What is Told in Travel Blogs? Exploring Travel Blogs for Consumer Narrative Analysis

Abstract

Blogging activity among tourists is increasing and represents an important new aspect of marketing communication in tourism. Millions of individuals have joined travel blog websites, to share their travel experiences online, and blogging has become an aspect of the tourist production and consumption process. The limited extant research on travel blogs focuses on tourists’ behaviour patterns and descriptions of destinations. In contrast, this paper examines travel blogs as textual artefacts to gain insights into how tourists construct order and make meaning from their experiences as part of the process of identity management. A narrative analysis of blogs from the three most visited travel blog websites was conducted. Tourists’ identity and sense-making were revealed by the stories that were told, the way in which they were recounted and how they were link to aspects of self-concept including values, preferences, skills, social roles and relationships.