#Vanlife Influencers As Human Brands: Narrative Themes And Visual Perspectives In Destination Promotion On Instagram

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1-1-2026

School

Communication

Abstract

By focusing on vanlifers, an increasingly influential group of travel content creators on Instagram, this research examined the influences of narrative themes, visual view angles and destination popularity on viewers’ three dimensions of psychological need fulfilment, narrative transportation, destination attitudes, and visit intentions. Guided by Human Brand Theory, this study built a connection between #VanLife influencer and travel destination marketing by identifying which combinations of narrative and visual design can be used to effectively promote certain travel destinations with different levels of popularity. The study first reveals that a third-person view (view angle from an outside observer) served as a more effective observational frame that facilitated learning and comprehension about vanlife and unfamiliar travel destinations, compared to inspirational portrayals of a well-known location using a point-of-view (POV) perspective, showing a first-person scenario through a vanlifer’s eyes. Furthermore, the narrative transportation effect from Instagram #Vanlife content to travel destinations was stronger when the Instagram post contained useful travel tips for visiting a lesser-known destination using a third-person view angle, compared to the post with staged visual content promoting a well-known destination in a third-person view. Eventually, under both POV and third-person perspectives, narrative transportation and the fulfilments of competence and relatedness needs significantly and positively predicted destination attitudes and visit intentions.

Publication Title

Tourism Recreation Research

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