Analyzing destination branding and image from online sources: A web content mining approach

Destination image, place brand, and branding continue to receive attention by researchers and industry. However, a thorough definition and differentiation of these terms and further investigation are still necessary. Digital information sources provide relevant image formation and branding agents and thus, potentially impact travelers' image and serve as platforms to communicate perceptions. With abundant online information on places available, the data offer insights into the brand identity communications and the image perceptions by travelers. This study presents an automated web content mining approach. A total set of 5719 documents inform the online destination representation in various online sources. Results demonstrate how to extract destination brand identity and image through web content mining.