AI-driven virtual travel influencers and ethical consumerism: analysing engagement with Sena Zaro’s Instagram content

Purpose This study examines how AI-driven virtual travel influencers engage young consumers, with a focus on ethical consumerism. It analyses the content strategy on Instagram of Sena Zaro, the pioneering AI influencer in the travel and hospitality sector, created by Cenizaro Hotels. The purpose is to identify the adherence to ethical communication standards and evaluate the types of content that garner the highest engagement, analysing the emotions expressed through shared posts, and exploring the destinations promoted. Design/methodology/approach Through web scraping and AI-driven sentiment analysis, all textual posts from her profile and corresponding comments were examined. The stimulus-organism-response theory was applied to explore how ethical messaging (stimuli) impacted emotional engagement (organism), driving follower behaviour (response). The content was also categorized based on ethical tourism principles, as published by the World Tourism Organization’s Global Code of Ethics for Tourism. Findings Results highlight that authenticity and transparency are crucial for successful virtual influencer (VI) marketing. Posts featuring Sena Zaro herself, especially in carousel format, had the highest engagement. Although cultural heritage and local benefit were the most common ethical themes and labour rights were underrepresented, they did not notably impact engagement levels. Practical implications Practical implications related to emotional dynamics, ethical communication and location are presented to enhance customer engagement, along with recommendations for future digital marketing strategies in tourism to effectively use VI marketing. Originality/value This research is the first to examine a VI in the tourism and hospitality industry, specifically analysing how such an influencer engages with young consumers. It emphasizes the importance of authenticity and emotional engagement.