IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i13p6016-d1691263.html

The Evolution of Digital Tourism Marketing: From Hashtags to AI-Immersive Journeys in the Metaverse Era

Author

Listed:
  • Evangelos Christou

    (Department of Organisation Management, Marketing and Tourism, International Hellenic University, P.O. Box 141, 57400 Thessaloniki, Greece)

  • Antonios Giannopoulos

    (Department of Organisation Management, Marketing and Tourism, International Hellenic University, P.O. Box 141, 57400 Thessaloniki, Greece)

  • Ioanna Simeli

    (Department of Organisation Management, Marketing and Tourism, International Hellenic University, P.O. Box 141, 57400 Thessaloniki, Greece)

Abstract

This study examines how social media platforms influence tourism marketing strategies, consumer perceptions, and travel behaviors, addressing their sustainability implications. It aims to evaluate the current state of research on social media in tourism marketing, identify dominant trends, assess empirical evidence of impact, and critically highlight research gaps. The analysis focuses on three core marketing outcomes: destination image, travel intention, and user engagement—and includes a section examining sustainability considerations across environmental, sociocultural, and economic dimensions. The study uses a systematic critical review of 147 peer-reviewed academic articles published between 2015 and 2025, combined with a meta-analysis of 38 quantitative studies that report statistical effect sizes. The meta-analysis uses a random-effects model to compare the influence of different platforms and study contexts. Moderator variables include geographic region, platform type, and methodological design. Findings show that social media marketing has a statistically significant positive effect on destination image (Cohen’s d = 0.61), travel intention (d = 0.54), and user engagement (d = 0.43). The analysis also reveals geographic bias, limited research on emerging platforms, and a lack of longitudinal and ethical inquiry. Findings suggest that tourism researchers and marketers may have to adopt more context-sensitive, interdisciplinary, and ethical approaches. Critical sustainability concerns emerge, including “overtourism”, cultural commodification, digital inequities, and algorithmic biases. Further studies may focus on specific platform-related behaviors, long-term impacts, and integrated online strategies appropriate for global tourism diversity. Lastly, this paper advocates for context-sensitive, interdisciplinary, and ethically grounded approaches to ensure sustainable digital tourism marketing strategies.

Suggested Citation

  • Evangelos Christou & Antonios Giannopoulos & Ioanna Simeli, 2025. "The Evolution of Digital Tourism Marketing: From Hashtags to AI-Immersive Journeys in the Metaverse Era," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-41, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:13:p:6016-:d:1691263
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/13/6016/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/13/6016/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Yuqian Wei & Hengyu Liu & Wenhui Zhuo & Keun-Soo Park, 2025. "The Influence of Social Media Attributes on Impulsive Travel Intentions: Integrating the Stimulus–Organism–Response Theory and Information Adoption Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-19, May.
    2. Hudson, Simon & Huang, Li & Roth, Martin S. & Madden, Thomas J., 2016. "The influence of social media interactions on consumer–brand relationships: A three-country study of brand perceptions and marketing behaviors," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 27-41.
    3. Ajzen, Icek, 1991. "The theory of planned behavior," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 179-211, December.
    4. Adelina Zeqiri & Adel Ben Youssef & Teja Maherzi Zahar, 2025. "The Role of Digital Tourism Platforms in Advancing Sustainable Development Goals in the Industry 4.0 Era," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(8), pages 1-24, April.
    5. Sue Duval & Richard Tweedie, 2000. "Trim and Fill: A Simple Funnel-Plot–Based Method of Testing and Adjusting for Publication Bias in Meta-Analysis," Biometrics, The International Biometric Society, vol. 56(2), pages 455-463, June.
    6. Mariani, Marcello M. & Di Felice, Marco & Mura, Matteo, 2016. "Facebook as a destination marketing tool: Evidence from Italian regional Destination Management Organizations," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 321-343.
    7. Alexandra Bec & Char-lee J. Moyle & Brent D. Moyle, 2019. "Community Resilience to Change: Development of an Index," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 142(3), pages 1103-1128, April.
    8. Stephanie Hays & Stephen Page & Dimitrios Buhalis, 2013. "Social media as a destination marketing tool: its use by national tourism organisations," Current Issues in Tourism, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(3), pages 211-239.
    9. Sigala, Marianna, 2020. "Tourism and COVID-19: Impacts and implications for advancing and resetting industry and research," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 312-321.
    10. Francis Albert R. Somera & Krassie Petrova, 2024. "A Change Management View on Technology Adoption in Hotel Organizations: A Review and a Conceptual Framework," Businesses, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-21, November.
    11. Alessandro Liberati & Douglas G Altman & Jennifer Tetzlaff & Cynthia Mulrow & Peter C Gøtzsche & John P A Ioannidis & Mike Clarke & P J Devereaux & Jos Kleijnen & David Moher, 2009. "The PRISMA Statement for Reporting Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses of Studies That Evaluate Health Care Interventions: Explanation and Elaboration," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 6(7), pages 1-28, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Wolfram Höpken & Zehui Wang & Sebastian Schwarzenbacher & Matthias Fuchs, 2026. "Comparison of tourists’ perceptions and destinations’ self-presentation through image recognition," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 28(1), pages 1-26, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Evangelos Christou & Antonios Giannopoulos & Ioanna Simeli, 2025. "Die Entwicklung des digitalen Tourismusmarketings: Von Hashtags zu KI-immersiven Reisen im Zeitalter des Metaversums [The Evolution of Digital Tourism Marketing: From Hashtags to AI-Immersive Journeys in the Metaverse Era]," Post-Print hal-05138446, HAL.
    2. Chryssoula Chatzigeorgiou & Evangelos Christou & Ioanna Simeli, 2025. "From Brochures to Bytes: Destination Branding through Social, Mobile, and AI—A Systematic Narrative Review with Meta-Analysis," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-57, September.
    3. Alessandro Concari & Gerjo Kok & Pim Martens, 2020. "A Systematic Literature Review of Concepts and Factors Related to Pro-Environmental Consumer Behaviour in Relation to Waste Management Through an Interdisciplinary Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-50, May.
    4. Damiano Pizzol & Mike Trott & Igor Grabovac & Mario Antunes & Anna Claudia Colangelo & Simona Ippoliti & Cristian Petre Ilie & Anne Carrie & Nicola Veronese & Lee Smith, 2021. "Laparoscopy in Low-Income Countries: 10-Year Experience and Systematic Literature Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-11, May.
    5. Chaojun Li & Xinjia Huang, 2022. "How Does COVID-19 Risk Perception Affect Wellness Tourist Intention: Findings on Chinese Generation Z," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-20, December.
    6. Michael Wolfowicz & Yael Litmanovitz & David Weisburd & Badi Hasisi, 2021. "Cognitive and behavioral radicalization: A systematic review of the putative risk and protective factors," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 17(3), September.
    7. Oliver Cruz-Milán, 2023. "Loyalty in the time of COVID-19: A review of the literature in tourism destination settings," Post-Print hal-04014427, HAL.
    8. Marcello Mariani, 2020. "Web 2.0 and Destination Marketing: Current Trends and Future Directions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-17, May.
    9. Mohammad Tipu Sultan & Farzana Sharmin & Alina Badulescu & Darie Gavrilut & Ke Xue, 2021. "Social Media-Based Content towards Image Formation: A New Approach to the Selection of Sustainable Destinations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-22, April.
    10. Wan Shakira Rodzlan Hasani & Nor Asiah Muhamad & Nur Hasnah Maamor & Tengku Muhammad Hanis & Chen Xin Wee & Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan & Zulkarnain Abdul Karim & Kamarul Imran Musa, 2023. "Premature mortality and years of potential life lost from cardiovascular diseases: Protocol of a systematic review and meta-analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 18(5), pages 1-11, May.
    11. Tang, Xinfeng & Tang, Suqin & Ren, Zhihong & Wong, Daniel Fu Keung, 2020. "Psychological risk and protective factors associated with depressive symptoms among adolescents in secondary schools in China: A systematic review and meta-analysis," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    12. Gege Zhang & Xiaoyuan Chen & Rob Law & Mu Zhang, 2020. "Sustainability of Heritage Tourism: A Structural Perspective from Cultural Identity and Consumption Intention," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-17, November.
    13. Mario Sánchez & Javier Sanchez-Sanchez & Fabio Y. Nakamura & Filipe M. Clemente & Blanca Romero-Moraleda & Rodrigo Ramirez-Campillo, 2020. "Effects of Plyometric Jump Training in Female Soccer Player’s Physical Fitness: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-23, November.
    14. Huseyin Arasli & Maryam Abdullahi & Tugrul Gunay, 2021. "Social Media as a Destination Marketing Tool for a Sustainable Heritage Festival in Nigeria: A Moderated Mediation Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-27, May.
    15. Tomohide Yamada & Kazuo Hara & Hitomi Umematsu & Ryo Suzuki & Takashi Kadowaki, 2012. "Erectile Dysfunction and Cardiovascular Events in Diabetic Men: A Meta-analysis of Observational Studies," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 7(9), pages 1-7, September.
    16. Mohd Azhar & Rehan Husain & Sheeba Hamid & Mohd Nayyer Rahman, 2023. "Effect of social media marketing on online travel purchase behavior post-COVID-19: mediating role of brand trust and brand loyalty," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 9(1), pages 1-13, December.
    17. Kelly A Baker & Timothy D Miller & Frank E Marino & Tegan E Hartmann, 2022. "The exercise-induced inflammatory response in inflammatory bowel disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 17(2), pages 1-20, February.
    18. Rafael del-Pino-Casado & Marta Rodríguez Cardosa & Catalina López-Martínez & Vasiliki Orgeta, 2019. "The association between subjective caregiver burden and depressive symptoms in carers of older relatives: A systematic review and meta-analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(5), pages 1-16, May.
    19. Hadiseh Azadehyaei & Yue Zhang & Yan Song & Tania Gottschalk & Gregory S. Anderson, 2025. "Economic Evaluation of Proactive PTSI Mitigation Programs for Public Safety Personnel and Frontline Healthcare Professionals: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 22(5), pages 1-18, May.
    20. Carmela A White & Bob Uttl & Mark D Holder, 2019. "Meta-analyses of positive psychology interventions: The effects are much smaller than previously reported," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(5), pages 1-48, May.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:13:p:6016-:d:1691263. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.