City branding and sustainability: the role of social media innovation in promoting tourism as a sustainable development

Abstract The extractive economic growth from tin mining has caused significant environmental degradation; therefore, dependence on the extractive economy must be shifted to a sustainable economy. Tourism development is a strategic effort to create a new economy through sustainable development by utilising social media to build city branding. This study aims to analyse the role of social media in the process of developing tourism based on city branding in the Bangka Belitung Islands as part of the efforts towards sustainable development. A descriptive qualitative method with an interactive analysis model was used for data analysis. The results show that tourism stakeholders in the Bangka Belitung Islands have utilised social media to promote destinations. Shared content, such as photos, videos, texts, and hashtags, plays a strategic role in shaping the image of tourist cities and increasing destination attractiveness.