in the consumption of the product makes the customer willing to have the
intention of repeating the attendance at an event and in turn recommend attending it (Wei and
Huang, 2013).
According to Oliver (1981) the definition of satisfaction is “the summary psychological
state resulting when the emotion surrounding disconfirmed expectations is coupled with the
consumer’s prior feelings about the consumption experience’’ (Oliver, 1981, p. 27). This
definition is based on emotional aspects and the theory of expectation. However, the same
author extended this definition by introducing the concept of the satisfaction that comes
through judgment of goods and services obtained. These are subjectively valued by the
customer as a result of consumption of the product. Likewise, the customer balances whether
the product meets his/her needs and if this exceeded expectations (Oliver, 1999). Moreover,
Mason and Paggiaro (2012) state that satisfaction has two sides: a cognitive side and an
emotional side, these allow an assessment of the consumption experience. Therefore,
according to these approaches the valuation of the experience has an emotional and
evaluative component.
It could be argued that a high level of quality in the delivery of the service experience
provokes positive emotions in consumers and they generate favourable behaviours (Mason
and Paggiaro, 2012). This statement could be reinforced by the findings of Oliver, Rust and
Varki (1997) that a high level of satisfaction generates some positive emotions which
increase the intention to repurchase the product, therefore the satisfaction experienced by the
customer is related to the behavior intention (Mason and Paggiaro, 2012). Baker and
Crompton (2000) state that overall satisfaction of attendees to an event has been described as
a useful predictor of future behavioral intentions. It is worth noting that value is linked to
customer satisfaction and this is related to the quality of the product (Lee, Yoon and Lee,
2007).

20. 9
Yoon, Lee and Lee (2010) state that the quality of the product has an effect on the satisfaction
of the product and on the loyalty of the customers to an event; according to Cromptom and
Love (1995), quality has two dimensions. Firstly quality from the point of view of
performance, which relates to the attributes of service delivery and secondly, quality as an
emotional experience that is highly related to satisfaction. Thus, quality involved in
behavioural intentions turns from being a precursor to the satisfaction of the event, to causing
attendee loyalty, which is much more important than satisfaction (Baker and Crompton 2000;
Lee, Lee, Lee and Babin, 2008; Wang, Lo, Chi and Yang, 2004.)
According to Kim, Suh and Eves (2010) loyalty is purchasing behaviour that is related to
repurchase intentions and these are influenced by recommendations and word-of-mouth-
communication. Therefore, there is a clear relationship between consumer satisfaction and
future intentions to participate in events. Severt, Wang, et al. (2007) investigated the
relationship between total satisfaction of an event with the loyalty behaviour of its attendees.
The investigation revealed that they had not done a thorough analysis of the specific factors
attributing to the conventions that create satisfaction. They came to the conclusion that
educational benefits and business association connections are the main attributes of a
convention, but educational benefits have a fundamental role in the satisfaction of the event.
After this research, networking, program and the cost of travelling were found as key factors
to attendance of future events (Mair and Thompson, 2009; Yoo and Zhao, 2010). Moreover,
all of these factors are related to the overall satisfaction of an event and these cause intention
behavious of loyalty (Tanford, Montgomery and Nelson, 2012).
Likewise satisfaction has a positive effect on loyalty, having been assessed by different
scholars who state that satisfaction is a precursory step to loyalty (Baker and Crompton 2000;
Lee, Yoon and Lee, 2007; McDougall, G., Levesque, T., 2000). It is worth noting that
behavioural intentions are frequently identified with loyalty, (Tanford, Montgomery and
Nelson, 2012). According to Zeithaml et al. (1996) the key loyalty behaviours are: first,
positive word-of-mouth; second, recommendations to others; third, repurchase intentions;
and, finally, high tolerance of a price premium.
However, Lu and Cai (2011), who conducted a research study in China, did not find a
relationship between satisfaction and loyalty to an event. In contrast, Tanford, Montgomery
and Nelson (2012) in their studies carried out in the United States, found a relationship
between satisfaction and loyal behaviour towards an event. Never the less, there the most

21. 10
notable factor, as a loyalty indicator, which is strongly linked to satisfaction, is an Emotional
Commitment (Barsky and Nash, 2002; Bowen and Shoemaker, 2003; Mattila, 2006; Tanford,
Raab and Kim, 2011).
8.2 Emotional Commitment, Delight Customers and Experience of the Event
“Emotional commitment was the strongest predictor of loyalty,” (Tanford, Montgomery and
Nelson, 2012). There are several ways to generate an emotional Commitment. On the one
hand, creating relationships between attendees and the event which results in an increase of a
high level of loyalty (Bowen, and Shoemaker, 2003), on the other, generating a sense of
belonging and a personal identification with the event, (Fullerton, 2003; Jones, Reynolds,
Mothersbaugh, and Beatty, 2007; Sui and Baloglu, 2003). According to Tanford,
Montgomery and Nelson (2012) Emotional Commitment (EC) enables a number of positive
behaviours to be generated by decreasing the possibility of changing or generating negative
thoughts about the event. Moreover E.C. is a fundamental factor in generating a positive
feeling in attendees of the event which will encourage them to repeat their attendance to it
(Tanford, Montgomery and Hertzman, 2012). This loyal behaviour is worthy of special
attention because repeat attendees attending events have a tendency to spend more time at the
destination and therefore spend more money during their stay, which is essential to develop
M.I.C.E related to tourism industry (Shani, Rivera and Hara, 2009).
However, Tanford, Montgomery and Nelson (2012) state that E.C. has not been assessed
enough in relation to congresses and conferences rather it has been addressed in the field of
hospitality. Their findings were several: first, building affective relationships with clients is a
good tool in generating a relationship of long-term loyalty; second, E.C. is a good way to
create a feeling that will generate a sense of belonging and being part of something which
will maintain a connection with the event; E.C. is a more important factor in creating loyalty
than others such as, reward programs, benefits, obligation, or expectations of others. Thus,
event organizers should create communication bridges with their customers to carry out a
strategic plan in order to develop an Emotional Commitment of delegates to the experience.
In addition, it could be argued that affective relationships could be developed by delighting
the customers (Berman, 2005).

22. 11
According to Berman (2005) delight is a lot more powerful element to create loyalty than
satisfaction. In fact satisfaction generates a 29% possibility of rebuy or re-lease, in contrast,
delight generates an 84% chance of rebuy (Keiningham and Vavra, 2002). It is worth noting
that the increased 5% increase in customer loyalty can generate between 25% to 85%
increase in profits for companies ( Reichheld and Sasser, 1990). Berman (2005) states that
satisfaction and delight are different things: on the one hand, satisfaction is linked to meeting
the needs of consumers through product attributes, and on the other, delight can meet the
needs of consumers by surprise and enjoyment of it (Gwynne, 2002). In addition, there are
several differences between delight and satisfaction. These are: first, delight is more
cognitive and delight is more affective; second, delightful experiences are more significant
than satisfactory so the trace of the memory of the experience is stronger when the customer
is delighted than when he is satisfied; finally, satisfaction is based on compliance to product
expectations and delight is based on expectations through overcoming these unexpected
positive surprises.
However, whereas the relationship between satisfaction, loyalty and profits has been
extensively studied, the relationship between delight and no benefits has been less analysed.
Likewise, the loyalty curve remains flat or declines after a satisfying experience; after a
delightful experience staying up quickly and further generates emotional commitment in the
customer. (Dick and Basu, 2002). Berman (2005) state that companies need to assess the
product/service attributes with the aim of getting a high level of client delight to exceed their
expectations in respect of the consuming experience. Therefore, one ‘delightful’ strategic
plan should be considered in the services offered which can provide a delightful experience
and therefore increase customer loyalty to the organisation, consequently generating more
profit.
Pine and Gilmore (1998) state that there has been a change in the service economy in the
experience economy; this new paradigm of the economy creates a memorable experiences to
consumers that allows them to have an emotional commitment to the product and companies
to have an advantage over competitors, by creating a bond of loyalty with their customers.
This experience economy allows customers to engage in a personal way because they feel the
experience as unique and significant which leads to development and personal transformation
(Morgan, Elbe and de Esteban Curiel, 2009). Therefore, organisations should develop a plan
to deliver a memorable experience (Pine and Gilmore 1998).

23. 12
This model of experience is based on two main models. Firstly, the Four Realms of an
Experience, secondly, Designing Memorable Experiences (Pine and Gilmore 1998). The Four
Realms of an Experience Model take into account four elements: Entertainment, Educational,
Escapism and Aesthetic. Likewise, these elements have a relationship with two dimensions,
on the one hand customer participation, which could be active or passive. On the other, the
connection or relationship that matches the attendee with the event, this can be absorption or
immersion. According to the authors the objective of the Management Experience is to touch
the ‘Sweet Spot’ which takes into account the four realms and two dimensions. According to
the authors to design a memorable experience it is necessary to take into account some design
principles. These are: The Theme Experience, Harmonize impressions with positive cues,
Eliminate Negative Cues, Mix in Memorabilia and Engage all five senses. With regard to
this, as more senses are involved the more effective the experience will be, therefore this will
generate more Emotional Commitment by the customer.
The creators based on their previous paper stated that the best way to create a memorable
experience through metaphor was that the service is like a drama (Pine and Gilmore, 1999).
The drama is the strategic plan of the company, the libretto is the procedure and the
performance is the creation of the experience of staging the play. However, Nijs (2003) states
that Experience Economy cannot be applied to all countries because this adapts very well to
the masculine culture following Hofstede's (1980) theory. The author says that this theory is
more difficult to implement in countries where a model of feminine culture is predominant
such as the countries of Northern Europe, environmental values dominate and are necessary
to take into account when creating an emotional experience for the consumer. Nevertheless,
Morgan et al. (2009) argue that the customers are predisposed to having active participation
in the experience of the event and this gives them an emotional satisfaction, therefore
enriching their quality of life.

24. 13
8.3 Co-Creation Value
Event planning companies have realized that to remain competitive they have to deliver
memorable experiences to their customers whose expectations are evolving on a continuous
basis (Walls et al., 2011). These experiences have to be unique, proactive and positive to
meet the needs of the clients with the aim of achieving customer satisfaction and generate in
them loyalty to the company (Chathoth et al., 2013). Therefore, the suppliers have to create a
new channel of interaction and communication between them and their customers in order to
create a new value of the products by them (Grissemann and Stokburger-Sauer, 2012).
According to Prahalad and Ramaswamy (2004) the value creation process has evolved from
the company to creating experiences for their consumers. Van Limburg (2008) states the
creation of value by the companies were focused on the products and services, likewise
marketing departments focused on sales and product orientation, but this approach is not
competitive in the contemporary market. In addition, other authors declare that the new co-
creation value is based on the interaction between firms and customers, thus they take an
important role in this new process because they act as agents of the companies creating a new
network (Ertimur and Venkatesh, 2010; Prahalad and Ramaswamy2004; Vargo and Lusch,
2008).
Co-creation of value is based on customer behaviour which carries out an involvement of
loyalty to the firm (Shaw, Bailey and Williams, 2011; Verhoef, Reinartz and Krafft, 2010). It
could be said that (Kristensson, Matthing and Johansson, 2008) the aim of co-creation is the
conception or improvement of a new product or service, through close collaboration between all
stakeholders involved in the process of development of these. Therefore the product or service that
comes out of this collaboration is based on customers’ needs, who have expressed their needs through
dialogue with the firms. This fact can be deduced by the fact that the production process has shifted
from firm-centric to customer-centric interaction (Kristensson, Matthing and Johansson, 2008).
Prahalad and Ramaswamy (2004) argue that the most important point of view of this model is that
customers have a memorable experience involved in the production process of the product or service,
resulting in a unique value created. This is achieved by generating a personalized experience that
meets the needs and expectations of customers.
Prahalad and Ramaswamy (2004) state the DART model which is an efficient way to achieve
a memorable experience by customers therefore the co-creation value of the product is
created. This model is based on four pillars which are Dialogue, Access, Risk Assessment

25. 14
and Transparency. Dialogue is achieved by the interaction between the companies and
clients, as well as among customers, Dialogue is the most important aspect of the co-creation
process (Grissemann and Stokburger-Sauer, 2012). Access is related to the information of
both sides; customers and firms. Risk Assessment is the probability of a customer being
harmed, it is worth noting that if the customer is available to manage his own risk he is
willing to take part in the dialogue. Finally, Transparency is the willingness of the company
to provide information to consumers so that they have greater product knowledge and can
relate to their needs. The DART model allows customers to have a co-created experience
which allows them to share with the firms their needs, ideas and solutions (Van Limburg,
2008).
However, Friesen (2001) argue that to establish a dialogue between consumers and
businesses is not an easy task because the interests of consumers and firms are different. On
the one hand consumers are willing to pay the minimum price for products or services, on the
other companies seek to maximize their profits. Nevertheless, Co-creation process has several
advantages: firstly, these interactions allow the generating of knowledge; secondly, this
allows companies get a source of information that makes them more competitive in the
market and allows them to adapt to the needs of consumers which are changing continuously
( Lusch et al., 2007; Melancon et al., 2010). The continuing evolution of consumer needs has
meant that the co-creation model created by Prahalad and Ramaswamy (2004) forms the
basis for the development of other models such as Service-Dominant (S-D) and Customer to
Costumer (C2C) (Payne et al., 2009)
Payne et al. (2009) state that the S-D model is based on communication between consumers
and firms in the whole process of creating the product or service: design, production,
delivery, purchase and consumption. Therefore companies must understand how the process
of creating value for consumers and thus establishing channels of communication between
both sides is necessary in order to generate activities that enable the process of co-creation of
value to be carried out, therefore in this new paradigm the client is considered a co-creator of
value because a relationship of dependency between all stakeholders is established (Vargo
and Lusch, 2004). It could be argued that S-D is a learning process in which the relationship
between consumers and firms is focused on the customer experience as a source of product
value (Ballantyne, 2004), thus allowing clients to develop a higher degree of engagement
with the firm (Chathoth et al., 2013). This interrelationship gives customers a high level of
customer satisfaction, retention grade and customer loyalty (Payne et al. 2009).

26. 15
Recently a new model of co-creation value appeared, known as Customer Dominant (C-D) in
which the co-creation value of the product is established through the social sphere and
interaction between the customers (Rihova et al., 2013). Therefore it could be said a new
paradigm of co-creation value has materialized: Customer to Customer (C2C). Co-creation
value is a subjective experience that is not only achieved through interaction between
consumers and firms, but also is materialized through social relations which allows them the
co-creation of value-in-context in different social spheres such as family, friends, colleagues
(Vargo and Lusch, 2008). It is worth pointing out that C2C allows clients to generate value
without the influence of firms (Payne et al., 2009; Rihova et al., 2013). According to Benkler
(2004) this knowledge sharing experience takes place thanks to customers’ education and
background. This knowledge could come from different kinds of source such as social and
economic (McAlexander, Schouten, & Koenig, 2002).
It is worth stressing that MOA model (Motivation, Opportunity and Ability) is an excellent
tool to achieve C2C interactions for several reasons: firstly, Motivation is the willingness of
customers to share their experiences with their peers; Secondly, companies have to create
opportunities for bringing together attendees who can socialize in order to exchange views
and co-create product value; and finally, customers must have sufficient social and
communication abilities for this process and C2C are involved (Gruen, Osmonbekov and
Czaplewski, 2007). Baber and Waymon (1996) state that attendees go to the congresses ,
conferences and conventions to be informed, inspired and interact with the colleagues,
therefore organisations should take into account the importance of knowledge sharing among
clients to co create value and thus make available to them the specific spaces and times
allowing enough time to develop their experiences to provide deeper social relations than
usually happens within MICE industry due to the short time that attendees have to socialize
between them C2C (Gruen, Osmonbekov and Czaplewski, 2007). To sum up, these authors
believe that C2C through MOA model is a good instrument to create customer loyalty to
firms because it allows customers to exchange knowledge and experience during of the
consumption of the goods.

27. 16
8.4 The role of the food in Conferences
Satisfaction is a factor to consider in developing a sense of loyalty; however, within the field
of conventions very little has been studied with regard to the attributes of a convention that
contributes to the satisfaction of the delegates (Servet et al. 2007). These authors analysed
the attendance motivators and factors that create in an audience a high level of satisfaction.
These factors are activity, opportunity, and educational benefits. Nonetheless, they did not
relate motivation to attend the conference which contributes to general motivation.
Kim et al. (2009) state that food attributes, relate to satisfaction with conferences as follows:
service delivery, food content quality, recognition of personal preference and menu selection.
With regard to the quality of the food, Armer (2004) states that that is one of the key
attributes in generating a memorable experience at events. Kim et al. (2009) argue that the
role of food in the program of conferences and conventions has been rejected by scholars.
The main findings of these authors are: first, food content quality is the most significant
contributor of all four factors to create overall satisfaction at food functions. With regard to
the content quality of the food the features are related to its attractiveness, tastefulness and
freshness. Second, is satisfaction with food functions, thus the role of food in the program has
a key role for attendees to repeat their attendance. Finally, they advise that event organizers
should pay more attention to the decisive role of food in general and its quality in particular
as it is has a large influence in creating loyalty.
Tanford et al. (2012) in their assessment of the attributes which influence the satisfaction of
conventions found several interesting findings. Firstly, the program’s features are the main
reason for attendance to the convention, it is worth noting that within this food and beverages
are included. Second, food and beverages, have become one of the more significant
contributions to creating satisfaction, indeed one of the most recurrent complaints at
conventions is about the food. Finally, the only negative was that the organizers had not
planned networking opportunities for attendees. Therefore, the authors recommend, that
event organizers should take into consideration the organisation of networking activities in
which the food is an element of socialization such as lunches and receptions because the food
quality is thought to be a crucial factor in customers´ dining experience (Ha and Jang, 2010).
The destination image is one of the important factors involved in the decision process for
delegates (Lee and Back, 2008). Smith and Costello (2009) state that local food may increase

28. 17
the destination image by providing characteristic recipes where the event is delivered. Wei
and Huang (2013) argue that experiencing local food is one of the key factors for a high
degree of satisfaction for several reasons. On the one hand, consumption of local food is a
way to identify the culture and idiosyncrasies of the image, and the other, local food is a
symbol of green meetings because consumption of local food contributes to the practice of
environmental awareness, such as reduction of transport costs and positive impact on the
local economy. The authors recommended that food quality and food service satisfaction
impact on the whole experience.
8.5 Summary
If anything can be concluded after this literature review it is that the emotional connection of
customers towards the products is a very important predictor in generating loyalty that causes
a return to purchase the product, in the case of this paper, product is the event. Most of the
authors have agreed that the first element is satisfaction which creates loyalty. Satisfaction
towards the product can be achieved through different methods. On the one hand a cognitive
way and the other emotional. Importantly, the emotional connection with the product or
service is performed by the consumption of experience. This is achieved through product
quality understood as an emotional experience that leads to behaviour modification that will
make the event attendees want to repeat that experience. However, there are several ways to
get an emotional connection with the event, one of these is to achieve an Emotional
Commitment (E.C.).
E.C. Emotional Commitment is linked to engender loyalty that generates positive feelings
and these are generated largely by means of socialisation among the attendees. E. C. is
considered as a factor that creates loyalty, however, it has not been widely investigated in the
field of conferences and experiences. Nevertheless, what has been investigated by the authors
is how to get to reach E.C, and this is achieved by creating memorable experiences through
offering the event attendees a delightful experience to increase loyalty. It could be argued that
the Experience Economy Model which is based on the Four Realms of an Experience
(Entertainment, Educational, Escapism and Aesthetic) in which the customer can hit the
Sweet Spot which means that he has felt the Four Realms, and consequently has achieved a
memorable experience and he has been delighted by consumption of the product. Moreover,
another area of investigation has appeared to generate loyalty, this is Co - Creation Value.

29. 18
Co-Creation Value is based on the creation of the value of the product through the
relationship between the customer and the firms to create a new product which meets the
needs of the customer. The customer takes part in the production and design and delivery of
the product. This outcome, could be realized by the DART model (Dialogue, Access, Risk
Assessment and Transparency) in which dialogue is the key factor modifying the customers
behaviour which is related to loyalty to the company. Likewise, to understand the needs of
the customer the Co-Creation Value theory developed a new model which is built on the
relationship among its customers. This new model is known as Customer to Costumer (C2C).
C2C the Co- Creation of value through C2C is achieved by the interaction between the
consumers themselves who share their experiences in meetings, setting up their own
communication channels in which have nothing to do with the company. Therefore, it can be
said that it has evolved since the creation of a product-centric company with the creation of
the product based on the channels of communication between business and consumers and
also among themselves, it is what is known as the paradigm Service-Dominant (SD). SD is a
good instrument to use to create value to the firm. This is the MOA model (Motivation,
Opportunity and Ability). MOA model is very useful because allow attendees to develop their
knowledge through interaction with their colleagues. However, it is worth stressing that the
planners are not involved in the organization of spaces and time in which attendees
participate in an event and are allowed to share their experiences.
Finally, it has been found that very little research related to the consumption of food at events
has been published and how this creates an emotional connection that generates loyalty. It has
been found, to a certain extent, that it is the attributes of the food which create satisfaction in
the attendees to a conference. These attributes are related to the quality and delivery of the
food. It is worth pointing out that the program of the meetings is the main driver which
attracts clients to attend the event, but recently food and beverages have been included in the
program´s factors which attendees take into consideration when deciding to attend an event.
To sum up, it could be suggested that the role of food in building an emotional connection as
the key predictor of loyalty is required to be expanded by Academia because there is not
enough literature which covers this matter, which causes a lot of complaints during the
delivery of an event. In conclusion, for the realization of this research all the theories that
have been discussed in this literature review will be taken into account in order to provide
new data and compare it with the existing contributions made by other scholars for the
purposes of helping firms within the Edinburgh area which organize events with the aim of

30. 19
creating an emotional connection with the attendees. This through evaluating one of the new
factors identified as creating loyalty to companies, that of food.

31. 20
9 Methodology
The aim of this paper is examine the role of food in events and how it can generate an
emotional connection with attendees of the event. In the previous chapter, the literature
review has presented us with a multidisciplinary vision of various matters regarding an
emotional connection with an event in general as well as food served at congresses and
conferences and how this generates emotional connection in particular. The field of this
research includes public and private sectors; satisfaction and loyalty to events, emotional
commitment, co-creation value and the role of the food at the events. As stated above there
are few studies that asses the role of food at events. Thus this has not allowed studies to be
taken as models for other approaches adopted by other authors. Therefore, the approach taken
in this research has been done keeping in mind the main aim and objectives in relation to the
literature in this field.
Consequently in this section a Philosophical approach will be taken in which the research and
strategy approach will be covered. In this part an explanation of a qualitative paradigm and
thematic analysis, as a research strategy will be given. Afterwards a description of the data
collection methods will be described; these include sampling, piloting and measuring
instruments such as questionnaire and interviews. In addition an explanation as to how the
data collection will be assessed will be made. Consecutive sections will address matters such
as reliability, validity, generalizations and the ethical regards which have been taken into
account to carry out this investigation. This chapter will finish with a description of the
limitations of this paper.
9.1 Philosophical Approach
The purpose of this research is to survey how to achieve emotional connection to an event by
food and through this generally resulting in loyalty from customers. In the case of this paper,
the research philosophy which has been used is interpretative because it is more focused on
the interpretation of the data rather than quantitative analysis. According to Silverman (2010)
this means that a subjective construction of meaning and understanding will be carried out
instead of just explained, this process will be based on the assessment of the data obtained
(Bryman and Bell, 2007).

32. 21
9.1.1 Research Approach
The research approach adopted in this paper will be an inductive approach. The reason why it
has been chosen is because through this research attempts to suggest new meanings and gain
a deeper understanding of this particular topic in its present context (Saunders et al, 2009).
The principle of this study is not generalization, for this reason an inductive approach has
been selected (Burrell and Morgan, 1979).
Therefore a number of specific observations will be made based on the result of the literature
review, in addition based on the results of the study a number of hypotheses will be given in
order to extend existing theories and some conclusions will be drawn. This objective will be
made based on a specific theory to show results (Bryman and Bell, 2011).
9.1.2 Research Strategy
The research strategy which will be used to obtain the data will be the qualitative method that
is related to the interpretivist approach (Saunders et all, 2012). Silverman (2010) argues that
qualitative data comes from the interpretation of the meanings derived from the experiences
of those interviewed within the context of their lives. According to Bryman and Bell (2011)
this method is more focused on words than quantification and it allows the researcher to
understand how the interviewees interpret their experiences. Getz (2012) states that these
experiences are the result of attitudes, feelings and meanings linked to the experience of the
individuals; Hayllar and Griffin (2005) state that this method is adequate, because the text of
data obtained by interviews may be interpreted in order to allow the researcher to reach a
series of conclusions. Thus, a qualitative approach of the role of the food in designing an
event experience should help in understanding how food influences the emotional connection
of the attendees to an event.
As mentioned above, the aim of this study is to establish a set of conclusions rather than
analyzing a particular theory, therefore, an analysis of the text will be carried out instead of
numeric data. Alasuutari et al (2008, pp 336) state that qualitative research as `a research
strategy usually emphasizes words rather than quantification in the collection and analysis of
data’. Nonetheless, some scholars have stressed that the investigator should take into

33. 22
consideration bias and subjectivity which could be involved in the investigation (Yin 2003;
Zach 2006; Bryman and Bell 2011). Yin (2003) states that in order to reduce possibility of
subjectivity and bias the investigator should understand the contrary findings and
irregularities, as well as offering different explanations of the data collected.
9.2 Research Design
The research model used in this project, that forms the framework of this research, will be an
exploratory approach. The justification for this selection is the lack of material available
about the role of the food in events. This approach allows the researcher to understand a
particular specific situation. A descriptive method allows investigation in detail of what is
happening and an understanding of what the circumstances are and the reasons for these
circumstances will be used. Therefore an understanding of the key issues will be carried out
for the purposes of constructing a meaning of the facts under investigation (Saunders et al,
2012). These issues will be assessed in detail and the reasons and approaches beyond the
current practice (Ib.)
The research strategy will use thematic analysis in which different kinds of employees from
different kinds of companies such as hotels, caterers and conference centres, will be
interviewed. Yin (2003, pp, 12) states that thematic analysis `tries to illuminate a decision or
set of decisions: Why they were taken, how they were implemented, and what the result was’.
In addition, according to Yin (1994) this strategy allows knowledge gain, in a given time that
will raise questions about the ‘how’s and whys’ of a subject, in order to have a thorough
knowledge of the role that food plays at events in real contexts. Therefore, a thematic
analysis will be developed with the aim of research in specific areas of the event rather than
producing general findings. This approach allows the author to gain a specific understanding
of this particular phenomenon and the data obtained will be compared to data taken in order
to relate it to the objectives (Bryman and Bell 2011). This approach allows the researcher to
identify which facts are common across all the cases (ibid). Therefore, an in-depth analysis
will be carried out to achieve several goals. On one hand, paying attention to the peculiarities
of each case, and on the other, relating the common features to all of them (ibid).
Sunders et al (2012) state that this model links with the qualitative method because it
increases the data collection and this may amplify and modify the theories. Consequently,

34. 23
this fact, allows a hypothetical consideration on the findings (Zikmund, 2003). Bryman and
Bell (2011) argue that the data collection will be assessed with transparency, credibility and
integrity to get external validity in multiple case study conclusions.
9.3 Research
There are several methods related to qualitative data collection (Saunders et al. 2012) the
research method which will be used in this paper will be thematic assessment. Thus, the
approach of this method will be questionnaire and interview questions analysis because it
allows the researcher to assess the situation and gives it meaning with which to find out about
the trends of the field of investigation (Bryman and Bell 2011). This thematic analysis is
based on interpreting the natural language data from the opinions and beliefs of the
interviewer transcript in words (Easterby-Smith et al. 2008).
The personal interview face to face and brief questionnaire will be used in the data collection
because it provides a great quantity of information. Semi-structured interview will be the
approach used to collect the data. The interview will be closed and open answer (Bryman
and Bell 2011). The questionnaire will be pre-planned and the questions will be related to the
most important aspects of the role of food in the events that will result from the review of the
literature (Easterby-Smith et al. 2008). In addition, the open responses allow interviewees to
stimulate themselves into contributing more data because they will express their attitudes
opinions and facts (Saunders et al. 2012).
It is worth stressing that self-recognition could be found in the qualitative approach (Bryman
and Bell 2011). In this paper that could be recognized for several reasons: first, the author of
the paper made the questions of the interview and design the questionnaire based on the key
issues which were found in the literature review. Second, the researcher carried out the
interviews face to face. Finally, the investigator selected and interpreted the data of the
interviews and questionnaire in order to generate new findings.
The aim and the objectives of the paper will be taken into account in order to get the richest
data collection for purposes of this research (Saunders et al. 2012).Therefore, a pilot testing
semi structured interview will be made to test the adequacy of the structure of the set of the
questions to ensure the validity and reliability of data gathered and whether or not the

35. 24
questions are understandable, coherent and in harmony with the aims and objectives proposed
in the dissertation.
9.3.1 Sampling
Once the objectives have been established an approach of the sample will be conducted.
According to Bryman and Bell (2011) there are different kinds of criteria to choose the
sample. For the purposes of this research two different approaches have been selected.
Firstly, a convenience sample, because it is proxy, easily accessible and available
participants, and at the same time the author of this paper has been in contact with several
organisations which will take in part in the research through his professional networks.
Secondly, a purposive sample approach has been adopted in order to meet the right
companies which are able to give accurate information and which fulfills the aim of this
research. The author has conducted preliminary research on the Internet with the aim of
ascertaining the main organisations in Edinburgh which organise events and which caterers
supply the food and beverage to those events. During this research it has not always been
easy to get the name of the persons in the events department and email contacts are not easy
to access, for this reason after researching on the internet the author visited in person almost
90 percent of all the firms for the purpose of introducing himself and to explain the topic of
his dissertation in order to find out the names and email of the persons responsible for the
event departments. It is worth stressing that all the companies responded in a positive way.
The outcome of contacting the organisations was the following:
 2 unusual venues which rejected to take part in this research project.
 2 purpose venues both of them rejected to take part in this investigation.
 1 Civic Venue, accepted to take part in this research project.
 4 Deluxe Hotels, one accepted to take part in this research project and another three
didn’t answered the request.
 1 Academic Venue which agreed to take part in this research project.
 4 Catering suppliers two of them accepted to take part in this research project another
two didn’t answer the request.

36. 25
Yin (2003) states that qualitative research should consist of between 4 and 10 interviews,
therefore the sample of this paper more than covers what Yin advises as 14 firms were
identified: 10 firms which organise events and 4 companies which deliver catering.
9.3.2 Measuring Instruments
Saunders et al (2012) argue that there are several methods of carrying out qualitative
research, thematic analysis is one which could be used to collect data. For the aim and
objectives of this research two methods were utilized: a brief questionnaire and semi
structured interview.
9.3.2.1 Participants: Questionnaire respondents and interviewees
The most appropriate employees on which to conduct this research were managers and office
workers who are involved firstly in the organisation and design of events and in the creation
and delivery of food for these events. As stated above these professionals were identified
through a search on the internet and others via in-person visits to the headquarters of the
companies in both cases afterwards the contact was through e-mails.
14 organisations were contacted, it is worth pointing that after sending the introductory email,
in which the proposal of this study was stated, 5 of them did not respond, 4 declined to take
part into this research and 5 expressed their interest in taking part. Also that those firms that
expressed interest in taking part in this paper took longer in making an appointment in order
to do the interviews. That situation was very hard because it delayed all the planning of the
research project.
The respondents in this study come from different academic backgrounds and professional
experience and occupy various positions within organisations. The questionnaire was
provided via e-mail and an interview was arranged to carry out this research in their
workplaces. Thus 5 participants were interviewed.

37. 26
9.3.2.2 Questionnaire Design
A self-administered questionnaire was mailed to gather the primary data. The questions were
drawn from the main journal articles that address the role of food in the events (Kim, Lee,
and Love, 2009; Wei, and Huang, 2013) and an in depth literature review which found the
main functions related to the key factors of the customer satisfaction related to the food and
the major food attributes which make an impact on the attendees’ perceived food
performance with the aim of fulfilling the objectives of this paper. There were 4 questions
related to factors of the food satisfaction and 25 questions related to attributes of food
delivery (see appendix 1) for an example of the questionnaire. The type of questions are
explained as follows:
 4 questions related to the key factor of the food which is delivered in the events.
These factors are: food content quality, recognition of personal preference, menu
selection and service. The response to these questions were based on a 5-point Likert-
scale that ranging from 1= strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree. Bryman and Bell
(2011) argue that Likert scale is a good method to measure positive and negative
attitudes towards a concept or statement.
 Within each of the questions of the factors with regard to the food, questions were
formulated with regard to the attributes connected to these factors. In total 25
questions were designed as a yes-no type response.
9.3.2.3 Semi-structured Interviews Design
Conducting interviews has as a key objective to achieve in-depth insights and perspectives of
the topic which are being investigated (Holloway and Wheeler, 2010 in Shipway, R., Jago, L.
and Deery). It is worth stressing that semi structured interviews pay attention to gathering
information therefore their design allows interviewees to take part in them with their own
thoughts, experiences and opinions associated with field of investigation (ibid).
Consequently, a model of semi-structured interview was designed. This model consists of 19
open questions, these questions were distributed in 4 sections, specifically, formulation,
implementation and evaluation. Each section was structured taking into account the main

38. 27
subjects which were stablished form the literature review. The design of the interview was
created with the aim of interpreting the data with the goal of generating findings in a
transversal way (See appendix 2).
9.3.3 Pilot Study
Yin (2003) state that before the collection of data it is useful to carry out a pilot study as the
end of the preparation of the data collection process, because this procedure allows the author
restructuring of the research process design and will also take a major role in the formation
processes of the researcher. Other point of view is provided by Bryman and Bell (2011) who
argue that a pilot study allows the researcher to find which research instruments are adequate
to generate data and find out the possible problems which can happen during the interview.
Likewise, this process takes into account whether or not the questions are really related to the
data which the researcher needs in order to gain the objectives of the investigation (ibid).
Consequently, a self-completion questionnaire and the semi-structured interview were
provided and carried out to a total of 5 individuals to check content adequacy and congruity.
The professional backgrounds of these professionals came from different fields such as
hospitality, event management industry and tourism and they are currently in hotels which are
focused on events, appropriate venue and caterer suppliers. Therefore with the application of
this pilot study the researcher could determine the adequacy of the measuring instrument as a
previous step before implanting it in order to avoid misunderstandings, mistakes, or to
withdraw unsuitable questions with the aim of getting feedback which permits pertinent
changes to be made in order to achieve the aim and objectives.
9.3.4 Data Collection
To ensure direct access in the future for the interviewer personal contact is one of the best
approaches to achieve it Zach (2006). Thus direct contact was made in order to arrange a
week time date for the data collection always taking into consideration the availability of the
participants. The data collection for these 5 interviews were collected during the period of 4
weeks and the interviews were carried out in the offices of the event and caterer management
staff between October-November 2014.

39. 28
The questionnaires were provided by e-mail and one of them was returned completed in the
same way or delivered as a hard copy the same day of the interview. Likewise, a copy of the
design of the interview was sent via e-mail in anticipation of the interviews with the objective
that they could think in advance about the different topics and become aware of the key
issues which will be covered in the interview.
The interviews were held face-to-face and recorded with a voice digital recorder in the
interviewers’ workplace. A transcript of the recordings was made for several reasons. First, it
is needed to have a clear, accurate and fresh account of them (Saunders et al., 2012). Second,
the transcription of the interviews allows a comprehensive understanding of the key themes
which are dealt with during the course of them (Bryman and Bell, 2011). Finally, the
recording and transcription of the interviews will permit the control of bias and maintain
ethics (Saunders et al., 2012). An example of transcription of interview (see appendix 3).
The participants in this research were encouraged to elaborate their answers and in order to
obtain the most adequate data. Because of the fact that the author of this paper wanted to have
the impressions and adequate data a summary of the interviews was carried out (see appendix
4) At the end of the process a letter of thanks was sent to each interviewer in order to express
gratitude for having taken part in this study and for their disposal.

40. 29
9.3.5 Analysis of Qualitative Data
The design of the questionnaire and the interview was made taking into account the follow
lines of inquiry:
 Line 1 it includes a series of questions on general orientation of participants in order
to make them aware that they are the right people thanks to the experience they have
in the organisation of events
 Line 2 is based of questions linked to each theme of study and its context.
 Line 3 is composed of questions which aim to find paradigms or generalisations
across the themes study.
 Line 4 cover questions which provide a deeper knowledge beyond the obvious role
of food in the delivery of an event
 Line 5 questions related to the consent, anonymity and confidentiality governance.
The most adequate method to assess qualitative data is thematic analysis (Bryman and Bell,
2011). This was chosen by the author in order to meet the objectives, that method is based on
the recognised themes which are derived from obtained data and the purpose of this study.
According to Lofland (2006) from the data obtained special attention was carried out to the
patterns found with the purpose of being categorised and coded. Thus, taking into account the
aim and objectives of this study the key themes were assessed. The analytical process was as
follows:
1) Data Collection.
2) Recognition and classification of the patterns and themes.
3) Choosing the most relevant examples and themes in relation to the literature review
and linked with the objectives of this study.
4) Identification of the relationships between the themes and the construction of meaning
by comparing them with those obtained from the literature review scholars.

41. 30
9.4 Reliability, Validity and Generalisability
According to Bryman and Bell (2001) any kind of research to be integrated has to be based
on reliability and validity. It is worth pointing that in the case of this study generalisation has
not been taken into account as a model of this paper (Burrel and Morgan, 1979).
In qualitative research accuracy has to be one of the principles that guide them, therefore the
researcher has to follow research protocols which have to be based on robust procedures
(Bryman and Bell, 2011). In addition, these procedures have to help to avoid a high degree of
subjectivity which is common in qualitative research (Stake, 1995 and Yin, 2003). For these
arguments thematic assess studies have been the object of analysis in terms of reliability,
validity and likely biases (Bryman and Bell, 2011). Therefore, in order to achieve a neutral
investigation stand point, consideration has been given to the design and process of the study
in which values and perceptions previous to this study had not been held. Consequently, Yin
(2003) notes that to achieve this neutrality a large effort has been made to show sources of
verification such as interviews, documentation, archival records, transcription of the
interviews and participant observation.
With respect to guarantee the validity and reliability of the questionnaire and interview
design, the questions and attributes were selected from the main journal articles which
studied the food function in events (Kim, Lee and Love, 2009; Wei and Huang, 2013). In
addition, validity and reliability of this paper can be observed in the profile of the
participants, as can be seen in table 1, in this study having key management positions such as
EI5 who is General Manager. In addition the subjects come from the main journals articles
and most up to date in this field. Therefore, the objectives have been achieved.
Zach (2006) states that thematic analysis allows replication, therefore an in depth analysis
will be taken in order to identify and analyse patterns as well as generalisations and particular
themes that are found in the cases. With the aim of enforcing this replication strategy a
further survey could be made to obtain `formal generalisations for guiding policy and
collective practice’ (ibid, p.86). This fact is very effective to the readers who can generate
associations between this research, their prior experience, and establishment of the role of the
food in events in other contexts because so that accuracy and enough information has been

42. 31
provided. Stake (1995) states that this approach is nominated as a Naturalistic
Generalisation. This approach allow readers to achieve an in-depth understanding of the field
of investigation thanks to their reflection about the information which has been provided in
the case studies. Thus, it could be argued that readers can relate the data to their own
experience in order to interpret and use the new information in their personal contexts.
9.5 Ethical Issues
This research has been carried out through face to face interviews with professionals with
relevant responsibilities in selected firms. The channel of communication with the
participants has been based on ethical lines. Thus, obtaining primary data will be carried out
in an ethical way. The author of this research will follow ethical principles which are
embodied in University’s `Code of Practice on Research Ethics and Governance’. These key
principles are:
 Informed and organisational consent; therefore the interviewees will be well informed
of their participation in this research project and they will participate voluntarily
without coercion and they consent to it by completing and signing a consent form.
 Confidentiality and anonymity of the participants will be preserved in other to
guarantee the anonymity of their names, job roles, any professional or personal details
and the names of the organisations will be kept secret. In addition, the contents of the
recordings will be nameless and private.
Likewise, interview questionnaires were sent to the participants in order that if they felt that
some of the questions could cause discomfort, could offend or could affect the confidentiality
of their firms, they were free to remove them.
9.6 Research Limitations
Although the purpose of this study was to analyse the role of food in events as an important
driver to create an emotional connection with the events some limitations have been found.
First, this study has focused on the factors related to food at events, however, there is a factor
related to food that has not been taken into account by the limitation of the study framework.

43. 32
This factor is price value which has been cited by several scholars as a factor that determines
the satisfaction of attendees to events (Baloglu and Love, 2005; Gupta, McLaughlin and
Gomez, 2007; Wu and Weber, 2005).
Second, the time of completion of this study has been limited to 4 months which has resulted
in the geographic area being restricted to the area of the city of Edinburgh, despite other UK
cities having great experience in organizing events such as Glasgow or London, but this
limitation is because the study area has been the capital of Scotland.
Third, with regard to the sample this has not been very wide, in total 14 companies were
contacted 2 of which rejected the possibility of collaborating in this research project and 7
didn’t answerer the request, as a consequence the validation and generalisation of the findings
may be questionable due to the small sample group; although, a larger group of firms would
be positive in achieving the aim and objectives of this paper.
Fourth, as mentioned previously the approach of this study is qualitative which carries a
degree of subjectivity which cannot be rejected (Bryman and Bell, 2011), for this reason a
degree of subjectivity can be found throughout this investigation project.
Finally, the participants worked in different management posts regarding event organisation,
so their opinions were in the function of their professional experiences based on their duties
which they have to develop in their firms.
Nevertheless, the findings of this paper could be useful in providing an understandable re-
evaluation of the role of the food in events. Moreover, a number of recommendations can be
made with the objective of increasing the role of food as an important driver which generates
an emotional connection with the event.

44. 33
10 Data Analysis
In this chapter an organisation and analysis of data will be conducted. This data was obtained
by conducting face to face interviews and completed questionnaires by the interviewers. The
structure of this analysis has been raised following the main themes that have been developed
through the questions with the aim of being the most accurate. Therefore this chapter is
divided into three main sections.
The aim of the first section is to provide a short profile of the firms which have taken part in
the research project and their employees who have been interviewed.
The second section is an assessment of the key issues which will be carried out. The path
which has been established is as follow:
1. An analysis of the factors in order to confirm whether or not these factors from the
point of view of the suppliers coincide with the needs of delegates. These factors are:
food content quality, recognition of personal preference, menu selection and service
delivery.
2. An assessment of how emotional connections (EC) affect behavioural intention which
drives loyalty. This is an especially important matter because loyalty could be
achieved modifying behavioural intention and this could be achieved thanks to
generate EC by the attendees. The methods which have been used to gain this
objective are as follow: first, analysing the factors which generate customer
satisfaction, from the point of view of the suppliers in general; second, the role of the
food as a key driver in delegates’ satisfaction, in particular: third, how EC could be
created and the attributes by which this EC could be obtained; finally, the organisation
of special event based on a theme has been made because it is known that kind of
activity is a good example of how to gain EC, thus generating loyalty.
3. Once an assessment of EC has been carried out in general, the next step is how the
food contributes to make attendees feel satisfied then giving rise to EC. The steps to
establish how food can generate EC in delegates is as follow: first, if in the opinion of
the suppliers food served at event generates EC; second, if networking activities in
conferences generate EC; third, focus on the role of food and beverage as a key driver
to generate EC: finally the process by which the suppliers have acknowledgment of
loyalty.

45. 34
4. The next step is how Co-creation model could be a key driver by which EC could be
achieved and generate loyalty. The method which has been selected to cover this
matter is as follows: first, it has been found which channels of communication the
suppliers use to generate co-creation value; second, whether or not during that process
of communication the clients built a co-creation of a new value; finally, it tried to find
out whether suppliers used within the Service Dominant (SD) paradigm the Customer
to customer (C2C) co-creation of value model as a tool to generate EC.
5. The last field of analysis is how the food meets the needs of the delegates, and
therefore creates loyalty in them. The approach to gain this is as follows: on the one
hand it stressed the role of the food and beverage as main drivers which generate EC;
on the other, through food and beverage a high level of satisfaction and memorable
experience could be achieved, at this point, it is worth pointing out that feeling a
memorable experience is one of the best instruments to develop loyalty; and finally it
is believed that one of the most delicate issues in events is complaints about the food
and the delivery of it which affect to the loyalty by their clients.
Moreover, through the whole chapter the main findings and key issues which have arisen
from the thematic analysis with regard to the data collection will be discussed in relation to
the main matters which have been considered in the chapter of the literature review and how
the firms use them to achieve an emotional commitment by the customers with the aim of
obtaining loyalty to events by means of food. In addition at the end of each section a
summary of the main findings will be made, and at the end of this chapter a review of the key
findings will be carried out in order to relate it to the theory.
10.1 Profile of interviews
In the table 1 a description of the general characteristics of firms and respondents who took
part in this role will be made. The lable code will be EI which will identified in this chapter,
likewise the individual designator code will be from EI1 to EI5. During the process of the
interview the interviewees mentioned the name of their firms in these cases the name of the
companies has been changed by `site’ in order to maintain the confidentiality.

46. 35
Table 1 Profiles of the Participants
EIs Kind
of Firm
Ownership
Involment in
the Delivery
of Events
Respondents:
Position and
Seniority
Firm Aim
EI1 Deluxe Hotel Private Involved
a)Events
Executive
7 years
b)Sales
Specialist
1 year
Within a
Multinational
brand is located in
the city centre and
has a dedicated
meeting and events
space. Organising
from corporate
events and
exhibitions, to
banquets and
celebrations.
EI2 Civic Venue Public
body
Involved
Business
Development
Manager
1 year and 9
months.
Edinburgh City
Centre's multi-
purpose event
spaces, from
conferences,
dinners and
performances to
exhibitions,
seminars and
weddings.
EI3
Academic
Venue Public
Charitable
Body
Involved Head of
Conference
and Events
1 year and 6
months.
Planning,
organisation and
delivery of high-
quality events and
delegate
management

47. 36
services in
Edinburgh
EI4
Caterer
Supplier Private Involved in
supplying
food and
beverage
Operation
Manager
9 years and 8
months.
Is a part of a
National big
company which is
dedicated to deliver
catering at iconic
national and
international
events.
EI5
Caterer
Supplier Private Involved in
delivering
events and
supplying
food and
beverage.
General
Manager
Of Private
Events
2 years and 2
months.
Delivering of high
level in catering
and hospitality in
which the event
design takes
important role in
National Events
It can be seen there is a wide variety of companies involved in this study. Three of them are
dedicated in the organising, planning and delivering of events (EI1, EI2 and EI3). However
their facilities are very different for example EI1 is a Deluxe hotel within its own space
dedicated to delivering events; in contra there is a Civic Venue in the heart of the city which
only focuses on the delivering of events, it is worth nothing that this venue hires external
caterers to deliver the food and beverage of its events. EI3 is an academic venue which offers
different kinds of meetings, in different places and offers accommodation, in addition it has
its catering service and delegate registration and management services for the events. With
regard to the caterer companies EI4 is dedicated only to the delivery of the food and beverage
otherwise EI5 not only delivers the food and beverages but also plans and designs the whole
event in which the landscape plays a key role in generating a special atmosphere.
With regard to the proprietorship there are differences. On the one hand, EI1, EI4 and EI5 are
private, on the other EI3 and EI4 are public, being charitable EI3.

48. 37
10.2 Factors and Attributes of the Food function in Events which Generate
Satisfaction
In this section an analysis of the main factors and attributes involved in the food function in
the events will be made. As it can be observed the four key factors with their attributes will
be divided in four sections.
In order to analyse the most appropriate data obtained from the questionnaires four tables
related to each factor and their attributes will be presented. Following an interpretation of the
data collected, comparison will be made to the main articles of the literature review.
It could be said that in general terms there were no big differences in the answers from the
participants. However, the differences which were found out came from the catering firms
which deliver the food at the final stage. Nevertheless, the findings are very interesting
related to the aim of this section.
10.2.1 Factor 1. Food content quality
Table 2 shows the responses to factor 1: food content quality and its attributes.
Table 2 Factor 1: Food Content Quality
Factor 1 EI1 EI2 EI3 EI4 EI5
Food Content Quality 5 5 5 4 5
The food function attributes are taken into consideration, or not, to obtain that
experience
Tasty Food Yes Yes yes Yes Yes
Fresh Ingredients Yes Yes yes No Yes
Right Menu Yes Yes yes Yes Yes
Attractive Food Yes Yes yes No Yes
It can be observed that the most important factor to achieve a high degree of satisfaction in
events, is food content quality, scoring 4.80 on the Likert scale, this data agrees with the
findings achieved by Kim Lee and Love (2009), on the other hand it was found that Wei and
Huang (2013) positioned this factor in second place . It could be argued that the venues that
hosted such as EI1, EI2 and EI3 which organise events scored the highest marks. In contrast,
catering firms such as EI4 did not achieve the highest scores, surprising because they deliver
the food. This data has to be understood from the point of view of supply. With regard to the
attributes which help to gain satisfaction all of them are taken into consideration by the

49. 38
suppliers except fresh ingredients and attractive food by EI4, this differs to Wei and Huang
(2013) in which all the attributes are considered.
10.2.2 Factor 2. Recognition of personal preference.
Table 3 shows the responses to factor 2: recognition of personal preference and its attributes.
Table 3 Factor 2: Recognition of Personal Preference
Factor 2 EI1 EI2 EI3 EI4 EI5
Recognition of Personal
Preference
5 5 4 3 5
Do you offer any of the following?
Available Special Dietary Menu Yes Yes yes Yes Yes
Unique Menu Selection Yes Yes yes yes Yes
Correct Order Yes Yes yes yes Yes
Memorable food Function Yes Yes yes yes Yes
Networking Opportunity Yes Yes yes Yes-No Yes
Recognition of Personal preference is scored with 4.4 on the Likert scale which means that
this factor is the last one taken into consideration by suppliers. This finding does not link with
Kim, Lee and Love (2009) which puts it in to third place of importance in food satisfaction.
With regard to the attributes all the participants agree with Kim, Lee and Love (2009).
However there are some exceptions. On the one hand, EI4 `states that a memorable food
function depends on the budget of the organiser firm’. On the other, according to EI4:
“Networking opportunity is taken into consideration depending on the kind of event,
for example for an award ceremony that attribute is very important as opposed to a
conference which is determined by what the client wants to achieve”.
That means that the organiser should take into account networking meetings as a key element
to achieving a high level of satisfaction by the delegates. It is worth stressing that this is
contrary to Kim, Lee and Love (2009) and the reason is that this paper is based on the point
of view of the delegates-demand and not from the side of the suppliers.