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THE INFLUENCE OF THE INTERNET AND SOCIAL MEDIA ON TOURISM IN

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 University of Ghana Business

School
Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship

THE INFLUENCE OF THE INTERNET AND SOCIAL

MEDIA ON TOURISM IN GHANA

A Research in partial fulfilment for the degree of Bachelor of Science in

Administration, Marketing Option

ANINKORAH MAAME BIRAGO - 10479163

BAKAH LADY JACQUELINE - 10462537

DANKWAH SAMUEL - 10494255

FALKE ANITA - 10474823

CODJIA ANTHONY MARIO - 10453574

May 2017
 CERTIFICATION

This is to confirm that this research was overseen in agreement with processes laid

down by the university and has been read and approved by undersigned for

submission to the Marketing Department of the University of Ghana Business

School, Legon.

……………………………………. …………………………

DR. KOBBY MENSAH Date

(SUPERVISOR)

ii
 DECLARATION

This study is presented to the University of Ghana, in line with the obligations to

obtain a degree of Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in the University

of Ghana Business School. All materials presented have been confirmed to be

original and reported as our own work. If not the case, due acknowledgement has

been given to the original sources.

CODJIA VIVENNA ANTHONY MARIO (10453574)

SIGN ………………………………. DATE……………………

BAKAH LADY JACQUELINE (10462537)

SIGN ………………………………. DATE……………………

FALKE ANITA (10474823)

SIGN ………………………………. DATE……………………

ANINKORAH MAAME BIRAGO (10479163)

SIGN ………………………………. DATE……………………

DANKWAH SAMUEL (10494255)

SIGN ………………………………. DATE……………………

3
 DEDICATION

We dedicate this study first of all to the Almighty God and to our families, friends

and loved ones who in various ways contributed to the completion of this

dissertation in pursuit of the academic award. We are also thankful to our wonderful

supervisor for his immense contributions and support.

4
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We give all thanks to God for guiding us through the course of this study and for

bestowing blessings upon us in completing it.

We give our parents our sincerest gratitude for their unyielding exertion in providing

the needed support during the course of this project.

An exceptional gratitude goes to our project supervisor, Dr Kobby Mensah, for

giving us the chance to be able to work under him in the process of completing this

dissertation and for his invaluable time and dedication towards this study

In conclusion, we would like to recognize the enormous assistance of Ms. Lorraine

Bakah Kwoffie who aided us in the completion of this dissertation.

God bless you all abundantly.

5
 ABSTRACT

Tourism is a large contributor to the world’s GDP, and is the fourth largest sector in

the economy of Ghana. It provides jobs to masses of people and contributes to the

livelihood of others who prefer to be participants. Social media is also the largest

segment of the internet and Web 2.0. It bridges the time and locational gaps between

communities all across the world. The emergence of Travel 2.0, the tourism model

of Web 2.0, is assisting tourism to boom across the world, however, the growth of

tourism in Ghana, although, quite impactful, is too slow.

This paper looks at current influence of the internet on tourism in Ghana, to arrive

with findings that can assist in the enlargement of this sector in Ghana.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

CERTIFICATION ............................................................................................................................ . ii
DECLARATION.............................................................................................................................. . iii
DEDICATION ................................................................................................................................. . iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.............................................................................................................. .v
ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................................... . vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................................. . vii
LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................................... . ix
LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................................. . x
CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................... . 1
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ . 1
1.1 BACKGROUND TO RESEARCH ......................................................................................................1
1.1 TOURISM .......................................................................................................................................2
1.2 SOCIAL MEDIA ............................................................................................................................3
1.3 TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY .......................................................................................................4
1.3.1 Tourism Search Engine...........................................................................................................5
1.3.2 Social Media and Marketing..................................................................................................5
1.3.3 Consumer Behaviour in Tourism .......................................................................................7
1.4 RESEARCH PURPOSE .......................................................................................................................9
1.4.1 Research Objectives .................................................................................................................9
1.4.2 Research Questions ..................................................................................................................9
1.5 ORGANISATION OF REPORT ...................................................................................................... 10
CHAPTER TWO............................................................................................................................ . 11
LITERATURE REVIEW .............................................................................................................. . 11
2.1 DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM.................................................................................................... 11
2.2 TOURISM DESTINATION AWARENESS ................................................................................. 13
2.2.1 Contemporary Communications in Tourism .............................................................. 14
2.3 SOCIAL MEDIA ................................................................................................................................. 18
2.3.1 Economic Considerations Of Social Media................................................................... 20
2.3.2 Social Media Marketing and Destination Management .......................................... 21
2.4 MOTIVATIONS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA IN TOURISM ............................................................. 23
2.5 SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY .......................................................................................................... 25
2.6 DESTINATION IMAGE FORMATION IN SOCIAL MEDIA.................................................. 27
2.7 TRAVELLERS’ USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA ................................................................................... 28
2.8 KNOWLEDGE SHARING IN TRAVEL PLANNING PROCESSES WITH SOCIAL
MEDIA ......................................................................................................................................................... 30
2.8.1 Tourist Experience and Knowledge Sharing .............................................................. 31
2.8.2 Potential of Knowledge Sharing over Social Media to Traveler’s Decision
Making 32
2.9 ISSUES IN SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE IN TOURISM.................................................................. 33
CHAPTER THREE........................................................................................................................ . 35
METHODOLOGY .......................................................................................................................... . 35
3.1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 35

vii
 3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN ........................................................................................................................ 35
3.2.1Research Strategies ................................................................................................................ 36
3.2.2 Target Population .................................................................................................................. 37
3.2.3 Sampling Method............................................................................................................... 37
3.2.4 Sample Selection and Size.............................................................................................. 38
3.3 RESEARCH INSTRUMENT ................................................................................................... 38
3.4 QUESTIONNAIRE DEVELOPMENT .................................................................................. 39
3.5 DATA COLLECTION ........................................................................................................................ 40
3.6 DATA ANALYSIS .............................................................................................................................. 41
3.6.1 Validity................................................................................................................................... 41
3.6.2 Reliability.............................................................................................................................. 42
3.6.3 Anonymity and Confidentiality.................................................................................... 42
3.6.4 Ethical Considerations .................................................................................................... 42
3.6.5 Limitations of the Study.................................................................................................. 43
3.7 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................ 43
CHAPTER FOUR .......................................................................................................................... . 44
DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA ............................................................................... 44
4.1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 44
4.2 SAMPLE DESCRIPTION................................................................................................................. 44
4.3 SAMPLE PREFERENCE.................................................................................................................. 46
4.4 SOURCE OF INFORMATION ........................................................................................................ 51
4.5 INFLUENTIAL FACTORS ABOUT DESTINATIONS ............................................................. 52
4.6 INFLUENTIAL MEDIA FOR ADVERTISEMENT OF DESTINATION.............................. 54
4.7 AVAILABILTY AND RELEVANCE OF INFORMATION ON TOURISM DESTINATION
IN GHANA .................................................................................................................................................. 55
4.8 SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE DECISION MAKING MODEL ........................................... 56
4.9 MODE OF COMMUNICATION ............................................................................................. 58
CHAPTER FIVE ............................................................................................................................ . 59
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION ........................................................................... 59
5.1 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................ 59
5.2 RECOMMENDATION ............................................................................................................. 61
5.3 LIMITATION AND FUTURE RESEARCH......................................................................... 61
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................ . 63
APPENDICES ................................................................................................................................ . 66
APPENDIX A.............................................................................................................................................. 66
SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE ............................................................................................................ 66

8
 LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 4.1 Representation of respondent countries............................................ 45

Figure 4.2 Gender distribution ........................................................................... 45

Figure 4.3 Age distribution ................................................................................ 46

Figure 4.4 Access to information ....................................................................... 47

Figure 4.5 Use of smartphones .......................................................................... 47

Figure 4.6 Social media accounts ...................................................................... 48

Figure 4.7 Number of travel per year................................................................. 49

Figure 4.8 Reasons for travel ............................................................................. 49

Figure 4.9 Pre trip information search ............................................................... 50

Figure 4.10 Purpose of search............................................................................ 50

Figure 4.11 Source of information ..................................................................... 51

Figure 4.12 Sources from the internet................................................................ 52

Figure 4.13 Factors influencing decision making .............................................. 53

Figure 4.14 Media for advertising ..................................................................... 54

Figure 4.15 Correlation of information.............................................................. 55

Figure 4.16 Knowledge of available tourism websites for Ghana ..................... 56

Figure 4.17 Influence of social media with regards to the AIDA model........... 57

Figure 4.18 Mode of communication................................................................. 58

9
 LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1 Digital Marketing Communications Options..................................... 15

X
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND TO RESEARCH

Although the marketing promotion of tourist sites is important to a tourist’s decision

making process, it is not the medium through which the promotion is done that

matters most but rather the content of the information being sent across

(Fragkogianni, 2016). In an era where the providers of products or services do not

have total control over the media and the contents of the information through which

promotion is done, marketing could become very challenging. Human interactions

have been a concern for centuries nevertheless, through communication, human

bonds and relationships are strengthened.

As far back as 550BC, communication across great distances had to be done through

hand delivery but has developed enormously overtime (Riegner, 2007). Social media

comprises of sharing photos and videos, thoughts through blogging, microblogging,

social networks, and rating sites, and so on (Mayfield, 2008). With this tool

individuals are able to look for and add to a large assortment of people through the

development of technology. Communication has caused the relationship between

humans to improve even more and this has contributed to making life much easier.

Social media has broadened their scope and made them even more willing to

experience new places and try out new things through the pictures and videos people

share on these social media sites. This has also improved the patronage of tourism

destinations in our country. We seek to find the level of influence social media sites

and the internet has, the level of awareness it creates for tourist destinations among

1
students and how the awareness affects the patronage of these sites. Through this

study, we hope to contribute to the academia and tourism industry of our country

Ghana by identifying some research voids in available literature and proposing

recommendations for future research.

1.1 TOURISM

Various definitions have been applied to tourism. It has not got a single,

internationally recognized definition. It takes on definitions as per the context or

situation a researcher or academic finds himself in. Most literatures have included

travelling, visiting, and site seeing for pleasure or relaxation as key elements in

explaining the term. Tourism may be defined as a collection of activities by

individuals traveling from one place to another and lodging in places other than their

usual environment for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise

of an activity remunerated from within the place visited (Bank Of Ghana, 2007).

Tourism has been with mankind, even before the beginning of civilization, which

can be explained by that mental urge to experience new things, gain knowledge and

have fun (Seitzhanova, 2015).

Tourism takes on different forms, Domestic being residents in a nation travelling

inside the nation, Inbound are visitors travelling within a specified country.

International tourism consists of inbound and outbound tourism. Internal tourism, the

final form, comprises of both domestic and inbound tourisms, thus, both residents

and foreigners of a given nation embarking on travels in that nation. (UNWTO,

2006).

2
1.2 SOCIAL MEDIA

There has been an increase in demand for internet since the mid-1990s due to the

growing desire for human interactions of various kinds (Combe, 2006). The birth of

social media platforms is just one and probably the most used of the applications

provided by the internet. Social media is an assortment of connected stages and

implements that enables individuals to use to put out content, profiles, opinions,

insight, experience, perspectives and media itself, aiding in virtual conversations and

interactions (Moran, 2011). This is because of its high patronage and usage. On

average in 2016, global internet users spend about 118 minutes per day using social

networks. The most popular social media platform is Facebook with an outstanding

number of 1.5 million active users every month (Statista, 2016).

Social media, a very recent phenomenon which was developed to facilitate

interactions between humans has become a very popular term and concept within the

last decade (Paquette, 2013). The advent of blogging after the new millennium led to

the explosion and prominence of social media sites and now apps (Hendricks, 2013).

A typology can be curved out for social media on the internet into the following

classes, virtual communities like LoneyPlanet, consumer review sites like Trip

Advisor, blogs and blog aggregators such as Blogspot.com, social networking sites

like Facebook, and media sharing, YouTube (Xiang & Gretzel, 2009). According to

Husain et al. (2016), social media has a tremendous influence on consumer

behaviour and as a result, businesses and organisations are beginning to dedicate lots

of resources to develop social media strategies. Social media provides a platform for

knowledge sharing, and fosters engagement among people (Altinay, Saner,

Bahçelerli, & Altinay, 2016).

3
As stated earlier, the major social media platforms are Facebook, Twitter and

Instagram. Facebook is an online free social networking website that simplifies the

process of family and friend interactions (GCFLearnforfree.org). Registered users on

this platform can share photos, videos and messages.

Twitter is another social media network patronized by millions of people. It helps

them connect to their loved ones using computers or mobile devices. This platform

enables the sharing of short messages with limits to 140 characters and can be

accessed by any authorized twitter user.

Instagram, which is rather a newer mode of communication where users post updates

in the form of photos or videos with or without the use of filters has grasped a rapid

number of users as well as updates since it was launched in October 2010.

1.3 TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY

Individuals make visits to areas outside their usual destination for purposes such as

leisure and recreation, business, holidays and educational purposes. These

individuals are known as tourist or same day visitors or leisure day visitors

depending on the duration of their visit to the destination (Middleton, 2015). As

stated by Allen et al. (1988) in Kreag (2001), tourism can only be sustained in an

economy or society where the individuals are willing to be part of the process and

their attitudes continually assessed.

Tourism is a major socio economic activity and is among the important and growing

sectors of the world economy. According to Statista (2015), the total arrival of

tourists globally will reach 1.13 billion as of 2014 from 949 million in 2010. Even

though there are high numbers of global travellers, perceived risk for travellers in

purchasing holiday destinations is high, they therefore want information from

4
available sources (Sirakaya and Woodside, 2005; Fortis et al. 2012). Thus, social

media is consulted for booking trips, airlines, and insight on the best places to visit

including the best activities and hotels available.

The two main components of tourism products are travel and accommodation which

have been widely marketed over the internet in the past years, with some factors

such as the effectiveness of the internet for direct marketing and the enormous

opportunity to reach the whole world as reasons for this phenomenon (Vich-i-

Martorel, 2004).

1.3.1 Tourism Search Engine

The link between social media and tourism is gradually becoming a very strong one.

Tourism related information over the internet is going through a transformation with

the emergence of consumer-generated contents like blogs, wikis and media file

sharing sites like YouTube and Flickr.

1.3.2 Social Media and Marketing

Marketing has gone through some changes with the advent of technology. This shift

from a traditional aspect to a more digitalized marketing is due mostly to the

internet. Through the introduction of social media, the internet made communication

more dynamic than ever. Social Media can be referred to as communication or

publication platforms created and continued by the interpersonal interaction of

individuals through the specific medium or tool (Neti 2011).

Social media now transcends simply staying connected to friends and family and

connecting to people worldwide, the populace and customers can now learn more

about their favourite companies and products and get in touch with manufacturers

5
for specifications and customisations. Marketers are therefore considering new ways

to reach customers and brainstorming new ways to shop (Paquette 2013).

Social media patronage has increased according to a research conducted by The

State of Small Business Report, sponsored by Network Solutions, LLC and the

University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, highlights the rapid

popularity of social media as a result of economic struggles. According to this

report, the use of social media by SMEs rose from 12% to 24% (Neti 2011).

Business entities achieve their marketing objectives as a result. For example, many

large enterprises in Malaysia make use of social media as a tool for marketing

(Hassan, Nadzim, & Shiratuddin, 2014). This preference for social media marketing

can be identified by some of the diverse benefits it provides.

Advertisement is said to be effective when it triggers a purchasing behaviour from

the target audience. It is in this regards that the AIDA (Attention Interest Desire and

Action) model was propounded by E. St. Elmo Lewis, an American advertising and

sales pioneer. The AIDA is the blueprint to achieve an effective advertising

campaign. This model can help to catch the attention of the potential client or

customer. Appealing audio visuals or interesting pictures are mostly used in

advertisement. Visuals that relate to the prospective customer’s interests and needs

are used to make them aroused. This means that information on prospective

customers is required. Enterprises can conduct researches or even just enquire from

customers to obtain information on what their interests are and make use of these

cues in their advertising layouts.

6
1.3.3 Consumer Behaviour in Tourism

The Awareness Interest Desire and Action (AIDA) model is a framework to follow

in designing good message content for any communication or promotion effort. For

the message to be effective in communicating the right idea and producing the

desired results it must have an appeal. The appeal could be moral, emotional or

rational (Kotler and Armstrong, 2012). Moral appeal elicits a sense of good or bad,

right or wrong, and would have a social cause underlining its motive, littering the

environment will be detrimental to posterity, paying visits to green environments and

helping in their sustainability by planting a seedling is right, etc. (Kotler and

Armstrong, 2012). Emotional appeal communicates a message by stimulating

feelings of happiness, sadness or anger to resort in an action, paying a visit to an

almost extinct species or witnessing a once-in-a-century event. Rational appeal

speaks to the thought process of an individual, providing reasons over another

option. Benefits such as quality, comfort, economy and performance are used to

sway a decision maker towards a desired response (Kotler and Armstrong, 2012).

According to Rawal (2013), the AIDA model is the simplest yet most powerful

marketing communication model in theory. It commences the process to desired

response by grabbing the attention of the prospect. Attention grabbing could be the

make or break of the whole AIDA process. The promotion should appeal to the

target audience and offer benefits to elicit a response of interest from the audience

(Rawal, 2013). Interest is built by providing more benefits for using the product in

particular; it could also be built by making the audiences know what they are

missing by not purchasing the product. Interests can stir into desire when the

promotion has done the task of getting a motivation for the audience to yearn for the

product. The promotion would have used the correct appeal to result in this. Action

7
is the preliminary purchase of the product after tension has been created and desire

heightened by the awareness stage in the AIDA model.

In carving out the message for a promotion, marketers must make sure that the goals

for the communication is S.M.A.R.T, Specific being a clear distinction of which

channel or tool to use, Measurable a clear understanding of benchmarks that results

can be compared with, Achievable being having a sense of completion in the future,

Realistic is seen as doable within a set environment and finally, Time-based is set for

a particular period in which it must be accomplished.

According to Strene (2010) and Paine (2009), these goals keep the marketer on

track; asking questions at each stage in the process of delivering value, and

measurement of specific goals are based on the definitions of these goals.

The travel-buying behaviour of a consumer is extrapolated in this five-stage model

(Mathieson and Wall, 1982):

1. The individual gets a felt need or desire to travel form cues such as

billboards, television ads, etc.

2. The tension created by this need causes the individual to search for

information from sources such as word-of-mouth, magazines and today, the

internet and social media. Alternatives are evaluated after he is armed with

information.

3. A decision is made after the evaluation of alternatives.

4. The product (the travel) is bought and the individual experiences it,

gets the value he sought for after the tension was created.

8
 5. There is an evaluation after the travel to ascertain whether perceived

value and actual value of the travel matched. Customer satisfaction,

dissatisfaction or delight is measured here.

In this era of dynamic technology, the right approach to use in marketing should be a

hybrid model incorporating both Social media marketing and the AIDA model. The

evolution of marketing communications medium has been from print media and

electronic media to now social media. Consumers in the current generation do not

only shop online now, but make use of the internet to obtain information via social

media before making purchase decisions (Hassan, Nadzim and Shiratuddin, 2014).

1.4 RESEARCH PURPOSE

According to Paquette (2013), social media provides information on customer

behaviour with relation to their decision making process. This study aims to

investigate the effects the internet and social media in facilitating tourism in Ghana.

It also seeks to understand how awareness creation affects the choice of tourism

destinations.

1.4.1 Research Objectives

1. To examine how social media facilitates travel and tourism in Ghana

2. To study the effect of social media and the AIDA model

3. To examine the impact of the different stages in the AIDA model and

their influence in tourism purchase

1.4.2 Research Questions

1. Do social media facilitate travel and tourism in Ghana?

9
 2. Do social media influence the stages in the AIDA model?

3. How do the different stages in the AIDA model influence tourism

purchase?

1.5 ORGANISATION OF REPORT

This report comprises of five (5) chapters. The first chapter entails the introduction

of the study with an over-all summary of the problem statement. The second chapter

presents an evaluation of other scholarly works in relation to the study relevant to

while the methodology used in executing this study is highlighted in third chapter.

The fourth chapter argues and investigates the outcomes obtained, while the fifth

chapter concludes the study with significant recommendations for subsequent

studies.

10
 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM

Destinations are simply referred to as locations or geographical regions, such as

states, provinces, villages, etc. (Davidson and Maitland, 2000), with jurisprudence

for tourism marketing and planning. People travel to these locations and

destinations, and decide whether to stay for certain periods or have a day tour

(Leiper, 1995). Experiences are peculiar to these areas and are groomed locally by

elements of these regions, opened to the independent interpretation of the recipients

and travelers to these locations (Buhalis, 2000). Destinations are also viewed as

particular areas with a unique collection of facilities and services that will meet the

need of customers when synced properly together (Cooper, Fletcher, Gilbert,

Shepherd and Wanhill, 1998).

For tourism, booking before going to the destination suggests that there will be a lag

between purchase of service and consumption of service. Prospective tourist, who

might not sample these physically have to search for information to satisfy curiosity

and reduce risk perceptions. That is, they need some information and descriptions of

these places. Timely, relevant and accurate information are needed to aid and satisfy

risk perception needs (Buhalis, 1998) and aid in making the destinations more

prominent in the purchaser’s eye.

Tourism destinations present a cohesive experience to the tourist. The decision to

buy a product in tourism comes with substantial amounts of passionate and illogical

11
influences. These can arise from cues and stimuli in word of mouth communication

and personal selling which results in an heightened expectation about the uniqueness

of those locations. The opinions and reviews of family and friends of tourists are

therefore held in high esteem as compared to mainstream advertising on mass media

(Constantindes & Fountain , 2004). These persons have a wide array of options to

make a decision from and do not have the luxury of time so they are not willing to

assimilate huge chunks of information from these traditional media. However, they

are eager to pay more for quality which does not take great effort to find.

In prioritising for a purchase, the potential tourist thinks primarily about the

destination first, before the activities to perform, then attractions, accommodation,

catering facilities and so on. All these come with so much information that the

potential tourist is not willing to waste time on reading and analysing. Consumers

will pay anything just to receive a quality product with convenience. What makes

information useful is when it is relevant and readily available, provided in a timely

manner (Chroust 2013).

The nature of tourism as a product, like other services, is that it is highly intangible

and erratic, because provision and consumption are simultaneous and are highly

perishable (McDonald, Frow, and Payne, 2012). Some factors that account for the

illogical and very personal nature of tourism purchase would be the use of word of

mouth advertising, customer’s appeal for uniqueness of site, importance of its image,

the essence of intermediaries, increased need for good peripheral items, increasing

the practice of information and communication technologies; and keen influence of

communication skills of destination host that accompany the purchase of tourism

product. These signify that for prospective tourists to invest in tourism by travelling,

they must be properly furnished with information.

12
2.2 TOURISM DESTINATION AWARENESS

In an aim to attract regular and a consistent number of tourists to destination, service

providers carry out territorial marketing. Certain locations that have the potential to

become hubs for economic and social developments are identified and planned for

this purpose (Bitsani and Kavoura, 2011). Locations around the world compete daily

to have more visitors trooping toward them. For a location to become recognised as

a tourist destination, it is very vital to establish its own brand according to the main

occupation of the area. For instance, some destinations are known as educational

hubs like Oxford, others technology, like Silicon Valley, and some for recreation

like DisneyWorld. The creation of these gives rise to ‘competitive brand’ and is

based on the known heritages that make up the place’s uniqueness (Anholt in Dinnie,

2008). Because these locations compete for tourists of either the same or different

kind, there is a need for synergy in their communicative approaches,

communications and actions in precincts according to how they operate which will

encourage and strengthen their uniqueness and competitive advantage. Thus, they

need to have distinct images as a differentiator and do well to provide the best

experiences to their visitors (Kavoura, 2013).

In building the destination’s brand, marketers in these destinations must balance

economic viability with sustainability of operations, and think of how best to

promote these areas without compromising on the quality of these regions. It is

important for communication to be done truthfully to a right target audience

(Kavoura, 2013).

13
2.2.1 Contemporary Communications in Tourism

Businesses operating the tourism sector apply varied traditional marketing

techniques and analyse several key criteria such as, category of tourism market,

traveller’s willingness to make purchase, development stage, and the brand’s market

share and positioning, in communication mix strategy development. The emergence

of communication technology and the arrival of a new generation of highly erudite

target audience are posing great challenges to businesses operating in the tourism

sector in the preparation of the right message and the choice of right medium to use

for broadcasting (Edelman, 2010).

Information technology has far gone from ‘the static web’ and irregular flow of

communication to ‘the second phase’ of Web 2.0 and bidirectional communication

with innovative stages of relations beginning to spring up (Buhalis, 2011). Users of

the web are now able to generate, broadcast, collaborate and communicate

information over this. This has inevitably influenced the behaviour of purchasers of

tourism product. In accordance with the new information technology developments,

consumers have become more flexible and adaptive, and a fresh consumer database

for segmentation has materialised. The consumer is called ‘the digital user’, who is

more of an innovator, one who leads in new experiences (Buhalis, 2011).

With these advances, the primary concern of tourism is then shown in exploring the

potential this technology, specifically making use of social networking as strategic

tool for constructive boost of customers experience in tourism (Neuhofer, 2013). The

travel and tourism sectors have coined their own version of the Web 2.0 known as

Travel 2.0, a generation of travel websites (Zivkovic, Gajic, & Brdar, 2014). This

technology aims at facilitating social alliance among tourists and allowing them to

14
share experiences with others, whether prospective or re-visitors (Del Chiappa,

2011). Tourists have quickly embraced Travel 2.0 applications, and have cited them

as credible sources of information for decision making. They turn to these sites

instead of traditional media or even professional travel advisors for worthwhile

information. The effectiveness of communications in marketing are not seen in the

content of what is said, but how those contents are presented to the audience, taking

into consideration the channels of delivery and the creativity embodying the

message. Mass media marketing, the play of the traditional era, is less effective in an

environment where tourists have so much information on locations, bookings,

accommodations, etc. at their fingertips. There are a plethora of options for

consumers to connect, share and look for information with other users over the

Travel 2.0 (Del Chiappa, 2011)

Table 2.1 shows some of the interactive marketing communication options that are

now available.

Table 0.1 Digital Marketing Communications Options [Source: Hudson, Roth and
Madden (2012)]

Option Explanation

Company websites must be attractive, appealing and easy to

manoeuvre. They must exhibit the company’s purpose, vision,

services and products to the best of their ability. This would

Website
encourage repeated visits.

Social Media More and more companies are turning to social media for

15
 Option Explanation

advertising purposes. There is an increasing number of customer

engagements on social media thus advertisements would yield

greater results. Also, companies can be more specific in targeting

their customers.

The marketing and advertising of mobile phones is also becoming

very important. Due to the incorporation of applications such as

Mobile
cameras, compasses, GPS, weather forecast amongst others.
Marketing
Travellers are becoming more conversant with mobile phones.

Tourists and advertisers now have the privilege of advertising and

Internet Specific
sharing videos on user-generated sites such as Facebook, You
Ads and videos
Tube, and Twitter.

Display ads are small rectangular boxes with a company’s advert.

They may pop up on websites or can be embedded in corners of

Display Ads
specific sites. Companies pay to display such relevant information

as this provides a larger audience.

A microsite is a restricted space on a website given to an external

Microsites
company or advertiser who has the right to manage this limited

16
 Option Explanation

space. Microsites can either be individual pages or aggregates of

pages which supplement a main site.

A considerable amount of online searches are for products or

services. Consumers can find alternatives to products and

Search Ads
services through search links alongside other search engines.

Advertisers are charged only when their links are clicked.

A number of companies give sponsorship for the creation of

online communities. Members of these communities

Online
communicate and share pictures, messages and other info
Communities
relevant to the company’s products and services

Interstitials are ads usually featuring animations and videos that

Interstitials
pop up when a page is loading they are usually full screen adds.

Blogs are contents organised and uploaded usually by

individuals. Such contents may range from stories to events and

Blogs
videos. Blogs are usually interactive and visitors may share their

thoughts and idea.

Emails are highly subsidised means of personalised

communication as compared to the traditional direct mail.

Email

17
2.3 SOCIAL MEDIA

It has been challenging, over the years, to get a definition which fully captures Social

media as a whole. There are a number of terminologies that are used in an attempt to

understand the definition of Social media (Cox et al., 2009; Dippelreiter et al., 2008;

Fotis, Rossides & Buhalis, 2010; Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010; Xiang and Gretzel,

2010). These terminologies comprise of consumer generated media (CGM), social

networking sites (SNS), user-generated content (UGC), online social networks

(OSN), Web 2.0 and Travel 2.0. O’Reilly (2005) is said to have proposed the term

Web 2.0 (Xiang & Gretzel, 2010). Other authors have also spearheaded the shaping

of the terms consumer generated media and social media. The definitions to Social

Media and the tools used are still elusive and are being battled academically

(Dippelreiter et al., 2008).

In conceptualizing social media, it incorporates the idea of making available to many

users, internet access for collaborating, sharing communities with others in real time

with convenience regardless of time and distance. In Lange-Faria & Elliot (2012),

O’Reilly (2005) referenced the internet as a “conduit for participation, a consumer-

driven medium with ubiquitous reach”. In this model, the collective power and

collective intelligence of the general public are key drivers in business as compared

to the government, academia, or commercial enterprise. In other words, content has

greater impact as volume is larger. The concept that there is a community gave way

to the different terms amongst which is online community, virtual community,

virtual worlds, virtual presence, virtual reality, and virtual worlds. The term virtual

community is attributed to Rheingold (1993) with the formulation of the context for

social networking. This was as a result of studying the evolution of communities

across the world, particularly the sociological and anthropological aspects of these

18
communities. Virtual communities are defined as social aggregations that arises

from the net when people associate themselves with a particular issue, have

sufficient discussions and express emotions leading to the formation of webs and

nodes of relationships (Rheingold, 1993).

Social media can be understood as a collection of web applications over the net that

allow for the user to connect, post and share content in communities. Common social

media applications include Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Flickr, and MySpace.

Attempts have been made to classify social media. One of such is into six types

including collaborative projects, blogs, virtual social networks, virtual game worlds,

social networking sites and content communities (Kaplan and Haenlein 2010).

Similarly, Fotis et al. (2010) also proposed four domains of Social Media which are

gaming, sharing, expressing and networking. User generated content (UGC) is media

shared over the internet that is created by members of the general public rather than

professionals or paid participants who are contracted. These people use social media

to share ideas and collaborate. Contents shared could include actual photos, blogs or

micro blogs, videos, wikis and podcasts that users share publicly (Daugherty, Eastin,

& Bright, 2010).

Blackshaw (2006) defines User generated media (UGM) as collection of content

created by consumers at the receiving end of services with ideas and experiences that

are archived and shared online for other users. Online Social Networks are services

that allow people to construct profiles, articulate and share opinions as well as view

other in their list of connections on the web (Boyd & Ellison, 2007). Social

Networking Sites (SNS) are also like the Online Social Networks (ONS) and can be

used interchangeably (Boyd & Ellison, 2007)

19
2.3.1 Economic Considerations Of Social Media

Social media can be explained as any online word-of-mouth forum such as

chatrooms, service ratings, blogs, discussion boards and review sites comprising

digital audios, internet discussion boards and forums, video and phots and finally

social networking sites (Mangold and Faulds 2009). Social media is becoming a very

influential force in decision making about travel planning, and sharing of travel

experiences (Amaro, Duarte, & Henriques, 2015). The main social media platforms

are Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and WhatsApp. As at February 2017, dedicated

monthly Facebook users reached 1.86 billion with 1.23 billion daily active users

(Smith, 2017). Facebook's revenue share from mobile advertising was almost 50% as

of July 2013 (Bershidsky, 2013). Twitter, which was launched in 2013, is by far the

most prevalent micro-blogging site. As of February 2017, the company's data

showed that 319 million active monthly users send over 550 million tweets daily,

with nearly 60% of tweets sent from mobile devices (Smith, 2017).

Most businesses believe that Twitter is the best when it comes to understanding and

creating conversation with both customers and potential customers (Hays et al.,

2013). Recent data shows that ads on social media will hit $11 billion by 2017, from

$4.7 billion in 2012, with more opportunities available to explore this space for both

businesses and customers as well. When it comes to travel and tourism,

TripAdvisor.com, with 390 million unique users and over 453 million reviews and is

recognised as a major travel websites in the world (Smith, 2017).

Social media aids the transfer of information which will result in increased revenues

and easy access to data of potential audience groups that can relate with their

particular interests (Noff, 2011). This is a horizon view of opportunities that exist

20
with the use of social media and websites, and demonstrates the impact social media

has and its financial competitive advantage for businesses, who employ it in their

marketing strategies for targeting customers worldwide.

2.3.2 Social Media Marketing and Destination Management

The main idea behind Social Media Marketing (SMM) is to increase traffic of

certain links and websites, while engaging users through Social Media Sites. It also

aids in the endorsement of web site, products or services through online social

channels and communication with a huge society of people through reviews and

commenting, which cannot be done via the traditional media (Akhlagh, Akbari, &

Kasani, 2006).

As argued by Sigala, Christou, and Gretzel (2012), social media is changing the

transactional field of marketing and communication throughout the tourism sector.

Fotis, Rossides, and Buhalis (2010) argued that the advent of this new media is

greatly tampering the confidence of customers in traditional marketing tactics and

going further to reduce the visibility of traditional media. Although social media is

not the ultimate solution in all marketing challenges, it is very effective in

integrating all marketing communications of tourism (Sotiriadis & van Zyl, 2013;

VTIC, 2012).

Social media has paved way for tourism organizations such as Destination

Marketing Organizations (DMOs) to renovate and carry out their business models

and operations. Valls, Ouro, Freund, and Andrade (2013) proposed that the use of

social media will provide more avenues for firms that are customer-centric to

explore in creating a sustainable customer relation environment. It establishes a

genuine relationship between companies and customers, which could lead to

21
increased productivity by simplifying the value chain to cut cost and maximize

profit, also might subtly aid in gaining customer loyalty (Valls et al., 2013; Senders

et al., 2013).

Destination Management Partnership can be improved if other traditional online

marketing strategies are combined with social media and other innovative

promotional strategies (Bilbao & Herrero, 2009; Tham, 2013). Innovative tourism

firms do either or all of these: shift all activities to the online media or design and

create innovative products online to service the need of clients (Ružić & Biloš,

2010). As established earlier, social media is a medium used to boost the popularity

of business websites. In addition, Milano, Baggio, & Piattelli, (2011) suggest that

online social networks (OSNs) like Facebook and Twitter have remarkable and

positive impacts on the number of tourism website visits. The websites that get

mentions by online social networks receive more visits from customers.

There are a handful of difficulties for Destination Marketing Organizations using

social media. These include the difference between corporate and social media

cultures, the challenges social media innovative communication tools present for

traditional frameworks for management, low states of structuring and the lack of a

knowledge base (database management), which results in solutions that do not have

a long lifespan (Munar, 2012). These challenges which arise as a result of the

increasing importance of social media in the online tourism are quite similar to the

ones faced by the traditional providers of information for traveler (Xiang & Gretzel,

2010).

Most National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) have not yet fully adapted, or are not

experiencing advantages that social media offers to tourism management (Dwivedi,

22
Yadav, & Venkatesh, 2011; Stankov, Lazić, & Dragićević, 2010). Globally, more

than half of these organizations are either not present on social media sites such as

Facebook and Twitter, or have dormant pages with few or no contents. What more,

they are not sensitive to the views and comments created by ordinary persons on

their sites (Stankov et al., 2010).

2.4 MOTIVATIONS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA IN TOURISM

According to Dellarocas (2003), social media provides companies with unusual

openings to understand relate and react to their customers concerns. More

specifically in the context of the tourism industry, social media has evolved to be

one of the totally important components for the marketing strategies of Destination

Marketing Organization (Hays, Page and Buhalis 2013). By investigating comments

and reviews on social media, tourism firms can more easily understand their

customers and tailor product to meet their needs, forecast any potential changes in

their tastes and meet those changes as they happen (Leung et al. 2013).

To the consumers, information is essential in making decisions that are considered

highly risky because of the nature of tourism products (Huang, Chou, & Lin, 2010).

Social media is also simplifying the decision-making processes of consumers of

tourism products (Hudson and Thal 2013).

These products are such that it will be difficult to experience or sample before actual

consumption (Kim, Qu, & Kim, 2009), and customers will have to move from one

geographical region to another, which comes at more cost, if they want to sample it

(Werthner & Ricci, 2004). Travelers therefore use social media to read reviews and

gain information about sites. This has been found to greatly influence the decision of

participants of online travel communities to join (Chung & Buhalis, 2008a).

23
Using social media for tourism decision making has also been found to be a fun

spice of the travel planning process, making the whole experience more enjoyable

and exciting (Gretzel, Yoo, & Purifoy, 2007). It is important to note that the use of

social media is spurred by the level of involvement of the traveler in the experience,

his interests and results. These can be determinants for revisits or repurchase of

tourist products (Leung & Bai, 2013).

In academia, many researchers have focused on the importance of social media in

the tourism industry as a developing topic. Leung et al. (2013) suggest in their

finding that consumers usually use social media during the search phase of their

travel planning process, so truthfulness of contents on social media as an information

source is a vital component regarding customers decision to use information (Leung

et al. 2013). Zeng and Gerritsen (2014) also suggest that more research needs to be

undertaken to understand the economic contribution of social media to the tourism

industry. Some researchers have looked into the impact of social media on tourists’

travel information search, the quality of travel recommendation, and tourists’

purchasing behavior. Xiang and Gretzel (2010) discovered that most travel

information search results arise from social media. Huang et al. (2010) also

identified motivational factors for travelers to include information shared on social

media. Chung and Koo (2015), applying mental accounting theory, appreciated that

the tourist’s perceived usefulness of social media is considerably associated with the

kind of information he gets from it. He, Liu and Ziong (2016) also concluded that

diminutive items such as social relationships data entrenched in social media can

influence users’ travel behavior as well as what he tells others.

24
2.5 SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY

Communication between destination host and customers has become a lot cheaper,

convenient and efficient with the use of social media as compared to traditional

media (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). In case the destination seeks to be prominent on

the global scale, its uniqueness should lie in its competitive advantage (Porter,

1996).

Locations can make their voices aired with a properly panned marketing strategy

with social media as the conduit for dissemination. Tourism companies must

however properly plan their communications so that they do not lose their essence in

the already crowded space of the internet and social media. Essential tools to include

and clearly spell out in the creation of communication strategies should include

originality, opportunity to win, involvement of celebrities, distinctiveness,

suddenness, rivalry, dependability and/or interesting graphical design. Graham

(2005) explains social media to be any arrangement where persons can participate,

create, and share content with others. Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) also categorized

all social media into the following: social networking sites, virtual social worlds,

blogs, virtual game worlds and content communities and also embraces ratings,

forums, reviews, micro-blogging sites, video-casts, pod-casts, photo sharing sites

and social networking sites (FPRM, 2009).

More recently, functions of social media have been commonly merged into the

creation of mobile applications on smartphones. Unlike over a decade ago, assessing

social media has become very convenient. Some ways through which social media

can aid destinations to properly and accurately communicate their products and

services would be to increase brand awareness, brand engagement, encouraging

25
word of mouth, friends/liking, trust and social endorsement (Pergolino, Rothman,

Miller & Miller, 2012; Kiráľová, 2014). For a destination to be successful in its

marketing and communication strategies, it should carefully carry out an integrated

planning of both the online and offline tools and techniques. To develop a tactical

tourism plan for a destination means to clearly spell out its tactical significances and

course that have been identified by key participants for the innovative groundwork,

growth, administration and marketing of the destination. This is essential for the

long-term success and sustainability of the destination (Kiralova, 2016). This

strategy is needed for the destination to have a competitive urge over other rival

firms. Firms are forced to be innovative in today’s world as a result of some of the

trends they are facing such as the inconsistencies in the development of technologies

and global meltdowns leading to constrained budgets and layoffs. Destination

marketers have to ignore the otherwise expensive traditional communication tools of

print media, television, radio and billboard advertising among others towards

internet and social media (Kiralova, 2016).

The communications strategy is developed primarily to achieve the effective

communication of destinations. This aids in the clear definition of target audience

and the value proposition the destination has to offer to customers. A good

communication strategy will resound a crystal message to audience, aid in

differentiation with increased brand awareness and a strengthened image. Customers

will be able to conceive perceptions where necessary, increase the number of

visitations to social media channels and websites and engage effectively with

stakeholders. This might be a prelude to the destination ́s success (Kiralova, 2016).

26
2.6 DESTINATION IMAGE FORMATION IN SOCIAL MEDIA

There is so much literature on the formation of destination image as discussions on

this subject have been advanced since the 1970s (Pike 2002). The image of a

destination is perhaps the main focus of any tourist in their decision and planning

process for a travel (Baloglu and McCleary 1999) (Beerli and Martin 2004). An

image is created from the activities of spreading word of mouth (WOM) reviews,

and recommendations to acquaintances (Agapito, Oom do Valle and da Costa

Mendes 2013). That is to say, destination image has a great effect on the satisfaction

levels of tourists and other behavioral factors, subsequently influencing the

evaluations of the destination, and their behavioral intentions in the future (Wang

and Hsu 2010).

Tham, Croy and Mair (2013) also argued that electronic WOM (eWOM) in social

media formidably strengths the visibility of destination image by spreading diverse

perspectives with regard to the destination. In addition, Camprubí, Guia and Comas

(2013) argued the innovative role of tourists, presenting them as representatives in

the formation of the image of destinations and proposed that today tourists are

playing a major role in the process of the destination image formation with their

spur-of-the-moment comments and reviews on social media. In addition, Ghazali

and Cai (2014) present in their paper that social media links these three components:

suppliers (destinations), consumers (tourists), and third parties. They stated that

social media as an agent of tourism influences decisions by creating an attitudinal

image from a merger of actual experiences and reasoned conclusion by all

stakeholders of the industry (Ghazali and Cai, 2014).

27
2.7 TRAVELLERS’ USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Most users of social media primarily for information search normally segregate their

use of it into three: before, during and after the trip. Cox, Burgess, Sellitto, and

Buultjens (2009), however, discovered that social media are mainly used before

traveling. It is in this phase that tourists search for options of places to go to,

information on lodging, dining, recreation, trips and other pastime activities (Cox et

al., 2009 and Fotis et al., 2012). That is, social media helps reduce the perceived risk

that might stand as a challenge to the tourist in making decision, giving him or her

fair idea about the destination in question (Gretzel & Yoo, 2008). Prospective

travellers go to social media for contents that are generated by other travellers who

have visited destinations they wish to embark trips to (Simms, 2012). Before these

trips, travellers spend time going through information on social media – they read

blogs, view photographs and watch videos.

The use of social media by tourist in the course of the tours is significantly lesser

than prior to the trip (Cox et al., 2009 and Fotis et al., 2012). According to a study by

Fotis et al. (2012), 30% of the respondents searched for travel contents on their

holiday, while Cox et al. (2009) indicated that, the percentage dropped to 6%.

During this phase however, travellers do not only use social media in searching for

information for their personal consumption, but also begin to share and tell others

about their travel experiences, with posts, comments and reviews. They also begin to

share videos and photos. However, the amount of information that is consumed is

more than that that they generate for social media (Fotis et al., 2012). More to this,

some geo-location Social Media sites, such as Foursquare, can provide vital

information to tourism and hospitality businesses by encouraging travellers to use

28
social media during this phase in exchange for consideration or perks like discounts

or coupons (Hudson & Thal, 2013).

At the end of the travel, the tourists give reviews regarding the experience they had.

They do this through comments, reviews, photos or pictures on social media sites

(Fotis et al., 2012 and Parra-López et al., 2012). This is one of the main stages where

User Generated Contents are created, by the creation and publication of personal

contents, such as images, texts, audios and videos (Shao, 2009). In rebuttal to Cox et

al. (2009) earlier findings, Fotis et al. (2012) posit that most travellers use social

media mostly after the trips. The crusts of these findings become clear in the context

in which they were obtained: the Fotis et al. (2012) study was conducted using

travellers who lived in Former Soviet Union Republics, while the respondents for

Cox et al. (2009) were from Australia. This implies that there will be differences in

geographic areas and as such the conclusions cannot be generalised.

Tripadvisor receives a lot of contribution every minute (Tripadvisor, 2014),

however, the consumption of contents generated is more than that which is created

or produced. Yoo and Gretzel (2011) found out that only 17% out of the total

number of persons who used social media ever posted some content on it. In

addition, according to Forrester Research, 75% of Internet users use social media,

with less persons actively participating (Osborn, 2009).

The differences in behaviours of those who consume and those who produce social

media contents are very evident. Gretzel et al. (2007) found that, travel review

writers and bloggers get actively involved in planning for trips and destination visits

and greatly influenced by other reviews. The same however cannot be said for non-

writers. Most travellers who go through reviews on sites are persons who earn a lot

29
of income and travel more often as a leisure activity. This group represent a

beneficial target for travel and destination marketers.

2.8 KNOWLEDGE SHARING IN TRAVEL PLANNING PROCESSES WITH

SOCIAL MEDIA

Knowledge is now a decision maker between what makes a venture formidable or

what makes it simply ordinary. It is essential in trying to adapt and survive in today’s

world of work, business and enterprise (Marques & Simón, 2006). Sharing of

knowledge gives an individual the opportunity to tell others about his or her

experiences, and insights and lessons learnt over a period of time. Thus, the person

receiving the knowledge might use it to develop his/her act and avoid certain

unpleasant and negative events that might arise from not knowing. To put words

rightly together, knowledge sharing involves not sharing just knowledge, but also

engulfs skills, experiences and interests among individuals and communities (Wasko

& Faraj, 2005).

In the tourism industry, knowledge sharing highlights a tourist’s desire to exchange

experiences with others who have either gone or yet to visit sites. This exchange

allows community members to share experiences, skills, knowledge and interests

(Ridings, Gefen, & Arinze, 2002). Members of a community can be segregated into

two groups. The first set is people who basically seek information to assist in taking

decisions. The second set comprises of those people enthusiastic about sharing their

knowledge with others (Qu & Lee, 2011). A study in 2009 revealed that 84% of

tourists used the internet as a basis to schedule their flight fees and destination costs

(Torres, 2010). Individuals using social media only for information search are more

than persons who share information.

30
Today, websites and social media pages containing feedback, comments and reviews

by tourists are widespread and are becoming easier to get information about

unknown places (Huang, 2012; Lo, McKercher, Lo, Cheung, & Law, 2011). With

social media, tourists can share their experience, knowledge and observations of

their trip (Munar & Jacobsen, 2014). As a result of the web 2.0 and Travel 2.0

technologies, it has become imperative for tourism companies and destinations to

figure out those aspects that have the potential to serve to the advantage of their

long-term strategic goals.

2.8.1 Tourist Experience and Knowledge Sharing

Larsen (2007) proposes that, tourist experience is made up of three parts: the

planning process (pre-trip), the actual mission of the trip (during trip), and memories

of the trip (Post-trip). Pre-trip travel planning stage is essential for the formation of

expectations to have at the end of the trip. Expectations are important since they do

not allow a service to be carried out in a vacuum, without parameters. During pre-

trip travel planning, the tourist gains a significant amount of information that would

help in planning the trip with regards to routing and budgeting. In this regard,

information available to a tourist can influence different aspects of his/her decision

making (Bieger & Laesser, 2004; Gursoy & McCleary, 2004; Xiang & Gretzel,

2010). So social media help tourists to search, organize, and share their travel

memories and experiences through blogs (e.g., Blogger), online social networks

(e.g., Facebook), media sharing websites (e.g.,YouTube), social bookmarking

websites (e.g., Digg) and personal websites (Leung et al., 2013). Travel blogs get

flooded with a lot of people on daily bases that have had experiences they would like

to share.

31
All these feed the potential customer with accurate but quite prejudiced information

about the destination and the costs involved and the experiences to expect. During

the trip, and after the trip, ‘real-time’ happenings can be recorded and shared using

web-based platforms (Munar & Jacobsen, 2013). Travel blogs and website are types

of digitized word-of- mouth (WOM) communication which allows travelers to gain

some knowledge from other travelers and share their own experiences (Zehrer,

Crotts, & Magnini, 2011).

2.8.2 Potential of Knowledge Sharing over Social Media to Traveler’s

Decision Making

As already established, social media has become an important tool in information

search and decision-making in hospitality and tourism industries (Fotis, Buhalis, &

Rossides, 2011). Gaining information is the first step a tourist takes in the planning

process (Chen & Gursoy, 2000). Several studies have espoused on the significance

of social media in the decision making of tourists and the management of tourism

operation (Leung et al., 2013; Li & Wang, 2011; Noone, McGuire, & Rohlfs, 2011).

The advancements of technology in this era of internet-based social media sites have

granted tourist the ability to share their experiences and travel stories. This has

become a very important source of information to new tourists (Zeng & Gerritsen,

2014). Social media is not restricted for one occasion, but can be used before, and

during the travel planning process, and even after travels for sharing experience.

Increased usage of social media brings electronic word- of-mouth closer to

traditional word-of-mouth communication which is deemed as a trustworthy source

for decision-making in travel planning (Jacobsen and Munar, 2012).

32
The generation of contents, as a characteristic of social media, is the means of

helping tourists curtail risk perception during their decision-making process. Risk

reduction is sought when a purchaser is making either a new or expensive purchase

of a product and this is done with a thorough assessment of the product (Munar &

Jacobsen, 2014). Tourists contribute free of charge to social media platforms,

however, when information is shared, it may have high commercial value, especially

to the service provider. Trip Advisor and other review websites benefit from online

communities for tourists by exploiting their user-generated contributions

commercially and providing them to firms for value (Munar & Jacobsen, 2013).

2.9 ISSUES IN SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE IN TOURISM

Some concerns associated with the advancement of social media and the internet has

been raised. Like with all forms of media, language is a definite constraint on direct

information sharing between social media users. The world is dominated by the

English speaking people either as a first or second language. Travellers and people

engaged in tourism from non-English speaking countries are at a disadvantage in the

use of social media in finding out information for international travel planning and

marketing across countries where English is predominant. The same goes for other

languages (Hsu, 2012). Multiple language platforms or websites for tourism

participants might be useful to the service provider as well as the tourist. However,

current search engines and websites have not effectively inculcated information that

have been created and generated on different platforms. To solve this, discourses on

how to design innovative websites and social media platforms to properly manage

data in all types of language should be instituted (Ghose et al., 2012).

33
Secondly, in managing social media’s use, users from the supply side can be faced

with possible threats from the buyer’s side use in planning travels and

recommendation. Destination management might experience some challenges in

tourism management. Due to the large amounts of User Generated Content (UGC)

published, social media can be highly destructive when contents are negatives from

dissatisfied customers. This means that, if the use of social media in tourism is not

properly managed, its impact on the industry will be more smothering instead of

being nourishing (Hede and Kellett, 2012; Thevenot, 2007).

Finally, the objectivity and trustworthiness of UGC has been of concern to many

researchers since contents generated can be highly prejudiced or biased (Chung &

Buhalis, 2008; Fotis et al., 2012; Munar and Jacobsen, 2013; Tham, 2013)

34
 CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

3.1 INTRODUCTION

This research methodology discloses the way data and information were collected

and used to make analysis and decisions concerning this particular study. According

to Kothari (1990), this process provides a way systematically solving a research

problem and may be seen as a science of learning how data is analyzed.

The chapter throws more light on the research design and how it was used in this

research. It also explains the reason why the particular research method chosen was

used, which was influenced by the objectives of the study.

3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN

Burns and Grove (2013) explain a research design as a framework for conducting a

study with certain measures that will ensure the objectivity and validity of the study.

The main reason why a research design is needed is that it provides a blueprint for a

study, ensuring that relevant information which will be used to make informed

decisions are acquired, and the steps used to analyze the information are clearly

outlined.

Research designs may be exploratory with qualitative or quantitative options, or

conclusive with descriptive or causal research options (Malholtra & Birks, 2007).

This research used a descriptive research design so as to attain laid-out objectives in

examining the influence of social media in the choice of tourism destinations.

Malholtra and Birks (2007), state that a conclusive research aims at measuring the

35
impact between variables to examine the relationship that exist between those

variables.

A Conclusive - Descriptive research can employ observational methods, case-study

methods or survey methods in gathering data for analysis. It could be qualitative or

quantitative in nature and the differences can be identified in the data collection and

data analysis procedures (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill 2007). This study

employed a single cross-sectional design to collect quantitative data from a sample

population of students of the University of Ghana. According to Cohen (1980),

quantitative research deals with the representation of numbers and uses observations

to describe and explain phenomena related to the findings. The single cross-sectional

design obtains information from a sample of an entire population and is also known

as Sample Survey Research Design (Malholtra & Birks, 2007).

3.2.1Research Strategies

Saunders et al. (2007) highlight some seven key research strategies as grounded

theory, case study, survey, experiment, action research, grounded theory,

ethnography and archival research. Each one of these strategies makes use of

different methods to collect data and relies on research questions, objectives of the

study, degree of existing knowledge, and the number of assets available.

The objective of this study is to measure the relationship between variables like the

internet and tourism decision making, social media and the AIDA model, etc., and as

such there is a need for consistency in responses. This influenced the choice of

survey as an instrument to collect data from the sample population since the use of

fixed-response questions in a survey will help reduce variability in the results. Also,

36
surveys provide a simpler way to code, analyze and interpret information (Malholtra

& Birks, 2007).

3.2.2 Target Population

A target population is the entity or object which has information that is needed for a

study for observation (Malholtra & Birks, 2007). For this research, the target

population was restricted to local and foreign students of the University of Ghana,

Legon, who have embarked on tourism in its various forms in and throughout

Ghana.

3.2.3 Sampling Method

A sample is a subset or subgroup of the elements entire population that provides an

almost accurate representation an entire group (Malholtra & Birks, 2007). Bless and

Smith (2008) however argues that the advantages of studying a whole population

outweigh that of studying a sample because of reliability and validity of data.

Nonetheless, the use of sampling saves time and cost, provides attention to peculiar

individual cases and has a low cost of non-sampling errors (Malholtra & Birks,

2007, p. 407).

Two main types of sampling techniques are used in carrying out studies; these are

probability sampling techniques and non-probability sampling techniques.

Probability sampling refers to a fixed chance way involving listing random numbers

or equivalents in a population. However, non-probability sampling involves using

judgement to select elements to be sampled. Non-probability sampling technique can

be further classified into quota sampling, convenience sampling, purposive

sampling, self-selection sampling and snowball sampling (Malholtra & Birks, 2007,

37
p. 411). This study used convenience non-probability sampling, where elements of

sample population are selected due to its convenience and proximity to the

researcher. Hence, the elements of the sample size were selected at random at

convenience. Purposive sampling was also used in this study. Thus only a particular

number of foreign and local students of the University of Ghana were chosen for the

study. A few of the characteristics which related to the objectives of the study were

age, place of origin, period of visit and purpose of visit. Respondents were all 18

years and above and all students of the University of Ghana, Legon.

3.2.4 Sample Selection and Size

Sample size refers to the number of observations that are used in a research. If the

sample size is too large, the research will be more difficult and costly, thus accuracy

of the data collection, time and budget constraints were factors that influenced the

sample size chosen. Sekaran and Bougie (2010) suggest that for a sample size to

yield reliable results, it should within a range of 30 to 500 respondents. A total

sample size of 150 students from University of Ghana was chosen as an ideal size

for the purpose of this study.

3.3 RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

The key aim of this study was to determine the influence of social media in the

choice of tourism destinations. Some research tools that can be used to collect

primary data are: interviews, observations, questionnaires, standardized tests,

archival records, and documentations. A questionnaire was the research instrument

that was used to collect data for this research. Self-administered surveys such as this

study mostly require the use of questionnaires. A questionnaire is a set of questions

with a selection of pre-determined answers to choose from for a research. It could be

38
in the form of hard or softcopy. It may be used to supply both qualitative and

quantitative data. Some advantages of using a questionnaire are a lot of information

can be obtained from a desired of people over a time frame, it is easy to analyze

objectively, it is not prone to provide biased information as compared to interviews,

it is cost-efficient and practical and allows respondents to remain anonymous.

Even though questionnaires have proved to be advantageous as stated above, it is

somewhat time-consuming and do not provide reliable information especially when

some questions are unclear or misunderstood by the respondents. Also, it can record

low response rate where respondents are not incentivized or have no motivation

(Malholtra & Birks, 2007).

3.4 QUESTIONNAIRE DEVELOPMENT

In order to design a questionnaire, the researcher must determine the type of

questions to be asked, the question type for each question with a specified wording

and design the way the questions follow and the overall question layout. The

questions asked were directly related to the research objectives in order to guarantee

the objectivity and validity of the research. Personal or sensitive questions were

immensely avoided in order to make the respondents feel comfortable and not shy

away from participating in the study.

The questionnaire consisted of 20 questions. The first to third questions addressed

the demographic characteristics of the respondents and the fourth to sixth questions

enquired the presence of the respondents on social media of any kind and if they

possessed devices used to gain access to social media. Closed ended questions with

preset answers were mostly used due to the fact that open-ended questions would

have made analyzing the questionnaires a bit tedious and challenging. The use of

39
close-ended questionnaires made it easy for respondents to be willing to participate

in the research since minimal writing was required. They also helped for there to be

a uniformity of responses and guaranteed a better recording of data, even though

open-ended questions allow for respondents to express themselves in the ways they

would want to.

Six types of close-ended questions are listing, rating, quantity, category, ranking and

grid. The questionnaire was a mixture of rating and category type of closed-ended

questions. Clear instructions were stated in the questionnaires to serve as a guide to

respondents. A sample of the questionnaires distributed is shown in Appendix A.

3.5 DATA COLLECTION

In research, the most important process is the collection of data and can be obtained

through primary or secondary sources. Secondary data is data that were collected

had limitations in the geographic context of this study. Primary data on the other

hand were collected specifically for this study.

The survey was administered in February as it was the beginning of the semester and

students were less equipped with project works and tests. Most respondents were

willingly accessible. Questionnaires were shared and the researchers made sure not

to get too involved in order not to influence the judgements of the respondents.

Moreover, clear instructions on how to answer the questions were provided in the

questionnaires. Some questionnaires were completed whilst the researchers were in

waiting or being distributing concurrently. Respondents’ participation was

voluntarily and was done with great courtesy and completed questionnaires were

retrieved by the researchers by mode of collection.

40
3.6 DATA ANALYSIS

According to Marshall and Rossman (2012), data analysis is basically the process of

bringing order and structure and making meaning of data collected. In analyzing the

data, the Statistical Package for Social Scientist (SPSS) was used. Out of the 150

questionnaires, 32 of them were not properly answered and thus dismissed from the

research.

3.6.1 Validity

Validity simply means a state of being legally or socially acceptable. According to

Bearded, Netemeyer, and Haws (2011), the validity shows how truthful the

outcomes of the study are and the extent to which what was to be measured was fully

measured. The questionnaires were purposely designed in line with the research

objectives and the literature from the research. In ensuring internal validity of this

study, the dependent variable, questions were asked to ensure that the dependent

variable, decision making in tourism purchase, could be caused by the independent

variables of social media and the internet. From secondary as well as primary

findings, there were proofs that the internet and decision making in purchasing have

strong correlation. Other scholarly articles on social media and its influence on

tourism were also used as a benchmark in making sure the results obtained from the

research were objective and valid.

In ensuring external validity, thus whether findings can be generalized, the

representation in the sample size, although little, were a good representation of the

entire population. The use of convenience non-probability sampling also ensured

that the conclusion can be generalized for the real world since there was no

manipulation of elements and objects of this study

41
3.6.2 Reliability

Reliability is the extent to which same results will be achieved if the study was

repeated over and over again (Malholtra & Birks, 2007, p. 159). Some measures

such as the clarity in the research objectives and the nature of the questions asked

ensured reliability. The questions asked were in line with the research objectives and

the research literature. Questions asked were straightforward and closed-ended with

few open-ended. Also, the findings were compared with other scholarly articles of a

similar study and the results and conclusions were consistent. The correlation

between the result of this study and other studies is very high.

3.6.3 Anonymity and Confidentiality

Even though confidentiality and anonymity are related, they are two distinct

concepts. Anonymity simply means that the research does use information used to

identify the respondents, and confidentiality means the protection of participants’

responses when they are stored or even when they are out in the open. The

anonymity and confidentiality of respondents were guaranteed in the research by

storing the completed and retrieved questionnaires away from the general public and

by not requiring respondents to state their names and other personal details.

3.6.4 Ethical Considerations

The respondents were pre-informed on the objectives of this study and made aware

that the outcomes could be given out to respondents who showed interest in them

after the research had been completed. Ethical considerations were carefully

observed in this research as no respondent was coerced to partake in the survey if

he/she was not willing to do so.

42
Privacy rights were also guaranteed as the respondents weren’t required to provide

their names and other personal details. Respondents were also made aware that they

could pull out from the research for any reason considered indispensable and assured

that their feedback remained confidential.

3.6.5 Limitations of the Study

Considering that the respondents were taken from the University of Ghana, Legon

campus and that only 150 participants which included both foreign and local

students who partook in the research, the space and sample size was the main

preventive factor. Constraints that further limited this research were time and money.

3.7 CONCLUSION

The above chapter throws light on the methodology implemented for this research.

The research design, target population, sample size and selection, instrument design,

data collection and analysis methods, and validity and reliability are all clearly

explained. The research made use of a descriptive research method with the use of

questionnaires. The subsequent chapter elaborates on the research findings and

further analysis of the outcomes.

43
 CHAPTER FOUR

DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA

4.1 INTRODUCTION

The aim of this chapter is to analyze, interpret and discuss the results of the response

from the questionnaire. First, a description of the sample frame will be provided.

Secondly, there will be a presentation of the results of the responses collected in the

descriptive statistics forms of graphs, tabulations and figures. The data collected was

analyzed with SPSS version 20.0 and Google Analytics. The result will espouse on

the major use of mobile phones, main social media sites visited, number of times

respondents take tour around Ghana, main reasons for the trips, how and why the get

information about the sites, main concerns of information gathering, most prominent

media for advertising, degree of truthfulness of advertisement on social media, etc.

4.2 SAMPLE DESCRIPTION

In total, 150 questionnaires were sent out to students, both foreign and local,

currently pursuing academic courses in the University of Ghana. 118 questionnaires

were completed and collected, giving a 78.7% response rate.

The majority of the respondents are Ghanaian students with a percentage of 86.4%,

with respondents who are non-Ghanaians at 13.6%. Of the total number of

respondents, 54.2% are females and 45.8% are males with 86.4% in the age range of

19 -24 years, 10.2% below 18 years and 3.4 above 25 years.

44
 86.4%

Figure 0.1 Representation of respondent countries

Figure 0.2 Gender distribution

45
Figure 0.3 Age distribution

4.3 SAMPLE PREFERENCE

Results on their daily use of smart phones showed that the main activities with smart

phones, in respective order, are to go on social media, look for information over the

internet, send text messages, check emails, and take photographs and stream videos.

Purchasing online was the least activity performed with their smart phones.

50% of the respondents use devices to have access to information on travel

destination on social media always, while 18.6% have never accessed information

about tourism destinations with their devices.

46
Figure 0.4 Access to information

Figure 0.5 Use of smartphones

47
The predominant social media accounts as shown in Figure 6 according to the

respondents are Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest and Snapchat.

WhatsApp was not captured in the questionnaire as a social media site because it is

termed as an Instant Messaging App. However, some respondents decided to include

it in their responses.

Figure 0.6 Social media accounts

Also, 80.5% of the respondents embark on trips at least once in a year with 6.8%

doing it for more than four times in a year. 19.5% do not embark on these trips at all

as shown in Figure 7. The main aim for majority of travels is to go and have fun and

relax (recreation), followed by for educational purpose. This is shown in Figure 8.

Again, more than half (59.5%) of the respondents conduct pre searches before

traveling (figure 4.9) and also 51.1% of this number do this to gain first knowledge

about their destination (figure 4.10).

48
Figure 0.7 Number of travel per year

Figure 0.8 Reasons for travel

49
 Figure 0.9 Pre trip information search

Figure 0.10 Purpose of search

50
4.4 SOURCE OF INFORMATION

The information source that the respondents frequently use when gathering

information about destination and travel, out of a 100%, are as follows. The first

point of call for most respondents is the internet with 83.9% of the total respondents.

The next point of call is family and friends. 67.8% of the respondents will seek for

information through family and friends who have had experiences. 35.6% of the

respondents seek out for information from the television. This means that in Ghana

television is the next used device after the mobile phones or smart phones in the

Ghanaian setting. Advertisement from articles and newspapers, radio and travel

guides and magazines are the next sources with 28.8%, 18.6% and 17.8%

respectively.

Information by specialized offices such as tourism agency, ministries and travel

agencies are the less patronized when potential tourists seek information on travel

destinations.

Figure 0.11 Source of information

51
When narrowed in onto the internet, 56.8% of the respondents will look up photo

sharing sites such as Instagram first. This is followed by official websites of

destination or blogs about destinations with 44.1%. Video sharing sites, such as

YouTube, are the third point of call on the internet with a percentage of 38.1%.

Facebook and Twitter, as lone sites, follow closely with 36.4% and 33.9%

respectively. Social bookmarking sites such as Digg have not gained popularity

among respondents and are the least patronized over the internet.

Figure 0.12 Sources from the internet

4.5 INFLUENTIAL FACTORS ABOUT DESTINATIONS

To determine the extent to which other situational factors were top of mind when

gathering information about destinations, respondents were asked to rate those

factors on a scale of 1 -5. As seen in Figure 13 below, the most top of mind factor is

Safety of Destination with a mean of 4.525. The next is Health and Hygiene factors

of the location with a mean of 4.322, followed by Recreation with 4.203 as the third

factor taken into consideration when making choice.

52
Accommodation and amenities is fourth place with a mean of 4.051, while Natural

Environment is fifth with 4.042. Price comes up next with a mean of 3.89 whereas

Disposable income and Political stability have the same mean of 3.881 in seventh

places.

Proximity to location is the least considered factor when respondents are gathering

information to choose a destination with a mean of 3.017.

Figure 0.13 Factors influencing decision making

53
4.6 INFLUENTIAL MEDIA FOR ADVERTISEMENT OF DESTINATION

When asked how much attention will be given to advertisement on media in

Question 14 of the questionnaire, on a scale of 1-5, these were the findings.

Photo sharing media such as Instagram will receive the most attention. Mobile

applications for tourist destinations will be the next best choice to look up

advertisement about packages and promotions offered by the destination. Video

sharing sites, travel guides, Facebook, Television, collaborative websites (Wiki),

Local newspapers and company sponsored sites will be next options respectively.

User-sponsored blogs will be the least option for advertisement look out.

Figure 0.14 Media for advertising

54
4.7 AVAILABILTY AND RELEVANCE OF INFORMATION ON TOURISM

DESTINATION IN GHANA

The availability of information on tourism destination and sites is important. 67% of

the respondents believe there are sites that provide information on tourism in Ghana.

33% of the respondents did not think so.

Again, 67% of respondent agreed that there is a positive correlation between

information that is found on the internet and the actual experiences and items at the

tourism sites. 33% of the respondents felt otherwise.

Figure 0.15 Correlation of information

55
Figure 0.16 Knowledge of available tourism websites for Ghana

90.7% believe that social media is a very good tool to use for the advertisement and

promotion of tourist destinations and sites, products and packages of tourism and

tour agencies. In spite of these findings, 73.7% of the respondents thought that

Ghana and tourism destinations in the country were not making good use of the

technology of social media to advertise and better promote their areas.

4.8 SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE DECISION MAKING MODEL

The AIDA Model defines the stages an individual goes through in making a

purchase decision. Beginning with the Awareness of a product, to the development

of Interest then the stimulation of Desire to purchase and the final Action, this model

helps marketers know when and how to approach customers.

56
Social media as an advertisement tool can influence the decisions of patronizers at

different stages. Figure 4.17 below shows the extent to which social media

influences at the various stages of the AIDA model, according to respondents.

Figure 0.17 Influence of social media with regards to the AIDA model

81.5% of the respondents said that social media brings the attention of the

destination to them. They get to know, firsthand, about some destinations via social

media.

69.1% of the respondents said that social media helps raise their interest to look for

information to embark on trips through the posts and comments of others.

64.2% of the respondents said that social media aids them to take actions by

providing information about booking cost and travel expenses and aid in the settling

of these expenses.

34.6% of the respondents said that social media stimulates their desire to embark on

a trip.

57
4.9 MODE OF COMMUNICATION

The figure below gives a summary of the best modes to advertise tourism in Ghana

as per the respondents.

77.2% of the respondents believe that the use of pictures and photographs will be the

best methods to communicate information about tourism destinations in Ghana.

73.3% suggest that the use of videos will be the next best option for advertising,

while 31.7 and 5% of the respondent agree on the use of words (write-ups) and

emoticons respectively to advertise locations.

Figure 0.18 Mode of communication

58
 CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

5.1 CONCLUSION

Tourism has continued to grow fast as an economic sector in spite of the global

financial crisis about a decade ago. The internet, especially the Social Media

segment, is fast gaining roots all over the world (Seabra, 2013). These phenomena

are not unfamiliar to the people in Ghana and hence, it is important to find out how

these two are working hand in hand to promote economic growth in the country.

To get come to a conclusion, we asked the research questions:

 Do social media facilitate travel and tourism in Ghana?

 Do social media influence the stages in the AIDA model?

 How do the different stages in the AIDA model influence

tourism purchase?

In the aim to answer the question whether social media facilitated tourism in travel,

we asked for the sources persons gathered information about tourist destinations in

Ghana (Appendix A, 11). The results made it clear that the internet was the major

and the largest source of information about tourism. Therefore, social media, the

largest segment of the internet has influence on tourism in Ghana.

The study also found out that, recommendations from family and friends was high

on the radar of people’s search for information. According to Reingold (1993),

virtual communities are made up of family and friends over the net. Thus, social

59
media is a community of family and friends over the internet. This tends to validate

the notion that Social Media, which is a community of family and friends over the

internet, facilitates tourism in Ghana.

To answer the question whether social media influences the stages in the Attention,

Interest, Desire and Action model, the study sought to find out when respondents

visited social media about tourism. It came to discovery that Social media influenced

the model especially at the first stage, Attention, and the last stage, Action (Figure

4.10).

Finally, to how the different stages in the AIDA model influenced tourism purchase,

all respondents agreed that there was at least more than one stage of the model that

elicited a desire to make a tourism trip. The first was the Attention stage which

provided them with cues of want and need for gratification of self in touring either

for recreational purposes, for educational purpose, for religious purposes, etc. The

next prominent stage is the Desire stage which arises when their want for the

purchase is heightened by the information, reviews and comments about other

peoples’ experiences. And the third prominent is the Action, where respondents take

steps to find out information about booking and expenses and if possibly, book for

voyage for actual experience.

Tourism is a high risk product and hence, potential customers need a lot of

information to remove all doubts and reduce perceived risks. However, the tourism

landscape of Ghana is not taking advantage of the global yet inexpensive medium of

Social Media to increase the sectors productivity and revenue. Promotion of tourism

in Ghana has a lot of potential as there are so many sites and locations, however,

majority operate in silos and are far away from the minds of potential tourists.

60
Tourism is influenced by social media worldwide and this can also be done in

Ghana.

5.2 RECOMMENDATION

All tourist destinations and locations, travel agencies and firms concerned with the

tourism sector of Ghana should actively get on to all social media portals if possible

and provide the climate to facilitate discussion among tourist and potential

customers in Ghana. The internet and Social Media can be used to create massive

awareness about certain obscure destinations and also facilitate less expensive

communication among and between major stakeholders.

In advertising destinations, Social Media marketers must make sure that the truth

about sites and destinations are communicated so that experiences do not have to fall

so short of expectations.

Destination management companies should be apt in ensuring safety and security as

well as hygiene and sanitation at facilities of these sites and locations since these two

are the most prioritised when tourists are making decisions. Any upgrade in facilities

should be accurately and timely communicated to audience, since that can serve as

competitive advantage to the site.

Finally, as the study showed, the use of photographs and videos should be the main

mode of communicating to target audience.

5.3 LIMITATION AND FUTURE RESEARCH

The sample size of the respondent, although representative of the population of

Ghanaians and foreigners in Ghana, was too small. And hence, there can be records

61
of large margin of errors in the study. Also, all respondents are students who are

only one sector of the entire population distribution.

Therefore, we hope that future studies in this topic have larger sample sizes being

representative of all age distribution in both the formal and informal sectors of the

economy.

In addition, future studies should look at the influences of some narrow trends in the

technology world as well as narrowed down to certain subsectors of the tourism

sector such as hospitality, destination management and travel.

62
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 APPENDICES

APPENDIX A
SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE

Dear Respondent, a study being conducted as a requirement for obtaining a degree in

Bachelor of Science in Administration (Marketing) from the University of Ghana to
understand the influence of social media on the choices of touristic destination
among students of the University of Ghana. The information required is solely for
academic purposes and will therefore be treated as highly confidential. Kindly
provide accurate answers to the questions. Your co-operation will be appreciated.
*Required
1. Which country do you come from? *
Mark only one oval.

o Ghana
o Other:

2. What is your gender? *

Mark only one oval.

o Male
o Female

3. Which age category do you fall in? *

Mark only one oval.

o 18 years and below

o 19 - 24 years
o 25 years and above

4. Which of the following do you do on your mobile phone? (Please check all
that apply) *
Tick all that apply.

o Go on Social Media
o Check your e-mails
o Take photos
o Use for GPS
o Video calls
o Stream videos
o Look for information over the internet
o Buy products
o Text message
o None of the above

5. How often do you use your mobile phone or computer (also laptop, Ipad)
in order to have access to social media travel destinations? *

66
 Mark only one oval.
0 1 2 3 4 5
Never lways A
6. Which social media sites do you have an account on? (choose as many that apply) *
Tick all that apply.

o Twitter
o Facebook
o YouTube
o Instagram
o Pinterest
o LinkedIn
o Other:

7. How often do you/ have you embark(ed) on travels or tours around Ghana?
*
Mark only one oval.

o Once a year
o Two to four times a year
o More than four times a year
o Never

8. What is/are the two (2) main reason(s) for the trip(s)? *
Tick all that apply.

o Educational
o Recreational
o Religious
o Other:

9. Do you conduct preliminary searches on travel destinations you go to?

Mark only one oval.

o Yes
o No

10. What are the purposes for your preliminary searches?

Mark only one oval.

o To gain your first knowledge about a destination

o To develop interest in the location
o To get convinced or persuaded about making the travel
o To find out information about how to make the trip (price &
booking)

11.Where do you get information regarding a travel destination? (You may

tick more than one replies as appropriate) *

67
 Tick all that apply.

o Television
o Radio
o Advertisements and articles in local newspapers and
magazines
o Travel guidebooks and travel magazines
o Internet
o Recommendations from friends and relatives
o Information provided by specialised offices and travel
agencies
o Other:

12. When using the internet for gathering information about travel
destinations, which of the following are important to you. (Please tick as
many that may apply) *
Tick all that apply.

o User-sponsored Blogs
o Twitter
o Facebook
o Video Sharing sites (eg. YouTube, Vimeo)
o Photo Sharing sites (eg. Instagram, Snapchat)
o Collaborative Websites (eg. Wikipedia)
o News Delivery Sites
o Social Bookmarking Sites (eg. Digg)
o Mobile Applications
o Official websites/blogs of the destination
o Company sponsored web sites/blogs

13. Please state your degree of agreement/ disagreement with the following
sentences. When gathering information about a travel destination
a) I am primarily concerned about Price *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
b) I am primarily concerned about Accommodation types and amenities * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
c) I am primarily concerned about Natural Environment & Scenery * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Completely Disagree Completely Agree d) I am
primarily concerned about Culture *
Mark only one oval.

68
 1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
e) I am primarily concerned about Safety of Destination * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
f) I am primarily concerned about Political Stability of Region * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
g) I am primarily concerned about my Disposable Income * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Completely Disagree Completely Agree h) I am
primarily concerned about Recreation *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
I) I am primarily concerned about Health & Hygiene * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
j) I am primarily concerned about Proximity to my Residence * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
k) I am primarily concerned about time spent on journey * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
CompletelyCompletely
Agree Disagree
14. When choosing a destination, how much attention do you pay on
advertisements associated with travel destinations through the following
sources?
a) User-sponsored Blogs *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important V ery important
b) Twitter *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5

69
 Not important Very important
c) Facebook *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important
ery important V
d) Video Sharing sites (e.g. YouTube, Vimeo) * Mark only
one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important
ery important V
e) Photo sharing sites (e.g. Instagram, Flickr) * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important ery important
V f)
Collaborative Websites (e.g. Wikipedia) *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important
ery important V
g) News Delivery Sites Social Bookmarking Sites (e.g. Digg) * Mark
only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important
ery important V
h) Mobile Applications Official websites/blogs of the destination * Mark only
one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important
ery important V
I) Company sponsored web sites/blogs * Mark only
one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important V ery important
j) Emails *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important V ery important
k) Text Messages * Mark only
one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important V ery important
l) Television and Radio *
Mark only one oval.

70
 1 2 3 4 5
Not important ery important
V m) Local
Newspapers and Magazines *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important ery important
V o) Travel
guidebooks and travel magazines *
Mark only one oval.
1 2 3 4 5
Not important
ery important V
15. Did you find any sites dedicated to information on those tourism
destinations? *
Mark only one oval.

o Yes
o No

16. Did information gather correlate with events and items at the site? *
Mark only one oval.

o Yes
o No

17. Is tourism in Ghana making good use of social media for advertisement?
*
Mark only one oval.

o Yes
o No

18. Would you recommend social media as a good informative tool for
tourist locations to others? *
Mark only one oval.

o Yes
o No

19. How can social media be used as an informative tool to the general public
in stimulating tourism?
Tick all that apply.

o Attract attention of people to the existence of certain tourism

destinations
o Raise the interest of people in tourism by focusing on features
and excitement of tourism destinations
o Make people have the desire to visit a tourism destination
because it has become a need

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 o Aid people in booking and making reservations to tourist
destinations

20. Which of the following will be the best mode(s) in communicating

information about tourist destinations? *
Tick all that apply.

o Use of photographs
o Use of videos
o Use of write-ups
o Use of emojis
o Other:

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