Investigating the Dimensions of Branding Tourism Destinations (Case Study: Simorgh Brand)

Branding refers to the development of a name, sign, symbol, or a combination of these elements that identify a specific product and distinguish it from competitors. Today, tourism destinations utilize branding as a fundamental strategy to achieve their goals. Given the intense competition among countries and regions to attract tourists, creating a place brand is one of the key marketing strategies in this context. In fact, destination branding is considered a practical method for attracting more tourists. The Simorgh brand has been introduced as the tourism brand of Iran. This article aims to examine the dimensions of the Simorgh brand from the perspective of tourism professionals in Iran. For this purpose, the dimensions of branding have been compared with the characteristics of the Simorgh brand. This research employs a mixed-methods approach, utilizing both library research and field study methods to collect data. Additionally, the fundamental correlation technique was used to analyze the dimensions of the Simorgh brand. The research findings indicate that brand satisfaction holds the highest value, while brand awareness ranks the lowest. This suggests that, overall, tourism industry professionals in Iran have a high level of satisfaction with the Simorgh brand. Each dimension is examined and analyzed in detail, followed by recommendations for the further development of the brand.