SOCIAL MEDIA

Researchers decode the science of creating engaging travel videos

By our African Marketing Confederation News Team | 2025

Travel industry marketers and content creators now have data-backed info on how to act, express emotion, or place products in a video.

In an era where data is currency and attention spans are fleeting, successful brands aren’t just targeting consumers – they’re anticipating them. From personalised ads that seem to read your mind, to campaigns timed perfectly to your daily routine, marketers are using behavioural insights to shape consumer decisions. 

Photo: Vanessa Garcia from Pexels

By combining data, psychology and evolving digital platforms, brands are now learning not only who their customers are, but what they’ll do next.  

 

At the University of New Mexico in the US, Assistant Professor Hyunsang Son is using machine-learning technologies to explore how marketers can use social media data to their advantage.  

 

His recent research, published in the academic journal Tourism Management, focuses on influencer marketing in the tourism industry, using Instagram as a case study to determine what kinds of videos drive the most user engagement. 

 

The study analysed over 4,000 Instagram videos from 40 top travel influencers using a technique known as the transfer learning approach. This allows researchers to extract features from videos – including the video length, sentiment, facial expressions, colour saturation and brightness. 

 

“I can actually quantify the exact level of contribution each feature has on the number of likes and comments,” Son says. “It’s a combination of computer vision for feature extraction and traditional econometric modelling to estimate effects.” 

 

Without transfer learning, Son explains, the accuracy rate for classifying content might fall below 10%. But with it, that rate can rise to 96%. 

 

The study aimed to uncover what types of video content best engages users. Using an automatic video-feature extraction process, the team noted several important results: 

 

  • Short-form videos performed better than longer ones. 

 

  • Too much smiling reduced engagement. 

 

  • Emotionally expressive content, including anger and sadness, increased engagement. 

 

  • Product size visibility positively affected user interaction. 

 

  • Brightness contributed to positive engagement, but too much contrast or rapid scene changes hurt performance. 

 

  • Overuse of hashtags lowered engagement levels. 

 

  • Emojis and post text also positively impacted user response when used strategically. 

“We wanted to see what kinds of factors influence user engagement – clicks, likes, comments,” Son says. “This data can help influencers and industries better understand how to craft their content.” 

 

The findings suggest that marketers can now offer content creators more than just creative direction – they can provide data-backed guidelines. For instance, creators can receive recommendations on how to act, express emotion, or place products in a video to boost engagement. 

 

You can find out more about the study here. 

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Rozanne
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    Dr Kin Kariisa

    Group CEO - Next Media

    Dr. Kin Kariisa is an extraordinary force at the helm of Next Media Services, a conglomerate encompassing NBS TV, Nile Post, Sanyuka TV, Next Radio, Salam TV, Next Communication, Next Productions, and an array of other influential enterprises. His dynamic role as Chief Executive Officer exemplifies his unwavering commitment to shaping media, business, and community landscapes.
    With an esteemed academic journey, Dr. Kariisa’s accolades include an Honorary PhD in exemplary community service from the United Graduate College inTexas, an MBA from United States International University in Nairobi, Kenya, a Master’s degree in Computer Engineering from Huazong University in China, and a Bachelor’s degree in Statistics from Makerere University.
    Dr. Kariisa pursued PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radboud University in Nijmegen, Netherlands. As a dynamic educator, he has shared his expertise as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at both Makerere University and Radboud University.

    Dr Kin did his PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radbond University in Nigmegen, Netherlands. He previously served as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda and Radbond University in Netherlands.

    Dr Kin did his postgraduate courses in Strategic Business Management, Strategic Leadership Communication and Strategies for Leading Successful Change Initiatives at Harvard University, Boston USA.

    • Other current and previous roles played by Dr Kin Kariisa:
    • Lecturer of e-Government and Information Security to graduate students at Makerere University, Kampala and Radbond University in the Netherlands
    • Director of Eco Bank Uganda Limited, one of the largest banks in Africa
    • Chairman of the National Association of Broadcasters, an umbrella industry association for all Television, Radio and online broadcasters in Uganda.
    • Chairman of Board of Directors of Nile Hotel International, that owns the leading hotel in Uganda, Kampala Serena Hotel.
    • Chairman of Board of Directors of Soliton Telmec Uganda, the leading telecom company in Optic fibre business managing over 80% of optic fibre in Uganda.