Emirati Millennials: A Catalyst for Innovation in the Tourism Industry

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samia Youssry Warda
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Travel Behaviour ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Travel Patterns ◽  
Leisure Travel ◽  
Travel Planning ◽  
Tourist Behaviour ◽  
Online Travel ◽  
The Impact

It is evident that generational shifts in tourist behaviour facilitate the anticipation and accommodation of future trends in the industry. Although a unique and influential tourist segment, the millennial generation of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has not been adequately researched. This paper aims to explore the travel patterns of Emirati millennials; particularly their preferences, their online travel behaviour and the impact of social media on their choices. After reviewing the academic and trade literature on millennial travelers and some cases of existing innovative practices of tourism businesses targeting millennials, the paper will present the results of a survey conducted to investigate the travel patterns of young Emirati travelers, contributing to the literature on this emerging segment which is almost nonexistent. The research offers useful insights into what Emiratis value the most, their preference for leisure travel to new destinations and the influence of travel apps and social media on their travel planning. The research led to the development of suggestions for businesses aiming to attract millennials.

scholarly journals Online Tourist Behaviour: An Evaluation of the Tourism Industry of India

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-28
Author(s):  
Bivek Dutta ◽  
Sajnani M
Keyword(s):  
Service Sector ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Travel Behaviour ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Review Of Literature ◽  
Customer Expectation ◽  
Internet Users ◽  
Tourist Behaviour ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
Online Travel

A review of literature pertaining to online travel behaviour shows that most travel purchases in India are done online. In India, 68% of the population book flight tickets directly. India has an urban adult population of 240 million out of which 27% or 65 million go on holidays. India has 205 million internet users and 110 million Smartphone users. Online Travel bookings are expected to grow rapidly as India’s online travel penetration is expected to increase It is not only restricted to online product purchases. This paper is an attempt to discuss online tourist behaviour in the burgeoning Tourism Industry. The paper also looks into some key aspects such as the performance of the service sector, E-commerce and development of internet which are majorly responsible for developing customer expectation. It also throws light on online tourist behaviour and means of delivering a good experience to the tourists through an array of online services.

scholarly journals Post-COVID-19 crisis travel behaviour: towards mitigating the effects of perceived risk

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tafadzwa Matiza
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Travel Behaviour ◽  
Potential Effect ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Potential Influence ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Tourism ◽  
Tourist Behaviour ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the on-going COVID-19 pandemic and its potential influence on tourist behaviour in the short- to medium-term. While the influence of the pandemic on tourist’s perceived risk and its impact on their future travel behaviour is understandably yet to be established, the present paper discusses the potential nexus. Additionally, this paper provides tourism practitioners with some recommendations for mitigating the effect of potential heightened perceived risk on travel and tourism decision-making post the COVID-19 crisis. Design/methodology/approach The present paper synthesises contemporary academic literature on perceived risk and post-crisis tourism with emerging information associated with the unfolding COVID-19 crisis. Findings This paper draws empirical evidence from studies related to previous health crises and their impact on tourism, as well as tourist behaviour. By discussing previous studies within the context of the on-going COVID-19, it is possible to anticipate the influence that perceived risk associated with the pandemic may have on the post-crisis behaviour of tourists. Also, short-term measures to mitigate the effects of risk on tourism are posited to guide practitioners in the future recovery of the sector. Research limitations/implications The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented and on-going crisis for the global tourism industry. Hence, the present paper serves as a primer to a broader discussion within the tourism discourse and provides theoretical direction for future tourism research. Practical implications Key to the recovery of the global tourism industry will be encouraging both domestic and international tourism activity. However, while the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on tourist behaviour is yet to be substantiated, previous research predicts a situation of heightened perceived risk and the potential cognitive dissonance that may negatively influence tourist decision-making. To mitigate this potential effect, governance, augmented immigration policy, destination media profiling, recovery marketing and domestic tourism will be critical interventions. Originality/value This paper is one of the first to discuss the potential influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the post-crisis decision-making process of tourists and their conative behaviour. As a primer to further empirical research, this paper sets a pertinent research agenda for academic inquiry within an evolving and increasingly uncertain global tourism market.

scholarly journals Effect of Online Travel Bookings and Social Media on Tourism Destination Marketing in Nigeria

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-16
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Abiola-Oke ◽  
Christopher O Aina
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Tourist Destinations ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Online Travel ◽  
The Impact

The impact of information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is also felt in the field of tourism as it plays an essential role in the development and marketing of tourism. The study focused on the growth of Online Travel Booking in the tourism industry in terms of the internet, mobile and social media in a country like Nigeria where there are tons of tourist destinations across the country. Both primary and secondary data were used for this study. A questionnaire was designed to collect primary data. The survey was distributed to a sample of 222 students of Redeemer's University through the random selection of both genders. The Chi-square method was employed in analysing the data. Out of 222 questionnaires administered, only 200 were retrieved. Flights and Hotel reservations can be made online through e-mail, telephone calls and other internet services thereby helping to reduce if not remove the time-wasting processes of the old system entirely. It is, therefore, evident that its adoption is necessary for proper inclusion in these benefits and sustainable development of tourism.

scholarly journals Analysing the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on everyday travel behaviour in Germany and potential implications for future travel patterns

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktoriya Kolarova ◽  
Christine Eisenmann ◽  
Claudia Nobis ◽  
Christian Winkler ◽  
Barbara Lenz
Keyword(s):  
Public Transport ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Adult Population ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Travel Behaviour ◽  
German Population ◽  
Travel Patterns ◽  
Home Office ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Introduction The global Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is having a great impact on all areas of the everyday life, including travel behaviour. Various measures that focus on restricting social contacts have been implemented in order to reduce the spread of the virus. Understanding how daily activities and travel behaviour change during such global crisis and the reasons behind is crucial for developing suitable strategies for similar future events and analysing potential mid- and long-term impacts. Methods In order to provide empirical insights into changes in travel behaviour during the first Coronavirus-related lockdown in 2020 for Germany, an online survey with a relative representative sample for the German population was conducted a week after the start of the nationwide contact ban. The data was analysed performing descriptive and inferential statistical analyses. Results and Discussion The results suggest in general an increase in car use and decrease in public transport use as well as more negative perception of public transport as a transport alternative during the pandemic. Regarding activity-related travel patterns, the findings show firstly, that the majority of people go less frequent shopping; simultaneously, an increase in online shopping can be seen and characteristics of this group were analysed. Secondly, half of the adult population still left their home for leisure or to run errands; young adults were more active than all other age groups. Thirdly, the majority of the working population still went to work; one out of four people worked in home-office. Lastly, potential implications for travel behaviour and activity patterns as well as policy measures are discussed.

scholarly journals Social media marketing and business competitiveness: evidence from South African tourism SMMEs

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 411-423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patient Rambe
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
South African ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Online Marketing ◽  
Social Media Marketing ◽  
Competitive Strategies ◽  
Media Technologies ◽  
Business Competitiveness ◽  
Medium Enterprises ◽  
The Impact

The increasing prominence of social media marketing in advancing the global reach and visibility of products and services is ideal for the South African tourism industry, which depends on local and international visitors for leveraging its business activities and competitiveness. However, what remains under-explored in tourism literature is the depth of integration of social media marketing into the competitive strategies of emerging tourism small, micro and medium enterprises (SMMEs). To address this grey area, this study explored the extent to which tourism SMMEs utilize social media technologies (SMTs) to extend their market share and the implications thereof for the competitiveness of their business operations. Drawing on a quantitative approach, a survey was conducted on 234 tourism SMMEs’ owner/managers in the Free State province of South Africa to establish the impact of social media marketing on the competitiveness of their businesses. Evidence suggests that tourism SMMEs employed social media marketing predominantly for online marketing of their products/services, promoting their products/services, attracting existing customers, and sometimes, for integrating it into their marketing strategies. Results of correlation analysis revealed that social media marketing is positively and significantly related to the competitiveness of tourism SMMEs. The recommendations for leveraging the integration of social media marketing into the competitive strategy of the small business are provided.

scholarly journals Social Media Applied to Tourism and Hospitality

2020 ◽  
pp. 270-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luís Pacheco ◽  
Fernando Moreira
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Metropolitan Area ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Social Knowledge ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Consumer Reviews ◽  
Social Media Tools ◽  
Tourism And Hospitality ◽  
Online Travel ◽  
The Impact

Online hotel reviews, ratings, or opinions have gained importance with the growth of social media tools. The objective of this chapter is to study the impact of specific satisfaction attributes on overall satisfaction. It is used a secondary data set obtained from three of the most influential online travel platforms, being analyzed the guests' average ratings for around 130 hotel units, distributed by four quality segments, located in the Porto metropolitan area. The application of this methodology to a large sample of Portuguese hotels has not been done before, been that the main contribution of this study. It is evidenced that the different platforms, while all incorporating consumer reviews as primary social knowledge, are distinct from each other on some aspects. The three platforms present roughly the same supply of hotels, albeit presenting some differences in terms of volume of data. In terms of specific attributes, with the exception of “service,” the three platforms present significant differences that may reflect the different user bases on these platforms.

Social Media Impact on Holiday Travel Planning

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Fotis ◽  
Dimitrios Buhalis ◽  
Nicos Rossides
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Former Soviet Union ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Travel Planning ◽  
Travel Agents ◽  
Internet Users ◽  
Specific Stage ◽  
Travel Industry ◽  
The Impact

The impact of social media on the travel industry is predicted to be tremendous, especially on its holiday travel segment. Although there is a plethora of studies concentrating on the role and impact of social media in travel related decisions, most of them are medium and community specific, or focus on a specific stage of the decision making or the travel planning process. This paper presents a comprehensive view of the role and impact of social media on the travel planning process: before, during and after the trip, providing insights on usage levels, scope of use, level of influence, and trust. The study was conducted through an online structured questionnaire on a sample of 346 members of an online panel of internet users from Russia and the other Former Soviet Union (FSU) Republics who had been on holidays in the previous 12 months. Findings reveal that social media are predominantly used after holidays for experience sharing. It is also shown that there is a strong correlation between level of influence from social media and changes made to holiday plans. Moreover, it is revealed that user-generated content is more trusted than official tourism websites, travel agents, and mass media advertising.

Role of Social Media in Travel Planning and Tourism Destination Decision Making

2020 ◽  
pp. 36-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Malitoni Chilembwe ◽  
Frank Wadilika Gondwe
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Simple Random Sampling ◽  
Sampling Procedure ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Tourism Destination ◽  
Travel Planning ◽  
Planning Decisions

Today, tourism firms use social media to communicate and inform their clients about tourism destination offerings. Trip planners are utilizing social media to make informed decision making about tourists' destinations. With information technology and social media, travelers can get updates on their booked flights and hotels at a tourist destination. The growth of social media usage in tourism industry influences most of the firms to start adopting using social media. This chapter, therefore, focuses on the role of social media in travel planning and tourism destination decision making. It evaluates five cases whereby clients' use travel planning decisions but also changes or curtail plans as a result of social media communication. The survey study uses a simple random sampling procedure and interviewed 792 travelers using a structured questionnaire in ten tourist destinations covering developed and developing countries. The key results revealed that 92% of travelers make a booking but also change or curtail travel planning decisions for holidays through social media alerts.

DAMPAK KOMUNIKASI GENERASI MILENIAL TERHADAP PERILAKU NOMADIC TOURISM

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (01) ◽  
pp. 45-52
Author(s):  
Boby Dimas Parwoto ◽  
Adella Gloria Harjanto ◽  
Elmira Peja
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Financial Planning ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Travel Patterns ◽  
Google Maps ◽  
Tourist Attractions ◽  
Qualitative Approaches ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of this research is to analyze the impact of the application of the concept of nomadic tourism to travel patterns and use descriptive methods with quantitative and qualitative approaches through social media-based surveys on tourist attractions in the Orchid Forest Cikole, Bandung. The pattern of traveling in this 4.0 era, for the most respondents mixed of generations Y and Z, are able to travel twice a year and prefer to travel in low sessions (71.3%). In financial planning, they do not need to save money, because with minimal funds they can take a vacation on an impromptu basis, seeing the review as their main consideration for a vacation. However, the presence of virtual reality or augmental reality facilities will have a negative impact on income for nomadic destinations / attractions. The concept of nomadic tourism, applied in the Orchid Forest Cikole attraction, Bandung has not been very effective, because most tourists who come feel more secure and comfortable using the concept of non-nomadic tourism. And in terms of digital tourism, these attractions can already be accessed through google maps and have been instagramable, as well as reviews of these attractions can already be accessed via Social Media or YouTube. Keywords: Nomadic Tourism, Industrial Revolution 4.0, Impact and Transformation

The impact of the COVID-19 "Infodemic" on Well-being: Social media practices during the pandemic - a cross-sectional study (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iffat Elbarazi ◽  
Basema Saddik ◽  
Michal Grivna ◽  
Faisal Aziz ◽  
Deena Al Souri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Well Being ◽  
World Health ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The World ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Media Practices

BACKGROUND The COVID-19 pandemic created a crisis in the world of information and digital literacy. The amount of misinformation surrounding COVID-19 that has circulated through social media (SM) since January 2020 is notably significant and it has been linked to rising levels of anxiety and fear amongst SM users. The COVID-19 'infodemic' was singled out by the World Health Organization (WHO) and several newly published studies as one of the causes of anxiety, depression, and fear amongst the global population OBJECTIVE This study aimed to assess SM practices during COVID-19 and investigates their impact on well-being. METHODS An online infodemic cross-sectional survey was distributed via different SM platforms in the United Arab Emirates and other countries. Adults above 18 years of age were invited to complete an online survey that covered multiple domains, including the WHO-5 Well-being Index. RESULTS The study sheds light on the use of SM during the pandemic and its impact on well-being throughout the novel coronavirus pandemic. Out of 993 participants, 73% were females, 76% were non-Emirati, 91% university graduates, and 50% were employed in various occupations, of which 20% were health care professionals. Participants indicated that they acquired COVID-19 related information primarily from social media, of which WhatsApp was the most accessed. Most participants reported sharing the information after the verification. The mean well-being score was 12.6 ±5.6 with 49% of participants had poor well-being (WHO-5 score <12.5). The adjusted linear regression showed that Facebook usage was negatively associated with well-being score. Also, high time-usage was associated with poorer well-being. When adjusting for other factors, including low confidence in information around COVID-19 and poor knowledge overall, SM usage was significantly associated with poorer well-being CONCLUSIONS Social media practices during emergencies and disasters may impact public well-being. Authorities are advised to step in to minimize the spread of misinformation and more frequent use of social media, as it may influence well-being leading to increased levels of anxiety, stress, and depression. Public health specialists, information technology and communication experts should collaborate to limit the infodemic effect on communities.

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