Among the top ten tourist activities in Taiwan, temple fairs attract millions of domestic and international visitors annually. However, numerous environmental problems are associated with such fairs. Although numerous environmental strategies have been developed for tourism destinations, few studies have focused on temple culture. This study determines whether environmental strategies can help temple fairs meet environmental protection regulations, mitigate pressures from the public, and maximize their competitive advantage. Analytical results indicate that energy conservation and pollution prevention can increase the financial performance and reputation of temple fairs; however, environmentally friendly products do not improve temple reputation.
The global trend of cultural tourism has attracted the attention of countless tourists (Ark and Richard, 2006 and Kim et al., 2007). Temple fairs in Taiwan exhibit Chinese traditional rituals for worshipping gods or Buddha, and millions of visitors are attracted to such fairs annually to experience Taiwan's local history, folk art, customs and heritage. According to statistical data from the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, temple fairs are a favorite tourist activity for international tourists. Among foreign tourists visiting Taiwan, 37.66% visit a temple or temple fair. Foreign visitors consider temples and temple fairs to be representative of Taiwanese cultures. To the Taiwanese, temple fairs ranked second only to exhibitions as a favorite cultural activity (Fig. 1). Hence, temple fairs rank among the top ten tourism activities in Taiwan (Taiwan Tourism Bureau, 2006).Taiwan has 11,275 officially registered temples (Table 1). On average, each county or city in Taiwan has 451 temples (Taiwan Tourism Bureau, 2006). To attract followers, temple administrators incorporate dancing, plays and acrobatics into their rituals. Markets selling snacks, calligraphy, antiques, religious products, and traditional arts and crafts have been established around numerous temples. Consequently, temple fairs typically cater to visitors. By using culture as marketing tool, temple fairs promote tourism, encourage local development and provide unique business opportunities for local residents (Ismail et al., 2002, Jones, 2000 and Taiwan Festivals, 2005).Fireworks are a major attraction at temple fairs (e.g., http://forestlife.info/Onair/262.htm). However, fireworks cause serious air and noise pollution. In response to global warming, the central government has established environmental regulations that reduce the use of firecrackers in ceremonies and the noise made by temple fairs (Apple News, 2008). Such restrictions have threatened the attractiveness of temple fairs and reduced customer perceptions of quality (Karagozoglu & Lindell, 2000). In the 21st Century, the influence of environmental protection issues on business competitive advantage has become an important consideration for companies. This study utilizes the research model developed by Tien, Chung, and Tsai (2005) to examine the relationship between environmental strategies and competitive advantage for temple fairs, with the aim of realizing sustainable temple management.
Taiwan has myriad temples. Many large and well-known temples have numerous branches that attract large numbers of worshippers and visitors, creating difficulties for many temples to collect donations, and, in some cases, causing bankruptcy (China Times, 2007). Study results show that via environmental protection as an integral part of temple marketing strategies, temple fairs can achieve good financial performance and sustainable competitive advantage in the competitive temple tourism market. However, environmentally friendly products introduced into the market under the pressure of environmental protection neither heighten temple reputation, nor enable temple fairs to compete with other cultural activities in international markets.
This study identified a specific set of environmental strategies that helps temples achieve competitive advantage, and has important implications for temple fundraising and tourism in the face of environmental regulations. As environmental protection is now extremely important, temples have been forced to integrate environmentally friendly products into their rituals, and decrease the use of firecrackers and the burning of ghost money. These steps can reduce the attractiveness, characteristics and reputation of temple fairs. As experiential marketing can help tourism entities identify which experiential environment is suited to their customers, future researcher may use the experiential marketing model as the theoretical foundation for analyzing the relationship between environmental strategies and experiential marketing, thereby improving reference material for temple managements.
