The Hotel Industry COVID 19 Epidemic

. What is the aim of your study? What are the objectives for your study?

The research aims to elucidate various ideas about the effect of social media on customers in the Macau hotel sector. In addition, to ascertain current marketing trends in the Macau hotel sector, including social media, the research will attempt to quantify how social media dominance influences consumer behaviour.

2. Explain the rationale for this study (refer to relevant research literature in your response).

2.1 Background of the study

Both the Macau hotel sector and the industry as a whole are experiencing a fundamental change in their approach to client acquisition and retention (Toubes, Vila & Brea 2021). These problems have been compounded by the recent COVID-19 epidemic, which resulted in a wave of hotel defaults (Rodriguez-Anton and AlonsoAlmeida, 2020). The development of non-traditional rivals such as Airbnb and other home-sharing websites has also contributed to the hotel industry's increasing competitiveness (Guttentag, 2015). As globalization continues to improve the standard of living for millions of people worldwide, an increasing number will inevitably begin travelling (Barhemmati and Ahmad, 2015). Macau is unusual in that the market has a sustained competitive edge over industry rivals (Li et al. 2013). Its position, closeness to fast-developing areas of China, and accessibility to distinctive tourism attractions offer an unmatched experience for customers (Hilary, 2009). As a result of the COVID-19 epidemic, Pent-up demand has resulted in an increase in travel and hotel bookings (Lidhoo 2021). As a result, the sector will be compelled to expand capacity at some time in the future. Recognizing how customers use social media to make buying decisions will be essential for rivals if they want to grab a fair part of this rapidly expanding and changing industry (Barysevich 2020). This is especially true for Macau, where the hotel sector is highly reliant on travel and tourism (Anderson and Srinivasan, 2003). As customers increasingly utilize online channels to make purchases and collect information, online channels account for a disproportionate share of advertising and marketing expenditure (Fourberg et al. 2021). The worldwide community, most notably China, is likewise undergoing a digital revolution (Fernandez, Bin & Dongsheng 2018). These revolutions have affected sectors ranging from banking to energy to hospitality. No sector is immune to technology's broad reach (Melo 2018). To remain competitive, the hotel sector must accept these developments or face extinction from a capitalist standpoint (Tiangou, Papasolomou, Thrassou and

Revised August 2015

Vrontis, 2020). As previously said, new developments within the sector have wreaked havoc on the hotel industry as a whole (Singh 2021). For starters, rivals have become much more price competitive (Goral 2016). For example, Airbnb does not have the same fixed expenses and overhead as Marriott Hotels (Nath & Rathburn 2021). Similarly, unlike conventional participants, the business does not possess a sizeable real estate portfolio. However, it does have a network of millions of "hotels" that puts it in a unique position compared to conventional players. This network of independent house owners provides cost-efficient accommodation options to the hotel industry (Nath & Rathburn 2021). As a result, Airbnb hopes to displace conventional hotel operators with a wider variety and lower prices while capturing market share (Gerdeman, 2018). This, along with other industry advances, results in the development of new business models and methods for attracting and retaining consumers (Reinhold, Zach & Krizaj 2017). It is critical to comprehend these developments, particularly regarding customer behaviour and the value propositions consumers seek (Reinhold, Zach & Krizaj 2017). By gaining a thorough knowledge of the factors that affect customers' buying choices, the hotel sector may more effectively meet these requirements while staying profitable (Panwar and Saxena, 2020).

2.2 Statement of the problem

Facebook, Instagram, and a slew of other social media platforms are continuing to grow at a rapid and robust pace (Auxier & Anderson 2021). The development of digitalization, increasing affluence across the globe, and globalization have all led to the fast adoption of social media platforms worldwide (Liu, Zhang, Huang and Zhang, 2020). In light of these developments, the travel and tourism sector is projected to expand at a fast pace during the next decade (Leposa 2019). As a result, customers started to increasingly rely on social media to help them make buying choices, whether it is for information gathering, conversations with trusted peers, or evaluations from industry leaders (Barysevich 2020). Because of this, it is critical to understand how consumers use social media to make buying choices and how the hotel sector can use these insights to

improve their complete value offer to customers moving ahead (Liu, Zhang, Huang and Zhang, 2020).

2.3 Purpose and significance of the study

The research is vital in light of the terrible circumstances in which the hotel sector is presently operating throughout the globe. Government regulations and other limitations, as well as travel bans and rising COVID-19 infection rates, have placed a tremendous burden on the hotel industry (Singh 2021). Compared to other more conventional types of media, social media acceptance and use have continued to grow (Barhemmati and Ahmad, 2015). Marketers, advertisers, business executives, psychologists, and consumers need to be able to comprehend buying behaviour and how social media may affect it (Babu 2014). In addition, it is important for the industry since it can prevent significant job loss and bad economic conditions by using more excellent knowledge of customer behaviour (Barhemmati and Ahmad, 2015), For the result, this study might be of interest to travellers, teenagers, and hotel employees.

2.4 Theoretical framework

The theoretical foundation for this issue is capitalism, as defined in Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations and fundamental psychological frameworks (Hayes & Boyle 2021). According to Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT) theory, the consumer is already searching for best possible options before buying a specific product, and that too, without seller’s knowledge. 53 percent of the consumers do that research for ensuring they are opting for the right product as they try to discover from the numerous available options (Pardot 2020).

2.5 Contextual boundaries

It is intended that the contextual limits of this research be linked to characteristics of the hotel sector outside of the Macau market. Therefore, the research will aim to concentrate exclusively on the Macau market and how social media influences hotel buying behaviour in the region. The focus on Macau is because the number of individuals using social media has increased in recent years (Digital in Macau: All the Statistics You Need in 2021 — DataReportal – Global Digital Insights, 2021)

3. Provide an outline of study design and methods.

3.1 Research Philosophy

The author will choose the positivism philosophy as positivism philosophy necessitated that the author gathers data and analyze it. This philosophy is deemed logical and enabled the author to test the hypotheses generated throughout the literature study quantitatively (Gros, 2012). It is a better choice for research since gaining realistic knowledge with the help of observation supports adherence in the measurement process, which makes the research reliable (Business Research Methodology n.d.).

3.2 Approach

This phase builds on the philosophy and establishes the framework for reasoning, assisting the researcher in comprehending the kind of study and how it should be conducted to achieve the research goals (Jilcha, 2019). In this respect, considering that the study is primarily concerned with elucidating attitudes and personal preferences. The approach would be deductive since the study would aim to test a hypothesis generated from the existing literature, which means it would aim to assess an established theory (Gabriel 2013).

3.3 Strategy

This phase is focused on the data collection and analysis techniques that will be utilized. This study will use a quantitative survey method. This is a frequently utilized technique in business research since it enables access to many people (Cleave 2021). In addition, due to the availability of internet sites, surveys may be sent widely and inexpensively and answers organized (Jilcha,2019). Quantitative research is better since it is quick, fixated, objective and more systematic (Formplus, 2021).

3.4 Method Choices

The study would be based on mono-research, using only quantitative research method, particularly a quantitative survey.

3.5 Time Horizon

Given that the research is being performed in the present to ascertain the effect of social media on consumer purchasing behaviour in the Macau hotel industry today, a cross-sectional method will be used. A cross-sectional study design is the one in which data is gathered from one point in time, which is ‘current’ for this research investigation (Cherry 2019).

3.6 Data collection procedures and techniques

In order to identify customer buying behaviour and the reasons behind it, the research will depend on in-depth interviews, surveys, focus groups, and questionnaires. The questions will seek to discover what factors impact a consumer's buying choice when they are utilizing social media to make a purchase decision. Aside from that, the questions will be designed to give specifics on the overall size of these effects compared with one another (Godey et al., 2016).

4. If appropriate, please provide a detailed description of the study sample, covering selection, sample profile, recruitment and inclusion and exclusion criteria. Keeping in mind the scope of this research, the population of this exploration would be customers of Macau hotel industry since the social media factors that impact their buying decision would be examined. The research sample will be drawn from a varied group of people with a range of backgrounds. The main criterion will be that participants have 1) an active social media account and 2) have been to or are interested in going to international places. A social media account will be considered active if it receives at least one log in each week. A travel interest is described as a desire and capacity to go to a foreign nation and buy lodging there. The selection process will be carried out utilizing a variety of sample frames. This will contain public school lists, mailing lists, phone numbers lists, and personalized suggestions. Participants who do not have an active social media profile will be excluded from the research. Additionally, individuals with no intention of buying a hotel or travelling will be rejected. No one shall be excluded based on their age, sexual orientation, race, or socioeconomic position (Garcia, Bakker and Grau, 2011). The author will use a simple random sample. A simple random sample is the one in which the probability of being chosen for each member of the sample is equal and thus makes it an unbiased representation of the entire population (Hayes 2021).

To perform this kind of sampling, the author may utilize tools such as random number generators or other completely random sample methods (McCombes, 2019). A good sample size is 10% of the entire population size, however, it should not exceed 1000 (Tools 4 Dev, n.d.). If even one five-star hotel is selected in the whole Macau hotel industry, the 10% of the hotel’s capacity could be taken as the sample size of this study. It would still be kept in mind that the sample size does not exceed 1000. On the contrary, making inferences of the quantitative data on such a huge sample scale would be complex; the sample size would be limited to 50-100 for convenience.

5. Are payments or rewards/incentives going to be made to the participants? Yes ?

No ?

If so, please give details.

6. Please indicate how you intend to address each of the following ethical considerations in your study. If you consider that they do not relate to your study please say so.

Guidance to completing this section of the form is provided at the end of the document.

A. Consent

It is related to the research, all research subjects must agree to participate in the study and be provided with sufficient information to "informed" the decision to participate. This indicates that the participants have given the necessary information to research participants. The author intended to get permission through consent form (AppendixA). However, to be prudent, the study will seek to be open about the nature of the study, the aim of the research, the manner in which age, sex, and race-related information will be kept private, and the anticipated length of the project.

B. Deception

It does not related to the research since no deception techniques will be employed or performed. By using misleading techniques, one or more of the necessary components of consent are omitted. To be conservative, the participant will be fully informed of the study's nature. The study has a shallow risk for the subjects. Participation in this research will have no harmful consequences.

C. Debriefing

There will be no deceptions in this research. Similarly, at the consent step, participants will be told of the study's objective. Consequently, participants will not need to be briefed on any deceptions or why they would be required.

D. Withdrawal from the investigation

Participants will have the complete freedom to withdraw from the research at two weeks’ time from the day they would be distributed questionnaire/ survey. During this time, they have ample time to make up their mind about withdrawing from participation. As previously stated, the research will not expose participants to any adverse health hazards or deceptions once the author has linked all surveys, the author will delete the list that contains participants’ name. As a consequence, all participants have complete withdrawal rights. The participant would contact the researcher via email or in person to notify about his final action with the reasoning.

E. Confidentiality

The research will use the "Dominant method" to secrecy (Moore 2017). Confidentiality is handled at the study planning step of the prevailing method. Additionally, the study's data collecting, data cleaning, and distribution phases address the problem of confidentiality. Each participant will sign permission papers and a confidentiality agreement. Additionally, data cleaning will occur to remove personally identifiable information such as names from the data. F. Protection of participants

Participants' personal information and data will be safeguarded throughout the confidentially period. Participants will be completing surveys and questionnaires and will therefore be free of any physical restrictions. The author will maintain the confidentiality of the information and enabling the participant to stay anonymous. The researcher would be able to do this by keeping the obtained data secured using a password since the data would be gathered online and subjected to online stealth. Encryption could be a suitable way to ensure confidentiality for the participants.

G. Observation research

It does not relate as the research will not rely on observation as it has to be based on obtaining data directly from the participants. They would respond to the questions of the survey; hence, observation does not apply.

H. Giving advice

It does not relate because the study is mainly focusing on analysis the current situations therefore no advice will be given for this study. (Need advices)

I. Research undertaken in public places

No research will be placed in public areas. The majority of the study, including the interview, surveys, and questionnaires, will take place in a private, closed environment that is free of interruption. (Only questionaires)