How social media impacts travel decisions

How social media influence customers purchasing behavior in the Macau Hotel.

Social media has a major impact on the purchasing decisions of consumers around the world. Here, consumers often rely on the recommendations and opinions of trusted individuals within their sphere of influence. These recommendations are very potent as they come from people that are well known, trusted, and don’t have a motive to mislead others. This form of trustworthiness makes social media a very important element within the advertising and promotion industry. Likewise, social media allows for consumers to direct message and communicate personally with individuals that advocate for a particular hotel or destination. This is another critical element as it allows for another method in which to confirm and verify information that was previously presented on a social media page. The ability to leverage trusted friends, conduct additional research, and personally confirm the value proposition of the offering through direct messaging, are all benefits of social media.

As it relates to Macau Hotel in particular, social media has yet another major influence. Here, social media can help expand the prevalence of globalization and its merits. Traditionally, travel has been heavily restricted to countries that were considered “Safe.” Here, international travel was considered risky due to variable beyond the consumers control. Elements such as political instability, the potential for terrorist attacks, and the lack of law often limited travel to certain regions. Social media helps to significantly mitigate these apprehensions through dialogue, discourse and information sharing. What once was perceived as a “Risky” travel destination can be transformed into a “Safe” perception due to social media and the experiences of other. The appeal of social media is that the information provided occurs in real time. Instagram allows consumers to post “Stories” which are videos of recent events that occurred in the last 24 hours. Twitter allows quick and very succinct tweets for consumers to easily communicate with other followers quickly. Facebook also has very similar offerings that allows consumers to share the most recent and relevant information and experiences they have encountered. This ultimately helps to benefit Macau Hotel in a positive manner. For one, the information provided provides real time examples that can be leverage be consumers in a much more profound manner. For example, reading recent product reviews and rating can better inform consumers on the merits of the Macau hotel. Likewise, these reviews can also list some of the negative elements of the hotel. This allows the consumer to better align their demand with the value proposition of the hotel offering. Social media helps to ensure that the consumer is receiving their demands at the best possible value and price. To best determine this is the questionnaire below:

Questionnaire:

1. When researching travel destinations online, has the COVID-19 influenced your travel plans to Macau? Yes or No (ZMOT)

2. When selecting a destination in the Eastern portion of the world (China, Japan, Australia, etc.) do you first use social media to gather information? Yes or No (Theory of social impact)

3. Does social media have a disproportionate impact on your travel decisions? Yes or No (Herding Effect)

4. Which social media website has the most influence on your purchasing decisions (Theory of Social Impact)

a. Facebook

b. Instagram

c. Twitter

d. TikTok

e. LinkedIn

f. Other

5. Does the direct experiencing of others direct impact your purchasing decision within a certain travel destination? (Herding) Yes or No