How vlogging promotes a destination image: A narrative analysis of popular travel vlogs about the Philippines
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- Published: 31 July 2019
- Volume 15 , pages 244–256, ( 2019 )
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- Rachel Luna Peralta 1
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This paper critically examines the potential and use of video blogs or vlogs shared on Facebook for creating a destination image. In particular, it makes an in-depth analysis of the travel vlogs about the Philippines created by popular non-Filipino travel vloggers—Lost LeBlanc, BecomingFilipino, Nas Daily, and Drew Binsky. The data were gathered through a qualitative content and narrative analysis of the user-generated videos posted on the travel vloggers’ Facebook accounts. Content and visual analysis of the videos as well as viewer responses support the argument that travel vloggers and their respective vlogs play a key role in creating an online destination image of a place. Stories and images in vlogs vividly create destination images necessary and fundamental for place marketing. Travel vlogs are representations of destination experiences, from which public and private tourism agencies can use in their promotional/marketing agenda.
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Peralta, R. How vlogging promotes a destination image: A narrative analysis of popular travel vlogs about the Philippines. Place Brand Public Dipl 15 , 244–256 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41254-019-00134-6
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Revised : 30 January 2019
Published : 31 July 2019
Issue Date : December 2019
DOI : https://doi.org/10.1057/s41254-019-00134-6
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Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes
ISSN : 1755-4217
Article publication date: 27 July 2021
Issue publication date: 11 October 2021
This paper aims to present the authors’ perspectives on the new narrative styles adopted by international millennial travel vloggers during the COVID-19 pandemic. They aim to promote virtual tourism, and the authors present six examples of millennial vloggers. Considering tighter government regulations relating to travel, vloggers have developed novel ways of content creation through “travel writing.”
Design/methodology/approach
The authors used narrative analysis to review their sample of vlogs and how specific changes in each vlogging stage are motivated by viewer expectancy.
Millennial vlogger couples are using the YouTube platform to meet the demand for virtual tourism.
Research limitations/implications
This study provides new ways of looking at travel vlogging as an occupation and means of entertainment. However, the current dynamic situation may well lead to further challenges for this kind of research.
Practical implications
The implications relate to the provision of a better understanding of the scope for virtual tourism and how it can lead to new avenues for tourism development.
Originality/value
The authors reviewed millennial vloggers during the COVID-19 pandemic and applied narratology to the vlogs to better analyse the changes caused by the pandemic.
- Millennial travellers
- Narrative style
- Vlogs (video blogs)
- Virtual tourism
Chakravarty, U. , Chand, G. and Singh, U.N. (2021), "Millennial travel vlogs: emergence of a new form of virtual tourism in the post-pandemic era?", Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes , Vol. 13 No. 5, pp. 666-676. https://doi.org/10.1108/WHATT-05-2021-0077
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