The Role of Influencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram Social Platform

Abstract

Today, social media has considerably affected all social and economic aspects of our lives. Marketing is one of the fields which has significantly evolved through applying the power of virtual networks and social platforms, particularly marketing of tourism and travel products. Social platforms such as Instagram, by using their capabilities in sharing photos and video clips, have played an effective role in promoting tourist destinations. On the other hand, having a large number of followers, influencers on social platforms have a huge impact on tourists’ decision-making patterns. Thus, studying how social platforms affect marketing activities is vital to survival in today’s competitive environment. In this regard, the present research aims to study the role of social platform influencers in marketing tourist destinations, as well as identify appropriate criteria in selecting influencers by marketers. Therefore, the Instagram platform was targeted as the case. A series of semi-structured, in-depth interviews took place to gather the required data, which were analysed using the Thematic Analysis method. A sample of nine experts was taken from a population of specialists in the fields of marketing, tourism, media and content production. Finally, extracted themes were classified into six groups including: criteria to select influencers by tourism marketers; shared content; destination promotion; prerequisites for tourism businesses; influencer–business interactions; and potential of the Instagram platform. In turn, sub-themes were extracted and described in detail. The findings of the present study have several practical implications for destination marketers, particularly for those who are active in the field of digital marketing, as well as influencers and individuals seeking to attract audiences and increase their credibility on social media.

Full text

20
© CAB International 2023. Technology and Social Transformations in Hospitality, Tourism
and Gastronomy: South Asia Perspectives (edsS. Sharma and S. Bhartiya)
DOI: 10.1079/9781800621244.0003
3 The Role of Influencers in
Destination Marketing through Instagram
SocialPlatform
Zahra Nadalipour1*, Afsheen Hassan2, Shivam Bhartiya3 and Fatemeh Shah
Hosseini1
1University of Science and Culture, Tehran, Iran; 2Superior University, Lahore,
Pakistan; 3Central University of Karnataka, Kalaburagi, India
Abstract
Today, social media has considerably affected all social and economic aspects of our lives. Marketing is one of the fields
which has significantly evolved through applying the power of virtual networks and social platforms, particularly mar-
keting of tourism and travel products. Social platforms such as Instagram, by using their capabilities in sharing photos
and video clips, have played an effective role in promoting tourist destinations. On the other hand, having a large number
of followers, influencers on social platforms have a huge impact on tourists’ decision- making patterns. Thus, studying
how social platforms affect marketing activities is vital to survival in today’s competitive environment. In this regard,
the present research aims to study the role of social platform influencers in marketing tourist destinations, as well as
identify appropriate criteria in selecting influencers by marketers. Therefore, the Instagram platform was targeted as
the case. A series of semi- structured, in- depth interviews took place to gather the required data, which were analysed
using the Thematic Analysis method. A sample of nine experts was taken from a population of specialists in the fields of
marketing, tourism, media and content production. Finally, extracted themes were classified into six groups including:
criteria to select influencers by tourism marketers; shared content; destination promotion; prerequisites for tourism busi-
nesses; influencer–business interactions; and potential of the Instagram platform. In turn, sub- themes were extracted
and described in detail. The findings of the present study have several practical implications for destination marketers,
particularly for those who are active in the field of digital marketing, as well as influencers and individuals seeking to
attract audiences and increase their credibility on social media.
*Corresponding author: z. nadalipour@ usc. ac. ir
Introduction
The viral nature of social media has provided
brand managers with significant opportunities
to increase positive interactions through word- of-
mouth advertising (Killian and McManus, 2015).
Keller and Fay (2016), cited in Gretzel (2018),
refer to influencers as daily consumers who are
almost certain to seek out information and share
ideas, information and recommendations with
others through volunteering their opinions about
products and services that they are excited about
which are then adopted by others because of
their knowledge, advice and insight. Social media
influencers are ‘vocational, sustained and highly
branded social media stars’ who ‘exert influence
over a large pool of potential customers’ (Abidin,
2018; as cited in Femenia- Serra and Gretzel,
2020, p. 66). They are a new type of online
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
opinion leader and brand endorser (Freberg etal.,
2011) with great power to influence their follow-
ers, which has made them the focus of influencer
marketing strategy (De Veirman et al., 2017;
Bokunewicz and Shulman, 2017) (ibid.). One of
the most important functions of social networks
is the formation of electronic verbal marketing
among the members, which is considered a major
function of such networks. Social networks,
particularly those with capabilities in sharing
photos and videos, such as Instagram, have played
a vital role in promoting tourist destinations by
changing the type of communications. Instagram
is an American photo- and video- sharing social
networking service founded by Kevin Systrom and
Mike Krieger in 2010. Focusing on visual com-
munication, this social platform can help better
promote products and services. The costs associ-
ated with marketing activities are significantly
reduced by using this platform.
The purpose of the present research is
to study the role of Instagram influencers in
marketing tourist destinations. It also aims to
identify appropriate criteria in selecting influenc-
ers by marketers. In this regard, influencers’
characteristics, as well as factors contributing to
the selection of influencers, have been studied.
In the forthcoming sections, relevant literature
is reviewed by focusing on previous studies.
Afterwards, the methodology of the study is
addressed by analysing the findings and results.
Finally, the conclusion and discussion, as well as
the limitations and recommendations for future
research, are presented.
Literature Review
Several studies have confirmed the role of social
media in the travel and tourism decision process.
According to Leung etal. (2013), from 2007 to
2011, travel and tourism studies mainly focused
on the use and impact of social media in the
research phase of travellers’ travel planning
processes. On the other hand, supplier- centric
studies have concentrated more closely on
promotion, management and research func-
tions rather than product distribution. From
a consumer- centric perspective, for example,
McCarthy et al. (2010), cited in Leung et al.
(2013), studied the impact of social media on
changing hotel customer preferences. Another
example from the same source is a study con-
ducted by Fotis et al. (2011), which found the
role of media in changing the way holiday plans
were made by online users from Russia and the
former Soviet Union republics had changed.
On the other hand, regarding supplier- centric
studies, an example cited in Leung etal., 2013,
is Pan et al.’s 2007 work, which indicated the
effectiveness and implications of analysing blog
entries in destination marketing. Leung et al.’s
2011 work is another example demonstrating
the cost- effectiveness of monitoring travel blogs
by destination marketers in order to recognize
travellers’ experiences (Leung etal., 2013).
With regard to the impact of social media
on destination branding, Lim et al. (2012)
studied consumer perception of destination
brands created by consumer- generated videos
and destination marketing organizations’
videos. They found that ‘consumer- generated
videos do not carry the same destination brand
as destination marketer- generated videos’ (p.
197). They also found that those videos created
by the consumer have little positive impact on
a destination brand. Regarding destination
images, Stepchenkova and Zhan (2013), in their
study, compared images of Peru collected from
a DMO’s site and from Flickr, a photo- sharing
website. They identified statistical differences in
several dimensions of these images by producing
maps representing ‘aggregated’ projected and
perceived images of Peru, and maps indicating
the geographical distribution of the images.
With reference to better communication
with the customer through social networks,
Tussyadiah et al. (2011) cited in Leung et al.,
2013, argued that audiences will be more
motivated to choose a given destination if they
gain information about a place through user-
generated content on social media. In the same
vein, Sparks and Browning (2011) found that
the probability of booking a hotel by customers
is determined by valence, framing and inclu-
sion of ratings in online reviews. Wang and
Fesenmaier (2004), cited as above, also revealed
that ‘social media are useful for managing
customer relations with their unique ability of
attracting customers through in- depth, focused
and member- generated content, engaging
customers through social interactions, and
retaining customers through relation building
with other members’ (Leung etal., 2013, p. 4).
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Z. Nadalipour et al.
Recognizing customers’ needs and wants,
Dellarocas (2003) argued that social media pro-
vides extraordinary opportunities for tourism
companies in order to understand and respond
to consumer preferences. Online comments
on social platforms such as Tripadvisor and
Virtualtourist can be analysed by companies to
better recognize customers’ expectations and
preferences (Leung et al., 2013). On the other
hand, regarding use of social platforms as mar-
keting tools, Hay (2010) investigates the use of
twittering from the perspectives of destination
marketing organizations, hotels and the con-
sumer. The findings revealed that twittering pro-
vides consumers with an opportunity to learn
and share common experiences. Another study
is Belias et al. (2017) work, which investigates
how social media can act as a tool for acquiring
knowledge and creating a collaborative environ-
ment in the case of the Greek tourism industry.
Considering studies in the area of influencer
marketing, Gretzel (2018), in a book chapter titled
‘Influencer marketing in travel and tourism’,
argued that ‘Despite its prominence and practical
significance, there is a lack of research that inves-
tigates the travel and tourism influencer market-
ing phenomenon’. However, one of the relevant
studies to the present research is De Veirman etal.
(2017). By focusing on Instagram, they studied
the impact of number of followers and product
divergence on brand attitude. The findings of
their research revealed that Instagram influenc-
ers with large numbers of followers are found to
be more likeable due to being more popular. They
also found that ‘only in limited cases, percep-
tions of popularity induced by the influencer’s
number of followers increase the influencer’s
perceived opinion leadership’ (p. 1). In addition,
following very few accounts by the influencer
can negatively impact his/her likeability. It also
was revealed that ‘cooperating with influencers
with high numbers of followers might not be the
best marketing choice for promoting divergent
products, as this decreases the brand’s perceived
uniqueness and consequently brand attitudes’ (p.
1). In another study, featuring interviews with
destination representatives, social media content
analysis and relevant reported data, Femenia-
Serra and Gretzel (2020) investigated the use of
social media influencers by destination manage-
ment organizations and the inner dynamics of
influencer marketing for tourism destinations.
Moreover, using self- congruity theory, Xu (Rinka)
and Pratt (2018) investigated social media influ-
encers as endorsers to promote travel destinations,
in a case of Chinese Generation Y. They found that
‘social media influencers’ endorser–consumer
congruence positively contributes to visit inten-
tions toward the endorsed destinations as does
endorser–destination congruence’ (p. 1). Gretzel
(2018) raised the important question of how to
conceptualize influence and how to formulate
effective influencer campaigns. She also referred
to the question of how consumers perceive travel
and tourism social media influencers and what
drives the persuasiveness of influencer messages.
The present study has partly tried to find answers
to these questions.
Methodology
Owing to the fact that the present study is
an exploratory one in nature, a qualitative
approach was adopted in conducting the
research. Semi- structured, in- depth interviews
therefore were applied to gathering the required
data which were analysed later by using a the-
matic analysis approach. In this way, transcripts
of interviews were read carefully. Then, initial
coding was done using MAXQDA software and
extracted codes were synthesized to create the
basic themes. By applying a purposive approach
and snowball sampling method, a sample of
nine experts was taken from a population of
specialists in the fields of marketing, tourism,
media and content production. Sample size
was determined based on achieving theoretical
saturation. Regarding credibility (Lincoln et al.,
1985) of the research, since interviewees were
experts with sound experience in the relevant
fields, and also as the same interviewer con-
ducted all interviews, it can be argued that there
are no issues with the credibility of the research.
With reference to the transferability (Lincoln
etal., 1985) of the research, this was considered
as all stages of the research process are described
in detail.
Findings
Table 3.1 demonstrates the interviewees’ pro-
files including experience, education and job/
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
specialty. As noted before, nine experts in areas
covering content production, tourism enter-
prises management and tourism influencers
were selected and interviewed.
According to the answers of the interview-
ees, the coding in MXQDA software was done in
terms of three steps: open coding, axial coding
and selective coding. Afterwards, in order to
better organize the codes in the software,
extracted codes were categorized and the main
themes were extracted. The main categories,
such as criteria to select influencers by tourism
marketers, shared content, destination promo-
tion, prerequisites for tourism businesses, influ-
encer–business interactions, and potential of
Instagram were obtained. These categories are
discussed in more detail. Fig.3.1 demonstrates
thematic map of the main themes and relevant
codes.
Criteria to Select Influencers by
Tourism Marketers
With regard to the findings of the research,
‘criteria to select influencers by tourism market-
ers’ was identified as one of the main themes
based on ten extracted codes as can be seen
in Table 3.2. These codes are: audience size/
popularity, influencer genre, originality, lived
experience, quality of expression, influencer
relevancy to the tourism field, influencer per-
sonality, feeling intimacy and closeness with
the influencer, influencer gender, and not being
fake.
Audience size/popularity
‘Micro- influencers’ refer to users who have
recently started working on a given social media
platform, and their primary goal for content pro-
duction is to attract the audience. These people
are also less famous with a limited number of fol-
lowers. The positive feature of micro- influencers
is that they have a deeper connection with their
followers, so they receive better feedback. As
suggested by one of the influencers: ‘When a
person has a smaller audience, it will be very
easy to talk to them’ (5). Another interviewee
also mentioned this point during the interview:
‘It depends on how many followers he/she has.
Sometimes, for example, number of followers
is up to 4 or 5 digits. In this case, he/she can
communicate more and be available; however,
sometimes you cannot really expect to be able to
communicate with him/her’ (3).
On the other hand, macro- influencers are
the most active and popular users, sometimes
with more than 500,000 followers. From one
expert’s perspective: ‘When choosing a type of
influencer, it is very important what the purpose
of the product is. Sometimes it is obvious who
a micro is. For example, it starts with 500–600
followers and is growing, and the trust that
exists between him/her and the followers is
Table 3.1. Interviewees’ prole.
Interviewee Experience (year) Education Job/specialty
1 15 Master’s Restaurant front- of- house manager
2 8 Master’s Executive manager of tourism marketing corporations
3 18 Bachelor’s Hotel owner
4 10 Master’s Tourism inuencer
5 10 Associate Hotel inuencer
6 20 Associate Tourism agency manager
7 10 Master’s Tourism website content manager
8 5 Bachelor’s Tourism content producer
9 4 Bachelor’s Coffee shop manager
Source: Author’s own work.
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Z. Nadalipour et al.
very strong and closer; while in the case of
macro- influencers, the number of followers
is above 200,000 and his/her market is more
public’ (Belias etal., 2017). However, according
to the experts’ opinion on the importance of the
number of followers, half of the interviewees
suggested that it is misleading to consider only
this factor. They were of the opinion that the
goal of the sale is more important: ‘The worst
type of selection is to consider only the number’
(4). ‘If the influence of the influencer is high,
his/her audiences will also increase over time.
In contrast, there may exist influencers who
have a large number of followers, but their
followers are not real people’ (9). ‘According
to an unwritten rule, although the number
of followers is an important factor in gaining
trust and popularity in cyberspace, there is no
doubt that the quality of content is not neces-
sarily related to the number of followers. There
are also many ways to increase the number of
audiences that are not related to the quality of
the content’ (7). The other half responded to the
question about the importance of the number of
followers as follows: ‘As you know, the number of
followers is the first thing you see after entering
each page, so the first and easiest way to make
an initial judgement is to look at the number of
Potentials of
Instagram
platform
Content
creation
Instagram
algorithm
Word-of-
mouth
advertising
View rate
Photo-centric
posts
Importance of
the text
Possibility to
be anti-
advertising
To sell dreams
on Instagram
Influencer–
business
interactions
Adopting a
marketing
method
Using expert
consultants
The
importance of
concluding
a contract
Dispute
resolution
Prerequisites
for tourism
businesses
Self-recognition
Audience
recognition
Sale objectives
To provide
facilities
Destination
promotion
Type of
destination
Introducing
Shared
content
Purposive
content
Narrative
advertising
(intangible)
Audience
engagement
and attraction
Up-to-date and
accurate
information
Criteria to
select
influencers by
tourism
marketers
Audience size/
popularity
Lived
experience
Originality
Influencer
genre
Influencer
relevancy to
tourism
Quality of
expression
Influencer
personality
To feel intimacy
and closeness
with the
influencer
Influencer
gender
Not being fake
Influencers and destination marketing
Fig. 3.1. Thematic map of the main themes.
Source: Author’s own work.
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
followers and to measure a person’s popularity
in this way’ (8). ‘In any case, no matter we think
that the number of audiences is not important
and the quality of the audience will have a
greater impact on a brand, because we must also
give the right to the advertiser’ (5). From the
audience perspective, one interviewee argued:
‘Merely having a large number of followers is
not a criterion for choosing and following, but
if two influencers operate in exactly one area
(e.g. food tourism), a high number of followers
can indicate the reliability of the influencer and
impact whether or not to follow’ (2).
Generally, it was revealed the first step in
choosing an influencer is usually to consider
the number of followers. On the other hand,
the popularity of an influencer is one of his/
her most critical features. Popularity includes
several criteria such as a large following, good
interaction, reputation, and high impact.
Intangible popularity is a pushing factor which
forces users to follow his/her favourite influ-
encer. The features such as being honest, proper
public relations, being responsive and intimate,
having real followers etc. make a person
popular. As one interviewee suggested: ‘The
more an influencer contacts with the audience,
the higher would be his/her popularity’ (8).
‘Friendship is more important than anything
else in a blogger’s popularity. Being cheerful
attracts the attention of others and increases the
effect of words on the audience. The influencer
should always remember that a powerful way
to get the audience’s attention and persuasion
is jocundity’ (5). Another contributory factor to
the popularity of an influencer is its responsive-
ness. In this regard, one interviewee stated that:
‘I have always preferred those influencers who
are responsive despite being busy. This makes the
position of the influencer in the mind ten times
higher’ (3). Using a popular influencer as a des-
tination ambassador greatly helps in branding
the destination image and in paving the way for
actors engaging in destination marketing.
Influencer genre
The genre of influencers in this research means
having a profession in a specific field (not just
tourism) or being well known, regardless of
having a specific specialty. In this regard, one of
interviewees argued: ‘Due to my personal expe-
rience, I see that a person who produces content
in a specialized field, especially tourism, even if
he/she is not an expert in that field, but with a
more colourful content, can be more attractive
than a person who presents his/her content in a
more scientific and specialized way’ (5). Another
interviewee was of the opinion that ‘expertise is
the last step to gaining fame in cyberspace’ (6).
However, another pointed out that ‘...criteria
vary for individuals. Sometimes it is important
to use one’s experiences or familiarity with
tourism destinations’ (9). ‘An influencer defines
a personality for his/herself and has a special
Table 3.2. Criteria to select inuencers by tourism marketers and related codes.
Theme Codes Frequency
Criteria to select inuencers
by tourism marketers
Audience size/popularity 29
Inuencer genre 21
Originality 8
Lived experience 17
Quality of expression 22
Inuencer relevancy to the tourism eld 11
Inuencer personality 15
To feel intimacy and closeness with the
inuencer
11
Inuencer gender 12
Not being fake 11
Source: Author’s own work.
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Z. Nadalipour et al.
genre. If you know your audience perfectly, then
you can choose right. You need to know who
you want to influence’ (4). ‘I prefer it not to be
too general; rather, be specific, for example food
influencer. For example, X [refers to one influ-
encer] started a specialized tour of local foods.
This person knew everything in this regard, and
made a business’ (2).
What can be concluded from most of the
interviewees’ opinions is that although special-
ized influencers have been more successful in
attracting audiences, because the audiences
more likely follow the individual based on their
content, the audiences also pay more attention
to the more colourful and glamorous content
offered by ordinary influencers. Therefore, if it
is only about visibility and popularity, market-
ing through famous people who produce more
glamorous content is probably more successful.
Originality
Originality also greatly increases an influencer’s
influence and his/her chance to be selected and
followed. According to one of the interviewees,
‘These are interconnected chains. When you
want your words to be effective and you want to
act positively and not to be fake, naturally you
have to have an identity which is something
inherent’ (1). Generally, from the perspective
of experts and audiences, experience, stable
personality, avoiding multitasking or not leaping
from subject to subject, as well as a deep under-
standing of a certain context, are the signs of
originality for an influencer.
Lived experience
Another theme frequently mentioned in inter-
views was influencers’ experiences and their
encounter with real events: ‘Another feature
that is important to me is influencers’ lived expe-
rience; for example, maybe he/she graduates
from university just today, and claims tomorrow
that I am an influencer in this field, without any
practical or relevant experience. Inversely, there
are those influencers who have been travelling
for years and have enough experience; so they
enter Instagram space and present themselves’
(2). The difference between experiencing and
not experiencing a situation is usually easily
recognizable, so that audiences who have
already experienced that situation will recognize
a lack of real experience in the content shared
by an influencer. Regarding the importance of
experience in attracting followers, one of the
interviewees expressed her opinion as follows: ‘If
he/she narrates to me the real experiences that
took place there, and I could later experience the
same thing that he/she had promised by nar-
ration, I will certainly become his/her loyal fol-
lower’ (3). In addition, one of the interviewee’s
opinion as a hotelier was noteworthy: ‘Behind
every experience there is a thought, a satisfac-
tion and a feeling. You should give meaning to
the places and destinations, and if an influencer
cannot do it, he/she must leave the influencer
marketing’ (3). According to some interviewees,
it considerably impacts audiences’ selection
because it indicates that a given influencer is not
fake and an imitator. One of the interviewees
referred to the importance of the issue, particu-
larly in destination marketing: ‘When it comes
to the travel and tourism, attending the destina-
tion and facing its attractions by influencers is
one of the important factors that will affect the
destination marketing’ (7).
Quality of expression
With respect to the influencer’s quality of
expression and how he/she communicates with
the audiences, the interviewees had various
answers, which were similar. The quality of
expression is crucial in influencing followers, as
well as in being effective in marketing a tourist
destination. One of the interviewees argued that:
‘This is determined by their [influencers] per-
sonal brand. Having a humorous and witty tone
usually does not work. Being dry and deadpan
still does not work; rather, they should [be]
friendly and enthusiastic’ (4). In a similar way,
another interviewee suggested: ‘This depends
on the type of content. Each content requires its
own favourite way of expression. For sure, the
ability to speak and present well is very impor-
tant in attracting the audience’ (6). ‘I personally
do not agree with being so formal. Of course, to
some extent, it also depends on the type of audi-
ence and the type of blogger personality and
prestige’ (5). However, another interviewee has
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
a moderate view: ‘The balance between these
two tones [formal and friendly] is important.
Influencers’ extreme emphasis on one single
type can make the audience bored’ (5). However,
from a more comprehensive perspective, one
interviewee had a different opinion: ‘It depends
on your target market. Sometimes you should
be formal, sometimes more friendly. It cannot
be said which one is better or more effective. It
depends on the influencer and his/her followers’
(Belias etal., 2017). Another interviewee, active
in the accommodation sector, referred to the
tone of voice as a contributory factor to attract
audiences: ‘If tone of voice is not impressive, I
cannot be absorbed [in] or believe what he/she
is talking or writing about’ (3). Confirming the
above- mentioned argument, another expert
referred to the relationship between tone of
voice and audience type: ‘Each tone and style
of speech has its own audience. If one wants
to convey the content to children, for example,
he/she must use a narrative and childish tone.
Communication with the adult audience also
has its conditions. But in my opinion, each
influencer leaves a mark on the audience with
his/her unique tone. Influencers usually greet
audiences with a special and repetitive tone, and
the same tone is recorded in their mind (7).
Influencer relevance to the tourism field
In this study, relevance to the tourism field
means whether it is better to use specialized
travel- and tourism- related influencers in order
to promote a destination or to use non- related
but more famous influencers. Interestingly,
a small number of interviewees agreed with
the use of travel- related influencers, while
in the opinion of other experts and even
tourism- related influencers, the use of famous
influencers would be more influential for desti-
nation marketing as they are more successful
in producing attractive content and engaging
audiences. ‘I’m a related- influencer fan, but I
also see influencers who are not acting in the
field of tourism but they are successful, because
a wide range of people are following them.
These followers might also be interested in
the tourism field’ (2). According to Belias etal.
(2017): ‘A person with related knowledge can
help us better. He/she can promote a destina-
tion in a more professional and specialized way,
but then again, famous influencers who have
a lot of followers, might be more effective’.
Most interviewees were of the opinion that
travel- and tourism- related influencers are suc-
cessful in introducing a destination rather than
promoting it, since effective promotion requires
producing compelling content which would be
more successful.
Influencer personality
The influencer’s personality was a code repeat-
edly mentioned in most of the interviewees’
responses. Most of them suggested that to
follow an influencer on the social network,
they inevitably consider his/her personality.
According to one interviewee: ‘I look at person-
ality traits; how acceptable he/she is. It is also
affected by my personal feelings, but I try not
to be overwhelmed. I try to see who we want to
work with in terms of attitude and personality’
(Belias et al., 2017). Other interviewees put a
lot of emphasis on the influencer’s personality:
‘The influencer introduces him/herself based on
a particular behaviour or lifestyle which attracts
his/her audience’ (3). One of the influencers
interviewed considered attributes such as self-
confidence, tone, idea and personal signature to
be important in following an influencer. It must
be noted that, in this part, personality means
being in accord with the accepted social norms
and having the correct and appropriate position
in the social networks.
To feel intimacy and closeness with the
influencer
There must be a sense of intimacy and close-
ness with the influencer from the perspective
of both personality and goal. Regarding the
choice of destination, one of the interviewees
argued: ‘A successful influencer is one who
brings you closer to the purpose of your trip.
I myself choose someone who can involve me
in the cultural context and the natural nature
of the city and the place where I want to go’
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(1). In this way, the issue of shared value
was raised by one of the interviewees: ‘If
influencers have a better relationship with the
common values of their followers, they can
have a more lasting impact’ (3). On the other
hand, with regard to the selection of an influ-
encer by a tourism company, several criteria,
such as similarity of the two sides’ thought
and whether the content is real or unreal,
have been emphasized by interviewees.
Influencer gender
One of the questions raised about influencers
was about their gender, with most interview-
ees agreeing that females have a greater ability
to attract audiences than males. For example:
‘Females are better because they have a closer
look at everything and can analyse and intro-
duce in details’ (2). ‘Females are detail orien-
tated. They are also more interested in sharing
colourful and glazed content and pictures.
They are more active and use Instagram more
often than males’ (8). But three interviewees
believed that gender did not play a role in the
selection of individuals and that the degree of
ability of individuals depends on the type of
content which is shared and on the purpose
of the content: ‘Since it was not common for
females to travel alone until a few decades ago,
their activities may have attracted more atten-
tion in social networks, but in general, why
should there be a difference?’ (7). ‘Being an
influencer is an issue that can be less depend-
ent on gender because audiences are attracted
to the abilities and other characteristics of
influencers more than their gender’ (9). ‘In my
opinion, gender does not matter if a correct
and lasting result is desired; but if only getting
attention and increasing sales are considered
(perhaps not for sure), then the position of
females might be better for success’ (6).
Not being fake
One of the most important things that any
stakeholder directly involved in the marketing
of the destination should pay full attention to is
being a real influencer. Because being real or ‘not
being fake’ in all dimensions, both in the number
of followers and the shared content, is very
important in influencing audiences. However,
the importance of not being fake in the number
of followers is much more important than the
type of content, since having unrealistic follow-
ers, especially for marketing purposes, is a big
obstacle to achieving the goal. In fact, spending
for an influencer with a fake audience is one
of the biggest losses that can hit investors hard
financially. As interviewed experts suggested,
due to the vastness of cyberspace and the avail-
ability of information, the slightest mistake in
sharing content would cause the unpopularity
of an influencer and, as a result, cause the audi-
ence to distrust him/her and other content in
the long run. ‘When he/she wants to play a role,
audiences gradually realize it and will be [lost]’
(5). One of the interviewees who is a hotel owner
also emphasized this issue: ‘If I realize that his/
her followers are fake I do not consider him/her
to advertise my hotel’ (3).
Shared Content
Another theme identified by extracted codes is
shared content. Shared content on Instagram
depends to a large extent on the influencer’s
genre. Such content includes a vast range
of issues and it can or cannot pertain to the
influencer’s lifestyle. Influencers’ marketing
activities, for example, cover some part of this
content. Extracted codes, based on which shared
content theme was identified, are presented in
Table3.3.
Purposive content
Any shared content must have a specific
purpose. As active users are looking for purpo-
sive content and, based on this, usually follow
certain influencers, sharing content with a
purposeful approach is crucial. In this vein, one
expert is of the opinion that: ‘Those operators
using this platform [Instagram] would have a
superior position than competitors. Thus, when
it comes to the tourism field, if purposive and
appropriate contents are produced, Instagram
would be a critical context’ (6). Referring to
the purposeful activity of influencers, another
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
expert suggested: ‘A tourism influencer should
adopt acculturalization purpose for his/her page
sharing it with the audiences’ (5). What was
frequently mentioned by interviewees is the lack
of fine content and disregarding the concept,
as well as more attention to the deceptive and
almost unpurposeful contents. In regard to the
harmony between appearance and concept, one
interviewee argued: ‘What is of the high value
is the concept; I mean what concept we have
and what concept we show. They should fit their
texts, colours, photos etc. with a given concept’
(3). Conclusively, influencers should reflect a
certain purpose in terms of both appearance and
content in order to increase their success.
Up-to-date and accurate information
Owing to the presence of a large number of
users on Instagram, as well as free flow of
information, sharing accurate and up- to- date
information is of high importance. Considering
the meaning of being up- to- date, one inter-
viewee believes: ‘Being up- to- date means not
lagging behind the others, and when something
becomes more trendy in any subject, it will be
realized quickly; otherwise, the audience will be
attracted to someone who has more information,
and thus he/she loses the audience’ (10). ‘Being
up- to- date shows that a person is really active.
A literate person gives good information to his/
her audience so that they are attracted to him/
her. As for the accuracy of the information, if I
want to say my opinion, usually a person lies to
his/her own detriment, because his/her follow-
ers will investigate what he/she said. Someone
who shares false information is not trustworthy’
(5). In a similar way, another interviewee sug-
gested: ‘Honesty is very important because if the
audience feels that the influencer is not honest
enough or only produces content to advertise
and receive money, it will destroy the trust and
influence on the audience. I myself did not follow
many bloggers because of their dishonesty’ (8).
All participants agreed that marketing based on
invalid or old information will fail.
Audience engagement and attraction
Even purposeful content is not effective unless it
is attractive. Good content should engage audi-
ences in what it is conveying. Features such as
responsiveness, a sense of intimacy, a friendly
tone of voice, attractive visual content etc. are
effective in creating attention; however, there
are no absolute criteria pertinent to attract-
ing audiences, particularly in the tourism
field where, besides the range of destinations,
there are various types of tourists with diverse
interests and expectations: ‘You have different
requests from customers of different categories
and personas, and you cannot look at it compre-
hensively at all. Each category of customer has
its own characteristics, interests and concerns...
each influencer produces something that his/
her customers like’ (4). Another interviewee
referred to one of the ways to engage an audi-
ence: ‘I think that live video is more influential
than photos, catalogues and texts. It engages
the audience more, by providing a more tangible
experience’ (1). From a similar perspective, one
of the interviewees described the importance of
uploading photos in absorbing audiences: ‘Due
to the recent approaches to the advertisement
in virtual space, it seems that choosing and
prioritizing pictures should be done based on
narration and storytelling, so that [they] engage
audiences’ (6). As mentioned before, there is no
definite method for attracting and engaging the
audience; nevertheless, what was frequently
specified in the interviews is proportionality,
which is pertinent to influencers’ creativity.
Table 3.3. Shared content and related codes.
Theme Codes Frequency
Shared content Purposive content 18
Up- to- date and accurate information 21
Audience engagement and attraction 25
Narrative advertising (intangible) 21
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Narrative advertising
The meaning of narration is storytelling and
arranging related and serial events in order to
effectively promote the product, service and
especially the tourist destination. It is presented
in a way that fits with the audience’s lifestyle.
‘Sometimes I would like to see the advertise-
ment in the context of his/her lifestyle because
I can relate to it better’ (Belias etal., 2017). On
the other hand, regarding how narrative it is,
another interviewee’s opinion was as follows:
‘An influencer can enhance his/her power of
narration by merging some story and pictures’
(2). One of the interviewees referred to his
favourite influencer’s method: ‘… for example,
my influencer; he is a writer and writes trav-
elogue. Wherever he goes, he starts narrating
from the beginning to the end of his journey.
He tells stories and gives me a sense of compan-
ionship’ (5). In this sense, to be successful, an
influencer needs to apply more narrative rather
than static methods in order to market a given
product or destination.
Destination Promotion
Introducing and promoting the destination is
a concern that motivates experts to adopt an
influencer’s marketing approach. Destination
promotion has been identified as a main theme
based on two codes which have been presented
in Table3.4 as type of destination and introducing.
Type of destination
Identifying destination type and understanding
its real nature is critical to better introduce and
promote it, as well as to provide audiences with
a better understanding of what is assumed to be
advertised. Different types of tourist destinations
can be determined based on various criteria such
as geographic location, tourism attractions, tour-
ists’ activities or destination life cycle. As one of
the interviewees argued: ‘Destination life cycle is
important. For example, in a very initial stage, a
micro- influencer seems a good option to promote.
But when a destination is placed at growth or
maturity stage, a macro- influencer would be
more effective’ (Belias et al., 2017). Regardless
of this argument about which influencer is
appropriate at each stage of the destination life
cycle, considering this criterion is significant in
its nature. Generally, the type of destination must
be obvious to both audiences and influencers.
Introducing
The step after recognizing the type of destination
is presentation and introduction. Before advertis-
ing, it is important to first identify and introduce
the destination. A number of interviewees
considered one of the appropriate methods to
introduce a destination as presence in the place
and expression of different dimensions by criti-
cally reviewing its strengths and weaknesses. By
giving the example of a hotel, one of the inter-
viewees suggested: ‘Imagine an influencer who,
for example, introduces a hotel. So, intentionally
goes and stays there in order to introduce it well.
And to show others that how is day and night
there, how are the staff who serve there’ (2).
Prerequisites for Tourism Businesses
Before selecting an influencer according to the
predetermined priorities and criteria to intro-
duce and market their businesses in destination
tourism, activists must contemplate a number of
things in order to receive the appropriate output
from their marketing. In this study, prerequisites
for tourism businesses have been extracted as a
main theme based on four codes including self-
recognition, audience recognition, sale objectives
and to provide facilities (Table3.5).
Self-recognition
To market and introduce a destination, a
question must first be answered: Who are we?
Table 3.4. Destination promotion and related
codes.
Theme Codes Frequency
Destination
promotion
Type of
destination
11
Introducing 25
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
Tourism enterprises in each field must be able to
achieve a proper and comprehensive knowledge
of themselves. One of the interviewees put it this
way: ‘It [what we are] is related to the nature of
the brand and the essence of the brand mission,
which is different for each organization. For
example, for a five- star hotel, you have to specify
your hotel, for example a resort, a hotel boutique
or so on’ (1). After answering this question, one
is able to get closer to the given marketing goals.
Audience recognition
In almost all interviews, the phrase audience
recognition was frequently mentioned, since in
addition to recognizing type of destination and
self- knowledge, the audience must be also well
monitored, specifically in terms of marketing for
a tourist destination. According to one of the
interviewees, the importance and definition of
audience recognition is as follows: ‘When you
do not know the audience, the wrong choice
of the influencer will lead to losing. That’s why
knowing audiences is so important and always a
priority in digital marketing’ (4).
Sometimes it is better to know the customer
before selecting an influencer. What some
businesses consider in their selection is just
the number of followers. As interviewees have
stated, one of the most common mistakes is a
lack of proper understanding of the market
environment. An example in the field of hos-
pitality in one of the interviewee’s words is as
follows: ‘Sometimes for a hotel just being seen
is important. The situation of hotels is very
complicated. Hotel occupancy rates have been
very low during the corona pandemic, especially
in cities, where many are going bankrupt. They
should work at any cost… however, we must first
know who our stakeholders are. It is definitely
more important for hotels to recognize the type
of followers that the influencer has, and in the
next step [influencers] can create a consider-
able demand’ (3). Recognizing the audience is
very significant, as an influencer attracts the
audience based on his/her viewpoint, which, if
it is not in line with the goals of businesses and
destination activists, might negatively affect the
marketing and branding process.
Sale objectives
The objectives of sales are determined by
answering the question What do we want? As
one of the interviewees active in the field of food
and beverages stated: ‘Sometimes sales volume
is preferred for me in my restaurant, then I use
macro- influencers… but some other times, I
may prefer a micro- influencer who visits my
restaurant and shares his/her experience with
the audiences gradually’ (1). In this regard,
one of the interviewees gives a good example:
‘Introducing a brand of camping equipment on
the page of eco- lodges would be more effective
than on the page of luxury hotels; even if the
eco- lodges page has a smaller number of audi-
ences’ (5). Such examples emphasize the impor-
tance of recognizing sales objectives, which
leads to better targeting of both audiences and
advertising channels.
To provide facilities
After selecting an influencer, tourism businesses
should consider providing him/her with the
required facilities. As one interviewee men-
tioned: ‘Provision of appropriate information
to them [influencers] and informing them of
the ultimate goal are very important’ (6). It also
brings about more motivation for influencers in
engaging audiences and improving the quality
Table 3.5. Prerequisites for tourism businesses and related codes.
Theme Codes Frequency
Prerequisites for tourism
businesses
Self- recognition 10
Audience recognition 23
Sale objectives 20
To provide facilities 6
Source: Author’s own work.
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of marketing for a business. However, this might
not necessarily work in all cases, and it largely
depends on the characteristics of the influencer.
‘I talked to some influencers several times and
I tried to convince them, but finally they did
arbitrarily’ (3). It therefore demonstrates the
importance of selecting a proper influencer.
Influencer–business Interactions
After selecting the proper influencer and
recognizing the existing prerequisites, it is
time to think about effective interactions with
the influencer. Analysing the content of the
interviews revealed four relevant codes based on
which influencer–business interaction theme was
extracted (Table3.6).
Adopting a marketing method
Businesses or investors, together with influenc-
ers, draw up their own advertising scenario and
agree on how to implement it. In general, each
influencer has his/her own way of marketing;
however, as two interviewees who are influenc-
ers suggested, some methods are general and
common among influencers; for instance,
holding contests and giving prizes to the fol-
lowers, setting discounts etc. Such efforts make
the audiences feel valued and thus support the
influencer, which would result in more effective
marketing. It is worthy to note that this only
happens if the influencer has sufficient cred-
ibility and popularity.
Using expert consultants
One of the most important issues in the rela-
tionship and cooperation between influencers
and investors is the existence of intermediaries
through which messages can be conveyed in an
easier way. The use of expert consultants in this
field is useful for both investors and influencers.
A tourism business or investor, for instance, may
not be familiar with all aspects of cyberspace
and content production; therefore, existence
of a consultant who is professional in this field
would clear up many misunderstandings. As
one interviewee argued: ‘To avoid controversy,
first of all, consultants who are expert in the
digital marketing field should take on this
mission. It is very effective. The first thing they
need to do is to reach an agreement with the
influencer marketing coordinators’ (4). Another
interviewee raised immediate problems and sug-
gested: ‘In such cases, there should be always
a person who is aware of the organization to
observe and analyse situations in order to avoid
negative propaganda and to keep the audience
on track’(1).
The importance of concluding a contract
Concluding a contract is one of the ways to
prevent disputes and improve the relationship
between investor and influencer, which can, to
a large extent, pave the way for communica-
tion. Interviewees emphasized the benefits of
concluding the contracts. For instance: ‘An
important challenge is the contract and its
depth. I think it can stop future problems. It
should not be just oral, but a written conclu-
sion between the two parties and everything
should go according to it. Because, for example,
as an influencer, I review expectations when I
sign a contract, and this signature is always a
threat and a pressure factor from investor to
me and vice versa. Its absence causes problems’
(4). Nonetheless, it was considered useless by
Table 3.6. Inuencer–business interactions and related codes.
Theme Codes Frequency
Inuencer–business interactions Adopting a marketing method 7
Using expert consultants 5
The importance of concluding a contract 9
Dispute resolution 9
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
another interviewee who is a hotel influencer:
‘I think, in practice, concluding a contract is
not very useful and it is more a symbolic action’
(5). Regarding what should be negotiated
before contract, one interviewee stated: ‘First,
a meeting should be arranged in which I (as
an investor) specify what I really want, what I
am, and how you can have provided me with
what I expect. For example, maybe the investor
says “I am who I am”, or the influencer says “I
just work like this”. I think both sides should be
flexible to reach a common scenario’ (4).
Dispute resolution
As mentioned, there will be disputes in any
communication. There are a number of
disputes, which interviewees have pointed
out: ‘If investors feel they are being abused,
for example, the influencer does advertise just
to make money and does not care about the
quality’ (2). ‘In my opinion, when the content
produced by the influencer is not the same as
the investor has expected, then a conflict might
happen’ (8). ‘Lack of truthfulness and honesty
with the audience, abuse of the audience’ (4).
‘Probably providing incorrect information in
any field’ (6). In most of the interviews, failure
to consider stakeholders’ expectations, lack of
honesty and integrity, and a focus on earning
money and not the quality of the content
have been raised as factors creating disputes.
When conflicts appear, the biggest mistake is
to intensify them and not accept responsibility
from both parties. To resolve the disputes,
interviewees have expressed different opinions;
for example, two of the interviewees referred
to apology, correction of mistakes and avoid-
ance of possible future mistakes. However, one
interviewee was of the opinion that resolving
the dispute after its occurrence is difficult or
even impossible: ‘Unfortunately, nothing can
be done. During my activity, I talked to many
brands that sometimes paid up to $xx to a
blogger, but he/she even left the country. The
investors can only disclose, but it doesn’t work,
especially for popular influencers’ (5).
Potential of the Instagram Platform
During the interviews, the capabilities and fea-
tures of Instagram were repeatedly mentioned.
As a result, the potential of the Instagram
platform was considered as the main theme with
eight codes including content production tools,
algorithms, word- of- mouth advertising, view
rate, image- centric posts, importance of the text,
possibility to be anti- advertising, and selling of
dreams on Instagram (Table3.7).
Content creation
Two methods can be used to share photos
and videos on Instagram. The first method
is posting, which has been the case since the
introduction of Instagram, and the second
Table 3.7. Potential of Instagram and related codes.
Theme Codes Frequency
Potential of Instagram Content creation tools 21
Instagram algorithm 9
Word- of- mouth advertising 5
View rate 6
Image- centric posts 25
Importance of the text 20
Possibility to be anti- advertising 6
To sell dreams 4
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method is stories, which has been added to
the new update of this program since 2017.
Interviewees were asked about the effectiveness
of each of these methods. Most of the responses
imply the effectiveness of stories rather than
posts. Interviewees mentioned a variety of
reasons, including the fact that the stories are
more realistic, narrative, concise and easier
for users to access. Some also believe that if
the content was only a photo, a story is better
than a post: ‘Stories! because there is no limit
to uploading photos in the story compared to
the post, so in addition to the main post, leaving
detailed stories and more photos is helpful’ (4).
‘On personal pages I can say “story”, because
I see that sometimes a lot of Instagram users
do not pull the page down at all, and subcon-
sciously see the top stories until they get bored
and then close the page’ (5).
Although most interviewees emphasized
effectiveness of stories, they argued that
selection between story and post depends on
the type of pages and the type of content.
One influencer, for instance, stated: ‘In non-
personal pages, due to the large number of
visitors, posts are seen more’ (5). Another
influencer argued in this regard: ‘Which one
is better depends on the page; for example,
“trip and joy” uses the post for their tours
in order to draw its audiences’ attention
from the story to the post. This goes back to
our marketing funnel. And what should we
accustom our audience to?’ (4). In addition,
three of the interviewees considered the new
style of posting called nano- content posts,
meaning posts with titles and categorized
content, to be very effective in the last few
years. One interviewee said about these posts:
‘Such posts are both more stored and shared,
as well as encouraging the audience to open
the post when entering “Explore”’ (4). On
the other hand, one of the interviewees
considered the post to be more effective for
a number of reasons: ‘To me, a post is more
important because the story is a temporary
thing and you cannot save it for yourself, but
you can view the post at any time later’ (2). In
a similar vein, another interviewee referred to
the importance of posts in the ability to leave
comments: ‘Posts are more preferred because
they always remain on the page and there is
the ability to leave comments below them’ (8).
Instagram algorithm
Each of the programs and social networks has
an algorithm and capabilities that must be con-
sidered when applying them; otherwise, shared
content may be wasted. As one of the inter-
viewees stated, the Instagram algorithm has a
substantial impact on the amount of content
seen: ‘Instagram algorithm is such that if you
don’t like someone too much, his/her posts
and stories will be hidden for you’ (1). Another
interviewee considered the role and importance
of the Instagram algorithm in the number of
followers: ‘I think the Instagram algorithm
has made the number of followers the first
important thing for users’ (8). Moreover, there
are additional features such as report and block-
ing, posting comments, tags, mentions, and
seeing posts in Instagram Explore. A number of
interviewees commented on the significance of
opinions in the amount of feedback: ‘A comment
is very important, not every comment, I mean
a comment that receives and stimulates others’
opinions’ (1).
It must be noted that Instagram made
the latest changes to its algorithm in 2022.
The fields for which changes have been made
can be categorized into three groups: Feed and
Stories, Explore and Reels. The 2022 Instagram
algorithm for Feed and Stories provides users
with the ability to sort through the content of
the accounts they follow and predicts how likely
they are to interact with a post. Such prediction
is based on criteria such as information about the
post, information about the person who posted,
and users’ history of interaction with them and
their activity across the platform. Regarding the
Explore tab, the 2022 algorithm searches previ-
ous posts a user has liked or interacted with in
order to pull them in a collection of photos and
videos from other relevant accounts which have
not yet been followed by the user. The purpose
is to rank collected photos and videos based on
what the algorithm recognizes the user will be
most interested in. Finally, the 2022 Instagram
algorithm for Reels targets accounts a user
follows and accounts he/she does not follow in
order to provide him/her with content that the
algorithm predicts he/she will always prefer to
see1.
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The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
Word-of-mouth advertising
One of the characteristics of social networks
is their power in word- of- mouth advertising,
which results in people trusting each other.
This word- of- mouth communication on the
Instagram platform is growing. Interviewees
directly and indirectly mentioned this feature
of Instagram regarding influencer marketing:
‘Due to the word- of- mouth advertising that we
are witnessing on Instagram, influencers can
play a key role in branding’ (5).‘The advertise-
ment that is done is all word- of- mouth. It’s all
about your trust and belief in the other person’
(1). ‘The next important point is e- word- of-
mouth. For example, I am a fan of someone, and
I like what he/she posted, then I re- shared that
post’ (3).
View rate
The number of posts seen on Instagram pages
largely depends on the number of followers.
Content on pages with a large following, par-
ticularly if they are not fake, has more chance
of being seen. Many influencers are trying to be
seen in this network because they can increase
their effectiveness and efficiency in this way.
‘I know a hotel that chooses any influencer,
even with only 20,000 followers, for example;
because just being seen is important’ (3). ‘Of
course, for them, being seen more, even by a
general audience, is more important than being
seen less, but through a specific audience’ (5).
Disregarding the degree of visibility, another
interviewee who is a restaurant front- of- house
manger believed: ‘Now it is only important to be
seen; how influential it is [is] not important to us
at all’ (1). All in all, visibility is one of the most
important marketing features that has been sup-
plied to users by Instagram.
Photo-centric posts
Obviously, Instagram is one of the apps that has
the ability to share photos and videos. According
to conducted interviews, it was inferred from
about 80% of the answers that the photo is
more important than the text on Instagram. In
this regard, influencers have found their place
by sharing high- quality photos. Therefore, to
produce better content, they must be familiar
with photography and photo and video settings.
This is well stated by one of the interviewees:
‘The higher the quality and more detailed the
photos, as well as the better the angle and light
of the photos, the more it attracts the audience’
(7). Regarding the importance of photos, one of
the influencers said: ‘The more glamorous the
photos are, the more effective they are, because
Instagram is photo and video- oriented, and yet
the photo has its position’ (4).
Another interviewee also emphasized the
importance of the photo: ‘Photo takes priority,
because Instagram is centred on the photo. A
person who writes 100 lines, for example, has
confused this with the blog’ (2). ‘Instagram is a
visual media. Most of the time, no matter what
the text is, you just like the text because you
know who has shared it. You do not read the text
at all because, for example, he/she is your friend’
(1). Acknowledging this, another interviewee
argued: ‘Instagram makes us lazy. The concept
of Instagram is mostly photo … it is more inter-
esting for me to see photos rather than reading
a long text’ (3). ‘I think the photos [are more
important]. I think maybe less than 50% of their
audience will even take the time to read the text’
(8). One interviewee stated his opinion regarding
how to set visual content on Instagram: ‘Using
video art or visual effects is so impor tant… Music
can be very influential and it is even important
to share historical photos or talk about historical
events. These are influential tools that are not
available for a tour leader, while an influencer
can easily apply them to convey his/her desired
content’ (7).
Importance of the text
Interviewees were also asked about the impor-
tance of the text and the influencers’ writing
skill along with the importance of the photos.
Five of them considered it necessary to write on
Instagram: ‘Textual content or captions, in my
opinion, play an important role. Unfortunately,
this is often ignored’ (7). Another interviewee
argued: ‘Although photos are more attractive,
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Z. Nadalipour et al.
the importance of text should be considered.
In written content, one can deal in detail with
the events that took place during the trip and
interesting stories; something that cannot be
done in the photos’ (8). ‘When I see a photo, I
tell myself that he/she wanted to say something
that left a photo’ (2). One interviewee referred to
the complementary role of text for photos: ‘In
my opinion, photos need deep text or captions
to be more effective, and it definitely works’
(6). Another interviewee also mentioned the
importance of the text in a different way: ‘Some
of them mostly prefer written texts and some
photos or videos. It is certainly more important
for the first group’ (9). One interviewee expressed
his personal preference: ‘I look at the text more
than the photo, because I think a photo alone
makes no sense’ (5). However, he had a more
inclusive opinion and continued: ‘It depends
more on the influencer’s method. One prefers
to share a photo with a very short caption, and
another one prefers to share a photo with a long
text. It is different for everyone. One cannot say
which is better. But when it comes to travel and
tourism, I prefer both a good photo and good
text, because audiences like to know about that
destination and about the influencer’s feeling
experiences from there. So both are important in
this case.’ All in all, if an influencer decides to
share text on Instagram, it is better to be brief,
inclusive and appealing.
Possibility to be anti-advertising
As well as being a great marketing tool,
Instagram can also have a counter- advertising
feature. Due to the high speed of information
dissemination, this network is sometimes used
as an anti- advertising tool, particularly against
celebrities and influencers: ‘In my personal
experience, when I came to my role as an
influencer in cyberspace, I realized that from
now on, living in cyberspace means walking
on the razor’s edge. The slightest mistake or
misunderstanding in speech and behaviour can
change the face of an influencer in a second, so
much that even if he/she has been introducing
certain places such as restaurants or hotels for
years, all constructed images will change in the
eyes of the audience’ (5). It therefore should be
considered by influencers, as any mistake on
their part would cause negative propaganda
against them. For example, the use of a notori-
ous influencer can negatively af fect marketing: ‘I
believe the lack of commitment [is one reason],
so that a number of people become anti- bloggers
and anti- influencers and say that this influencer
is not good because they do it and tarnish their
reputation. You cannot make a mistake and not
be seen’ (2).
To sell dreams on Instagram
Another feature of the Instagram app, which
is imperceptibly imposed on users, especially by
influencers, is dream sales. In this visual media, by
sharing beautiful photos and promoting a product,
a destination or an experience, the backgrounds of
dream formation are created in the minds of users.
One interviewee describes the sale of a dream as
follows: ‘Instagram sells dreams. Some influencers
give audiences what they want. As a result, they
cannot make a real assessment, because now they
see their dreams through that lens. But we must
note that he/she is showing the wishes, not his/her
real lifestyle’ (3). According to one of the influenc-
ers: ‘Some destinations can only be dreamed of,
from visas to Corona and ... to expenses, but regard-
ing more available destinations, there is at least a
dream that is more real and achievable for them’
(4). In this sense, if destination planners could
make the dream more achievable for the potential
tourists, their chances of successful marketing
would be greater.
Discussion and Conclusion
The internet and cyberspace, by filling the
gaps and enlarging the circle of individuals’
communication, make it possible for ordinary
people to be introduced and made famous with
the difference that their scope of work is defined
in the context of cyberspace. Unlike celebrities
and athletes, these individuals, due to having
lifestyles and specializations similar to ordinary
people in society, have been successful in gaining
popularity and trust among different social
classes. As a result of this trust, influencer
marketing has been created, strengthened
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37
The Role of Inuencers in Destination Marketing through Instagram
and has become one of the sub- branches of
the marketing industry. An important issue to
note is the impact and role of word- of- mouth
e- marketing of influencers who have a large
number of followers in cyberspace. This is in line
with the findings of Femenia- Serra and Gretzel
(2020). The results of their research also show
the bright future of influencer marketing, which
is shaped by a proper adverti sing campaign.
This paper contributes to the existing litera-
ture by identifying that critical attributes must
be taken into account when getting influencers
to promote tourism destinations. Regarding the
characteristics of influencers to be selected by
investors, the greatest emphasis of the respond-
ents was on recognizing the purpose of the sale
and identifying the right audience. Selecting
an influencer based on the features that are
important to the investors is primarily related
to the purpose of their marketing, as well as
the type of destination. For example, to market
a luxury destination, selecting a nature- based
tourism or ecotourism influencer would not
be the best option. Therefore, the genre of the
influencer should be determined in this regard.
The other factor which is worth considering is
the number of followers, which has also been
emphasized by De Veirman et al. (2017). They
found that Instagram influencers with large
numbers of followers are more likeable due to
being more popular. However, sometimes it is
not easy to recognize if the number of followers
is real or fake. On some occasions, influencers
with lower numbers of followers would have a
greater impact on audiences. As a result, it is
important to have constant and effective inter-
action and public relations with audiences. The
issue of gender has also been raised. Although
it is wrong to have a gender perspective and
the main criterion must be having sufficient
ability and expertise, what can be seen from the
observations is that females are more prominent
in the field of influencer marketing in tourism
than males, indicating the greater influence of
females. What can be seen is the greater power
of females in making content more attractive
for their followers. Moreover, investors seem
to prefer females to advertise those tourism
products and services which are associated with
more emotional aspects. However, these claims
needs to be investigated further and in more
specific studies.
The other feature that greatly changes
the popularity of an influencer in cyberspace
is responsiveness and availability, since in this
space, the person must be responsible for the
content he/she has published and answer ques-
tions about shared content as much as possible.
This is very important for tourists who are plan-
ning to travel to a destination, as they usually
select and follow people who interact regularly.
Another issue to be considered is importance of
captions. Since Instagram is an image- driven
platform, people might simply see the photos
and videos, regardless of the text of the posts.
However, findings from analysing interviewees’
opinions revealed that people mostly follow
those influencers with better content, including
both photos/videos and text. Dissemination of
up- to- date and accurate information is another
factor influencing followers. By ignoring such
critical factors, an influencer will lose his/her
popularity and, as a result, will be eliminated by
competitors.
With regard to the selection of influencer,
the question is whether to choose a relevant
and specialized influencer or a general interest
but more famous one. What makes the selection
somewhat easier is understanding the purpose of
the marketing. When only sales take precedence,
the more famous influencer takes the lead, and
when it is important to introduce and present the
various dimensions of a destination in a profes-
sional way, the more specialized influencer will be
the better choice.
The next issue is appropriate methods of
marketing through influencers. Narrative and
story marketing that is done live has recently
become popular and is more effective than
banner advertising. Target stakeholders usually
prefer this type of marketing as it evokes a sense
of experience in the minds of the followers and
greatly reduces the commercial aspects of mar-
keting in the eyes of the audience who are tired
of advertising.
Empirical results of the present study have
major practical implications for destination
marketers, as well as tourism influencers. There
are several factors to be considered when using
influencers to market a tourist destination. These
factors may vary from destination to destination
and from influencer to influencer. What investors
and marketers in tourism destinations should
first consider is understanding their organization
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38
Z. Nadalipour et al.
(what they are), their marketing goals (what they
want), the type of destination and its potential,
and identifying their target audiences. Choosing
the right influencer will then be possible.
Although the present study contributes
valuable findings, it is worth noting some gaps
for further study in the future. First, one limita-
tion of the present study was impossibility of
more face- to- face interviews as a result of the
coronavirus pandemic. Second, this research
had a general approach to the factors studied.
To further this research and gain more detailed
findings about the nature of this type of market-
ing, researchers are recommended to focus on
one specific type of tourism such as cultural
tourism, ecotourism, food tourism or health
tourism. Moreover, the focus can be on a specific
destination from a geographical perspective, as
well as studying other social networks such as
Facebook, YouTube etc.
Note
1 https:// blog. hootsuite. com/ instagram- algorithm/ (accessed 13 December 2022).
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