Communicating national identity markers in official tourism commercials: The challenge of overrepresentation

This study investigates the representation of national identity markers (NIMs) in national tourism commercials of six countries from the Balkan Region and aims at identifying which NIMs are most prevalent. Based on mixed-methods, the study applies four main research tools: content analysis, cross-case analysis, a star rating approach, and visualization techniques. The analysis shows that the most frequently offered NIMs are the natural landscape, national symbols, cultural heritage, and national cuisine due to their significant association with national identity. However, the frequent recurrence of these markers results in a high degree of similarity in the tourism campaigns of geographically and culturally proximate countries and finally reduces the distinctiveness of national branding efforts.