Improving the effectiveness of destination positioning.

The existing and desired positions of a tourism destination are critical components of strategic market management. This article presents a new conceptual framework for the positioning process. The major additions include the concepts of linear positioning — quantification of a geographic destination’s existing position and the position it is capable of achieving, and strategic aggression — a typology for determining the appropriate degree of change necessary to reach the desired position. In addition to destinations, the majority of these concepts can be applied equally well to most hospitality organizations.