Abstract
Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) are instrumental in driving regional economic growth through tourism promotion. However, these publicly funded organizations face increasing challenges. This case study examines a DMO confronting intense scrutiny over its influencer marketing campaign’s effectiveness and transparency, leading to proposed budget cuts amid growing community concerns about overtourism. The case illuminates critical challenges in modern destination management: demonstrating marketing ROI in the digital era, ensuring accountability as a publicly funded organization, and balancing tourism growth with competing priorities for community interests. Through the theoretical lenses of Principal-Agent Theory, Tourism-Led Growth Hypothesis, and Public Goods Theory, and with real-life examples of DMOs and destinations, students learn to develop strategic frameworks for sustainable regional development leveraging tourism, design community-aligned destination marketing strategies, and create transparent accountability mechanisms for publicly funded organizations.
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