No Story Without a Storyteller: The Impact of the Storyteller as a Narrative Element in Online Destination Marketing

Abstract

Storytelling constitutes a promising tool in destination brand communication. Yet, although it also emerged as an important research field, studies on how individual story elements impact story persuasiveness are scant. This study investigates the impact of the storyteller as a narrative element (third person vs. first person) on tourist response. Findings show that first-person compared to third-person storytellers significantly increase engagement on social media, destination brand image, and tourist visit intentions. They further foster narrativity and social tone of text as well as tourist perceptions of narrative transportation and social presence. Processes of narrative transportation and social presence explain the effects of the storyteller on destination brand image and tourist visit intentions. Overall, the study expands our theoretical knowledge about organizational storytelling and supports destination managers in the design of effective destination brand stories.

Keywords

social media storytelling content marketing narrative transportation social presence

Introduction

Destination marketers increasingly use storytelling as a marketing tool to advertise regions, foster consumer-brand relationships, and promote travel experiences (Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Stienmetz et al. 2021; Youssef, Leicht, and Marongiu 2019). Storytelling is particularly effective in the pre-travel phase, in which tourists long for holidays and journeys (Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020). By describing man as homo narrans, Goodall (2005, 497) shares the view of many researchers, considering stories as the most ancient form of human communication and thus as human naturalness (e.g., Delgado-Ballester and Fernández-Sabiote 2016; Gilliam and Zablah 2013; Mancuso and Stuth 2014; Van Laer et al. 2014). Organizations use storytelling content because narratives are better understood than arguments, trigger attention, and help brands to be considered as real, relevant, and personal, which further positively impacts consumer-brand relationships (Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013; Ryu et al. 2018a; Wentzel, Tomczak, and Herrmann 2010). Also, marketing in the service industry acknowledges the importance of storytelling as its emotional and human character fits well with experience-based products, such as travel offers (Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Mattila 2000; Mora and Livat 2013; Moscardo 2020). In the buying process of experience-based products, storytelling can reduce the consumers’ perception of risk and simultaneously enhance trust, purchase intentions, and consumer-brand attitudes (Aiken and Boush 2006; Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012).

Stories differ from other types of marketing content due to the presence of narrative elements (Escalas 2004; Nan et al. 2015). Previous research has identified a variety of narrative elements, which are assumed to vary in their contribution to storytelling persuasiveness (Busselle and Bilandzic 2009; Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Nan et al. 2015; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer et al. 2018; Woodside 2010). Yet, it is remarkable that to date very few studies have empirically investigated the impact of these narrative elements on story receiver response (Escalas 2004; Gilliam and Zablah 2013; Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013; Mossberg 2008; O’Gorman and Gillespie 2010; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019). Nevertheless, also within tourism storytelling research, various authors (Kim and Youn 2017; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019) have called for investigations into the role of individual story elements.

Stories vary in their narrative elements, with one exception: the storyteller. Every story needs a storyteller (Van Laer et al. 2014) to place events and characters experiencing them in a coherent sequence (Shankar, Elliott, and Goulding 2001; Van Laer et al. 2018). Storytellers can assume two types, that is, they can either simultaneously act as characters (first-person narrations) or function as external narrators not merging with a story character (third-person narrations) (Davis et al. 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997; Nan et al. 2015). Despite the fundamental role of the storyteller in every story, there is a lack of research about its effects on tourist response as well as the processes underlying these effects in a travel context. In destination marketing, storytelling and the storyteller as a narrative element are relevant for several reasons. First, the COVID-19 outbreak has significantly changed the tourism industry (Assaf and Scuderi 2020; Tsionas 2020). Declining demand requires authentic and unobtrusive marketing content to communicate with consumers during the pandemic. Characteristics such as unobtrusiveness, authenticity, or emotionality are attributed to storytelling (Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Mattila 2000; Mora and Livat 2013; Moscardo 2020). Second, previous investigations about single narrative elements are mainly case-study-based (Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013), while there is a lack of quantitative empirical investigations (Kim and Youn 2017; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019). Third, examining storyteller types is relevant because they influence narrativity and narrative transportation (Lwin 2017; Page 2003; Prince 2008; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer et al. 2018), which in turn may impact brand attitudes and consumer response (Escalas, Moore-Chapman, and Britton 2004; Seo et al. 2018; Van Laer et al. 2014; Wang and Calder 2006). Fourth, various authors assume that the storyteller defining the narrative perspective also shapes social tone and social presence in online communication (Cyr et al. 2009; Davis et al. 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997; Kaufmann 2009; Mennecke et al. 2011; Tulloch 2014), which can favor communication effectiveness and consumer engagement (Gefen and Straub 2004; Song and Hollenbeck 2015).

This study focuses on organizational storytelling in tourism destination marketing and extends the current understanding of the phenomenon in three ways: First, we follow the call of existing research (e.g., Kim and Youn 2017; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Ryu et al. 2018a) that single story elements shaping a story’s effectiveness deserve more attention. Specifically, we investigate the effect of the storyteller as a narrative element in online destination marketing and its impact on tourist response. Second, we broaden the conceptualization of tourist response and examine the effects of the storyteller as a narrative element on actual tourist behavior in a social media setting as well as on consumers’ affective, cognitive, and conative response. Third, we aim to explain the underlying mechanisms and analyze whether and how text-based features of narrativity and social tone and consumer perceptions of narrative transportation and social presence mediate the effects of the storyteller as a narrative element on tourist response. Thus, we explore three research questions:

How does the storyteller as a narrative element (third person vs. first person) impact tourist response (i.e., social media engagement rate, destination brand image, and tourist visit intentions)?

To what extent do text-based features of narrativity and social tone of content mediate the effects of the storyteller as a narrative element on the social media engagement rate?

To what extent do consumer perceptions of narrative transportation and social presence mediate the effects of the storyteller as a narrative element on destination brand image and tourist visit intentions?

While the importance of storytelling is undisputed, there is a lack of understanding about how it works in online destination marketing. Our research thus contributes to destination marketing and branding by guiding destination managers in the design of individual story content for experience-based products. Specifically, we show how they can employ different destination stakeholders (e.g., farmers, chefs, locals) as first-person storytellers to allow consumers to mentally immerse into a story scenario. By creating authentic narratives, destination managers can use stories as a forceful tool to connect with, and to influence, consumers and prospects (Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020). Our recommendations on text-based destination marketing communication are therefore particularly helpful for destination managers who might lack but require expertise in creating persuasive stories (e.g., Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019).

Literature Review and Hypotheses

Storytelling in Tourism and Destination Marketing

Storytelling as the process of telling a story requires a storyteller on the one hand, and a story receiver on the other. While the storyteller creates and/or tells a story, story receivers read or listen (to) a story and consequently interpret it (Van Laer et al. 2014). Stories are defined as narratives placing events and characters experiencing them in a coherent sequence (Shankar, Elliott, and Goulding 2001; Van Laer et al. 2018). Within communication research two types of stories are distinguished: Commercial stories and non-commercial stories. Commercial stories created by an organization pursue marketing and/or communication objectives, while non-commercial stories do not (Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019). Commercial stories can in turn be classified into brand stories delivering narrative content to establish a brand image (Ryu et al. 2018a) and story ads presenting information about products, services, or a company in a story format (Wentzel, Tomczak, and Herrmann 2010). Tourism research has also investigated storytelling from two perspectives: consumer narratives and organizational storytelling. Consumer narratives include the sharing of personal stories (e.g., customer narratives in travel blogs) as well as the role of consumers in cocreating brands, communications, and experiences (Lund, Cohen, and Scarles 2018; Lund, Scarles, and Cohen 2020; Su, Cheng, and Swanson 2020; Tung, Cheung, and Law 2018; Tussyadiah 2011). Organizational storytelling, on the other hand, refers to brand-created stories (i.e., stories told by tourism destinations and their stakeholders) as a supportive tool in travel design and destination marketing communication (Kim and Youn 2017; Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Mattila 2000; Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Yavuz et al. 2016; Youssef, Leicht, and Marongiu 2019). The present research focuses on commercial stories created by destination marketing organizations and destination managers.

Several studies in the field of tourism and destination marketing have demonstrated the impact of commercial, organization-originated stories on consumers. In hotel marketing, Ryu et al. (2018a) point out that stories are better understood than arguments, and in farm tourism Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen (2020) demonstrate that stories affect emotions and are thus committed to memory. In the case of medical tourism, Kim, Song, and Shim (2020) further find that storytelling improves the value of information and increases consumer trust. Narrative content is less critically analyzed than traditional marketing content as it addresses human needs and thus increases mental stimulation (Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013). While traditional marketing usually communicates messages and aims to call to action, storytelling helps brands to be considered as real, relevant, and personal, which further leads to trust-building and positive brand attitudes (Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lundqvist 2013; Mancuso and Stuth 2014; Wentzel, Tomczak, and Herrmann 2010). Thus, storytelling has also emerged as a promising tool for destination marketing, for example, in experience design or brand communication (Moscardo 2020; Mossberg 2008; Stienmetz et al. 2021; Tung, Cheung, and Law 2018).

Organizational storytelling that pursues marketing objectives is relevant in that tourism destinations are facing growing global competition (Ekinci and Hosany 2006; Zhong, Busser, and Baloglu 2017) and have thus invested heavily in brand communication activities (Hanlan and Stephen 2004; Ryu et al. 2018b; Tasci and Gartner 2007; Zhong, Busser, and Baloglu 2017). However, since the outbreak of COVID-19, demand has been declining, resulting in smaller target groups and increasing prices (Assaf and Scuderi 2020; Tsionas 2020). In these circumstances, organizational storytelling can serve as an effective tool for destination marketing and destination branding (Rossolatos 2020), which allows authentic and unobtrusive communication even during a pandemic. In addition, destination marketing is complex, because destinations offer a wide range of tangible and intangible products, services, and features involving multiple stakeholders (Ekinci and Hosany 2006). Storytelling by destination management organizations provides an opportunity to handle the information and communication intensity of travel offers by developing stories with contemporary, authentic, and emotional marketing content (Beverland, Lindgreen and Vink 2008; Gabriel and Connell 2010; Gundersen Engeset and Elvekrok 2015). Ryu et al. (2018b) further demonstrate that narratives positively influence brand image. Brand image is a key determinant in destination marketing because it impacts tourist behavior before, during, and after traveling (Tasci and Gartner 2007; Tasci, Gartner, and Cavusgil, 2007). In a digital marketing environment increasingly dominated by social media, Deritz and Jha (2017) show that storytelling boosts social media interaction.

Despite the established advantages of storytelling in destination marketing, empirical research on the effects of organizational storytelling in destination marketing is still in its infancy (Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Moscardo 2020). First empirical insights reveal that stories told by destination marketing organizations affect travelers’ destination knowledge and information consolidation, which translates into travel decisions (i.e., bookings) (Akgün et al. 2015; Youssef, Leicht, and Marongiu 2019). Stories were found to positively affect tourist response by producing, for instance, increased identification with the destination, positive consumer-brand attitudes, and consumer trust (Kim and Youn 2017; Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Mattila 2000; Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Yavuz et al. 2016; Youssef, Leicht, and Marongiu 2019). Letting stakeholders tell stories about their destination (e.g., via social media) further helps to shape a destination’s identity and enhances economic competitiveness (Bassano et al. 2019; Olsson, Therkelsen, and Mossberg 2016).

Storytelling and Storytellers

Storytelling content differs from other types of communication messages in the presence of narrative elements. Depending on the existence of narrative elements, Escalas (2004) divides marketing content into narrative and non-narrative, and Nan et al. (2015) distinguish between statistical, narrative, and hybrid communication messages. Brechman and Purvis (2015) note that narrative elements as core features create stories and generate their power as communication tools. Previous research names a variety of narrative elements, such as storyteller, character, discourse, specificity, or affectivity (Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lundqvist 2013; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer et al. 2014, 2018; Woodside 2010). This variety of narrative elements also explains the multidimensional character of stories (Busselle and Bilandzic 2009). De Graaf et al. (2012) further assume that story elements vary in their contribution to story persuasiveness, but many researchers point to a lack of empirical research about the impact of single story elements (Escalas 2004; Gilliam and Zablah 2013; Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Mossberg 2008; O’Gorman and Gillespie 2010; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019).

All story elements may, but need not necessarily be part of a story, with one exception: the storyteller, as every story needs a storyteller (Van Laer et al. 2014). Schwenke-Wyile (1999) distinguishes between four types of storyteller, first person, second person, third person limited, and third person omniscient. Tulloch (2014) argues that the distinction of third-person and first-person narrators is the most relevant. While third-person narrations are defined by third-person pronouns (e.g., she, he, the hotel owner, the destination), first-person narrations use first-person pronouns (e.g., we, our, I, my). In terms of narrative content, the crucial difference is whether the storyteller assumes an active role as a story character or not (Davis et al. 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997). Nan et al. (2015) and Tulloch (2014) explain that in third-person narrations storytellers act as external narrators telling a story from behind the scenes. Thus, they are not actively involved in a narrative as a character. Likewise, Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan (1997) define third-person narrators as external storytellers overviewing the whole story scene, but not merging with a character in the discourse. At the opposite end of the spectrum, first-person narrators are actively involved in the story scene. Thus, they simultaneously act as storyteller and (main) character (Davis et al. 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997; Nan et al. 2015).

The type of storyteller defines a physical and psychological position from which a story is told. Therefore, the type of storyteller constitutes a relevant text characteristic (De Graaf et al. 2012) that has an impact on communication persuasiveness (De Graaf et al. 2012; Peräkylä et al. 2015). A key concern for (destination) marketing managers is to understand which type of storyteller is most effective (Jehn-Yih, Shu-Ju, and Wen-Hwa 2016). According to Davis et al. (2004) as well as Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan (1997) first-person narrations convey a higher level of directness, intimacy and immediacy than third-person narratives, which in turn drives the level of identification. In addition, stories told in the first person also increase self-reference and narrative transportation (Kaufmann 2009). Readers perceive first-person stories as more trustworthy as their content is considered as real and experienced by the self (Davis et al. 2004; Schwenke-Wyile 1999; Tulloch 2014). Due to these perceived features, De Graaf et al. (2012) and Nan et al. (2015) conclude that first-person narratives are probably more effective than third-person narratives in terms of changes in the receivers’ attitudes and behavioral intentions. Nazione (2016), however, finds no advantages in first-person perspectives in processes conveying information in a medical context and recommends the use of third-person perspectives.

In storytelling marketing practice, brands themselves, employees, or customers function as storytellers, both in the third and first person (Delgado-Ballester and Fernández-Sabiote 2016; Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Ryu et al. 2018b). Yet, there is a lack of empirical research about their impact on consumer response. This research gap applies in particular to tourism and destination marketing research, which has so far widely neglected investigations about types of storytellers with the exception of a few studies in the context of hotel or place marketing (e.g., Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Ryu et al. 2018a). Therefore, we posit three hypotheses about the positive effects of first-person storytellers on tourist response (in terms of engagement on social media, destination brand image, and tourist visit intentions):

Hypothesis 1a: In online destination marketing, first-person storytellers lead to higher levels of social media engagement than third-person storytellers.

Hypothesis 1b: In online destination marketing, first-person storytellers lead to a more positive destination brand image than third-person storytellers.

Hypothesis 1c: In online destination marketing, first-person storytellers lead to higher levels of tourist visit intentions (first-time visit) than third-person storytellers.

Narrativity and Narrative Transportation

The storyteller as a narrative element shapes narrativity because different narrative perspectives (e.g., third person vs. first person) imply different perceived intentions (Livingston 2009). Narrativity is a feature of a text and constitutes the extent to which a text tells a story (Lwin 2017; Page 2003; Prince 2008; Van Laer et al. 2018). Narrativity describes a narrative causality linking single content elements, putting them into a logical sequence and creating a meaningful whole (Livingston 2009). Thus, narrativity is shaped by two dimensions: narrative content (what is told) and narrative discourse (how it is told) (Van Laer et al. 2018). Depending on these dimensions, texts vary in their narrativity (Prince 2008), which underlines the scalable and scalar character of the construct (Castiglione 2017; Livingston 2009). Language formality helps to understand how text content shapes narrativity. Livingston (2009), for instance, assumes that narrativity increases if text deviates from analytical, formal, and stereotypical argumentation. Kelly and Zak (1999) share this view and explain that rational and fact-based language leads to a decline of narrativity. Thus, the presence of formal breaches and informality increases narrativity (Herman 2002). While formal content strives for grammatical correctness, rational argumentation, and analytical language patterns, an informal style is less hierarchical, more flexible, and therefore perceived as more familiar (Heylighen and Dewaele 1999; Jaushyuam 2016; Thayer et al. 2010).

Livingston (2009) argues that the storyteller as a narrative element is a basic precondition for creating narrativity. Specifically, Thayer et al. (2010) assume that first-person storytellers foster informality and thus narrativity because of the use of personal pronouns. In a destination marketing context, however, no empirical studies to date have investigated this assumption. From a marketing perspective, narrativity is a relevant construct as it impacts consumer engagement (Thayer et al. 2010). In an empirical study, Deritz and Jha (2017) demonstrate that narrativity in marketing content increases response behavior in terms of social media content sharing. Therefore, we propose the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis 2: In online destination marketing, narrativity mediates the impact of the storyteller as a narrative element on social media engagement.

In addition to narrativity, the storyteller as a narrative element also has an impact on narrative transportation (Ryu et al. 2018a). While narrativity concerns a content-related characteristic of a text (Livingston 2009; Lwin 2017; Page 2003; Prince 2008; Van Laer et al. 2018), narrative transportation is considered a result of story receiving. Narrative transportation is described as a process initiated by a text in which story receivers mentally immerse themselves in a story scenario (Gilliam and Zablah 2013; Green and Brock 2000). Kim, Ratneshwar, and Thorson (2017) explain that narrative transportation stimulates a mental construction of a story scenery as well as the creation of story-related hypothetical scenarios. Van Laer et al. (2014) further add that the process of narrative transportation consists of two effects: First, the imagination-activation and mental transportation into the story scene, and second, the empathy and identification that story receivers feel toward storytellers and/or story characters. In terms of communication by text, a logical structure, sense-making content, and a language style providing vivid images foster narrative transportation (Bezdek and Gerrig 2017; Kim, Ratneshwar, and Thorson 2017). Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti (2019) demonstrate that the level of narrative transportation increases, if stories are commercial-domain-originated and if protagonists (and not, for instance, marketing professionals) tell a story. Wang and Calder (2006) further argue that the impact of narrative transportation on communication effectiveness is mediated by perceived intrusiveness and marketing intentions.

In marketing communication, narrative transportation is relevant for several reasons. First, narrative transportation determines the level of attention as it triggers the mental imagination while the physical surroundings move out of focus (Bezdek and Gerrig 2017; Kim, Ratneshwar, and Thorson 2017). Thus, several authors, such as Isberner et al. (2019) or De Graaf et al. (2012), argue that narrative transportation is a measure for communication persuasiveness. Second, previous research explains that narrative transportation causes narrative information processing, which, in contrast to analytical processing, is not set up on logical, critical and argument-based evaluation (Escalas 2004). This is crucial in that narrative processing is considered as more effective than analytical processing as it reduces critical thoughts about communication content (Gilliam and Zablah 2013; Rozier 2009; Van Laer et al. 2014).

Research suggests that the storyteller as a narrative element triggers narrative transportation (Kim, Ratneshwar, and Thorson 2017; Livingston 2009; Murphy et al. 2013; Rain et al. 2017; Ryu et al. 2018a). Specifically, first-person storytellers may increase imagination-activation, mental transportation, empathy, and identification that story receivers feel compared with third-person storytellers. Yet, empirical studies are lacking, particularly in the context of online communication (Seo et al. 2018) and tourism destination marketing. From a marketing perspective, narrative transportation is a relevant construct because it affects consumer behavior (Escalas, Moore-Chapman, and Britton 2004; Kim, Ratneshwar, and Thorson 2017; Van Laer et al. 2014; Wang and Calder 2006). Researchers show that narrative transportation represents an active process that affects attitudes, which is of high relevance for creating effective marketing content (Escalas 2007; Green and Brock 2000; Seo et al. 2018; Wang and Calder 2006). Therefore, the present study tests whether the type of storyteller (third person vs. first person) affects consumer response in terms of tourist visit intentions via narrative transportation and destination brand image. We propose the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis 3: In online destination marketing, perceived narrative transportation mediates the impact of the storyteller as a narrative element on tourist visit intentions via destination brand image.

Social Tone and Social Presence

The type of storyteller comes with certain linguistic features of a text (e.g., first-person storytellers use first-person pronouns). These features in turn impact the tonality of content (Cyr et al. 2009; Peräkylä et al. 2015; Thayer et al. 2010). In marketing content, text can actively create a social tone (Cyr et al. 2009; Gefen and Straub 2003, 2004; Mennecke et al. 2011). Cyr et al. (2009) as well as Lee and Nass (2005), for instance, explain that the use of social cues (e.g., sociable, human, friends), verbal terms of social activities (e.g., talking, together), or personal greetings support a social tone of language. Depending on the presence and intensity of these social expressions, the text tonality can be evaluated in terms of an unsocial-social-continuum (Chang and Hsu 2016).

Previous research assumes that the storyteller as a narrative element may be one of the text features shaping social tonality (Cyr et al. 2009; Peräkylä et al. 2015; Thayer et al. 2010). Specifically, first-person storytellers may convey more social cues and personal expressions than third-person storytellers. Other studies (e.g., Gefen and Straub 2004) point to the importance of a social tone in marketing communication. A social tone supports the consumers’ perception that content is human-created (Davis et al. 2004; Gefen and Straub 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997; Tulloch 2014), which in turn drives the trustworthiness as well as meaningfulness of a message (Cyr et al. 2009). Despite the relevance of a social tone for marketing communication, researchers to date have largely neglected the question of the extent to which types of storytellers (third person vs. first person) foster a social tonality in online content. This is even more the case in tourism destination research, in particular for non-interactive online content, such as texts on websites or social media (Dash and Saji 2007; Mennecke et al. 2011; Song and Hollenbeck 2015). Therefore, we test the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis 4: In online destination marketing, a social tone of content mediates the impact of the storyteller as a narrative element on social media engagement.

Apart from social tone of content, previous research suggests that different types of storytellers have a different impact on the perception of social presence (e.g., Davis et al. 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997; Kaufmann 2009; Tulloch 2014). While social tone is a linguistic feature of a text, social presence is a perceptual consumer response to reading a text. Social presence is defined as the perception of human presence, sociability, sensitivity, and sensibility (Cui, Wang, and Xu 2010; Hassanein and Head 2006; Kim and Yang 2019). In an online communication context, Chang and Hsu (2016) further specify that social presence describes the extent to which consumers perceive a medium as unsociable or sociable, insensitive or sensitive, cold or warm, and impersonal or personal (Chang and Hsu 2016). According to various authors (Gefen and Straub 2004; Hassanein and Head 2006; Song and Hollenbeck 2015), communication elements, such as texts, can actively convey social presence.

Previous research assumes that the storyteller as a narrative element may be one of the text features shaping social presence (Davis et al. 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997). Specifically, story receivers may perceive first-person storytellers as more sociable and personal than third-person storytellers, and thus perceive higher levels of social presence. This is relevant because research has found that social presence in marketing content increases communication effectiveness, consumer response, positive attitudes as well as purchase intentions (Chung, Han, Koo 2015; Cui, Wang, Xu 2010; Gefen and Straub 2003, 2004; Kim and Yang 2019; Lee and Nass 2005; Song and Hollenbeck 2015). Besides, social presence drives trustworthiness by reducing uncertainty (Dash and Saji 2007; Gefen and Straub 2004). As managing trustworthiness in marketing communication is challenging (Kim and Park 2013; Sekhon 2014), actively conveying its triggers such as social presence (Gefen and Straub 2004) is even more important. Yet, no study to date has examined specifically how the storyteller type (third person vs. first person) affects social presence and, consequently, attitudes and behavioral consumer response in a destination marketing context. Therefore, the present study tests whether the type of storyteller (third person vs. first person) affects tourist response via social presence. Specifically, we propose the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis 5: In online destination marketing, perceived social presence mediates the impact of the storyteller as a narrative element on tourist visit intentions via destination brand image.

Figures 1 and 2 summarize the research models of our study.

Figure 1.

Conceptual model—effects of storyteller type on social media engagement.

Figure 2.

Conceptual model—effects of storyteller type on tourist visit intentions.

Empirical Studies

To test our hypotheses, we applied a mixed methods approach using a social media secondary data set (Study 1) and an online experiment (Study 2). Both studies have in common that the type of storyteller (third person vs. first person) varies and serves as the independent variable. Study 1 investigates how third-person versus first-person storytellers affect engagement on social media, and whether and how text-based features of narrativity and social tone explain these effects. Study 2 examines how third-person versus first-person storytellers affect tourist visit intentions via destination brand image, and whether and how consumer perceptions of narrative transportation and social presence explain these effects. Both studies use social media posts of tourist destinations. Thus, the studies contribute to the important question of how digital storytelling works (Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019). This is particularly timely because most previous studies of storytelling neglect digital settings and do not refer to social media environments (McShane et al. 2020) even though online channels are dominant communication platforms (Song and Hollenbeck 2015).

Triangulation strengthens the credibility of findings as the use of additional methods can alleviate the limitations of one research method (Turner et al. 2017). We, therefore, use a social media secondary data set and an online experiment to increase both internal and external validity. Testing hypotheses with social media secondary data provides the advantage that real consumers evaluate real marketing content created by tourism destinations in an everyday life setting. The dependent variable in this setting is the behavioral response (social media engagement rate). The online experiment allows the measurement of consumer perceptions of narrative transportation, social presence, and destination brand image with previously validated scales as well as the inclusion of manipulation checks and control variables. The dependent variable in this setting are tourist visit intentions. Table 1 shows a summary of the research designs of Study 1 and Study 2.

Table 1.

Research Design.

Study	Method	Hypotheses	Measure	Sample
Study 1	Social media secondary data	1a, 2, 4	Independent variable: storyteller (third person vs. first person) Dependent variable: social media engagement rate Mediators: narrativity, social tone of content	N = 894 social media posts of Austrian tourism destinations
Study 2	Online experiment	1b, 1c, 3, 5	Independent variable: storyteller (third person vs. first person) Dependent variable: tourist visit intentions Mediators: narrative transportation, social presence, destination brand image	n = 349 German citizens, 50% women, mean age 36 years

Study 1: Social Media Secondary Data

The purpose of Study 1 is to test hypotheses 1a, 2, and 4. We, therefore, first examine direct effects of the type of storyteller (third person vs. first person) on social media engagement (hypothesis 1a). Second, we investigate mediating text characteristics, namely narrativity (hypothesis 2) and social tone of content (hypothesis 4).

Research Design

We randomly sampled 1,091 Facebook posts, published in the German language on official Facebook pages of Austrian tourism destinations between January 6th, 2017 and August 21st, 2020. As the study targets marketing content created by destination marketing organizations (i.e., organizational storytelling), we eliminated posts representing sponsored messages, contests, or event announcements, resulting in a final sample of 894 posts with an average word count of 39.69. Data was statistically analyzed using SPSS and LIWC (Linguistic Inquiry Word Count). The storyteller (third person vs. first person) was the independent variable, the social media engagement rate was the dependent variable for analyzing response behavior, and narrativity as well as social tone of content were the text characteristics capturing the proposed process mechanisms.

The type of storyteller was determined manually by reading all Facebook posts as well as by LIWC (third person = 0, first person = 1). The Appendix shows examples of third-person and first-person posts. The social media engagement rate was determined by summing up likes, comments, and shares for each Facebook post and dividing the outcome by the number of the destination’s Facebook followers. Although likes, comments, and shares differ in psychological and behavioral involvement, they are all forms of active response behavior to social media posts (Demmers, Weltevreden, and van Dolenc 2020; Leung 2019; Solvoll and Larrson 2020). Including all three measures (likes, comments, shares) simultaneously enables us to assess consumer response to destination content with one overall social media engagement rate. Narrativity and social tone of content were assessed by two output variables of the German version of LIWC, based on a dictionary of 18,711 words (Meier et al. 2018). Narrativity is measured by the extent of language formality which is a factor variable derived from previous linguistic studies with scores ranging from 0 to 100 (Pennebaker et al. 2015). Formality of language describes the level of analytical, logical, and hierarchical structure of a text. The lower the score, the higher the narrativity of a text. Social tone of content is measured by the percentage of words within a text representing social cues (e.g., sociable, human, brother, friends) as well as terms relating to social activities (e.g., talking, together). In LIWC (2020), the word category “social tone” covers 3,071 words with an internal consistency of 0.82 (Meier et al. 2018).

Results

Effects of the storyteller as a narrative element (third person vs. first person)

Analysis of variance (ANOVA) tested the effect of the storyteller as a narrative element (third-person storyteller n = 471, first-person storyteller n = 423) on the social media engagement rate. Findings show that social media posts using a first-person storyteller significantly increase the social media engagement rate (M_first-person = 0.0109, M_third-person = 0.0084, p < .01). A significantly higher language formality score in third-person posts (M_first-person = 83.46, M_third-person = 90.15, p < .01) indicates that first-person storytellers foster narrativity. Similarly, a significantly higher social tone of content value for first-person storytellers (M_first-person = 14.56, M_third-person = 8.42, p < .01) indicates that social media content communicated in the first person includes a higher number of social cues. These results support hypothesis 1a.

Mediation analysis

We conducted a mediation analysis using the storyteller (third person vs. first person) as the independent variable, narrativity and social tone as mediators, and the social media engagement rate as the dependent variable. A parallel multiple-mediator model using the bootstrapping procedure (5,000 samples) of the PROCESS macro (Hayes 2013, model 4) tested the prediction that narrativity and social tone mediate the relationship between storyteller as a narrative element and social media engagement rate (cf. Table 2). Results show a significant total (B = 0.0025, LLCI = 0.0011, ULCI = 0.0040, p < .001) and direct effect (B = 0.0033, LLCI = 0.0017, ULCI = 0.0049, p < .001) of the storyteller on the social media engagement rate. Statistics further support a significant impact of the storyteller on language formality/narrativity and social tone of content (formality/narrativity: B = −6.6870, LLCI = −9.8606, ULCI = −3.5134, p < .001; social tone: B = 6.1419, LLCI = 5.2656, ULCI = 7.0182, p < .001). Contrary to expectations, results show no significant effect of narrativity on social media engagement (p = .755) and a very small negative effect of social tone (B = −0.0001, LLCI = −0.0002, ULCI = 0.0000, p = .025). Hence, the results do not support hypotheses 2 and 4.

Table 2.

Effects of Storyteller Type on Social Media Engagement.

Predictors	Parallel multiple mediators—social media engagement rate
	M₁ (formality/narrativity)			M₂ (social tone)			Y (social media engagement rate)
	B	SE	p Value	B	SE	p Value	B	SE	p Value
X (storyteller)	−6.6870	1.6170	.000	6.1419	.4465	.000	0.0033	0.0008	.001
M₁ (narrativity)	—	—	—	—	—	—	0.0000	0.0000	.755
M₂ (social tone)	—	—	—	—	—	—	−0.0001	0.0001	.025
Constant	96.8407	2.5152	.000	2.2850	.6945	.001	0.0066	0.0020	.001
	R² = .0188			R² = .1750			R² = .0186
	F = 17.1014, p < .001			F = 189.2320, p < .001			F = 5.6160, p < .001

Study 2: Online Experiment

The purpose of Study 2 is to test hypotheses 1b, 1c, 3, and 5. We, therefore, first examine direct effects of the type of storyteller (third person vs. first person) on consumer response (hypotheses 1b and 1c). Second, we investigate the proposed process mechanisms, namely consumer perceptions of narrative transportation, social presence, and destination brand image (hypotheses 3 and 5).

Research Design

In an online survey, participants were randomly assigned to one of the experimental groups differing only in the type of storyteller (third person vs. first person). Each participant received four fictitious social media posts written in German language and presenting marketing content relating to the Austrian tourism destination Schladming Dachstein in a story format (cf. Appendix). As Germany represents the largest incoming market for this destination, the sample consists of 402 German citizens recruited via the online panel Clickworker. According to Dolnicar and Grün (2013) as well as Govers, Go, and Kumar (2007), destination marketing particularly influences tourists in the pre-travel phase who have not been to a destination yet. Thus, respondents who had already visited Schladming Dachstein were excluded, resulting in a final sample of 349 potential customers (third-person storyteller n = 177, first-person storyteller n = 172).

In the one-factor, two-levels experimental design, the type of storyteller (third person vs. first person) was the independent variable, while tourist visit intention was the dependent variable. Narrative transportation as well as social presence were the first-level mediators and destination brand image the second-level mediator capturing the proposed process mechanisms. Previously validated multi-item scales measured the dependent variable and the process variables. Four items from Van Laer et al. (2018) measured visit intentions (Cronbach’s α = .952). Ten items from a scale by Garcia, Gómez, and Molina (2012) measured destination brand image (Cronbach’s α = .933). Narrative transportation was assessed with the being-hooked-scale of Escalas, Moore-Chapman, and Britton (2004). Adapting this scale to a destination storytelling context led to a reduction from eight to five items (Cronbach’s α = .859). Social presence was measured with a five-items scale by Gefen and Straub (2004) (Cronbach’s α = .903). The Appendix shows the items of all scales. We further collected data to control for respondents’ interest in mountain holidays, holiday activities, and use of social media generally as well as for information on holiday destinations. All items were measured with seven-point Likert scales ranging from strongly disagree/no chance (1) to strongly agree/certain (7).

Results

Effects of the storyteller as a narrative element (third person vs. first person)

For the manipulation check, participants indicated whether the storyteller in the social media content was the main character (first person) or a third-person storyteller. The majority of participants (94%) correctly identified the third-person or first-person storyteller (chi-square test: p < .001). A multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) tested the effects of the storyteller on narrative transportation, social presence, destination brand image, and tourist visit intentions, controlling for the respondents’ interest in mountain holidays, holiday activities, and use of social media generally as well as for information on holiday destinations. The results show that content communicated by a first-person storyteller leads to significantly higher levels of perceived narrative transportation (M_first-person = 4.62, M_third-person = 4.29, p < .01, η² = .03) and social presence (M_first-person = 5.20, M_third-person = 4.97, p = .02, η² = .02). Likewise, first-person storytellers resulted in significantly more positive perceptions of the destination brand image (M_first-person = 5.03, M_third-person = 4.89, p = .04, η² = .01) and more favorable visit intentions (M_first-person = 4.82, M_third-person = 4.70, p = .05, η² = .01). These results support hypotheses 1b and 1c.

Mediation analysis

We conducted a mediation analysis using the storyteller (third person vs. first person) as the independent variable, narrative transportation, and social presence as first-level parallel mediators, destination brand image as second-level mediator, and tourist visit intentions as the dependent variable. A serial mediator model using the bootstrapping procedure (5,000 samples) of the PROCESS macro (Hayes 2013, model 80) tested the prediction that narrative transportation and social presence mediate the relationship between the storyteller as a narrative element and tourist visit intentions via destination brand image (cf. Table 3). We also included covariates to control for the respondents’ interest in mountain holidays, holiday activities, and use of social media generally as well as for information on holiday destinations.

Table 3.

Effects of Storyteller Type on Tourist Visit Intentions.

Predictors	Serial mediation—tourist visit intentions
	M₁ (narrative transportation)			M₂ (social presence)			M₃ (destination brand image)			Y (tourist visit intentions)
	B	SE	p Value	B	SE	p Value	B	SE	p Value	B	SE	p Value
X (storyteller)	0.4078	0.1211	.001	0.2694	0.1174	.022	−0.0315	0.0639	.622	−0.0066	0.0842	.937
M₁ (narrative transportation)	—	—	—	—	—	—	0.3690	0.0378	.000	0.4128	0.0564	.000
M₂ (social presence)	—	—	—	—	—	—	0.2932	0.0390	.000	−0.0704	0.0555	.205
M₃ (destination brand image)										0.3737	0.0717	.000
Constant	1.8606	0.4278	.000	3.4132	0.4148	.000	0.7894	0.2441	.001	−0.7359	0.3262	.025
	R² = .2734			R² = .1220			R² = .6855			R² = .7110
	F = 14.1699, p < .001			F = 5.2361, p < .001			F = 66.7750, p < .001			F = 68.8745, p < .001

Results show a significant positive impact of the first-person storyteller as a narrative element on narrative transportation (B = 0.4078, LLCI = 0.1696, ULCI = 0.6460, p < .001) and social presence (B = 0.2694, LLCI = 0.0384, ULCI = 0.5004, p = .022). Narrative transportation and social presence in turn have a significantly positive effect on destination brand image (narrative transportation: B = 0.3690, LLCI = 0.2945, ULCI = 0.4434, p < .001; social presence: B = 0.2932, LLCI = 0.2164, ULCI = 0.3699, p < .001). A non-significant direct effect of the storyteller on destination brand image (p = .622) indicates that the relationship between the storyteller as a narrative element and destination brand image is fully mediated by narrative transportation and social presence. Destination brand image further significantly affects tourist visit intentions (B = 0.3737, LLCI = 0.2327, ULCI = 0.5147, p < .001). Regarding tourist visit intentions results also confirm a direct positive effect of narrative transportation (B = 0.4128, LLCI = 0.3019, ULCI = 0.5237, p < .001), but no significant effect of social presence (B = −0.0704, LLCI = −0.1796, ULCI = 0.0387, p = .205). The non-significant direct effect of the storyteller on tourist visit intentions (p = .937) indicates that the relationship between the storyteller as a narrative element and tourist visit intentions is fully mediated by narrative transportation, social presence, and destination brand image. We conclude that the impact of storyteller on tourist visit intentions is explained by three indirect effects: first, via narrative transportation (B = 0.1683, LLCI = 0.0607, ULCI = 0.2964), second, via narrative transportation and destination brand image (B = 0.0562, LLCI = 0.0177, ULCI = 0.1107), and third, via social presence and destination brand image (B = 0.0295, LLCI = 0.0031, ULCI = 0.0678). The results support hypotheses 3 and 5. In addition, pairwise comparisons of indirect effects show that the indirect effect of storyteller on visit intentions via narrative transportation and destination brand image is not significantly different from the indirect effect of storyteller on visit intentions via social presence and destination brand image (B = 0.0190, BootLLCI = −0.0057, BootULCI = 0.0497). However, the indirect effect of storyteller on visit intentions via narrative transportation is significantly larger than the indirect effect of storyteller on visit intentions via social presence (B = 0.1333, BootLLCI = 0.0476, BootULCI = 0.2371).

Discussion and Implications

Previous research agrees on the relevance of storytelling as a destination marketing tool in the pre-travel phase (Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Stienmetz et al. 2021; Yavuz et al. 2016; Youssef, Leicht, and Marongiu 2019). At the same time, existing research observes a lack of studies on digital storytelling (McShane et al. 2020; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019) and single narrative elements contributing to a story’s persuasiveness (Kim and Youn 2017; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Mossberg 2008; Ryu et al. 2018a). The present study addresses these research gaps.

In the context of organizational storytelling by tourism destinations on social media, we first investigate the impact of storyteller as a narrative element (third person vs. first person) on tourist response (research question 1). Second, we examine if and how text-based characteristics, that is, narrativity and social tone, explain these effects (research question 2). Third, we analyze if and how consumer perceptions, that is, narrative transportation, social presence, and destination brand image, explain these effects (research question 3). In doing so, we expand existing theoretical knowledge about single narrative elements in online storytelling and support destination managers in the design of effective individual story content.

Study 1 supports our hypotheses that first-person compared to third-person storytellers significantly increase narrativity and social tone of text content as well as the story receivers’ engagement on social media. Contrary to expectations, however, narrativity and social tone of destination marketing content do not constitute explanatory mechanisms in the relationship between the storyteller as a narrative element and the social media engagement rate. Study 2 confirms that first-person storytellers in destination social media communication are more effective in terms of narrative transportation, social presence, destination brand image perception, and tourist visit intentions. Processes of narrative transportation and social presence explain the effects of the storyteller as a narrative element on destination brand image, which in turn drives tourist visit intentions. In addition, narrative transportation has a significant direct effect on tourist visit intentions. In the following, we discuss these findings as well as their theoretical and managerial implications.

Theoretical Implications

Our results contribute to the emerging field of storytelling research in tourism and destination marketing in several ways. First, given the changes in tourism induced by COVID-19, such as declining demand and increasing prices (Assaf and Scuderi 2020; Tsionas 2020), effective marketing communication is of high importance. Organizational storytelling delivering authentic and unobtrusive content (Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lichrou, O’Malley, and Patterson 2014; Mattila 2000; Mora and Livat 2013; Moscardo 2020) is a supportive communication tool for tourism destinations, also during the pandemic. Given the exceptional situation, online communication, and digital storytelling, which we address in both studies, is of particular relevance.

Second, we followed the call for research about single story elements (Escalas 2004; Gilliam and Zablah 2013; Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Mossberg 2008; O’Gorman and Gillespie 2010; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer et al. 2018). In contrast to most previous storytelling research, we focus (1) on tourism destinations and (2) on a specific narrative element, the storyteller. We show that in destination marketing, social media posts that simultaneously present the storyteller as a story character (first-person storyteller) significantly increase tourist response in terms of social media engagement, positive destination image, and tourist visit intentions. We further expand storytelling theory by demonstrating that the use of first-person storytellers in destination social media content leads to higher levels of narrativity and narrative transportation than the use of third-person storytellers. Thus, first-person storytellers as a narrative element in online destination communication extend the repertoire of previously identified drivers of these marketing-relevant constructs, such as a logical structure, sense-making content, or low formality (Bezdek and Gerrig 2017; Kelly and Zak 1999; Kim, Ratneshwar, and Thorson 2017; Livingston 2009). First-person compared to third-person storytellers further foster social tone and perceived social presence in the online content of travel destinations. These empirical findings demonstrate the relevance of the storyteller as a narrative element and expand previously identified advantages of first-person narratives (e.g., Davis et al. 2004; Graesser, Millis, and Zwaan 1997; Kaufmann 2009; Schwenke-Wyile 1999; Tulloch 2014) in a tourism destination context.

Third, we contribute to destination marketing research by examining mediating processes. Thus, we follow the call for a deeper understanding of the mechanisms that can explain the effectiveness of digital storytelling (Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019). Contrary to expectations, text-based characteristics of narrativity and social tone are not explanatory mechanisms in the relationship between storyteller and engagement on social media. Three reasons may drive these findings. First, compared with consumers’ response to text information, text-based features themselves may be too remote from consumer perceptions for behavioral responses to occur. Second, other text-based factors (e.g., controversy, attention) may have more impact on the very specific behaviors of liking, sharing, and commenting on social media than narrativity or social tone of the social media post. Third, in the LIWC category social tone, third-person words like “friends” or “guests” reflect social processes more than first-person pronouns (Meier et al. 2018). Indeed, when we use the LIWC social tone measure in our online experiment, we find that third-person storytellers (guests, visitors, etc.) have a higher social tone score than first-person storytellers, but a lower level of perceived social presence.¹ In terms of narrative transportation, the results of the LIWC measure of narrativity support consumers’ perceptions of narrative transportation in the online experiment.² Overall, we conclude that, contrary to text-based characteristics, consumer-based characteristics, specifically consumer perceptions of narrative transportation and social presence, indeed constitute powerful mediating mechanisms that explain the impact of the storyteller on destination brand image and tourist visit intentions. Thus, we provide empirical support for the relevance of narrative transportation and social presence in organizational online storytelling in tourism destination marketing.

Managerial Implications

By demonstrating how storyteller types as narrative elements function in destination brand communication, our research findings also provide implications for destination marketing practitioners. This is particularly relevant because many destination marketing organizations use storytelling marketing (Lundqvist, Liljander, and Riel 2013) but face a lack of expertise as well as difficulties in the creation of original stories, which in turn affects the persuasiveness of storytelling (Kim and Youn 2017; Mora and Livat 2013; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019).

Our study encourages tourism destinations to use first-person rather than third-person storytellers in social media content. Moving from a third-person to a first-person storyteller, on average, increases engagement of a destination’s Facebook followers in terms of likes (+32.07%), comments (+9.46%), and shares (+26.67%). Thus, first-person storytellers drive overall social media engagement (+30.26%). The practical significance of the results is also evident at the level of individual destinations. For example, on the Facebook account of Ausseerland Salzkammergut, a small but typical Austrian lake and mountain region with 8,143 followers (September 2020), first-person compared to third-person posts achieve on average 19 more likes (third-person: 195, first-person: 214), five more comments (third-person: 6, first-person: 11), and three more shares (third-person: 21, first-person: 24).

We conclude that many different destination stakeholders can be convincing storytellers if they share their experiences in short first-person stories, because this drives tourists’ perceived narrative transportation and social presence. Both narrative transportation and social presence have similar positive effects on a destination’s brand image, but if destination managers focus on fostering tourist visit intentions, narrative transportation is particularly relevant. Examples of appropriate first-person storytellers include locals, farmers, hotel owners, hikers, skiers, chefs, wildlife rangers, employees of the destination management organizations, or bloggers. Involving several destination stakeholders as first-person storytellers in online content enables narratives from authentic point of views. In addition, heterogeneous stakeholders also fit with the wide range of tangible and intangible products, services as well as characteristics of tourism destinations. Text-based destination marketing communication can thus use a variety of first-person storytellers to actively create and manage narrativity, narrative transportation, social tone, and social presence of tourism destinations. These text-based characteristics as well as consumer perceptions are especially relevant in interactive as well as non-interactive online destination marketing given the experience-based, inspirational, and human character of travel products.

Limitations and Further Research

Consumer perceptions of narrative transportation and social presence constitute significant mediators in the impact of the storyteller on destination brand image and tourist visit intentions. Interestingly, purely text-based features of higher narrativity and a more social tone do not explain the effect of the storyteller on the engagement with a destination’s social media post. The present study explored text-based features (narrativity, social tone) in Study 1 and consumer perceptions (narrative transportation, social presence) in Study 2. An important avenue for further research would be to link text-based and consumer-based characteristics to gain an even better understanding of the processes and mechanisms of digital storytelling marketing on social media. In particular, more research is needed to better understand the complex relationship between social tone (higher if more social cues and, thus, third-person words like “friends” or “guests” are used) and social presence (higher if more first-person pronouns are used). In this vein, examining additional mediators explaining the effects of the storyteller as a narrative element, such as critical thoughts, trustworthiness, or (un)obtrusiveness, also represents an interesting area for further research.

In addition, future studies need to address the multidimensional character of storytelling content (Busselle and Bilandzic 2009; Chiu, Hsieh, and Kuo 2012; Lundqvist 2013; Ryu et al. 2018a; Van Laer et al. 2018; Woodside 2010) by considering additional story elements beyond the storyteller. This suggestion is in line with previous studies (e.g., Gilliam and Zablah 2013; Mei, Hagensen, and Kristiansen 2020; Mossberg 2008; O’Gorman and Gillespie 2010; Van Laer, Feiereisen, and Visconti 2019) recommending research about various individual story elements and their features. Although the present investigation makes a significant contribution to this research gap, it focuses solely on the storyteller as a narrative element and does not consider other story elements.

With respect to the sample of Study 1, it must be noted that it solely included social media posts from Austrian tourism destinations. The stimuli used in the lab experiment in Study 2 also relate to an Austrian tourism destination, Schladming Dachstein. In terms of geographical conditions, products, and services, Schladming Dachstein and the majority of Austrian tourism destinations are predominantly mountain destinations. Hence, it would be interesting to extend the sample to include international travel destinations and more diverse destination types (e.g., more city or beach destinations).

Although stories are increasingly used in destination brand communication (Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Stienmetz et al. 2021; Youssef, Leicht, and Marongiu 2019), research about their elements, mechanisms, and effects is still in its infancy (Moin, Hosany, and O’Brien 2020; Moscardo 2020). However, several trends, such as market changes induced by COVID-19 (Assaf and Scuderi 2020; Tsionas 2020), the dominance of text-based online communication (Song and Hollenbeck 2015), and the rising importance of narrative social media content (McShane et al. 2020), indicate that storytelling will continue to play an important role in future destination marketing research and practice.

Footnotes

Appendix

Social Media Study—Example of Third-Person and First-Person Post (Translated From German).

Third-person post	Easter is just around the corner. Regional farmers from the Salzburg Lake District offer you the most delicious delicacies for your Easter table. This year, enjoy a special treat and treat yourself to fresh bread, juicy ham, and colorful Easter eggs.
First-person post	We were busy in the last few days collecting eggs in the chicken coop to then paint the eggs for Easter colorful. Today it was finally so far—the Easter Bunny was there! Even if we cannot celebrate this year as usual, we wish you all a happy Easter! Have you all found your Easter nests?
Online Experiment—Examples of Stimulus Material (Translated From German).
Passing grazing cows, wooden huts, and mountain rivers, visitors/we hike through the mountains of Schladming Dachstein for four days. They/We will never forget when they/we have reached the alpine hut for their/our first overnight stay and are served Schladminger beer, Brettljause, and Steirer Krapfen. In the mountains everyday stress and speed are far away, you feel free and full of inner peace.
When guests/I put on their/my skis and look at the valley surrounded by the wonderful mountains of Schladming Dachstein they/I always recharge energy and simply enjoy winter. In Schladming Dachstein guests/I can discover many beautiful slopes, panoramic lifts, and idyllic huts. Snow, nature, and the magic of winter always encourage guests/me to relax and renew.
Online Experiment—Scales.
Being Hooked Scale (α = .859, Escalas, Moore-Chapman, and Britton (2004)	This post really intrigued me.
	If I had seen this post at home, I’d have read the whole thing.
	This post reminded me of experiences or feelings I’ve had in my own life.
	I felt as though I was right there in the situation experiencing the same thing.
	I would like to have an experience like the one shown in the post.
Social Presence Scale (α = .903, Gefen and Straub 2004)	There is a sense of human contact in the post.
	There is a sense of personalness in the post.
	There is a sense of sociability in the post.
	There is a sense of human warmth in the post.
	There is a sense of human sensitivity in the post.
Destination Brand Image Scale (α = .933, Garcia, Gómez, and Molina 2012)	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein is appealing.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein is attractive.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein is interesting.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein is credible.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein evokes pleasant sensations of the destination.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein has a strong personality.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein represents a reliable destination.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein encourages visiting the destination.
	The destination brand Schladming Dachstein identifies a better-quality destination than other similar ones.
	I will tell other people the positive aspects of the brand Schladming Dachstein.
Intention measures (α = .952, Van Laer et al. 2018)	Chance of traveling to Schladming Dachstein
	Likelihood of traveling to Schladming Dachstein
	Intention of traveling to Schladming Dachstein in the future
	Desire to go to Schladming Dachstein in the future

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iD

Christoph Pachucki

Notes

Author Biographies

Christoph Pachucki is a PhD student at Seeburg Castle University in Austria. His research focuses on brand communication via social media and in particular on storytelling in tourism. Besides research, Christoph teaches in the fields of marketing communication as well as tourism and destination marketing.

Reinhard Grohs is Full Professor of Sport Management at Seeburg Castle University. Reinhard researches sport marketing, branding, and marketing communication. His studies have been published in journals like European Journal of Marketing, International Journal of Advertising, International Marketing Review, Journal of Advertising, Journal of Business Research, and Psychology & Marketing.

Ursula Scholl-Grissemann is Associate Professor at UMIT – Private University for Health Sciences, Medical Informatics and Technology. Her research interests are in consumer behavior in the context of destination management and marketing. Ursula has published in renowned journals such as Tourism Management, Journal of Travel Research, and Journal of Service Management.

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