Promotion of Sustainable Tourism Industry: Government Initiatives through Instagram as a Social Media Platform
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66635/dgrf5t39Keywords:
Sustainable Tourism, Instagram Marketing, Tourism Entrepreneurship, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), Government Tourism InitiativesAbstract
The ever-evolving digital communication technologies have profoundly changed the tourism promotion landscape, especially social media platforms. This research explores the impact of government campaigns in promoting sustainable tourism using Instagram as a digital platform. The study is qualitative in nature and employs Braun and Clarke’s six-step method of thematic analysis to analyse Instagram posts from official government tourism accounts. The research examines the sustainable tourism messages shared through images, captions, and hashtags and their effects, interpreted through the Stimulus - Organism - Response (S-O-R) approach. The study shows that government Instagram campaigns successfully raise awareness for sustainability, create favourable destination images, promote sustainable tourism practices and showcase grassroots tourism initiatives. The digital campaigns not only stimulate tourist perceptions and intentions but also boost the market presence of local businesses. The research also shows that heightened digital visibility supports the development of tourism entrepreneurship by providing opportunities to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) such as homestays, tour operators and artisans. Through extending the S-O-R model to economic and entrepreneurial outcomes, the study offers insights into the role of digital tourism communication in sustainable development and inclusive economic growth. This study adds to the body of research in sustainable tourism, digital marketing and entrepreneurship, particularly in emerging tourism destinations.
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