Storytelling for Destination Development: Towards an African Model

Storytelling is emerging as a growing focus in international tourism scholarship and most especially in respect of the promotion and marketing of destinations. The existing literature is dominated by writings about destinations in the Global North. This article highlights the important need for tourism researchers in the Global South to acknowledge the role of storytelling. The paper offers a conceptual model for storytelling grounded in the African context and in particular with application to small-town destination development. At its core, the ‘story-pot marketing model’ is based on themes, destinations, people, and their local stories. An important research agenda for South African tourism scholars is therefore the collection of these local stories as the foundation for a new approach to destination development.