Predictors of tourist engagement: Travel motives and tourism destination profiles

The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of travel motives and regional tourism destinations on positive/negative engagement with a destination management organisation (DMO). According to previous literature, travel motives were classified as push and pull motives, and regional tourism destinations were classified by tourist demand behaviour. To achieve the objective, the totality of posts about regional tourism destinations published on the Brand Spain's Official Facebook Fanpage during a year were analysed (418), along with audience reactions (127,750), comments (3219) and shares to such posts. A content analysis was performed, with a regression analysis (optimal scaling) used to process data. Results show, on the one hand, that push-internal motivators (such as ‘knowledge and seeing’) and pull-external motivators (such as ‘search for historic and cultural patrimonial’) will predict positive engagement, and positive popularity, commitment and virality (the three dimensions of engagement). Tourism destination profiles (high versus low demand) are not a predictor of positive engagement with a DMO and its dimensions. On the other hand, these variables are not useful to predict negative engagement with a DMO and its dimensions. Negative popularity can only be predicted by pull motives.