Comments on: Why is Social Media Important to the Travel Industry?

By: Lauren

Lauren — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 20:39:55 +0000

Wow, lots of food for thought here between your post and the comments. I love dialogs like this.

A number instantly popped into my head while reading:
78% of consumers trust peer recommendations, while just 14% trust advertisements (via “Socialnomics”).
You’re so right about word of mouth: it’s always been a powerful persuader. And with social media, we now have a way to tap into that on a large scale. Honestly, I giggle when I hear about companies shunning social media. I feel like I am talking to my grandmother clucking her tongue at all the “new fangled gadgets”. I know someday soon they will adopt the new technology… when its use becomes apparent to THEM. And in the meantime, they’re just making life a little harder for themselves. To each their own.

I think this article gives further insight why some companies are “laggards” rather than “early adopters”:
http:///www.socialmediaexaminer.com/most-marketers-not-profiting-from-social-media/
From their study, they found that the key reasons why an organization felt they were not benefiting from social media were… wait for it… lack of STRATEGY, lack of DEDICATION and lack of KNOWLEDGE. Pretty universal issues.

It’s a learning curve, ya know? Thank goodness for your upcoming presentations and other new media evangelists. The “reframe the conversation” comment was a good example. (Thinking of social media as an extension of hospitality) With a slight perspective shift, the benefit of social media becomes instantly apparent.
.-= Lauren´s last blog ..What Is Life In the Bonus Round =-.

By: travel blog

travel blog — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 13:11:49 +0000

yes, Social marketing helps a lot on tourism. on More recently, creative tourism has gained popularity as a form of cultural tourism, drawing on active participation by travelers in the culture of the host communities they visit. .-= travel blog´s last blog ..Ready for Vacation- =-.

By: Romey Louangvilay

Romey Louangvilay — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 14:53:26 +0000

I agree with all the comments. Social media is def. a huge part of any industry and can help generate both awareness and sales, if executed properly.

By: dahlia

dahlia — Wed, 12 May 2010 19:32:11 +0000

As the owner of a small travel / holiday home business based in Santa Teresa Costa Rica, social media provides an amazing opportunity to be able to talk to the world without having to pay huge advertising costs, whilst seeing almost immediately positive effects. Now if that’s not a great ROI, I don’t know what is.

By: Tom Martin

Tom Martin — Mon, 10 May 2010 14:17:51 +0000

Shannon,

It is a shame that the tourism industry isn’t leading the charge in social. As we saw in our http://www.MyMardiGrasExperience.com experiment, social media has an enormous power to alter brand perception and place a destination or festival into a traveler’s consideration set in a way that advertising simply cannot.

I hope that your speaking gigs will help others understand this important fact… and of course, the biggest fan of Social Media is Google… which in an of itself is a reason to have a blog

@TomMartin

By: Mark H

Mark H — Sat, 08 May 2010 00:37:38 +0000

Like all forms of technology, there are early adopters, main stream folks and laggards. I think it is really only the laggards (incl Louisiana tourism) that aren't using social media as a major form of their approach to market today. For most, I think it is more the challenge of the most effective way to utilise social media outlets. .-= Mark H´s last blog ..The Jewel In The Crown Of Cyprian Luxury =-.

By: Judy Bennett

Judy Bennett — Sun, 02 May 2010 23:24:28 +0000

I missed an opportunity! http://www.guurrbitours.blogspot.com

By: Judy Bennett

Judy Bennett — Sun, 02 May 2010 23:23:24 +0000

It’s one thing to write great content; it’s another to get people to read it. As a small Indigenous tour operator in remote Far North Queensland, Australia with a tight marketing budget, social media is a gift from above. In broad terms, we keep in touch with our old customers through Facebook, and drive more people to our website and blog through Facebook and Twitter. Other operators in Cooktown, where we are based, are beginning to do the same. It’s one thing to write great content; it’s another to get people to read it.

By: Devin

Devin — Sun, 02 May 2010 18:36:13 +0000

I am the choir as well and use social media on a daily basis. Truthfully, I am using it right now. However, it is all still very much a work in progress and an inexact science. I try a lot of things but nothing really works like gang-busters, everything just works a little and at some point becomes so anonymous (do I really have a relationship with all those people on my twitter page?) that I find that my time is better spent writing quality content than worrying about twitter. And at some point twitter will be replaced by something else. .-= Devin´s last blog ..Getting Edited: When the Hamster Made Love to a Pig =-.

By: Andy Hayes | Travel Online Partners

Andy Hayes | Travel Online Partners — Sat, 01 May 2010 18:31:46 +0000

Hi -

It’s the choir here, checking in.

As Heather suggests, a caffeine jag might do these people a world of good. The world of media has changed. We don’t understand all of the affects of this change, so why would you exclude a certain segment of that media until you have proved it is NOT a worthwhile outlet?

If these old-school CVB/DMO organisations have already done their research, I’d love to see it.

Otherwise, the forward thinking org’s will continue to enjoy their place online – just Google the good ones and see what comes up.

- Andy
.-= Andy Hayes | Travel Online Partners´s last blog ..Steal This Travel Marketing Idea: Video Tours =-.