Analysis of Websites as a Promotional Tool in Destination Marketing: The Case of Türkiye

Abstract

Purpose – The aim of this research is to reveal the similarities and differences between the countries by analyzing the menus on the destination websites of the top ten countries that attracted the most tourists in 2019, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) data. Design/methodology/approach – The data is obtained by content analysis, which is one of the qualitative research methods. The data used in the research consists of secondary data obtained from the destination websites of the top ten countries that attracted the most tourists in 2019, according to UNWTO data. In the analysis of secondary data obtained from websites, the MAXQDA 2020 program, which is used in qualitative and mixed methods, is used. Findings – According to the results of the research, it has been observed that in general, the websites of the countries do not give enough space to the COVID-19 measures. When the official website of Turkey is examined, it is seen that the services are offered to the visitors according to other countries, it has a rich content about touristic attractions, the site is not in a complex structure and it is easy to understand in terms of usage. When Turkey website is compared with France, Spain and USA websites, it is seen that the most similarity is between Turkey and France. It is seen that the least similarity is between Turkey and the USA. Discussion – Research findings support the literature. In the study, attention was drawn to the issues that countries should include on their destination websites. When the literature is examined, it is thought that this study is important to contribute to the field, since there is no study that examines the content of the destination websites of the countries through the menus and analyzes them with a program. In addition, suggestions were made about different methods that could be used in future studies.