Digital communication strategies used by private companies, entrepreneurs, and public entities to attract long-stay tourists: a review

Abstract

Globalization and the changes in the technological and social industries have facilitated international mobility in such a way that the distinctions between tourism and other forms of mobility closer to migration have practically become blurred. Improvements in digital communication have promoted people’s search for a better quality of life in terms of health, work, leisure, and other aspects. New forms of communication have started to gradually displace the more conventional media. In this context, private companies, entrepreneurs, and public entities have grown aware of the importance of digital communication to achieve a greater scope in their population attraction policies. In this context, the present study aims to identify which digital communication strategies are used to generate interest and attraction to the destination. In our Systematic Literature Review (SLR), we examine the relationship between the terms “lifestyle migration” and “digital communication”, obtaining 294 articles found in Web of Science (WOS) and Scopus. After the analysis, we found 16 potential articles that were linked to the research objectives. The results of the methodology are classified according to the different digital communication actions identified, namely (i) Social Network Relationship; (ii) Digital Marketing, and (iii) Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. Therefore, this this study contributes to link lifestyle migration and digital communication to destination management offices, companies and entrepreneurs. The paper finishes with a discussion of theoretical and practical implications of research on digital communication strategies in the field of long-stay tourism.