Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.47960/2712-0457.2026.1.8.49
WEB SEARCH DATA AS AN INDICATOR OF TOURISM DEMAND: IMPLICATIONS FOR STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION
Hrvoje Jakopović
; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Zagreb, Hrvatska
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* Dopisni autor.
Sažetak
The increasing availability of digital data has created new opportunities for analysing and understanding tourist behaviour in the context of digital strategic communication. This study focuses on the potential of web search data as an indicator of tourism interest and examines its implications for strategic communication in tourism. Using Google search data, keyword analysis is applied to identify patterns of destination-related searches across countries. Following a pretest, the expressions “travel to” and “visit” were selected for the analysis of online tourism interest. The dataset comprises high volume search queries from the 34 most populous countries. The data are derived from 2019, which serves as a benchmark year for international tourism activities. The findings indicate that search query data can serve as a meaningful indicator of tourism demand and reveal differences in how destinations are explored online. The expression “travel to” is more frequently associated with broad, exploratory searches, whereas “visit” tends to indicate more specific, destination-focused interest. Correlation analysis shows a significant positive relationship between search interest and tourism demand indicators. The study highlights the value of search behaviour analysis as a complementary methodological approach and demonstrates its relevance for strategic communication, public relations, destination marketing and management.
Ključne riječi
search query, big data, tourism destination, e-tourist, strategic communication.
Hrčak ID:
352210
URI
Datum izdavanja:
30.6.2026.
Posjeta: 0 *