Evaluation of the impact of Go Türkiye on the travel intentions of domestic tourists

With the widespread use of digital platforms today, the role of social media in tourists' destination selection and trip planning processes is increasingly growing. While there are studies in the literature indicating that social media influences tourists' travel decisions, there are very few studies that specifically focus on the Go Türkiye platform, which aims to promote Turkey. These studies include the works of Kiçir (2023), Aydın and Akgün (2023), Akyol (2022), Demirci (2023). Among these, two focused on Go Türkiye's YouTube channel, while the others analyzed its website. Only Aydın and Akgün (2023) conducted a separate analysis of Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok platforms. However, the lack of studies examining the awareness of Go Türkiye among domestic tourists and the impact of its social media presence on travel decisions constitutes the starting point of this study. In this research, a mixed method approach was used. First, to determine the social media strategies of the Go Türkiye platform, its official Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok accounts were analyzed using the Fanpage Karma tool between May 17, 2024, and August 16, 2024. During the analysis, the focus was on Go Türkiye's engagement and content sharing strategies. Secondly, a quantitative method was applied through a survey to understand how domestic tourists' opinions on general social media and Go Türkiye influence their travel intentions. The analyses were conducted using the SPSS software. As a result of the analyses, it was found that Go Türkiye employs different strategies for each social media platform, with varying types of posts, frequencies, and posting times. Active on all platforms, Go Türkiye frequently shares content related to history, archaeology, gastronomy, and the sea-sun-sand trio. According to the survey results from domestic tourists, there is a positive and significant relationship between the ease of use of Go Türkiye's social media platforms and its gastronomic content. Additionally, a positive and significant relationship was found between usage intention and travel decision. Keywords: social media, Go Türkiye, travel decision, domestic tourist