Social media more and more important to travel industry – study

There was a time when reserving tickets for a vacation meant buying them from an agency, speaking with the tour operator and so on. Afterward the Internet produced a big change. You can live somewhere in the world and buy tickets for a destination on a different continent from a company/agency that has the headquarter in another continent. Is that simple. Everything at a click away.

Nowadays, reservation is not the only important part. Before buying a ticket anyone does some research. As I mentioned in a dedicated post, I think that the golden rule of a traveller is to search, to document before going somewhere.

What type of experiences can one have while visiting a place/country etc.? What type of experiences had other people when using the services of an agency, a hotel etc.? What other people say influence what people choose. This is something I tell my clients from day one!

But wait. There’s more.
It is not important to know only what others experienced, but also the online presence of the company one is interacting with. For instance a hotel, a resort, an agency and so on.

Consequently, it is very important not only to be present online, but also to have a good presence!

It’s not enough to have a Twitter account or a Facebook page. You have to carefully manage them.

Social media is something that takes time. That is why many companies and businesses prefer to delegate this job to a freelancer or an agency. That’s why I’m offering this service.

The fact that the online presence is important in the travel industry is not something I say, but something even studies prove. Take for instance the latest report – Social Media in Travel 2011: Traffic, Activity and Sentiment from PhoCusWright, released yesterday.

It’s conclusions are clear: “More than two thirds of online travelers now cite traveller reviews – either on OTAs or traveller review websites – as influential when planning their leisure trips, finds PhoCusWright for example.
” (source)

So, if you have a business in travel industry, make sure you have a very good online presence. Make sure you attract and retain public, make sure you offer relevant information and so on. Also make sure you read what others have to say about you! Of course, the services provided must be excellent, otherwise any good campaign or online presence will only fool people once.