Destination-Country Image of Türkiye from Perspectives of American Non-Visitors

The significance of images in advertising, promoting, attracting tourists for destinations, and influencing their future behavioral intentions is widely acknowledged concept. In recent years, destination-country image research has gained momentum. This article seeks to evaluate how Türkiye (the fourth most visited country in the world) is perceived as a travel destination by American non-visitors. The focus on American non-visitors in this study is significant because Americans represent the largest group of international travelers globally. This demographic offers valuable insights for understanding potential tourism markets for Türkiye. By analyzing how American non-visitors perceive Türkiye, the study aims to enhance the country's tourism strategies, especially in a highly competitive global market. Their perceptions influence their likelihood to visit, making it crucial for tourism managers to tailor marketing campaigns to shift these non-visitors' views toward a more favorable image of Türkiye. The sample included potential tourists who have never visited Türkiye, also known as non-visitors. Furthermore, the study examined the relationship between how potential visitors view the destination country and their intentions to travel there. Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk), a widely used online research platform, gathered the data for this study. Data were obtained through a survey from a total of 302 non-visitors by conducting convenience sampling method. We employ PLS-SEM, a variance-based methodology, analyze the data set. After the analysis, we validated all proposed hypotheses. Therefore, the cognitive and emotional images have an impact on each other. There is a statistically significant and positive link between the affective image and overall and the cognitive image and overall (β = 0.354, p<0.001; β = 0.258, p<0.001, respectively). In addition, there were strong and positive links between visit intention and both affective image (β = 0.262, p<0.001) and cognitive image (β = 0.168, p<0.001). The cognitive and emotional components of an image have a significant impact on general image perception. The current study validates that both the general image and its elements positively influence non-visitors' visit intentions. The study concludes by presenting the management and theoretical consequences.