CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
The rise in popularity of social networking sites has led social networking to
become a global phenomenon. After many countries gained Internet access, the
increase in the use of Internet started influencing the economy and social life
at the beginning of 20th century (Milano, Baggio & Piattelli, 2011). Later
on, in the era of Web 2.0, as social networking advanced, an increasing number
of users on the Internet began to participate in social networking websites and
this has resulted in the system of social networking to change (Milano, Baggio
& Piattelli, 2011; Seth, 2012).According to Clark and Robert (2010), social
networking sites are now mainly used for “job networking, targeted marketing,
and entertainment”. (p.507).
Social
networking is a type of social media; social networking sites allow Internet
users to connect with people and create information. Social networking sites
are originally used for entertainment purposes however an increase in the use
of Internet and information communication technologies has shifted the way
people communicate with each other, mainly in the hospitality and tourism
industries (Assenov & Khurana, 2012; Clark & Roberts, 2010). For
instance, social networking sites like Facebook allow registered users to interact
globally and freely with people who share the Author: Same interest by
uploading photos, sharing posts, chatting, commenting on the posts and also
getting replies, such features allow companies to get quick feedback from
consumers whereas consumers are able to receive responses immediately. These
software and technology features which are available on social networking sites
are also part of the Web 2.0 system (Seth, 2012). “Web 2.0 has also given
popularity to user generated content (UGC) where information is gathered from
different online sources all of which collaborate to form the final source”
(Seth, 2012, p. 9). UGC has replaced traditional marketing in terms of media
advertising. The advertisements are often sponsored posts promoted by people on
social networking sites and these online advertisements appear to be more
trustworthy than advertisements from mass media like televisions, radio,
newspaper and magazines (Li & Darban, 2012). Manap and Adzharudin pointed
out that consumers were more likely to be convinced to buy a product that is
recommended by people who had experienced it (experience good) rather than a
search good, the researchers also stated that it is possible to frequently
utilize this strategy in the tourism industry. (2013)
The change in
consumer behavior is majorly affected by the social networking sites which
provide platforms for consumers to connect with the company and other consumers
(Bilgihan, Peng & Kandampully, 2014).The explosive growth of the population
of Internet user son social networking sites has had a huge impact on
hospitality and tourism industry whereby consumers are changing the rule of
marketing. In order for a company to be successful in business, it is necessary
for marketers to make decisions based on consumer needs, changes in society and
also the development of technology. By doing, it not only satisfies consumers
but also strengthens the relationship with customers to ensure they make a
comeback. In addition, social networking sites also help to record the information
of consumers so that it is easy to be obtained whenever needed (Assenov &
Khurana, 2012). In addition, social networking sites also provide social
communication services which could create brand awareness and build a good
image for the brand (Bilgihan, Peng & Kandampully, 2014).
1.1
BACKGROUND OF THE RESEARCH
The emergence of Web 2.0, allows one with unlimited amount of things the
individual can do on the internet these days. The individual is not just
restricted to emails or passively absorbing the static information that is
available on the web pages when browsing. It used to be one-way but now the web
is the platform where people can share information, hold a decent dialogue,
build both social and business connections.
Social media
has recently been adopted by a small group of organizations’ integrated
marketing plans. There by infusing a mix of advertisement, public relations,
their sales promotion to produce a customer focused message. With the evolution
of platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, we have the
opportunity for exceptional access to the guest (Lanz, Fischhof, & Lee,
2010). Since social media is so available to anyone with an internet
connection, it should be a platform that can be recommended to the hospitality
industry to increase their brand awareness and facilitate direct feedback from
their customers.
A business
that understands the advantage of social media is well aware that social media
is essential in developing new business in the current competitive and online
driven marketplace.
Marketing is
an important aspect for any company involved in business. As such, it is a
competitive world out there, and social media marketing is the ‘new kid in
town’ and it can reach out to the people accessing these social media platform
regularly. Communication is essential for any corporation and business,
therefore either they change the way information is conveyed or be prepared to
lose some of the audience. It is imperative for marketing managers to
continuously find a solution to appeal, keep new and current consumers
(Schneider, 2009). Social network is the ideal platform for communication that
applies perfectly with marketing in the virtual world. Social networks are
groups of individuals who prefer to communicate with one another through a
preferred site based on the profile created for themselves (Laudon and Traver,
2007).
1.2
STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEM
The hospitality industry tends to be very customer-centric and also one that
prides itself by reaching out to its guests and providing a personalized
experience. In traditional marketing, our lives are saturated by print media,
radio and television. The downside of traditional marketing is the high cost
and it is a one-way communication. Social media encourages customer engagement,
and it being on Web 2.0, promotes two-way traffic. It allows for a faster
response and a low cost investment than is typically achieved with traditional
marketing.
1.3
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of social media networks
in the hospitality industry. Social media is relatively young and the objective
for corporations to invest and participate in social media platform is to offer
an alternative mode of communication and also it helps to cultivate long term
relationships with their guests; Such as promotional campaigns and new
information can be pushed through social media channels.
Also, to give
a descriptive overview of the state of social media in the hospitality
industry.
1.4
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Currently the hype surrounding social media strategies for marketing is on the
increase, but hotel industry is still trying to cope and see the advantage from
the latest trends on the internet. Social media such as Facebook and Twitter is
growing daily. Challenges faced by hotels is the ‘how to’ engage the consumers
and to lead them towards becoming a guest or share their experience for the
hotel within their virtual network. For the past decades, the Internet has
gradually changed to a stage where the search engines takes control of website
traffic .Therefore, businesses that jumped onto the social media wagon earlier
see the pay off , as they have established their relationships and viral networks
(Walsh, 2010).
The research
conducted in this manuscript will attempt to give an insight to the hospitality
industry on the effects of social media, furthermore to establish if social
media is effective and recommended, and if so, provide an insight and
proposition for adopting social media as a platform for marketing purpose.
1.5
RESEARCH QUESTION
For the course of this research work the researcher framed out some research
question which shall guide the researcher to carry out this research work
successfully, the research question will be administered to the respondents and
samples of the research question are.
1. Have you ever been able to use the social media
network in reaching out to target customer?
2. Can the social media be a source of advertisement
off you industry to the people?
3. The number of guest turned in how many are from the
source of the social media?
4. Do you have an official web address/website where
commence can be carried out?
5. Apart from the social media, which other means do
your industry use in reaching out to people as a promotional scheme