Social Media Marketing Assignment On Tourism Advertising

Question

Task: Prepare a social media marketing assignment critically examining the two different articles to understand how social media can help tourism sectors.

Answer

“Workshop 2- Social media Marketing Basics”
“The power of the Social media ecosystem”

The role of “Social media” explored in the segments of social media marketing assignment is immensely significant for every business in diversified manner. “Social media” is not only a part of entertainment world, but also a noteworthy aspect in every business context. Several businesses in terms of diversified organisations under specific industries implant the strategy of promoting their business or products through “Social media” or numerous “Social media” platforms (Hyder, 2016). The involvement of “Social media” in business or its effectiveness in the performance of a business is excessively broad, and thus, the context has attracted the attention of several researchers. As necessary to acknowledge the effective contribution of “Social media” in a business, I have chosen two different articles to prepare this social media marketing assignment which will help me to understand how “Social media” can help tourism sectors in an effective manner. In this regard, Hanna, Rohm & Crittenden, (2011) have stated that “Social media” plays an effective role in tourists’ behaviour. By reading the content, I have acknowledged that the numbers of “Social media” users are excessively large throughout the entire globe and thus, people from all over the world can share their travel experience to another person through “Social media”. This approach mentioned in the social media marketing assignment not only helps other people to know about their experience, but also increases a willingness amid them to visit that place.

“What do we know about social media in tourism?”
Zeng & Gerritsen (2014) also stated that a tourism industry can attract potential tourists by increasing willingness to visit that place or to make change tourism behaviour of the tourists. Regarding the fact, I have found that potential tourists rely on others’ experiences to make a decision and therefore, when a visitor shares experience of that place by providing pictures or videos of attractive places, it attracts potential visitors to visit that place. Therefore, I can conclude by reading the contents provided within this social media marketing assignment that “Social media” have comprehensive contribution towards the behaviour of the visitors in tourism industry (Andersson, Hiselius & Adell, 2018). Moreover, I have found that “Social media” plays a significant role in crisis management in “tourism industry”.

On the other hand, by reading the article of Hanna, Rohm & Crittenden (2011), I have come to know that “Social media” also has an effective contribution towards the ecosystem. In order to limelight the fact outlined in the social media marketing assignment, I have carefully gone through the entire study and found that the innovations of social networking have dramatically developed modern ways to connect. Towards this purpose Alghizzawi, Salloum & Habes (2018) have mentioned that the value of using mobile channels is practically underscored by thousands of numerous “Social media” sites (e.g. “FaceBook” and “twitter”, tweeting, images, blogs, downloading, articles, forum, forums, chat group).

“Workshop 4- Types of “Social media” Marketing”
“The challenges and opportunities of Social Media”
In this section of social media marketing assignment, my entire concentration was upon the types of “Social media”. From the above stated context, I have found that “Social media” plays a noteworthy role in tourism industry and helps in organisational growth. However, by analysing the study of Kaplan & Haenlein, (2010), I have seen that there are also some challenges and opportunities might have experienced by the “Social media” users of tourism sectors. Blog, which is one of the effective “Social media” contents, is considered as low opportunity provider. In order to acknowledge the context, I looked for further studies and found that Oliveira & Panyik (2015), also offered the same statement. As a reason, blog is generally offered by some individual, where the major concentration of blog associates with the place or the surrounding environment. Therefore, in a particular blog, a blogger cannot describe all the offerings that a tourism sector offers to its service users. Therefore, it remains undiscovered that what kind of facility can be obtained by a potential tourist in that place.

On the other hand, Kaplan & Haenlein, (2010) referred “Social media” sites such as “Facebook” as a high opportunity provider. In this case of social media marketing assignment, I found that the study focused on the majority of “Social media” users. In a Facebook page, tourisms sectors can give an overall description of their services including the offerings and opportunities that tourists may obtained. Therefore, people can have all the details by visiting just a Facebook page.

“Social media-based visual humour use in tourism marketing”

On the other hand, the study of Ge (2019), helps me to understand that visual humour in terms of pictures and videos have a significant role in tourism industry. Based on previous studies, I have seen that people visits a place to take a leave from their daily routine and thus, they seek for a relaxing as well as beautiful places. In this context of social media marketing assignment, the pictures and videos play an effective role to attract the tourists towards the tour destination (Murthy, Gross & McGarry, 2016). People from all over the words can seen the destination by visiting the pictures and videos and can decide to visit the place.

“Spreading social media messages on Facebook”

By examining another study of Kwok & Yu (2013) in the context of social media marketing assignment, I have come to know that spreading messages on “Social media” platforms also helps tourism sectors as well as hospitality industry to attract people towards the place. In this regard, Fox et al. (2018) have stated that due to large “Social media” users, spreading message perhaps play a significant role to let tourists know about the destination and the services that they may have by visiting the place or to take service from a specific hospitality organisation. Based on that, I have learnt that spreading message is one of the less time-consuming processes of promoting the brand image for tourism sectors and hospitality sectors.

“Workshop 6- Monitoring of Social media Success”
“Usage, barriers and measurement of social media marketing”

On the basis of the previous researches and studies considered to develop this social media marketing assignment, I have learnt that “Social media” play an immense role for the organisation for establishing a successful operation in the market. Most of the organisations plays two different kinds of the business operations such as “Business-2-Business (B2B)” operations and “Business-2-Customers (B2C)” operations (Tenkanen et al., (2017). In order to follow these business operations, I have studied several peer reviewed journals and articles and come to know that tourism sector deals with both “B2B” and “B2C” business operations. In this regard, the study of Michaelidou, Siamagka & Christodoulides (2011) observed in the social media marketing assignment, helps me to understand that there is an effective relation situated between tourisms industry and hospitality industry. By acquiring the success factors through “Social media” promotion approach, tourism sectors are able to attract the attention of global tourists at the destination point.

Simultaneously, every tourism destination, there are large numbers of hotels, motels and other consumer service providers situated those are excessively relied on the tourism destination as well as tourists. In this regard, the study of Li, Cui & Peng (2017) helps me to learn that “Social Networking Sites or (SNS)” helps tourism sectors to achieve its desire objectives. On the basis of that, I have acknowledged in this social media marketing assignment that every organisation including the tourism sector as well as the hospitality sectors of a certain tourist destination desires to increase its profit margin by serving its services to large numbers of guests or tourists. Therefore, “Social media” sites or SNS are the major platform for tourism industries to promote the destination place and other services to the global tourists.

“Popularity of Brand Posts on Brand Fan Pages”

Instantaneously, by examining the study of De Vries, Gensler & Leeflang (2012), I have learned that tourism industry can also acquire the opportunity of future success by posting their information on fan pages. I have come to know that most of the tourism destination operates a fan page in “Social media” platforms. In those pages, the lovable destinations post their upcoming offers, information on new locations and information, which is sufficient to attract both existing and potential tourists towards the destination. In order to measure the success, the monitor the increasing numbers of followers and comments of the tourists. In this regard, I got some further information from the study of Kim & Park (2017) that people like to search different places during holidays or weekends. Therefore, I can state the tourism destinations post their information in order to let people know about their services in free time, when people have time to see the posts. In this way, it is stated herein social media marketing assignment that they increase the willingness to visit those places amid the tourists.

“Workshop 8- Mobile Marketing”
“Adapting to the mobile world: A model of smartphone use”

While my entire concentration is on social media and its usage on tourism sector, I cannot deny the contribution of smart phone in this context. As I have witnessed, I have found that a large number of people utilise internet or other “social media sites” through their smart phones rather than any other compatible devices. In this regard, I have studied the similar approached study materials of Wang, Xiang & Fesenmaier, (2014) for developing my knowledge in this fact.  By evaluating the study on social media marketing assignment, I have seen that the engagement of smart phones in mobile marketing is one of the effective approaches of marketing that most of the organisations are utilised in this modern world. Correspondingly, I have discovered that tourism sectors also utilise the promotional approach of their branding and products through mobile marketing strategy.

Regarding this, Hong & Thakuriah (2018) stated that most of the tourism sectors promote their products by several mobile applications those are easy to access by the users through smart phones. Moreover, I have found that the overall role of “Information and Communication Technology or ICT resources” in influencing the tourism encounter across all three phases of the journey is significant and varied (Chang & Shen, 2018). The mobile makes connections between tourism and the real and virtual environment, irrespective of venue. In comparison, Andersson, Hiselius & Adell, (2018) proposed that mobile technology implementation and deployment constitute the future key to a new wave of urban visitors, the “imaginative tourism group.”

“Smartphone Use in Everyday Life and Travel”

Instantaneously, Wang, Xiang & Fesenmaier, (2016) mentioned that smart phone has an effective and noteworthy role for promoting the brand products and services of a tourism sector as well as for the hospitality sectors. On the basis of the statement, I have learnt that the value of smartphones and mobile apps for this field are discussed by the principal contributors in the tourism industry. Moreover, other important statistics on the tourist market along with the hospitality sector’s promotional approach is associated with smartphones (Chen et al., 2018). Therefore, observing the present social media marketing assignment I can conclude that the association of smartphones and its applications are excessively effectual for the promotion of both the tourism and hospitality industry.

“Workshop 9- Brand management through Social media”
“TripAdvisor and hotel consumer brand loyalty”

As per my study area, I have focused on how brand management can be accomplished in tourism industry. In order to limelight the contextual fact, I have considered the study of Litvin & Dowling (2016) while preparing this social media marketing assignment, where I have learned about the “Consumer Generated Media or (CGM)” sites. Also, the study helps me to acknowledge “consumer-generated information Media” or “CGM” have achieved enormous attention and impact on users. This is not more popular in any industry than lodging or tourism (Harrigan et al., 2017). I reviewed the analysis to figure out that the consequence that a housekeeping allegiance may have on the trend of a poster hotel examination.

Trip advisor posts have been chosen and fragmented depending on the adjustable accommodation client loyalties to assess this. In this regard, Jayasuriya, Azam & Ferdous (2017) stated that a tour promoter may not provide a customer with details, if any, of the condition of consumer satisfaction of their posters, on which purchasing reviews and comments are always focused. When product supporters vary from other critics, the ranking of hotel properties will unreasonably impact prospective buyers by the biases of their opinions.

“How will digital platforms be harnessed in 2010, and how will they change the way people interact with brands?”

The core aim of my study prepared within the social media marketing assignment is to decide if posts by hospitality brand hardliners show these biases and if so, recommend improvements in the policies for the review website to provide its consumers with increased assurance. On the other hand, the social media marketing assignment examines the words of Martin & Todorov (2010) which mentioned that a variety of modern social tools may be utilised to hold consumers focused and blend products effortlessly with their daily lives. The acceptance of a licensed digital channel and the multiple marketing initiatives enabled with the launch of the platforms themselves would also begin to expand as well. Virtual tools will be utilised in the next year for qualified “Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs)” to bring their products into and into daily consumer life.

References
Alghizzawi, M., Salloum, S. A., & Habes, M. (2018). The role of “Social media” in tourism marketing in Jordan. International Journal of Information Technology and Language Studies, 2(3), 59-70.

Andersson, A., Hiselius, L. W., & Adell, E. (2018). Promoting sustainable travel behaviour through the use of smartphone applications: A review and development of a conceptual model. Social media marketing assignment Travel behaviour and society, 11, 52-61.

Chang, S. E., & Shen, W. C. (2018). Exploring smartphone social networking services for mobile tourism. International Journal of Mobile Communications, 16(1), 63-81.

Chen, C. C., Huang, W. J., Gao, J., & Petrick, J. F. (2018). Antecedents and consequences of work-related smartphone use on vacation: An exploratory study of Taiwanese tourists. Journal of Travel Research, 57(6), 743-756.

De Vries, L., Gensler, S., & Leeflang, P.S.H. (2012). Popularity of Brand Posts on Brand Fan Pages: An Investigation of the Effects of Social Media Marketing. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 26, 83-91.

Fox, A. K., Bacile, T. J., Nakhata, C., & Weible, A. (2018). Selfie-marketing: exploring narcissism and self-concept in visual user-generated content on “Social media”. Journal of Consumer Marketing.

Ge, J. (2019). Social media-based visual humour use in tourism marketing: a semiotic perspective. Social media marketing assignment European Journal of Humour Research, 7(3), 6-25, Doi:    http://dx.doi.org/10.7592/EJHR2019.7.3.ge

Hanna, R., Rohm, A., & Crittenden, V.L. (2011). We’re all connected: The power of the social media      ecosystem. Business Horizons, 54, 265—273.

Harrigan, P., Evers, U., Miles, M., & Daly, T. (2017). Customer engagement with tourism social media brands. Tourism management, 59, 597-609.

Hong, J., & Thakuriah, P. (2018). Examining the relationship between different urbanization settings, smartphone use to access the Internet and trip frequencies. Journal of Transport Geography, 69, 11-18.

Hyder, S. (2016). The zen of “Social media” marketing: An easier way to build credibility, generate buzz, and increase revenue. BenBella Books, Inc..

Jayasuriya, N. A., Azam, S. F., & Ferdous, M. (2017). The impact of social media marketing on brand equity: A study of fashion-wear retail in Sri Lanka. Social media marketing assignment International Review of Management and Marketing, 7(5), 178-183.

Kaplan, A.M. & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of        Social Media. Business Horizons, 53, 59-68.

Kim, W. G., & Park, S. A. (2017). “Social media” review rating versus traditional customer satisfaction. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management.

Kwok, L. & Yu, B. (2013). Spreading social media messages on Facebook: An analysis of restaurant business-to-consumer communications. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 54(1), 84-94.

Li, C., Cui, G., & Peng, L. (2017). The signaling effect of management response in engaging customers: A study of the hotel industry. Tourism Management, 62, 42-53.

Litvin, S.W. & Dowling, K.M. (2016): TripAdvisor and hotel consumer brand loyalty. Current Issues in Tourism, DOI: 10.1080/13683500.2016.1265488.

Martin, K., & Todorov, I. (2010). How will digital platforms be harnessed in 2010, and how will they change the way people interact with brands? Journal of Interactive Advertising, 10(2), 61-66.

Michaelidou, N., Siamagka, N.T., & Christodoulides, G. (2011). Usage, barriers and measurement of social media marketing: An exploratory investigation of small and medium B2B brands. Social media marketing assignment Industrial Marketing Management, 40, 1153-1159.

Murthy, D., Gross, A., & McGarry, M. (2016). Visual “Social media” and big data. Interpreting Instagram images posted on Twitter. Digital Culture & Society, 2(2), 113-134.

Oliveira, E., & Panyik, E. (2015). Content, context and co-creation: Digital challenges in destination branding with references to Portugal as a tourist destination. Journal of Vacation Marketing, 21(1), 53-74.

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Wang, D, Xiang, Z., & Fesenmaier, D.R. (2016). Smartphone Use in Everyday Life and Travel. Journal of Travel Research, 55(1), 52-63.

Wang, D., Xiang, Z., & Fesenmaier, D.R. (2014). Adapting to the mobile world: A model of        smartphone use. Social media marketing assignment Annals of Tourism Research, 48, 11-26.

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