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Use of Social Media by National Tourism Organizations: A Preliminary Analysis

February 2011
Information Technology & Tourism 13(2):93-103

DOI:10.3727/109830512X13258778487353

Authors:

Mridula Dwivedi

Umashankar Venkatesh

Great Lakes Institute of Management - Gurgaon

Social media platforms are increasingly becoming popular with consumers and businesses alike. The objective of this research is to determine the extent of the use of social media by national tourism organizations (NTOs). The methodology of this research is interpretive. This exploratory work relied heavily on searching for information on the Internet. Out of the 195 countries investigated not all have a NTO website. Social media use by the NTOs is becoming common across the globe. Even though a wide variety of social media platforms like Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Youtube, Hi5, Blogs, Flickr, WAYN, Scribd, Bebo, etc., are used, the most popular platforms are Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Flickr, in that order. The issues for future research are discussed.

Use of social media platform by ntOs.

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Figures - uploaded by Umashankar Venkatesh

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Content uploaded by Umashankar Venkatesh

Content may be subject to copyright.

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Information Technology & Tourism, 

 

 

USE OF SOCIAL MEdIA by NAtIONAL tOUrISM OrgANIzAtIONS:

A PrELIMINAry ANALySIS







        



     

        

     

















       

      

     

      





      



        

 









       

      

      



   





        

        

  

  

ITT3-2_300.indd 1 1/12/2012 10:21:45 AM



       





  

      

       

       





  





 



      



      



       



        







  

  

  

      

        





      



       



 



        



       







       

        







       

     

      





        





       











   



      

       







    

  



 



      



  



      





      



  

      







   

  







ITT3-2_300.indd 2 1/12/2012 10:21:46 AM

 







  

     

      

      







     



       

  





        

      

    







 













       



        







 

  

    





        





 

  

  

  



     

       





       



        







  









     

       



   

        

 



        

       

      

        



      





  

        



        

 











        





       



        

     

ITT3-2_300.indd 3 1/12/2012 10:21:46 AM







   

     

    





     



      

     

      

    

     

     

      

    

    

    



  



     

  





  

     

     

     

     

    

     

     



     



 

      

     



   





    





       

   





     







       







   

      

       





       

   

       

      

  







      



       

 







  



Major Social Media Platforms





       







        

  





 

        

        



ITT3-2_300.indd 4 1/12/2012 10:21:46 AM

 









      



 



      

  





   







  











 



   



   





  









   



 

  







 





  









   





   

  











   

  











 











     

   

   



 



  











   

 



 

























continued

ITT3-2_300.indd 5 1/12/2012 10:21:46 AM



  









  



     

   



     



   



   





   



  

   









   





   

   



 





   









   



  



     

   











     

   









   

  













  







 



      

   



 





      



 





ITT3-2_300.indd 6 1/12/2012 10:21:47 AM

 

  











 















    

   



  



   

    

   









   







 



  







 



      



 







 

   



 

   





    

   



  

  











 



  













   



  



  





  









   



 

  











 



   



 



 







    

    

continued

ITT3-2_300.indd 7 1/12/2012 10:21:47 AM





      

   

  



   

 







 

   

  







   



      

  







   



 



   



  

   



 



      

   











      



 

ITT3-2_300.indd 8 1/12/2012 10:21:47 AM

 

        

    









      

       

       

        







        

        



       









          



  

        







        





  

    







  

   











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

  

 



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   



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



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  

        



Figure 1 

ITT3-2_300.indd 9 1/12/2012 10:21:51 AM

 

       



       



       







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       

      

   



    



   

 







        







       









       

       



       







        





   



















        

   





    

     





       









        





       

  



  



       

     





        









         



  









       

     









       







ITT3-2_300.indd 10 1/12/2012 10:21:51 AM

 

 

       





        









Anatolia, 14



      

  Journal of Travel Research,

43



    



  Tourism and Hospitality Research, 5





    

Tourism Management,

28





International Journal of

Tourism Research,



       



 Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing,

17

   

       

  International Journal of Contemporary

Hospitality Management, 19



      

Tourism Themes, 1

   Gartner reveals five social software

predictions for 2010 and beyond.



  



Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing, 21

  

      

 Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing,

20

        



 20th Annual Conference of the

Council for Australian University Tourism and Hospital-

ity Education





        

      

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 1



    



Journal of Marketing Research, 39

  Netnography: Doing ethnographic

research online





Journal of Travel and

Tourism Marketing, 26

   



Tourism Management, 31

   

 Journal of Hospitality and

Tourism Technology, 1

   Social media

and tourism destinations: TripAdvisor case study

      





   Journal

of Travel Research, 46

     

  Journal

of Vacation Marketing, 14



        

Jour-

nal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 11



  Tourism

and Hospitality Research, 7

       

    International Journal

of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 21 

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



Journal of Vacation Marketing, 14

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Research methods challenges: A case study of preparedness in The Bahamas

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2024

Disaster research is essential for developing more robust and contextualised policies. It is, therefore, no surprise that multilateral organisations like the United Nations and the World Bank have called for enhanced disaster-related frameworks, legislation and policies in developing countries using quality data. However, internal and external researchers and practitioners often face significant challenges collecting data in these nations because of a range of problems including, but not limited to, incomplete sampling frames, inadequate infrastructure or unstable governments. This reality leads one to question: is the cart coming before the horse? This study explored individual and household (IH) preparedness in The Bahamas – a small island developing state in the Caribbean. An online survey was used, and 629 Bahamians opted to participate. However, the researchers faced many barriers to collecting representative data. This case study, therefore, discusses the range of methodological challenges faced by the researchers and their impact on this study.Contribution: This article substantially contributes to the disaster literature by exploring the challenges associated with conducting IH preparedness research in The Bahamas. This article also reminds practitioners and academics of the issues associated with collecting data in developing nations and its implications for policy enhancement and development. Furthermore, the authors present various recommendations ranging from enhanced funding to recognising the need for methodological innovation to support continuous research in countries like The Bahamas.

Who Uses Travel Websites? A Comparison of Demand Across Websites

Article

Full-text available

Oct 2022

Understanding demand for travel websites can help hoteliers better evaluate their own multi-channel distribution and reputation management strategies. In this study, we estimated demand for eight major travel websites based on the user percentage in 3,120 U.S. counties. Results highlighted the importance of four types of factors: sociodemographic, economic, Internet use-related, and travel-related. Differences between websites were also compared based on estimated coefficients. For example, the demand for Expedia.com appeared to be driven by age, education background, income, and foreign travel history, whereas the demand for Hotels.com was driven by the proportion of the African American population and domestic travel history. Lastly, implications are provided.

Social Media as a Catalyst for the Development of Tourism Business: A Study of Tourism Industry of Pakistan

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2023

The accelerating trend of social media usage has allowed users to gain knowledge about the tourism experiences of other people through reactive and proactive interactions. The primary aim of this study is to identify whether social media is playing a constructive role in increasing the development and productivity of the tourism business. The research also evaluates the effects and advantages of earned media marketing tools over social media advertisements shared by tourism companies in the process of deciding about tourism packages. This research consists of a quantitative approach. A random sampling method has been adopted by researchers to disseminate closed-ended questionnaires and a total of 206 responses were collected. After applying the reliability test through SPSS, data were examined through ANOVA and Tukey's HSD testing. Results determined that people are more eager towards seeing and gaining public opinion than the promotions and advertisements shared on social media by tourism companies. They especially consider the experiences and viewpoints of their close relations like relatives, friends, and colleagues as well as Vloggers and social media influencers while deciding to visit a tourist spot. Because of the findings, it can be recommended that tourism companies should focus more on earned media marketing tools than traditional advertising techniques while designing their marketing strategies.

PERCEIVED USEFULNESSAND PERCEIVED TRUST IN FACEBOOK AS A SOCIAL SEARCH ENGINE AND ITS IMPACT ONTHE PURCHASE INTENTIONS OF RESTAURANTS’CUSTOMERS

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2023

Momen Kamel

PENGANTAR BISNIS DIGITAL: KONSEP DAN IMPLEMENTASI

Chapter

Full-text available

Nov 2024

Iswahyudi Iswahyudi

Era transformasi digital membuat kehadiran bisnis digital bukan lagi sekadar pilihan, melainkan menjadi sebuah keharusan bagi entitas bisnis untuk tetap tampil kompetitif. Perkembangan teknologi informasi, perubahan perilaku konsumen, serta meningkatnya penggunaan internet dan perangkat mobile, telah menciptakan lanskap bisnis yang berbeda dibandingkan dengan beberapa dekade yang lalu. Bisnis Digital memungkinkan setiap entitas bisnis untuk memperluas jangkauan pasar, meningkatkan efisiensi operasional, serta memperkuat jejaring dengan pelanggan yang lebih responsif. Adaptasi terhadap teknologi digital memungkinkan optimalisasi sumber daya melalui automasi, integrasi data, serta analisis berbasis kecerdasan buatan dan big data. Dampaknya memberikan entitas bisnis kemampuan untuk membuat keputusan yang lebih akurat dan cepat, yang pada akhirnya berkontribusi pada keunggulan kompetitif. Di sisi lain, perilaku konsumen yang semakin bergantung pada platform digital untuk mencari informasi, melakukan transaksi, dan berinteraksi dengan merek, mendorong pentingnya keberadaan Bisnis Digital. Dengan semakin meningkatnya persaingan global, entitas bisnis yang gagal mengadopsi strategi Bisnis Digital, berisiko akan tertinggal. Oleh karena itu, transformasi digital tidak hanya mendukung inovasi dan efisiensi, tetapi juga memastikan keberlanjutan bisnis di mendatang. Melalui Buku Pengantar Bisnis Digital: Konsep dan Implementasi, para pembaca dan praktisi akan diajak untuk menjawab berbagai permasalahan yang dihadapi terkait Bisnis Digital. Dengan demikian, buku ini bisa menjadi pedoman bagi pelaku bisnis dan pembelajar yang ingin mendalami konsep dan implementasi dari praktik Bisnis Digital. Buku ini dihadirkan sebagai acuan bagi para akademisi, mahasiswa dan praktisi yang ingin memahami konsep dan implementasi Bisnis Digital secara komprehensif. Buku ini juga menyajikan berbagai konseptual, implementasi dan contoh tentang perkembangan Bisnis Digital. Dengan terbitnya buku ini diharapkan dapat memberikan pemahaman kepada para pembaca dan para praktisi perihal perkembangan Bisnis Digital dalam konteks ekonomi digital. Sementara buku ini terdiri dari beberapa bagian yang meliputi: Bab 1. Konsep Dasar Bisnis Digital Bab 2. Internet of Things dalam Ekosistem Bisnis Digital Bab 3. Strategi Pemasaran Digital Bab 4. Social Media Marketing Bab 5. Ekosistem Financial Technology Bab 6. Tata Kelola Komunikasi Bisnis Digital Bab 7. Copywriting dan Konten Kreatif Bab 8. Email Marketing, Website dan Search Engine Optimization Bab 9. Inteligensi Bisnis dalam Ekosistem Bisnis Bab 10. E-commerce dan Social Commerce Bab 11. Online Advertising dan Mobile Advertising Bab 12. Perilaku Konsumen Digital Bab 13. Strategi Riset Pasar dalam Ekonomi Digital Bab 14. Perkembangan UMKM Digital dan Startup Bab 15. Artificial Intelligence dan Ekonomi Digital Bab 16. Blockchain dan Bisnis Digital Bab 17. Social Engineering dan Fraud Digital Bab 18. Pemanfaatan Big Data dalam Bisnis Digital dan Intelegensi Bisnis

Segmenting social media users in international tourism: Insights integrated from multi‐homing theory and international visitor survey data

Article

Jul 2024

This study utilizes multi‐homing theory to assess international travelers' usage of social media platforms, revealing insights into their gender, country of origin, generation cohorts, and travel purposes. These insights can guide the development of effective social media marketing strategies for national destination management organizations (DMOs). Data from South Korea's 2019 International Visitor Survey (with 12,194 participants) was analyzed using chi‐square and correspondence analysis techniques. The results revealed distinctive preferences of international visitors among generational cohorts with different travel purposes across 19 countries in the usage of online travel communities, social network platforms, video‐sharing platforms, and travel blogs. Understanding the dynamics of social media platforms helps national DMOs enhance their social media marketing strategies for international visitors, based on the multi‐sided platform usage paradigm. Nevertheless, acknowledging the study's limitations points towards potential avenues for future research.

A STUDY OF DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGIES IN TOURISM MANAGEMENT

Conference Paper

Full-text available

Nov 2023

Rohan Shivekar

Tourism is one of the fastest-growing and most rapidly changing industries in the world. Technology is one of the major transformative factors for tourism industries in the 21st century. Digitization is paving the way for fundamental changes in key areas of tourism as well as changing the way people travel. Technology has a direct impact on tourism and related businesses in preparing a tourist destination for the pattern of tourist travel and competitive modeling. The technology has been highly acknowledged as a tool for enhanced destination efficiencies, visibility, dynamic modeling of tourism-related businesses, consumer behavior, marketing, and promotion of tourism destinations. It is so prevalent that according to a Google Travel study, 74% of travelers plan their trips over the Internet, while only 13% still use travel agencies to prepare them. The impact of technology at present is changing the tourism industry in the 21st century by changing its fundamental forms and shapes of tourism. In this research paper, tourism marketing strategies of the digital age have been studied.

Use of Innovative Technologies in the Promotion and Marketing of Asian Tourism Destinations: Sample of Turkey Destination

Chapter

Jul 2022

Murat Ödemiş

Comportamiento del turista cultural: un análisis desde la perspectiva del marketing experiencial

Thesis

Full-text available

Jul 2020

Rocío Martínez Suárez

JUSTIFICATION: The tourism sector is one of the primary sources of memorable experiences because, by its very nature, tourism generates knowledge, fun, feelings, and emotions among individuals. These experiences influence tourist behavioral intention, which can deliver benefits for destinations. Furthermore, analyzing tourist behavior can help destinations to devise strategies and actions that improve the visitor experience. Within this analysis of consumer behavior, spatio-temporal behavior is of particular relevance. AIM: The aim of this thesis is to analyze how the spatio-temporal sequence of a visit to a cultural destination is configured and how this configuration influences the tourist experience. The main antecedent of both these variables is tourist motive for visiting the destination in question. The study also analyzes the impact of a) tourism product quality and b) the possibility of sharing experiences via social media on the tourist experience. Finally, the consequences of the tourist experience for the destination are studied in terms of destination image and tourist intention to sustain loyal behaviors (revisit and recommendation intention). METHODOLOGY: A sample of 299 tourists is used, recruited at the beginning of their visit to a cultural destination (Granada). A preliminary survey is conducted, and subsequently the tourists are each given a mobile phone that they must carry with them throughout their stay. The device is programmed to record the different zones of the city they visit, the length of the visit to each zone, and the order in which the zones are visited. At the end of their stay, the sample participants are contacted again to collect data measuring the overall experience and its consequences. RESULTS: Two broad segments of tourists were identified, based on their spatiotemporal behavior at the destination: one that chose to visit more zones of the city with a relatively high concentration of cultural attractions, and one that preferred stay mainly in the area where the hotel is located. Within the former segment, three sub-segments were identified, all of which generated a superior (more positive) tourist experience, compared to the segment that stayed in the hotel zone. The tourist experience can also be explained in terms of the different motives for undertaking tourism—particularly intellectual and social. Furthermore, the tourist’s motives for the visit shape their typical behavior once at the destination in terms of visit cultural orientation and number of zones visited. Other variables, such as the expected tourism product quality or the use of social networks to obtain or share information during the stay, also positively influenced the experience of the cultural tourist.

Evaluación de la Presencia de los Sitios Web de Turismo de Costa de España en los Motores de Búsqueda

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2021

Las webs de las organizaciones de promoción del destino turístico suponen en muchos casos el primer contacto entre el turista y el destino. El presente trabajo analiza el posicionamiento en buscadores de dichas webs y propone un índice de visibilidad para las mismas. El análisis se lleva a cabo en tres marcos geográficos diferenciados: la provincia de Alicante, la Comunidad Valenciana y los destinos de costa del resto de regiones españolas. Los resultados muestran diferencias significativas en el posicionamiento en buscadores de las webs examinadas.

Destination Branding: Insights and Practices from Destination Management Organizations

Article

Full-text available

May 2005
J Trav Res

Although the concept of branding has been applied extensively to products and services, tourism destination branding is a relatively recent phenomenon. In particular, destination branding remains narrowly defined to many practitioners in destination management organizations (DMOs) and is not well represented in the tourism literature. Consequently, this study has three goals. First, it attempts to review the conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of branding as conveyed by leading authors in the marketing field. Second, it seeks to refine and enhance the definition of destination branding (acceptable to and understood by tourism destination managers) to more fully represent the complexities of the tourism product. Third, and most importantly, it seeks to improve our understanding of current destination branding practices among DMOs. The findings indicate that although DMO executives generally understand the concept of destination branding, respondents are implementing only selective aspects of this concept, particularly logo design and development.

Information Technology Applications in Hospitality and Tourism: A Review of Publications from 2005 to 2007

Article

Full-text available

Sep 2009
J Trav Tourism Market

The tourism and hospitality industries have widely adopted information technology (IT) to reduce costs, enhance operational efficiency, and most importantly to improve service quality and customer experience. This article offers a comprehensive review of articles that were published in 57 tourism and hospitality research journals from 2005 to 2007. Grouping the findings into the categories of consumers, technologies, and suppliers, the article sheds light on the evolution of IT applications in the tourism and hospitality industries. The article demonstrates that IT is increasingly becoming critical for the competitive operations of the tourism and hospitality organizations as well as for managing the distribution and marketing of organizations on a global scale.

Blogs in Tourism: Changing Approaches to Information Exchange

Article

Full-text available

Apr 2008

The continuing rise of the internet as a communications tool for travel and tourism presents challenges for destination marketing organizations and tourism enterprises. Previous research has suggested that the internet contributes to five key functions — promotion, product distribution, communication, management and research. This paper examines how Web 2.0 applications, and specifically the increasing number of travel blogs, might influence these functions. The research reviewed the published literature and real-life examples of destination marketing organizations and tourism enterprises using blogs as part of their business strategy. Some interesting examples were found for each of the functions, which may point the way to more effective use of user generated content by the tourism industry, while also revealing challenges to achieving this.

Social software practices on the internet: Implications for the hotel industry

Article

Full-text available

Jul 2007
Int J Contemp Hospit Manag

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to gain insight into the implications of the proliferation of social software like blogs, message boards and consumer review sites, etc. and its consequences for the hotel industry. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on literature from journals, periodicals and other relevant literature for theoretical underpinnings and links it up with data gathered from online sources like blogs, message-boards and consumer review sites. Findings – The findings indicate that, with proliferation of blogs, message boards, and other such sites, hotels are increasingly losing control over what gets written about them online. It is important to be aware of the trend and have strategies in place to deal with the fast emerging medium of information sharing. Practical implications – The phenomenon of social software is explained with its implications for business and suggestions about how to deal with it. Originality/value – The paper brings into focus the nascent trends of social software and the changes in the way consumers may access information. The paper tries to bring forth a systematic overview of this emerging area.

The Field Behind the Screen: Using Netnography for Marketing Research in Online Communities

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2002

Robert V. Kozinets

research technique for providing consumer insight. “Netnography ” is ethnography adapted to the study of online communities. As a method, “netnography ” is faster, simpler, and less expensive than traditional ethnography, and more naturalistic and unobtrusive than focus groups or interviews. It provides information on the symbolism, meanings, and consumption patterns of online consumer groups. The author provides guidelines that acknowledge the online environment, respect the inherent flexibility and openness of ethnography, and provide rigor and ethics in the conduct of marketing research. As an illustrative example, the author provides a netnography of an online coffee newsgroup and discusses its marketing implications.

Social media and tourism destinations: TripAdvisor case study

Article

The future of destination marketing: The case of Cyprus

Article

Mar 2010

Haris Machlouzarides

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to extend the understanding about the augmented destination marketing process that has resulted from the introduction of electronic marketing methods. It attempts to identify the factors that contribute to the process of destination marketing by introducing an integrated marketing model. This study aims to expand the domain of knowledge about the tourist buying behavior by putting forward a framework to manage the destination marketing process for Cyprus. Design/methodology/approach – The research design adopted for this study is an exploratory one, deploying the open‐ended approach of grounded theory. A number of expert interviews are performed with senior marketing executives at the Cyprus Tourism Organization (CTO), while an extensive study of the existing procedures that are being followed in carrying out the CTO's marketing department's functions facilitated further information analysis. The actual users' expectations are derived from a web‐user behavior analysis, reflecting upon relevant marketing theories and information systems approaches. Findings – The paper provides insights into the augmented process of destination marketing planning and suggests specific ways through which National Tourism Organizations can manage it efficiently. The contribution of this study towards building on the body of knowledge is significant as the process of destination marketing planning is characterized by complexity due to the diverse interests of the stakeholders involved. Originality/value – This paper successfully introduces the concept of integrated marketing as the sole enabler for the CTO to maximize the effectiveness of its marketing efforts worldwide.

Blogging as a Social Media

Article

Jun 2007

Guillaume Thevenot

Blogging has become one of the most popular social media and networking tools. The Travel and Tourism Industry today is faced with consequences that blogs have not only positive impacts but also negative ones, if not managed properly.

Internet Marketing in Tourism in Asia: An Evaluation of the Performance of East Asian National Tourism Organization Websites

Article

Nov 2004
J Hospit Leisure Market

Despite the increasing importance of the Internet as a marketing tool among national tourism organizations (NTOs) and the importance of tourism in the East Asia region, relatively few studies have been done on measuring the marketing effectiveness of NTO Websites and this exploratory study was designed to fill this gap. It included an extensive content analysis to compare NTO Websites in the East Asia region and identify their Internet marketing strengths and weaknesses. The results indicated that all of the NTOs in the East Asia region were not fully utilizing their Websites. In particular, among the four groups of criteria evaluated, it was found that East Asian NTOs were not very effective in using their Websites in the marketing role. The results of the study delivered a significant message for the NTOs in East Asia.

Analysis of Travel Bloggers' Characteristics and Their Communication About Austria as a Tourism Destination

Article

Apr 2008

Anita Wenger

Travel blogs are becoming an increasingly important mechanism for exchanging information among tourists, and for destinations and businesses to learn about the attitudes of their markets. The purpose of this research was to analyse blog entries relating to trips to Austria posted to www.travelblog.org. The research sought to establish similarities and differences between those posting blog entries and Austria's tourism markets. It analysed the content of blog entries to identify positive and negative perceptions of Austria as a tourism destination, and compared these with other research into Austria's destination image. The research found a largely homogenous population of blog authors that had quite different demographic and touristic characteristics from Austria's total population of visitors. Blog authors were visiting Austria as part of a larger European tour, and they provided relatively few insights that might assist in understanding Austria's destination image. The value of monitoring blogs may depend on locating blog authors who are more likely to influence key markets.