How does airport branding contribute to city image: The case of Istanbul Airport

The present research was conducted to find out if there is any connection between tourists' branding perception of an airport and the image formed of the associated city after a visit, based on the case of Istanbul Airport, which opened in April 2019. The research sample was drawn from tourists from the Russian Federation who visited Istanbul Airport. A total of 106 respondents answered the questionnaire. A survey was conducted to measure the image of Istanbul held by tourists from the Russian Federation and the main attributes of the city's and airport's branding that are particularly important for them. Finally, the dependence between the quality of the airport branding and the perceived image of the city was evaluated. The data were analyzed by the IBM SPSS program through Descriptive statistics, Independent and Pair Sample t-tests, Factor analysis, Correlation matrix, and Regression analysis. The research established that Istanbul has a very strong positive image among Russian tourists. The factor analysis revealed the significant groups for the attributes of both Istanbul city and Istanbul Airport. Regression models showed the meaningful dependence of city perception and airport perception. This allows us to state that the branding attributes of the airport have a significant influence on the image of the city.