Influencer Marketing in Rural Tourism: Enhancing Destination Image and Encouraging Homestay Choices

Rural tourism remains underexplored compared to urban and luxury destinations, yet it offers significant potential for sustainable development. Travel influencers, through digital storytelling and endorsements, are increasingly shaping tourist perceptions and reducing uncertainties about homestays. This study examines the impact of influencer endorsements on homestay intentions, utilizing the Theory of Planned Behavior as a guiding framework. Data from 216 urban tourists in Northern and Central India were analyzed with structural equation modeling. Findings reveal that rural image perception is the strongest predictor of homestay intentions, while subjective norms play a weaker but significant role. Influencer endorsements affect behaviour indirectly by enhancing destination image rather than exerting direct persuasion. The study advances the Theory of Planned Behavior by demonstrating the primacy of cognitive evaluations over normative pressures in the context of rural tourism. Practical implications underscore the need for destination marketers and homestay operators to utilize authentic storytelling and image-building strategies to effectively promote rural tourism.