Destination Marketing Innovation

This chapter examines the role of humanlike service robots as a driver of destination marketing innovation and their impact on destination brand positioning. Drawing on literature from smart tourism, human–robot interaction, and destination branding, the study proposes and empirically tests a conceptual model linking anthropomorphic robot attributes to tourist emotional engagement, destination brand perception, and behavioral outcomes. Using a scenario-based survey and Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), the findings reveal that anthropomorphic characteristics significantly enhance emotional engagement, which in turn strengthens destination brand perception and positioning. The results highlight the mediating role of emotional and cognitive mechanisms in translating technological innovation into branding outcomes. The chapter contributes to theory by integrating robotics into destination marketing frameworks and provides managerial implications for leveraging service robots as strategic branding tools in competitive tourism environments.