Using travel blogs to examine the postconsumption behavior of tourists

Abstract

This study proposes that travel blogging has become part of tourist practices, particularly in the postconsumption stage. Travel blogs serve as platforms where tourists can remember, evaluate, store, and enrich their travel experiences. Extant literature has recognized travel blogs as a valuable source of information on tourists’ activities, perceptions of destinations, and word-of-mouth communication. This study suggests that an examination of travel blogs, looking at how tourists reconstruct their travel experiences and the actions behind the blogging, can provide a deeper understanding of the postconsumption behavior of tourists. Recent tourist experience models have emphasized that the postconsumption stage of a travel experience extends beyond the evaluation of the experience by the tourist. In this study, the discourse analysis of travel blogs by 19 British long-haul and multiple-destination travelers reveals three common actions behind travel blogging: representing places, acts of self-presentation, identity construction, and “othering.” The analysis shows bloggers employing linguistic techniques and self-presentation strategies in their travel narratives. Implications of the key findings for marketing strategies and destination image are discussed.

Keywords

Destination image discourse analysis postconsumption behavior travel blogs

Introduction

Blogging is a global phenomenon that has captured the interest of the public in the past few years. BlogPulse and Technocrati reported that the number of monitored blogs had increased significantly from 3 million in 2004 to 164 million in 2011 (Trenor, 2011). In 2008, travel was ranked ninth among the topics monitored by Technocratic.com, making up 28% of all blogs monitored that year. Millions of individuals have joined travel blog web sites to share their travel experiences online, and blogging has become an aspect of the tourist production and consumption process (Bosangit et al., 2009: 61). Travel blogging has become part of the tourist experience and provides an opportunity to investigate tourist behavior at the postconsumption stage.

Travel blogs are likely to have an increasing influence on word-of-mouth communication because weblogs in general have become among the most popular forms of online consumer-opinion platforms (Wenger, 2008). The power of a blog journal story can serve to influence a substantial number of future visitors, positioning the destination in question in their minds (Woodside et al., 2007). Banyai and Glover (2012) pointed out the growing recognition that blogs can affect consumer decisions and destination images, and even reshape the communication networks previously dominated by traditional information suppliers. A special issue of the Journal of Vacation Marketing (2008, vol. 14(2)) on travel blogs highlighted the various potential benefits of travel blogs, in terms of their marketing and management implications, as well as the challenges and limitations they provide as research data.

Extant studies on travel blogging have mostly focused on travel blogs as a type of research data that can inform marketing and management strategies. The travel-blogging phenomenon itself has not been examined by researchers, despite having become a part of tourists’ travel practices. Volo (2010) noted that there are other motivations for producing blogs than merely to communicate product information. Based on existing studies on the blogging phenomenon, Bosangit (2011) suggested the following alternative grounds for travel blogging: (a) identity construction, (b) life documenting, (c) social networking, (d) information sharing, (e) communication, (f) entertainment, and (g) rewards. An examination of the travel-blogging activity of tourists may provide a deeper understanding of their postconsumption behavior.

In some recent models, the postconsumption stage of the travel experience, which traditionally focused on satisfaction and evaluation, has been shown quite clearly to include other activities, such as storing, reflection, and enrichment of experiences (Aho, 2001), remembering of the event (Larsen, 2007), and outcome of the event, which includes knowledge, memory, perception, emotion, and self-identity, all of which in turn affect satisfaction (Cutler and Carmichael, 2010). This study aims to explore these activities through an analysis of travel blogs. Using discourse analysis, this research examines the actions behind the blogging of tourists, and how they reconstruct their stories for their readers. The insights from the discourse analysis could inform the formulation of marketing strategies and the enhancement or reinvention of destination images. This study demonstrates that travel blogging as a postconsumption behavior has marketing implications.

Literature review

The postconsumption stage of the tourist experience

Recent models of tourist experiences, such as those proposed by Aho (2001), Larsen (2007), and Cutler and Carmichael (2010), put more emphasis on the detailed process of different stages of the tourist experience. These models differ from other models as they clearly stress that the postconsumption stage of the tourist experience extends beyond simply evaluating that experience as satisfactory or unsatisfactory. Aho’s (2001) model has the following stages: (a) orientation (awakening interest of some degree), (b) attachment (strengthening interest resulting in the go-decision), (c) visiting (the actual visit, consisting of the travel and the destination), (d) evaluation (comparisons with earlier experiences and alternatives, and conclusions regarding future actions), (e) storing (physical—photos, films, souvenirs; social—people and social situations to remember), reflection (repeated presentations—spontaneous; staged—of the experience), and (f) enrichment (presentation of films, souvenirs, etc.; the arrangement of meetings and networks to cherish memories; and new practices created during the trip). The last three stages (d–f) constitute the postconsumption stage of a tourist’s experience. Larsen (2007) defined the tourist experience as comprising at last three stages: the planning process (the individual’s foreseeing of tourist events through expectancies), the actual undertaking of the trip (events during the trip), and finally the individual’s remembering of these tourist events. The last stage is important for addressing relevant questions regarding tourist experiences, such as what tourists are likely to remember. What tourists remember and how much factual material is available predict their desire to repeat a trip or make a similar one (Larsen, 2007). Cutler and Carmichael (2010) proposed a model that combined the different phases, influences, and outcomes found in a literature review of the tourist experience into a single model. The model recognizes the chronological process of the tourist experience as well as its expected outcomes (knowledge, memory, perception, emotion, and self-identity), which affect satisfaction.

Research on the postconsumption stage has traditionally focused on satisfaction and the evaluation of the quality of tourist experiences. Satisfaction is commonly examined as the outcome of tourism experiences (Tung and Ritchie, 2011: 4). Ryan (1997) posited that a satisfactory experience can be perceived as the congruence of need and performance, while dissatisfaction may be expressed as the gap between expectation and experience. Several authors (Arnould and Price, 1993; Otto and Ritchie, 1996; Ryan, 2002, cited in Cutler and Carmichael, 2010) have argued that satisfaction is based more on a rich and personal evaluation of experiences that are reflected in emotions, relationships, and self-identity. Similarly, Pearce (2005) argued that satisfaction is not the end goal but rather a postexperience attitude.

Postconsumption behavior is now gaining more attention from researchers, as evidenced by the aforementioned models of Aho (2001), Larsen (2007), and Cutler and Carmichael (2010). These models present the idea of the postconsumption stage extending beyond the evaluation of the quality of the tourist experience or the satisfaction or dissatisfaction with that experience. It includes tourist activities that include the storing of physical evidence and memories, reflection on the experience, and the enrichment of the experience by sharing it with friends and relatives. Moreover, knowledge, memory, perception, emotion, and self-identity are possible outcomes of such experiences that need to be considered. As blogs are naturally occurring data, these expected outcomes may be revealed in travel blogs. Examining blogs can provide a deeper understanding of how tourists reconstruct their experiences and the actions behind blogging as part of postconsumption behavior.

Travel blogging motivations

Based on Schmallegger and Carson’s (2008) description of travel blogs, travel blogging can be described as publishing personal travel stories and recommendations in the form of travel diaries or product reviews. Travel blogs are equivalent to personal online diaries and are made up of one or more individual entries, strung together by a common theme (e.g. a trip itinerary or the purchase of a round-the-world ticket) (Puhringer and Taylor, 2008: 179). The main themes in travel blogs are general descriptions of destinations, such as climate, cuisine, transport, attractions, or region-specific stereotypes (Carson, 2008; Pan et al., 2007; Wenger, 2008; cited in Schmallegger and Carson, 2008). Hence, these blogs are rich narratives that contain details of the experiences of multiple guests, and thus provide a great deal of useful information to the blog readers (Zehrer et al., 2011).

Jansson (2007) argued that blogs provide opportunities for tourists to compose personal scripts based on very specific sources of knowledge and, most importantly, have reduced the risk of cultural shock or alienation. By using mobile phones to blog, which Tussyadiah and Fesenmaier (2008) referred to as moblogging, tourists can easily share their experiences with others by updating their blogs directly from their phones, allowing them to capture a moment or describe some scenery immediately. Shared images in blogs help tourists at the postvisit stage to recollect past experiences (Tussyadiah and Fesenmaier, 2008). Jansson (2007) emphasized how, through media such as blogs, the magic of a leisure trip can be reinforced and prolonged through the creation of ideal ensembles of representation and through the immediate sharing of extraordinary sensory experiences. Furthermore, blogs allow tourists to rework narratives and images, rearranging and idealizing them into a framework for a touristic memoryscape to be consumed by a wider audience (Jansson, 2007). As Crang (1997) observed, tourist events are not so much experienced for themselves but rather for the future memories they will produce. Thus, travel blogs are not just records of travel experiences, there are definitely other motivations behind this particular tourist activity.

Blogging is a multimotivation activity (Nardi et al., 2004) and bloggers are likely to blog for a heterogeneous group of reasons (Huang et al., 2007). Two types of blogging behaviors were identified by Huang et al. (2007), namely, interaction-oriented and information-oriented behaviors. Self-expression, life documenting, and commenting on other blogs are interaction-oriented behaviors, while information seeking and community forum participation are information-oriented behaviors (Huang et al., 2007). Based on the blogging motivations identified in the literature (see the work of Hsu and Lin, 2008; Huang et al., 2007; Lenhart and Fox, 2006; Nardi et al., 2004; Papacharissi, 2005), Bosangit (2011) enumerated similar motivations behind travel blogging by tourists. These include expressing oneself by writing, keeping a record of travel, networking or meeting new people, sharing experiences with others, finding out information about new places, updating family and friends about one’s whereabouts, keeping in touch with friends who are also blogging, for entertainment, passing the time, and earning money. If tourists are motivated by these reasons, it confirms that the postconsumption stage of the tourist experience extends beyond the tourist’s evaluation of their experience and shows that they maximize the benefits of travel by blogging about their experiences to their readers. The actions behind their blogging and how they reconstruct their travel stories could reveal insights into their postconsumption behavior.

Research methodology

Discourse analysis was used to examine travel blogs to address the question of how tourists blog about their travel experiences and what they are doing behind their blogging. Discourse analysis, particularly the discursive psychology approach, examines the way in which people talk about a particular activity, that is, what they are doing with their conversation and how they construct their version of what that activity is (Langdridge and Hagger-Johnson, 2009). Using this approach in this study facilitates the analysis of how tourists construct their travel experiences and why they blog. This research follows Potter and Wetherell’s (1987) 10 stages of discourse analysis, with certain modifications for the use of blogs (Willig, 2008). The original stages of discourse analysis were as follows: (a) the research question, (b) sample selection, (c) collection of records and documents, (d) interviews, (e) transcription, (f) coding, (g) analysis, (h) validation, (i) report, and (j) application. In this study, stages d and e were replaced with downloading the travel blogs from the web site and stage j involved the identification of implications for marketing strategies and destination image.

This article is part of a wider study examining what constitutes a tourist experience using the discourse analysis of travel blogs. The data came from 19 British long-haul and multiple-destination travelers who are members of one of the top travel blog web sites, travelblog.org. These 19 travelers are among the 1214 bloggers who participated in a survey conducted between December 2008 and February 2009, examining the sociodemographic profile of bloggers, blogging motivations, and blogging practices. From this survey, volunteers were recruited for the second phase of the study involving the discourse analysis of blogs. As the blogs would be examined in relation to the language use of the individuals, British bloggers were chosen for the sample due to the researchers’ familiarity with this language. British bloggers represented the second largest national group of bloggers among the respondents, after the US bloggers. There were 285 volunteers of various nationalities who volunteered to take part in the next phase and 105 British bloggers were selected.

The sample bloggers were selected from the volunteers using purposive sampling, that is, selecting units based on specific purposes associated with the study’s research question (Teddlie and Tashakkori, 2009). The sample selection reflected the results of the survey, particularly the following characteristics of the bloggers: the amount of experience they had at blogging (they had to have produced 26–50 blogs) and the types of trips they blogged about (longer trips of more than 3 weeks). These two criteria ensured that the sample bloggers would provide rich narratives of their travels. After imposing these restrictions, the set of British bloggers was reduced to 40. After examining the web pages of these 40 bloggers, 21 were dropped from the list for one or more of the following reasons: blog entries could not be accessed, blogs contained mostly pictures, less than 1000 words per blog, and blogs were mostly about trips in the United Kingdom. As a result, only 19 bloggers qualified to be included in the final sample. Table 1 provides the profiles of these bloggers, based on their profile pages and blog entries.

Table 1.

Profiles of the bloggers and their blogs

Blogger	Countries visited (based on blog entries used for analysis)	Word count	Duration of travel (months)
Astrid	Laos, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand	9344	4
Meltem	Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia	10,831	4
Dylan	Spain, Peru, Ecuador, Chile, Brazil, Mexico, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Tokyo, Thailand	51,568	5.5
Derek	USA, France, Italy, Croatia, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Estonia	60,363	3
Sally	South Africa, Tanzania, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya	24,396	1
Nick and Sally	India, Nepal	9271	2.5
Tim	Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, China	59,135	11
Michael	Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Uruguay, New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Philippines, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam	56,064	11
Dawn	Argentina, England	5689	2
Geoff	USA (multiple cities)	25,656	1
Emma and Gary	Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, China	38,149	3
Luke	Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina Uruguay, USA	22,420	3
Nicchi	Singapore, Australia, New Zealand	16,539	5.5
Dave	Thailand, Vietnam, Fiji, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand	60,967	7.5
Leanne	Indonesia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina	9686	11
Chrissie	Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador	71,713	7
Claire	Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia	56,029	4
Barry	Chile, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia, Colombia	54,988	3
Gareth	India, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Indonesia, Cambodia	31,200	18

Blogs from these sample bloggers were downloaded by copying the text into a word document file and labeling it accordingly. Each file contained blog entries, with titles, dates, and places used as references. The data collected totaled 674,008 words or the equivalent of 1348 pages (approximately 500 words per page). Preliminary reading of these blogs identified that data saturation had been reached when a pattern in the blogs’ contents and writing styles for each blogger had become clear. Prior to coding, the researchers read the first five sample blogs to immerse themselves in the material and become familiar with it, as this is necessary for coding (Gill, 1996).

The first layer of coding loosely categorized the contents of the travel blogs, in terms of what aspect of their travel experiences the bloggers blogged about and the actions behind their blogging. This layer of analysis facilitated the identification of themes representing the actions behind their blogging.

The second layer of coding examined the linguistic techniques and self-presentation strategies used by the bloggers, which confirmed the actions behind their blogging and demonstrated how they constructed their stories for their readers. Coding tables for linguistic techniques and self-presentation strategies were developed, with codes defined and contextualized from the extant literature on discourse analysis and self-presentation strategies (Benford and Gough, 2006; Donahue, 2008; Lewis and Neighbors, 1995; Timor and Weiss, 2008; Zubair, 2007). Linguistic techniques include the use of language, in terms of the style of writing, the use of descriptive words, emotional words, repetition, the capitalization of words to emphasize the importance of the message and highlight aspects of the story, metaphors, and comparisons of places. Self-presentation strategies include self-promotion, blasting, self-handicapping, enhancement, and justification (Lewis and Neighbors, 1995).

To minimize research bias, coding tables for the themes, linguistic techniques, and self-presentation strategies were agreed upon by three independent coders. The development, modification, and finalization of themes involved a clear definition and description of what each theme covered before the next round of coding was conducted. Intercoder reliability was assured through the involvement of two other independent coders, particularly in the themes development process. NVivo qualitative software was used to code the 19 travel blogs at both layers of analysis. The coding was an iterative process since several modifications had to be made to the themes. The text was 98% coded and the codes for the linguistic techniques and self-presentation strategies were 90% comparable and appropriately labeled. The validity of the data analysis was also checked using the following rules of thumb suggested by Jorgensen and Phillips (2002): (a) interpretation was based on a range of different textual features (content of blogs, linguistic techniques, and self-presentation strategies), (b) questions posed about the text were answered fully and textual features that conflicted with the analysis were accounted for, and (c) the interpretations were documented and shown to two other independent researchers, while the extracts produced during the data analysis were long so as to give the reader access to the empirical data and test the claims made. The illustrative quotes that best represented the themes were selected by the researchers to be included in writing up the key findings. The following section reports the results of the discourse analysis, while the subsequent section “Marketing implications” shows the application of these results regarding travel blogging as a postconsumption behavior.

Study findings

The linguistic techniques, self-presentation strategies, and contents of the travel blogs reveal the purpose behind the blogging carried out by these 19 bloggers to be mainly to do with representing places, self-presentation, identity construction, and “othering.” These actions are part of their postconsumption stage and could be equated to what Aho (2001) described as the storing of memories to remember, reflection on the experience, and the enrichment of experience by sharing travel experiences.

Representing places

The bloggers’ representation of places confirms MacCannell’s (2001) observation of how tourists are ethically responsible for coming up with their own narrative accompaniments to what they have seen, and do not embrace ready-made guide-book descriptions but make their own. A variety of linguistic techniques are employed by the bloggers to share their experiences of the places they describe, such as (a) comparisons to previously visited places, (b) the use of stories and myths about the places, (c) relating a particular place to their personal life story, (d) confirming what they already knew about the place, (e) using descriptive words to aid their audience’s imagination, and (f) using emotional words to signify their reaction to the place, to name a few. The narratives vary in length and style; they can be concise, or comprehensive and detailed. For example, Geoff wrote five pages about the San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge, covering facts about its design, construction, financing, conceptualization, and even the suicides that have been committed there (Geoff, 2009). The blogs’ contents and writing styles reflect the bloggers’ personal interests and motivations for sharing their travel experiences. Moreover, different bloggers’ representations of a given destination can vary significantly, as seen from the following extracts by four bloggers who had visited the Khmer regime’s historical sites.

Extract 1: As you can imagine it (Tuol Sleng Museum) was a very harrowing place and we visited the different cells, some of which still had blood on the floor. The most disturbing part of the museums was on one of the floors which had been dedicated to showing all the pictures the Khmer Rouge had taken of the prisoners upon detainment … It was completely uncensored in its depictions of the regime and there were display cabinets holding the bludgeoned or shot skulls from some of the prisoners. Leaving the place, we both felt very depressed … It was just the initial shock in regards to the extent of the genocide that made the prison worse, but I think it was more to do with the endless pictures of victims. (Emma and Gary, 2007)

Extract 2: It was well worth seeing what mankind is capable of at its lowest, and maybe it could help to ensure it doesn’t happen again … but we’re leaving with some lasting memories especially from the people who are always smiling, despite the tragedy that happened both to them and their country. (Michael, 2008)

Extract 3: Sadly, when the Khmer rouge took control back in 1975 and were busy killing over 1.2 million of its citizens in cold blooded murder, purposely causing its people to suffer severe malnutrition which led to wide spread disease and even more death and devastation for years to come, I was already alive some would say “fortunately living in the north of England” (I disagree). At the time I was only 8 years old, ignorant and truly helpless to this heart breaking Cambodian cause … As I was obviously reading my Judy for Girls and the Wombles at Work annuals and learning Donny Osmond songs verbatim in Englandshire, while the Khmer rouge were depriving their own children of such luxuries and systematically removing all forms of educational, musical, religious, artistic and personal expression altogether from the Cambodian society. (Claire, 2008)

Extract 4: I guess I wanted to come to Anglong Veng to try and help understand the other side of the Khmer Rouge and why some still support it today. To me it is also seemed to be an important part of the historical picture, just as the popular Killing Fields and S21 Torture Centre are in Phnom Penh. The Khmer Rouge was still engaged in a civil war in Cambodia until 1998 and hard as it is to believe, they did so with support not just from a few Cambodians, but also with funds and support from the USA, UK & Thailand. They were even able to have a seat at the UN thanks to the great politicians in Washington and London. (Tim, 2006a)

These representations demonstrate how the four bloggers employed different linguistic techniques, styles of writing, descriptive and emotional words, and integrated their comments and opinions in different ways with facts and stories about the place. Extract 1 is an emotional response from Emma and Gary to the sites they visited. They express sadness, depression, and sympathy, showing how effective the Tuol Sleng Museum was in evoking negative emotions. Such emotions are expected to be evoked by dark tourism sites, as Krakover (2005) and Miles (2002) suggest. Extract 2 evaluates the experience to be a positive one, as Michael talks of the value of the tragedy for humankind and highlights the memories he takes away from the place, “from people who are always smiling despite the tragedy that happened both to them and their country.” This confirms how, as a dark tourism site, the place provided him with an educational experience and conveyed an important message about the past (Kang et al., 2012). Falk and Dierking (2000) posited that tourists make sense of what is in front of them in the context of their own experience. Extract 3 shows Claire’s reaction to the site as a reflection of herself as an ignorant 8-year-old girl and emphasizes the big difference between her childhood and those of the Cambodian children who were deprived of the things she had enjoyed as a child. Extract 4, on the other hand, reveals an active processing of information and a questioning of what is happening (or what has happened), which Moscardo (1996) refers to as mindfulness. These four extracts provide evidence that the postconsumption behavior of tourists clearly extends beyond mere evaluations of their experiences of destinations and confirm that the outcomes of tourist experiences include knowledge, memory, and emotion, as suggested by Cutler and Carmichael (2010).

Self-presentation and identity construction

According to Desforges (2000), tourism consumption is mobilized on behalf of self-identity and accounts of travel are used for constructing new identities and affirming or contesting identities in the public sphere. The analysis in this research reveals that the narratives for these actions are dominated by but not limited to stories of risks and challenges. Such stories include voluntary risk taking by the bloggers, such as bungee jumping, skydiving, abseiling, mountain trekking, white water rafting, and motorbiking, as engaged in by Meltem, Michael, Mark and Chrissie, and Barry, to name a few. Stories of challenges, on the other hand, include hardships or difficulties such as long bus rides, long hours of traveling, dealing with travel arrangements, managing the budget, or coping with other misfortunes (e.g. being scammed by locals, being attacked by animals, etc.).

Various self-presentation strategies are used by the bloggers, such as (a) self-promotion (calling attention to their accomplishments), (b) blasting (associating themselves with other people so as to be seen positively by others), (c) self-handicapping (using excuses or obstacles so as to prevent observers from making derogatory references about failure), or (d) enhancement (persuading others that the outcomes of their behaviors are better than they might have originally believed) (Lewis and Neighbors, 1995). Linguistic techniques are also used by the bloggers, such as (a) descriptive words to emphasize the risks and challenges that they encountered, (b) positioning or comparing themselves to others (e.g. the bloggers making themselves out to be braver than their travel companions), or (c) the use of emotional words to stress fear and hardship. The extracts below illustrate how some of the bloggers used this sharing of experiences as an opportunity for self-presentation and identity construction.

Extract 5 (on abseiling): Everyone was so nervous but the idiot I was volunteered to go first and had to put on a brave face in order to keep the morale up. Under the glasses were eyes of fear … I was clueless to the route down … No lie this was one of the scariest things I have done in my life definitely more so than a bungee. I am proud of myself for doing it and even more proud to be telling the story. (Meltem, 2009a)

Extract 6 (on motorbiking): Well today we were risking life and limb on what has been dubbed (for the tourists) “the most dangerous road in the world.” It was highly exhilarating and great fun with the ability to go as fast as you wanted … Squeeze as much or as little adrenaline as you wish … Of course, we had also cheated death on the World’s most dangerous road, something to be proud of (and relieved) about! What an excellent experience. (Mark and Chrissie, 2008)

Extract 7 (on mountain climbing): One of the aims of our trip has been to hike to higher altitudes than we’ve reached before and by reaching the 5604 metre peak of Cerro Toco, we beat our previous record (Jebel Toubkal in Morocco) by over 1,400 metres. Going felt fine back at 2,500 metres in San Pedro and I remember thinking, as we had a celebratory drink that evening that 6000 metres was our next goal. (Barry, 2008)

Extract 8 (on travelling alone to Mt. Bromo): For the first time during my trip I was properly scared for my life. Most of you know I’m not a religious person but I’ve never prayed so hard ever. My driver kind of bundles me and my bags into the back and he screeches off doing a 180 and off up the road. The two in front are talking very fast in Bahasa and I have no clue what’s happening. My brain tells me I’m getting kidnapped or something … At least 3 times we almost ended up in the back of a lorry or having a head on … 10 minutes of this, while my head is in my hands trying not to look and praying to God. (Gareth, 2006)

These extracts reveal how the bloggers further maximize the benefits of travel by using their travel experiences to present themselves and maintain and enhance their identities to their readers. This confirms Cutler and Carmichael’s (2010) claim that identity is an outcome of the tourist experience. These bloggers definitely vary in the styles they use for self-presentation and identity construction. In Extracts 5 and 6, the bloggers use stories of risk to present themselves and enhance their identities. Meltem, in Extract 5, is employing a self-promotion strategy to call attention to her accomplishment of being the bravest one there, as she positions herself against her companions in volunteering first for the abseiling. In Extract 6, the absence of fear despite the risk involved in “cheating death on the World’s most dangerous road” helps to enhance the identities of Mark and Chrissie as adrenalin junkies. Their blogs are filled with stories of risks and dangers and they can often be seen using the enhancement strategy to persuade their readers that the outcome of their experience was much better than it really was, such as, in this case, their mention of “cheating death” when no such incident is actually described in their account. Extract 7, on the other hand, shows how Barry maintains his identity as an experienced climber by mentioning his goals, measured in terms of breaking his record for the greatest height he has climbed and celebrating appropriately. These three extracts present these specific travel experiences as achievements and integrate them into the bloggers’ life stories. Finally, Extract 8 demonstrates how the misfortunes encountered while traveling can also be used by bloggers to present themselves to their readers. These kinds of incidents, according to Scheibe (1986), are effective for creating life stories as they are full of events and make good reading. All these extracts include experiences that required the bloggers to overcome certain challenges and that tested their limits, which Csikszenthmihalyi (1993) posits, are necessary for an evolving self. These travel blogs provide evidence that postconsumption behavior includes self-presentation, and the maintenance and enhancement of one’s identity to one’s readers.

Othering

“Othering” is the imaginary construction of different/alien people by external individuals who remain marginal (yet powerful) in their encounters with these exotic “others” (Hollinshead, 2000: 420). Jasinski (2001) stated that an important aspect of travel is the encounter with the “Others” whom, in this case, bloggers refer to as locals, local residents, or local people. As these blogs are written by long-haul and multiple-destination bloggers, they are filled with rich narratives of their travels through different places with diverse cultures that are different from their home environments and cultures. The analysis reveals that the bloggers tell stories of their encounters with the locals and include their observations and comments, which Jasinski (2001) refers to as “rhetorics of othering.” These narratives highlight novelty and cultural differences that the bloggers found interesting, shocking, strange, or unique. Various linguistic techniques, such as (a) the use of descriptive words to emphasize differences, (b) the use of emotional words that signify shock, surprise, or empathy, and (c) comparisons of aspects of their home cultures with the locals’ cultures, are employed by the bloggers. The extracts below provide some examples of their “rhetorics of othering”:

Extract 9 (on a train to Hua Hin): Mastercard moment: Chris’ face when the woman he is sitting next to on the train starts breastfeeding!!!!! (Astrid, 2008)

Extract 10 (on Chinese people):

Staring. I’m not that bothered by the staring—you do get used to it. It just seems odd—a few years back you didn’t see many white faces in China (except a few Russians) so staring seemed more appropriate but now there’s not just white faces here, but also all over the tv & magazines. Sadly the stare is just that—a gormless & sometimes accusing stare.

Pushing, shoving & queues. Got a train ticket with an allocated seat? Then surely whenever you board the seat will still be there? Best you still push & shove with all of your force as soon as the gate opens. Want to get on the underground? Best push & shove with all of your might against those disembarking rather than let them get off first. Need help at the bank? No need to wait in line, just push in front of the person already being served. (Tim, 2006b)

Extract 11 (on the locals of Bromo): We met 2 Swedes that have been (in Bromo) and they tell us that men walk into the volcano twice a day and collect a big bag of sulphur and get paid only 600 rupiah per bag! To put that into context, 16,000 rupiah = 1 pound so they are getting about 10 pence for risking their lives! Makes you think about when we moan about our jobs. Most hotel workers out here earn 20,000 rp a day working 6 am til 11ish thats not even a quid 50! Anyway, now I’ve made you all appreciate England I’m off. (Leanne, 2009)

Extract 12 (on the Ganges River): I was saddened to witness several cremations as well as babies’ body being thrown directly in the river. Such intimate rituals of life and death take place in public which is a shock to me but merely the crossing between the physical and spiritual world in the Hindu culture. (Meltem, 2009b)

Galani-Moutafi (2000) argues that the images and stories produced by tourists about “others” are directly linked to their own identities and interests within their home culture. These extracts reveal that the bloggers’ comments and reactions to the locals are indeed based on what they know about their home cultures and environments. Extract 9 shows how the tourists notice even the smallest difference between the normal routines of Asian women and British women, such as the act of breastfeeding, deeming the incident worth mentioning to their readers, and even comparing it to a “Mastercard moment,” to emphasize Chris’ shock. Extract 10 is an excerpt from a more detailed narrative from Tim about the cultural differences he had noticed among Chinese people, particularly regarding staring and their behavior in queues. Descriptive words and sarcasm are used by Tim to stress the extent of the difference between what he implies to be acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Jasinski (2001: 412) stated that “othering” is making sense of something through opposition: “we know who we are because we are not like them.” Extract 11, on the other hand, shows that the differences seen by tourists can trigger an appreciation of their home and the life (career, daily routine) they have left behind, and these feelings are shared with their readers. Meltem’s blog (Extract 12) gives her emotional response to seeing the “rituals of life and death” being carried out in public; she refers to this experience as eye-opening. The element of surprise/shock is a construct of novelty suggested by Lee and Crompton (1992). This postconsumption behavior by the tourists, of “othering,” reveals how they use the “others” to mark the fact that their travel has allowed them to experience something new and different. On the other hand, “othering” can also be an opportunity for the bloggers to provide unique content for their readers (Carson, 2008). Furthermore, accounts about “others,” especially from remote places, can provide benefits in terms of social status; here, the blogger hopes to gain recognition from their readers for such an endeavor (Laing and Crouch, 2005). Thus, “othering” is closely linked to identity construction, but is also another outcome of the tourist experience.

Marketing implications

These three actions behind tourists’ travel blogging can be used to inform marketing strategies and destination image. First, the representations of places found in these blogs provide insights into how tourists perceive a given destination. The variations in how tourists describe a particular destination highlight destination attributes that produce emotional responses and learning, and satisfy curiosity, as well as showing how tourists make sense of destinations based on their own background. This indicates how tourists consume a place and what they take away from it to share with their readers. Destination marketers could use this information to formulate their marketing strategies and maybe to reinvent destination images. These findings should encourage marketers to monitor blogs as they communicate images of destinations. Zhao and Belk (2007) state that blogs can be seen as a way of cultivating consumer desire in cyberspace, inviting the envy of their audience and urging them to see those places for themselves. As blogs are naturally occurring data with no researcher intervention, they can be considered reliable and holistic evaluations of travel experiences and destinations. The blogs used for this specific study are genuine records of travel experiences and were not written for commercial purposes.

Second, the acts of self-presentation and identity construction in travel blogging confirm that tourists further maximize the benefits of travel to create and maintain an identity in the public sphere, as suggested by MacCannell (2001). This goes beyond their core travel experiences. These actions behind blogging could inform marketing communication strategies used for selling destinations. For example, such communications could highlight the opportunities for tourists to overcome challenges and test their limits. These types of experiences are seen to be highlights of travel accounts and are integrated into the tourists’ life stories as memorable experiences.

Third, “othering,” as a postconsumption behavior, highlights the significant role locals play in the quality of a tourist experience, particularly in providing novelty to the experience. Hence, destination marketers should pay attention to what tourists write about the locals. Based on a survey conducted by Bosangit (2011), bloggers are aware that their blogs are being read by family, friends, other bloggers, and the public. These “rhetorics of othering” can generate new images that reshape their readers’ perspective of the locals. This could turn them either in favor of or against the destination, thus demonstrating the need for monitoring. Marketers can capitalize on these stories by developing marketing strategies that enhance the locals’ uniqueness from the tourist point of view, and at the same time aid the tourists to understand themselves. Destination marketers must also decide whether to act upon the negative aspects of the locals narrated by the bloggers or to preserve the local culture and market it as something exotic and novel for their tourists.

Conclusion

The extant literature on travel blogs is mainly focused on promoting travel blogs as a source of information regarding tourist activities and perceptions of destinations, and as a form of word-of-mouth communication that can provide marketing and managerial insights. This study suggests that travel blogging has become part of tourist practices and the travel experience as a whole, and that blogs should be acknowledged and used by marketers. Hence, this study demonstrates the potential of travel blogging for understanding the postconsumption behavior of tourists. Recent models of the tourist experience have emphasized the postconsumption stage, comprising behavior aimed at maximizing the benefits of travel. Tourists are not simply evaluating their travel experiences, through travel blogging they are making use of another means of self-extension to present themselves to their readers. They share their travel experiences according to the various actions that lie behind their story-telling, rearranging, and reframing their experiences using linguistic techniques and self-presentation strategies.

The use of discourse analysis in this study focused the examination of travel blogging as a postconsumption behavior particularly on how tourists tell their stories, and what they are aiming to achieve when they blog about their travel experiences. A more in-depth analysis of travel blogs could reveal other actions behind travel blogging. As mentioned earlier, blogging is a multimotivation activity. Nevertheless, this article has demonstrated that this particular behavior by tourists has implications for marketing strategies and destination image. This study is limited by the use of a sample of British bloggers who had visited different destinations; hence, a replication of this study focusing on a particular destination would create richer insights about destination image and branding. Destination marketers are encouraged to explore alternative ways of using travel blogs as research data, as well as alternative research methods such as content analysis, netnography, and narrative analysis, depending on their research objectives. It is clear that travel blogs, as records of travel experiences and a part of tourist practices, present researchers with many opportunities to use them as research data for their specific research needs. Furthermore, empirical studies examining the impacts of blogs on consumer decisions and behavior would further encourage the use of travel blogs as research data.

Footnotes

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

References

Aho

(2001) Towards a general theory of touristic experiences: modelling experience process in tourism. Tourism Review 56 (3/4): 33–37.

Arnould

Price

(1993) River magic: extraordinary experience and the extended service encounter. The Journal of Consumer Research 20(1): 24–55.

Astrid (2008) The north of the south. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/Western-Thailand/Hua-Hin/blog-337623.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

Banyai

Glover

(2012) Evaluating research methods on travel blogs. Journal of Travel Research 51(3): 267–277.

Barry BG (2008) Atacama Desert: reaching new heights. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/South-America/Chile/Antofagasta-Region/San-Pedro-de-Atacama/blog-254010.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

Benford

Gough

(2006) Defining and defending “unhealthy” practices: a discourse analysis of chocolate “addicts” accounts. Journal of Health Psychology 11(3): 427–440.

Bosangit

(2011) Understanding tourist experiences: a discourse analysis of travel blogs. PhD Thesis, University of Nottingham, UK.

Bosangit

McCabe

Hibbert

(2009) Understanding consumption experiences: a discourse analysis of travel blogs. In: Proceedings of ENTER 2009, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1–4 April 2009, pp. 61–71. Vienna: Springer-Verlag.

Carson

(2008) The blogosphere as a market research tool for tourism destinations: a case study of Australia’s Northern Territory. Journal of Vacation Marketing 14(2): 111–119.

10.

Claire CH (2008) Siem reaping just rewards. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Angkor/blog-252158.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

11.

Crang

(1997) Picturing practices: research through the tourist gaze. Progress in Human Geography 21(3): 359–373.

12.

Csikszenthmihalyi

(1993) The Evolving Self. New York: HarperCollins.

13.

Cutler

Carmichael

(2010) The dimensions of tourist experience. In: Morgan

Lugosi

Ritchie

JRB

(eds) The Tourism and Leisure Experience: Consumer and Management Perspectives. Bristol: Channel View Publications, pp. 3–26.

14.

Desforges

(2000) Travelling the world: identity and travel biography. Annals of Tourism Research 27(4): 926–945.

15.

Donahue

(2008) Cross-cultural analysis of student writing: beyond discourses of difference. Written Communication 25(3): 319–352.

16.

Emma and Gary (2007) Phnom Penh & the killing fields. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/South/Phnom-Penh/blog-208737.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

17.

Falk

Dierking

(2000) Learning from Museums. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press.

18.

Galani-Moutafi

(2000) The self and the other: traveler, ethnographer, tourist. Annals of Tourism Research 27(1): 203–224.

19.

Gareth GP (2006) I’m a kuta-n outta here. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/Indonesia/Java/Bromo-Tengger-Semeru/blogs-page-3.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

20.

Geoff GC (2009) I left my heart in San Francisco, well maybe not my heart, but at least a load of memories. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/California/San-Francisco/blog-426563.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

21.

Gill

(1996) Discourse analysis: practical implementation. In: Richardson

(ed) Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods for Psychology and the Social Sciences. Leicester: The British Psychological Society, pp. 141–158.

22.

Hollinshead

(2000) Other. In: Jafari

(ed) Encyclopedia of Tourism. Oxon: Routledge, p. 420.

23.

Hsu

Lin

(2008) Acceptance of blog usage: the roles of technology acceptance, social influence and knowledge sharing motivation. Information & Management 45: 65–74.

24.

Huang

Shen

Lin

. (2007) Bloggers’ motivations and behaviours: a model. Journal of Advertising Research 47(4): 472–484.

25.

Jansson

(2007) A sense of tourism: new media and the dialectic of encapsulation/decapsulation. Tourist Studies 7(1): 5–24.

26.

Jasinski

(2001) Sourcebook on Rhetoric: Key Concepts in Contemporary Rhetorical Studies. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

27.

Jorgensen

Phillips

(2002) Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method. London: SAGE.

28.

Kang

Scott

Lee

. (2012) Benefits of visiting a dark tourism site: the case of the Jeju April 3rd Peace Park, Korea. Tourism Management 33(2): 257–265.

29.

Krakover

(2005) Attitudes of Israeli visitors towards the Holocaust remembrance site of Yad Vashem. In: Ashworth

Hartmann

(eds) Horror and Human Tragedy Revisited: The Management of Sites of Atrocities for Tourism. Sydney: Cognizant Communication Corporation, pp. 108–117.

30.

Laing

Crouch

(2005) Extraordinary journeys: an exploratory cross-cultural study of tourists on the frontier. Journal of Vacation Marketing 11(3): 209–223.

31.

Langdridge

Hagger-Johnson

(2009) Introduction to Research Methods and Data Analysis in Psychology. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

32.

Larsen

(2007) Aspects of a psychology of the tourist experience. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism 7(7): 7–18.

33.

Leanne LW (2009) Happy new year. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/Indonesia/Bali/Kuta/blog-358978.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

34.

Lee

Crompton

(1992) Measuring novelty seeking in tourism. Annals of Tourism Research 19: 732–751.

35.

Lenhart

Fox

(2006) Bloggers: A Portrait of the Internet’s New Storytellers. Washington, DC: PEW Internet and American Life Project.

36.

Lewis

Neighbors

(1995) Self-determination and the use of self-presentation strategies. The Journal of Social Psychology 145(4): 469–489.

37.

MacCannell

(2001) Tourist agency. Tourist Studies 1(1): 23–37.

38.

Mark and Chrissie CH (2008) Surviving the most dangerous road in the world! In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/South-America/Bolivia/La-Paz-Department/La-Paz/blog-350664.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

39.

Meltem

(2009a) Before I fall to pieces. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Turkey/Marmara/Istanbul/blog-411441.html (accessed 24 November 2009).

40.

Meltem

(2009b) Don’t stand too close to me. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Uttar-Pradesh/Varanasi/blog-417356.html (accessed 24 November 2009).

41.

Michael MJ (2008) Man’s greatest treasures and worst crimes. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/blog-240725.html (accessed 24 November 2009).

42.

Miles

WFS

(2002) Auschwitz: museum interpretation and darker tourism. Annals of Tourism Research 29(4): 1175–1178.

43.

Moscardo

(1996) Mindful visitors: heritage and tourism. Annals of Tourism Research 23(2): 376–397.

44.

Nardi

Schiano

Gumbretcht

. (2004) Why we blog. Communications of the ACM 47(12): 41–46.

45.

Otto

Ritchie

JRB

(1996) The service experience in tourism. Tourism Management 17(3): 165–174.

46.

Pan

Maclaurin

Crotts

(2007) Travel blogs and the implications for destination marketing. Journal of Travel Research 46: 35–454.

47.

Papacharissi

(2005) Audiences as media producers: content analysis of 260 blogs. In: Tremayne

(ed) Blogging, Citizenship and Future of Media. New York: Routledge, pp. 21–38.

48.

Pearce

(2005) Tourist Behaviour: Themes and Conceptual Schemes. Clevedon: Channel View Publications.

49.

Potter

Wetherell

(1987) Discourse and Social Psychology: Beyond Attitudes and Behaviour. London: SAGE.

50.

Puhringer

Taylor

(2008) A practitioner’s report on blogs as a potential source of destination marketing intelligence. Journal of Vacation Marketing 14(2): 177–187.

51.

Ryan

(1997) The Tourist Experience: A New Introduction. London: Thomson.

52.

Ryan

(2002) The Tourist Experience. 2nd ed. London: Continuum.

53.

Scheibe

(1986) Self-narratives and adventure. In: Sarbin

(ed.) Narrative Psychology. New York: Praeger, pp. 129–151.

54.

Schmallegger

Carson

(2008) Blogs in tourism: changing approaches to information exchange. Journal of Vacation Marketing 14(2): 99–110.

55.

Teddlie

Tashakkori

(2009) Foundations of Mixed Methods Research: Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches in the Social and Behavioural Sciences. London: SAGE.

56.

Tim TC (2006a) Homemade trains & dead butchers. In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Battambang/blog-102078.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

57.

Tim TC (2006b) Computer says noooo (an introduction to Chinese manners & etiquette). In: Travelblog.org. Available at: www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Guangdong/Guangzhou/blog-78929.html (accessed 23 November 2009).

58.

Timor

Weiss

(2008) Sociolinguistic and psycholinguistic indications of behavior disorders: an analysis of a prisoner’s discourse. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology 52(1): 112–126.

59.

Trenor

(2011) 2011 Blogging statistics (infographic). Available at: www.rightmixmarketing.com/right-mix-blog/blogging-statistics/ (accessed 26 October 2011).

60.

Tung

VWS

Ritchie

JRB

(2011) Exploring the essence of memorable tourism experiences. Annals of Tourism Research 38(4): 1367–1386

61.

Tussyadiah

Fesenmaier

(2008) Marketing places through first-person stories: an analysis of Pennsylvania roadtripper blog. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing 24 (3–4): 299–311.

62.

Volo

(2010) Bloggers’ reported tourist experiences: their utility as a tourism data source and their effect on prospective tourists. Journal of Vacation Marketing 16(4): 297–311.

63.

Wenger

(2008) Analysis of travel bloggers’ characteristics and their communication about Austria as a tourism destination. Journal of Vacation Marketing 14(2): 169–176.

64.

Willig

(2008) Introducing Qualitative Research in Psychology: Adventures in Theory and Method. 2nd ed. Berkshire: Open University Press.

65.

Woodside

Cruickshank

Dehuang

(2007) Stories visitors tell about Italian cities as destination icons. Tourism Management 28: 162–174.

66.

Zehrer

Crotts

Magnini

(2011) The perceived usefulness of blog postings: an extension of the expectancy disconfirmation paradigm. Tourism Management 32(1): 106–113.

67.

Zhao

Belk

(2007) Live from shopping malls: blogs and Chinese consumer desire. Advances in Consumer Research 34: 131–137.

68.

Zubair

(2007) Silent birds: metaphorical constructions of literacy and gender identity in women’s talk. Discourse Studies 9(6): 766–783.