Does user-generated video content motivate individuals to visit a destination? A non-visitor typology

Abstract

Νon-visitors comprise a lucrative but underexplored segment in the tourism literature. This study fills a research gap on non-visitors by proposing a new typology contributing to a better understanding of their travel motivations and intentions to visit or not a destination, after being exposed to user-generated video content online. Semi-structured in-depth interviews facilitated via two tourist videos of Raja Ampat, Indonesia, available on YouTube, were conducted with 31 Indonesians and 30 British non-visitors. Findings indicate the presence of five types of non-visitors based on travel motivations: neophiles, nationalists, narcissists, volunteers, and reluctant non-goers. The study contributes to a better understanding of non-visitors’ motivations across different cultures and sheds some light on how user-generated video content shapes visit intentions among those who have never visited a destination. In practical terms, the study offers prudent knowledge on enhancing the possibility that non-visitors will turn into goers.