The Effects of Three-Factor Exhibition Attributes on Tourist-Exhibition Organizer Value Co-Creation and Tourists’ Satisfaction: A Case Study of China

Exhibitions attract an increasing number of visitors, which, in turn, greatly influence the destination’s economy. Past studies paid little attention to exploring both internal and external attributes of the exhibition. The purpose of this study is to identify the multi-level attributes that motivate visitors to attend the exhibition, and explore their effects on value co-creation, satisfaction and re-exhibit intentions. A total of 395 valid questionnaires from the 26th Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area International Auto show at Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center were collected. By using Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), the results revealed that three dimensions of exhibition attributes (exhibition, travel and destination) are all significantly related to satisfaction and value co-creation, while travel-related factors have the greatest impact on satisfaction and value-co-creation. Furthermore, satisfaction and value co-creation all positively influence re-exhibit intention. This study helps exhibition organizers, tourism destination marketers and government agencies to establish strategies by considering travel purposes as a priority to attract potential tourists. It also helps future scholars to deeply understand tourists’ co-creation experience with an exhibition.