Rossides CHT

Cost effective brand building through social media:
A travel industry case study
Dr. Nicos Rossides, Chief Executive Officer MASMI Research Group AIMRI Conference Malaga March 4, 2011
jfotis@bournemouth.ac.uk
Web 2.0: Users as content creators

It is estimated that consumers in developed markets spend 20% of their time online it
could be even approaching 1/3rd Web 2.0 empowered consumers by enabling them to generate their own content through a range of devices and platforms that are easy to use. A significant number of consumers are now able to use the web, not only as recipients of information (Web 1.0 era), but also as information and content authors.
Web 2.0 technologies lay the foundation for
Definitions
...online applications, platforms and media which aim to facilitate interaction, collaboration and the sharing of content
(Richter & Koch 2007)
...activities, practices and behaviours among communities of people who gather online to share information, knowledge, and opinions using conversational media. Conversational media are Web-based applications that make it possible to create and easily transmit content in the form of words, pictures, videos, and audios.
(Safko and Brake 2009)
...a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of User Generated Content
(Kaplan and Haenlein 2010) jfotis@bournemouth.ac.uk 4
Collectively known as social media
Source: Cavazza 2009
Social media is a communication phenomenon

Facebook (2010): +517m users Twitter (2010): 160m users; 90m tweets/day Flickr (2010): 5bn pictures; +3000 pictures /min Blogs worldwide: +200m YouTube (2010): 2bn videos seen/day; 24hrs of videos uploaded/min Foursquare (2010): 3m users
However
jfotis@bournemouth.ac.uk 7
As a marketing tool
A comprehensive and systematic approach is needed
Create engaging content.

Make your site an attraction. Give bloggers and webmasters reasons to link to it, thus generating traffic from clients, prospects, etc. The more links that you have pointing to your site, the more likely you will rank highly within the search engines.
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Create timely content.

Content must be relevant to what is happening right now. Understand what topics your customers are interested in, and then shape your content strategy accordingly. Engage them when and where their interests lie.
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Encourage user interaction.

Whether it is a forum or a blog comment, allowing users to discuss your brand will not only give you a first hand look at what you are doing well and what needs to be improved, but will also provide you with content that is naturally optimised to keywords that users associate with your brand.
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Listen to consumers.
Continually monitor social media and harvest data for your industry, covering your brands and your competitors. See what is being said about your brand. If the comments are positive, think of ways to promote these sentiments to potential customers. If they are negative, look at them objectively and devise ways you can improve.
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But listening is just an input.

What matters is what you do with what you learn - tangible outputs Most importantly, you must commit to making changes to the way you do business.....based on what you've heard and learned ...Otherwise, why bother listening in the first place?
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Understand context to gain insight
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Social media and tourism

Experiential nature / complexity / high cost of tourism products Potential tourists rely on others experiences for their decision making, decreasing uncertainty and increasing the exchange utility Social media enable storytelling, a usual post-travel engagement to a larger audience, while providing a sense of belonging in virtual travel communities. The content of on-line communities is perceived as similar to recommendations provided by friends, family members or even like-minded souls becoming vital information source to potential tourists.
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Social media are becoming increasingly important in tourism

SM seem to change significantly the way individuals plan and consume travel: 82% of US online consumers have checked online reviews, blogs and other online feedback for their travel related purchasing decisions (eMarketer, 2008). TripAdvisor (2010), hosts over 40 million user-generated reviews and opinions, used by more than 40 million website visitors per month.
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Brand building through social media
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Drivers of brand strength

ASPIRATION
Do I know about it
AWARENESS
DIFFERENTIATION
Does it express who I want to be
Is it different
Brand Strength
PERFORMANCE INVOLVEMENT
Does it deliver
Do I care about it
PRESENCE
RELEVANCE
Can I find it
Do I need it
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Brand Promise
Key Brand Attributes
Consistent Delivery
Create a value proposition / promise that is rationally and emotionally compelling
Deploy specific marketing tools (including social media) for communicating and nurturing brand value on key attributes
Deliver and monitor consistently, to ensure match between promise and delivery
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Successful brands will deliver an appropriate mix of push and pull marketing
PUSH (& PULL)

Owned Media
e.g. brand website, brand social network page, packaging, experiential
PUSH
Bought Media
PULL
Earned Media
e.g. PR
e.g. ATL: TV, press, radio, online, sponsorships
Digital Culture
e.g. online conversations / blogs, consumer driven brand advocacy, consumer driven buzz/viral
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Social media monitoring can be integrated and enhanced through online research tools!
Online Chat Groups/ Think Tanks
Access Panels
Bulletin Boards
Listen ~ Analyse Understand ~ Engage

Video Clip Evaluation
Social Media Monitoring

Online Stimuli Evaluation
Video/photo Diaries
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The case of Russia

Russia has the most engaged social networking audience worldwide in terms of time spent /user (ComScore 2010): 34.5 million Russian internet users (74.5% of the Russian online population) visited at least one social networking site, spending an average of 9.8 hours /visitor during the month ranking it #1 among all countries in social networking engagement. Russia is Cyprus... Second most important incoming holiday market Most promising market in terms of per capita tourism receipts
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Research purpose
To investigate the role and impact of social media on how Russian holidaymakers plan and consume holidays. To explore determinants of acceptance and usage levels of SM as marketing and communication tools, by the Cyprus tourism industry. To determine the brand building potential of social media on tourist destinations.
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Why start with internet panel?

Panel deeply profiled - to identify and classify relevant consumers Cost effective minimal recruitment and no interviewing costs Quick immediate sample, no field team resource requirements, automatic data capture Focused on objectives questionnaire approach to interrogate the respondents
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Research objectives
To measure Russians holidaymakers: 1. Exposure to SM before, during and after their trip; 2. Level of influence that SM have on their holiday plans 3. Level of trust / credibility towards SM, in relation to traditional sources of holiday related information. To explore among Cyprus tourism industrys stakeholders: 4. The perceived importance of SM as marketing tools, 5. The underlying reasons determining acceptance and usage level of SM as part of their organizations communication tools. Quant Qual
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Design / Methodology / Approach

Two stage research design: Quantitative (Objectives #1, #2, #3) A questionnaire survey to MASMIs online Russian panel (n=329)
Qualitative (Objectives #4, #5) A number of in-depth semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders of the Cyprus tourism industry and selected national travel organisations.
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Findings
jfotis@bournemouth.ac.uk 28
Social media importance

Social Media info influential on destination & accommodation choice A high 73% visited Social Media when planning 63% use Social Media to consider alternatives Info sought primarily from:
travellers (76%), friends and relatives (64%), shows/documentaries (45%), official websites (41%)
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Trust in friends, travellers & social media

Q. How much do you trust holiday info found in ?
Holiday info from friends Holiday info from travellers Social Media Official tourism websites Holiday documentaries Travel agents Advertisements
Base: All who used SM when planning
92%
69% 57% 47% 34% 31% 23% NB. %age positive responses
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2 in 3 made changes based on social media info

Q. Did you make any changes to your original holiday plans because of info you found in social media websites?
48%
35%
15%
2% Made a few changes Made significant changes No changes Not sure
Base: All who used SM when planning
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Experiences fed back to social media a full circle

Q. After holidays, for what reason did you use any social media websites?
78%
27%
28% 12%
To share experiences/photos
To provide reviews
To get ideas for next holidays
Did not visit/use any SM
Base: All travelled in P12M
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Important to keep in touch with friends

Q. During holidays, for what reason did you use social media websites?
49%
28% 18% 15%
31%
2% To find out info on leisure activities To provide comments on experiences To stay Used SM but not connected with related to friends holidays I cannot remember Did not visit any SM
Base: All travelled in P12M
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In conclusion
Social media play an important role in travel behavior Understanding the context behind social media in travel behavior will allow cost effective extraction of insights Consumers are engaged throughout the process
Pre
During
Post
Huge brand building potentialyet largely untapped in the context of destination marketing.
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nicos.rossides@masmi.com
http://www.masmi.com
35

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Cost effective brand building through social media:

A travel industry case study

Web 2.0: Users as content creators

Web 2.0 technologies lay the foundation for

Collectively known as social media

Source: Cavazza 2009

Social media is a communication phenomenon

A comprehensive and systematic approach is needed

Create engaging content.

Create timely content.

Encourage user interaction.

But listening is just an input.

Understand context to gain insight

Social media and tourism

Social media are becoming increasingly important in tourism

Brand building through social media

Drivers of brand strength

Does it express who I want to be

Key Brand Attributes

Create a value proposition / promise that is rationally and emotionally compelling

PUSH (& PULL)

e.g. brand website, brand social network page, packaging, experiential

e.g. ATL: TV, press, radio, online, sponsorships

Online Chat Groups/ Think Tanks

Listen ~ Analyse Understand ~ Engage

Social Media Monitoring

The case of Russia

Why start with internet panel?

Design / Methodology / Approach

Social media importance

Trust in friends, travellers & social media

2 in 3 made changes based on social media info

2% Made a few changes Made significant changes No changes Not sure

Base: All who used SM when planning

Experiences fed back to social media a full circle

To get ideas for next holidays

Did not visit/use any SM

Base: All travelled in P12M

Important to keep in touch with friends

28% 18% 15%

Base: All travelled in P12M

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