Can “Live Streaming” Really Drive Visitors to the Destination? From the Aspect of “Social Presence”

Abstract

The combination of live-streaming technology and tourism is an important development in the evolution of tourism experiences. Research on live-streaming tourism is becoming popular, but empirical studies on the relationship between live streaming and travel intention remain underexplored. The aim of this article is to determine whether live streaming has an impact on travel intention. This article collects 614 questionnaires and uses structural equation models (SEMs) to test the relevant hypotheses. This study makes some contributions to the literature on live-streaming tourism. First, it explains the relationship between live streaming and travel intention from the perspective of social presence: The presence of a destination image, the presence of an interaction, and the presence of production can effectively improve people’s trust and, in return, influence their travel intention. Second, this article verifies the role of trust in tourism management. This article is one of the earliest studies on the relationship between live streaming and travel intention, which has significance for the development of tourism management–related theories and practical management.

Virtual Reality in Destination Marketing: Telepresence, Social Presence, and Tourists’ Visit Intentions

“…Compared with higher social presence, the VR commercial presented in lower social presence might be impersonal and anonymous, making it difficult for viewers to validate the information provided by the destination marketing organizations (i.e., VR commercial producer platform/company). The perception of real person in the VR commercials can helps viewers feel secure about the VR commercial contents and information, which enhance their confidence and trust toward the destination service and travel experience (Zhang, Wang, and Zhang 2021). As such, we expect VR commercials displaying higher levels of social presence to stimulate stronger (re)visit intention as hypothesized below:…”

Factors That Influence Virtual Tourism Holistic Image: The Moderating Role of Sense of Presence

“…The sense of spatial presence can be improved through 360 • -rich media presentation and immersion, and cognitive and affective responses can be advanced. Zhang et al [39] believed that social presence comprises the production presence, interaction, and destination image presence, which can further generate trust toward destinations and then influence the visit intention of tourists. The destination image in the context of watching live streaming can be formed from the obtained information.…”

“…Virtual tourism can enhance the sense of immersion of a user, improve the cognitive process of information, and activate mental imagination, thus increasing the perception of presence. Zhang et al [39] considered that live streaming of tourist locations allows viewers to form an impression of the destination based on the obtained information, while a sense of presence can increase the trust of the destination and provide a comprehensive understanding of the destination. In addition, Yang et al [40] posited that the VR experience can enhance the sense of presence tourists feel toward these destinations.…”

“…Previous studies (e.g., Kuhzady [44]) have shown that tourist involvement has an impact on the holistic image of tourist sites; however, these studies did not involve virtual tourism. Furthermore, past research results reveal that virtual tourism plays an indispensable role in alleviating public demand for tourism under the impact of COVID-19 despite the increased preference of tourists for on-site tourism [39]. Zhang et al [39] showed that the sense of presence was formed by live streaming assisted viewers in the formation of destination images.…”

“…Furthermore, past research results reveal that virtual tourism plays an indispensable role in alleviating public demand for tourism under the impact of COVID-19 despite the increased preference of tourists for on-site tourism [39]. Zhang et al [39] showed that the sense of presence was formed by live streaming assisted viewers in the formation of destination images. However, the moderating effect of presence on the holistic image has not been tested, and investigations have not been conducted in the context of virtual tourism.…”