Social media is a relatively recent destination marketing tool that can shape destination images (DI). Mostly, DI are formed by destination marketing organisations (DMO), although through social media users’ images another extent of DI is formed. This research examines the projected and perceived DI, established through DMO content and user generated content (UGC) in the study area of Dalarna, Sweden. As projected DI may differ from perceived in an organisational view compared to social media’s users view of a destination, the attributes and characteristics of the images are of interest. A background through social media and the UGC utilisation by DMOs provided a framework for the research.
Followingly, the research aims to display the DI from the projected and perceived content from DMO and UGC, and their respectively cognitive and affective dimensions towards the destination. To be able to fulfil the aim a qualitative visual content analysis was used to compare the data from the DMO Visit Dalarna and UGC from #VisitDalarna. The results suggest more cognitive than affective dimensions present in the DIs. Additionally, the DMO displayed a more varied DI than UGC, since they almost exclusively were concentrated on one category. In conclusion, the perceived DI has an influence on the information search process, as well as the perceived DI is influenced by the projected DI, and together the two DI create an comprehensive DI.