Itbetw mandala research_mandala

Social Media Users and Leisure Travel

Lead Sponsor: Study Commissioned by:

The Mandala Research Model:

“Research for the Industry By the Industry”

Lead Sponsor: Study Commissioned by: In Partnership with the U.S. Department of Commerce

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Additional Sponsors:

4

Additional Sponsors:

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What Travelers Want

Experience is still in. Travelers want to “experience”destinations in all respects; want an authentic experience, and for many this includes reflection of the destination in their hotel, dining and activity choices.

The automobile rules. 91% of all leisure travelers (that use both paid and unpaid accommodations) travel to their destination by car. There are natural implications for operations and service in all aspects of the travel and tourism industry. Our soon to be released report on the Drive Market helps destinations and attractions capitalize on this lucrative but untapped market.

Doing more than one thing at a time Research shows that leisure travelers want to combine a number of activities and seek diversity in thedestinations they choose to visit

Trends in U.S. Leisure Market

Niche markets matter. Finding the right fit means understanding nuances among travel groups

• GLBT

• Culinary Travelers

• Cultural and Heritage Travelers

• African American Travelers

• Drive Market Travelers

Targeted segmentation allows destinations and attractions to reach out with surgical precision

• Curious & Engaged African American Travelers

• Keeping it Light Cultural Heritage Travelers

• Social Media users


Emerging from the RecessionOptimistic, hopeful, wiser and more discriminating. More leisure travelers are planning to take as many if not a greater number of trips in the next 12 months.

Friends and family still matter most When asked about primary reason for last leisure trip, visiting friends and relatives was tied with vacation.

Booking Window NarrowerLeisure travelers are booking transport, hotels, and event tickets closer to their travel dates.

Trends in the U.S. Leisure Market

Photo Chris Seufert

Trends in the U.S. Leisure Market

“Green” not a passing fad. Leisure travelers care about this issue. 48% up from 42% in 2009 saying they are willing to pay more to a travel company who makes efforts to protect the environment.

Short stays are here to stay.

The 1-2 day trip, whether defined as “weekend getaway” or other personal travel represents the bulk of all room nights.

Giving Back Leisure travelers want to contribute positively to the places they visit.

Block Island, RI

• Boomers still booming. These travelers and their needs and preferences still need to be addressed in future leisure strategy. Boomers have the following characteristics:

• Greatest share of leisure room-nights

• Longest stays

• Highest level of spending

• Younger travelers key to watch. Gen X and Gen Y saw the fastest increasing room-night volume of all generations at 45% and 29% respectively from 2000 to 2008. While life stage transitions suggest that younger travelers will travel more, improving economic conditions may shift this trend.

• New hotel designs to accommodate the “ever connected” business traveler.

• It’s a virtual world. Nearly 7 in 10 use the Internet to gather information on travel, with 56% booking online. Boomers and Matures are more likely to do both than Gen X and Gen Y.


Increasing Need for Market Research: Targeting

U.S. lost one-third its share of international tourism since 1997

Recession in U.S. reduced domestic travel

Result: Increased need to identify profitable niche markets;

Necessitated need to focus marketing efforts

Economic Impact =Justification for Targeting and Spending

Name that Destination

Name that Destination

Attitudes, world view, and behavior. Not just demographics.

• Segmentation on these variables creates a greater distinction, necessary to identify the travelers with whom your product has the most resonance.

• Knowing the three Rs is not enough

• Rest

• Relaxation

• Rejuvanation

The WHY, draws out the deeper motivation.

The underlying values motivating consumer choice.

Trends in US Leisure Market: Digging Deeper

Digging Deeper: Who are Cultural & Heritage Travelers?

Sizing the Market: 118.3 Million Adult Leisure Travelers

(U.S. Adult Population - 225 Million)

78%Participate in C&H

$192 billion economic impact

C&H Traveler Segments

$124 Billion core C/H

Cultural & Heritage Travelers

Spend More: $994 Per Trip

Travel More Frequently: 5.1 Trips Per Year

Stay Longer: 5.86 nights Per Trip

See out C&H Experiences

They Come to Shop: Majority say that shopping was either a key reason for the trip or was a factor in their choice of travel destination.

% who agree… %

Shopping helped me choose between potential destinations. 30%

Shopping was the key reason I chose to take the trip. 23%

I sought out shopping opportunities but they were not a factor in choosing between destinations.

58%

They Came, They Saw, They Shopped

They Spend Time Shopping: Shopping accounts for a third of these International Shopping Travelers’ time when in the U.S. and is nearly a third of their total trip expenditures.


Shopping Spend Total Trip

Spend

Shopping % of

Overall

Average $1063 $3692 29%

Canada $757 $2490 30%

Germany $1085 $4127 26%

Japan $1200 $4722 25%

Mexico $1310 $3249 40%

UK $989 $3845 25%

Shopping accounts for about third of total expenditures


Market Sizing and Economic ImpactSocial Media Users: Market Sizing and Economic Impact

Market Sizing and Economic Impact

Sizing the Market

Leisure Travelers* represent 68% of the U.S. adult population, or approximately 152 million Americans. Fifty two percent of these 152 million Americans report that they use social media, which totals approximately 79 million Social media users .

U.S. Adult Population(225 million)**

Leisure Travelers - Social and Non Social Media Users

Leisure Trip Spending: Social Media Users and Non-Users

The average trip spending by total leisure travelers is $909, compared to $871 for all social media users and $949 for non social media users. For all three groups, about half of their expenditures are spent on activities, dining and shopping they participated in while traveling.

47%/44%/51%of Total Spend is Spent on

Activities, Dining and Shopping for both

groups

Total Spend

• $909 (Average) Total Leisure Travelers

• $871 (Average) Social Media Users

• $949 (Average) Non Social Media Users

Total Spend on Activities, Dining and Shopping

• $431 (Average) Total Leisure Travelers

• $386 (Average) Social Media Users

• $480 (Average) Non Social Media Users

Social media users have a larger economic impact on domestic tourism than non social media users. The total spend by Social media users ($102.9 b) is almost 1.47 times higher than the spend by non social media users ($69.5 b) The greater economic impact of the social media users is driven by the increase number of trips they take on average, 5.4 vs. 4.2 for leisure travelers who do not use social media.

Total: $102.9 billion attributable to social media users; $69.5 billion is attributable to non social media users

Estimated Annual Economic Impact

Social Media Users

Non Social Media Users

Average Amount Total Spend $870.72 $949.42

Median # Leisure Trips 3.00 2.00

Population (In Millions) 78.8 73.2

Median Household Size 2.00 2.00

Estimated Economic Impact (In Billions) $102.9 $69.5

Social Media Usage and Leisure Trip Planning, Characteristics, BehaviorSocial Media Usage and Leisure Trip Planning,

Characteristics, Behavior

The Use of Social Networking Sites 2009

The majority of social media users say they have been using social networking sites less than two years (56%)

These leisure travelers who use social media do more “reading” than posting of content on the sites they visit. Large majorities read Second Life, LinkedIn and others, but few post on those sites.

How Long They Have Been Using Social Networking Sites

Sites Used by Social Media

Users

Both read and post on this social networking site

Read this social networking site

Post on this social networking site

Facebook.com 65% 25% 10%

MySpace.com 31% 59% 10%

Twitter.com 20% 72% 8%

Linkedin.com 16% 77% 7%

Friendster.com 7% 85% 7%

56%44%

0%

20%

40%

60%

Less than 2 years More than 2 years

Length of Social Networking Sites Usage 2011

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• More than half of those surveyed have been using social networking sites for two years or more, 68% of Gen Y, 61% of Gen X, 41% of Boomers and 35% of those 64+.

• Among drive market travelers, 37% have been using social media sites for between 6 months and 2 years.

Websites Regularly Visited – African American Travelers

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� Over half of African American travelers regularly visit Facebook.com, Yahoo.com and Google.com.

� Approximately 70% of Gen Y and Gen X regularly visit Facebook.com.

� Those with an active interest in their history and culture (C & E Travelers) are more likely to go to Essence.com and Blackvoices.com than the rest of this traveler population.

� Family Reunion Travelers and those with cultural and historical interests (C & E Travelers) are more likely to look at Blackenterprise.com than other segments.

Social Networking and Electronic/Communications Devices Personally Owned and Used African American Travelers

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• The majority of this population have their own cell phone and use it. Cell phone usage and ownership are highest among Boomers and the Silent/GI Generations, but the younger generations are more likely to utilize smartphones.

• Facebook is quite popular among all generations of these travelers, with 66% to 82% of all travelers posting and reading this site.

Use of Social Media and Other Online Travel Sites African American Travelers

32Which, if any of the following user-generated sources n= for 27B

� Twelve percent say they use “user-generated” content. Of these, 69% use Trip Advisor, with 80% of the Silent/GI Generations using this source.

� Facebook.com, Weather.com and Orbitz.com are more popular user-generated sources with Generation X and Y.

� As Generation Y travelers are more likely than others to book trips on short notice, Hotwire.com is more popular with this cohort.

� Travelers with an active interest in their culture and history (C & E Travelers) use AOL.com, Answers.com and Myspace.com more than other groups.

� Hotwire.com and Priceline.com are more popular with Family Reunion Travelers.

� Business Travelers are more likely than others to turn to Travelocity.com and Disney.com.

Advice from Friends takes on a whole new meaning

• Seeing detailed information on points of interest is either critical or important to 68% of travelers surveyed. Almost a quarter, (24%) of Gen Y travelers consider it critical with 78% saying it is either critical or important, 74% of those <50 with fewer (59%) of those travelers 50+ agreeing.

• The ability to access written reviews or locations friends liked was either critical or important to 40% of travelers overall. 52% of Gen Y , 53% of Gen X, 30% of Boomers, and 21% among those 64+ agreed.

• When asked if viewing editorial reviews, destination information or “best of”, more than half

of the travelers surveyed said this was either critical or important. Again younger travelers said this more often, 61% of Gen Y, 66% of Gen X whereas 48% of Boomers and 37% of those 64+.

Over a third of all travelers have a smart phone such as an iPhone, BlackBerry, or Droid , etc.

Texting was the most used feature by all groups, followed by electronic maps. Australians are the largest group to use electronic mapping with close to a third of travelers using this feature.

10% of all travelers access social media sites with their smart phones, the largest group of which are Chinese and Australians.

How They Used Their Smartphones in the U.S. – Emerging Markets

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TotalA

IndiaB

AustraliaC

BrazilD

KoreaE

China

GPS application on phone or other device 10%14%(C)

12%(C)

5% 10% 11%

Electronic maps, such as Google Maps, Mapquest, .

15%18%(D E)

29%(A C D E)

13%(E)

9% 5%

Texting or SMS on your phone 47%53%(C)

45% 40% 48%52%(C)

WiFi Finder 8% 5% 9% 4%10%(C)

10%(C)

Sending and receiving email from your phone 9% 6% 11% 10% 12% 6%

Reading and/or posting on Facebook, MySpace, or other social media sites

10% 9% 6%13%(B)

8%13%(B)

Travel sites, such as Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, Kayak, Priceline, etc.

5% 5% 4% 6% 6% 4%

Information Sources Used to Plan Trip Emerging Markets

Which of the following information sources did you use to plan your last trip to [Insert destination visited]? Please select all that apply. Base Total respondents n = 2500

TotalA

IndiaB

AustraliaC

BrazilD

KoreaE

China

Social Media sites (such as Facebook, MySpace] 6%10%(C D)

11%(C D)

4% 2% 3%

Social Media travel sites (such as TripAdvisor, etc.) 5%6%(D)

7%(C D)

3% 2% 5%

Welcome centers en route to destination 4% 4% 3% 5% 3% 3%

Blogs 3% 3% 5% 3% 3% 3%

Travel provider websites (e.g., airline, hotel, etc.) 3%5%

(C D)4%(C)

- - 2%

Podcasts 2% 3% 3% - 3% -

Radio 2% 3% 2% - 3% -

Online travel website (Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity) 2% 2% 3% 2% - -

Destination web sites (ex. sites dedicated to a specific U.S. city or attraction)

-2%(C)

2%(C)

- - -

Destination travel guides (printed guides to a specific U.S. destination)

- -2%(A)

- - -

Social Media sites such as Facebook and Social Media travel sites such as TripAdvisor are more popular among Indian and Australian travelers.

Internet Sites Regularly Visited

The majority of leisure travelers using social media are regular users of Google and Yahoo and use most online sites and tools more than non social media users.

Travelocity and Expedia are the most regularly used online travel agent sites used by the social media travelers, while there is less differentiation among travelers who do not use social media. They are as likely to use Priceline and Cheap tickets as they are to use Travelocity and Expedia.

Sites Total Leisure Travelers

Social Media Users


Sites Total Leisure Travelers

Social Media Users


Google.com 64% 70% 58% Ask.com 20% 22% 19%

Yahoo.com 53% 61% 46% Orbitz.com 19% 21% 17%

Facebook.com41% 79% 0%

MySpace.com20% 38% 0%

Youtube.com 38% 53% 22% ESPN.com 17% 18% 15%

Weather.com 33% 37% 28% Priceline.com 15% 18% 12%

Wikipedia.com 30% 36% 24% Cheaptickets.com 15% 17% 13%

Craigslist.com 31% 39% 23% Hotels.com 14% 17% 11%

Travelocity.com 25% 28% 21% AOL.com 15% 18% 13%

Expedia.com 23% 28% 18% Twitter.com 12% 23% 0%

CNN.com 21% 26% 16% Hotwire.com 11% 14% 9%

Internet Sites Regularly Visited

One of the most talked about social media sites in travel, TripAdvisor is used by only 10% of all leisure travelers; slightly higher among the social media users (12%)

Sites Total Leisure

Social Media Users


Sites Total Leisure

Social Media Users


TripAdvisor.com 10% 12% 8% Bookit.com 3% 3% 2%

Disney.com 10% 11% 8% Travelweb.com 2% 3% 2%

Linkedin.com 8% 15% 0% Gay.com 2% 3% 1%

Answers.com7%

9% 5% LastMinuteTravel.com 2%

2% 1%

Kayak.com 7% 7% 6% Usmagazine.com 2% 2% 1%

Oprah.com 6% 8% 4% Bebo.com 1% 3% 0%

Lowestfare.com 4% 4% 4% Friendster.com 1% 3% 0%

Rottentomatoes.com 4% 6% 2% Secondlife.com 1% 2% 0%

Drudgereport.com 4% 5% 3% VirtualTourist.com 1% 1% 1%

Vacation.com 3% 5% 2% Mobissimo.com 1% 1% 0%

Attitudes towards social media experiences and networks

Shared values is also cited as a reason they participate in these user generated media sites.

The majority of leisure travelers who use social media report a sense of belonging, shared values, and say they enjoy the process of sharing user generated content.

“Heavy” users, those who participate in 7 or more social media networks, are more likely to report the sense of belonging and enjoyment from their participation.

Attitudes towards social media experiences and networks

Forrester Technographics® data shows that 26 million more US online leisure travelers use social media in 2010 than in 2008. Leisure travelers are really connected to travel companies beyond booking.

A high 41% of US online leisure travelers have become travel social fans (TSFs) by friending, following, or becoming fans of a travel company or destination on a social networking site like Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, or Twitter.

51% befriend a brand without such a reason. They do it just because it's fun, or because they like the brand. When they befriend the brand, their main purpose isn't to get something out of that relationship .

Reasons for becoming TSFs

Reasons for becoming a TSF

Trip Information Sources

Trip Information Sources

Not surprisingly, social media users, however, are more likely to gather information from the Web than travelers who do not use social media. Still, however, the websites of travel destinations and friends/family members dominate as travel information sources for all leisure travelers.

0% 20% 40% 60%

Travel agent

Convention & visitors bureaus

Independent published reviews in destination…

User generated sources (TripAdvisor)

Travel section of newspaper

Travel related magazines

Official sources of destination

Brochures and info. by destination

3rd party travel websites (Expedia)

General Web search (Google, Yahoo)

Friends and family

Websites of destination

Websites of destination

Friends and family

General Web search (Google, Yahoo)

3rd party travel websites (Expedia)

Brochures and info. by

destination

Official sources of destination

Travel related

magazines

Travel section of newspaper

Indep. published reviews in destination

User generated sources

(TripAdvisor)

Convention and visitors bureaus

Travel agent

Social Media Users 61% 60% 54% 39% 24% 27% 22% 17% 18% 20% 11% 8%Non Social Media Users 53% 50% 42% 23% 28% 20% 22% 21% 16% 13% 12% 7%

Total 57% 55% 48% 31% 26% 24% 22% 19% 17% 17% 11% 7%

SEGMENTATION,TARGETING AND POSITIONING• Segmentation - process of dividing the market into subsets of consumers with common needs and characteristics

• Targeting - selecting one or more of the segments to pursue

• Positioning - developing a distinct image for the product in mind of customer

Speaking into their listening

The Difference: Not so Much

The gap is narrow between social media users and non-users

The Demographics of Social Media Users vs. Non-users

Average Number of Trips Per Year (by

type)

Social Media Users


Leisure 5.37 4.15

Business 1.22 1.22

Combined 0.82 0.86

International 0.63 0.47

Average Number of Trips Per Year (by

type)

Social Media Users


Leisure 5.37 4.15

Business 1.22 1.22

Combined 0.82 0.86

International 0.63 0.47

Gender`Social Media

UsersNon Social Media

Users

Male 47% 53%

Female 53% 47%

Gender`Social Media


Users

Male 47% 53%

Female 53% 47%

Household Income

Social Media Users


Less than $50k

42% 39%

$50k-$74,999k

23% 22%

$75k-$99,999k

14% 15%

More than $100k

14% 15%

Household Income

Social Media Users


Less than $50k

42% 39%

$50k-$74,999k

23% 22%

$75k-$99,999k

14% 15%

More than $100k

14% 15%

Age Social Media Users


18- 24 17% 7%

25- 54 20% 11%

35- 44 23% 17%

45- 54 20% 21%

55- 64 10% 18%

65+ 10% 26%

Age Social Media Users


18- 24 17% 7%

25- 54 20% 11%

35- 44 23% 17%

45- 54 20% 21%

55- 64 10% 18%

65+ 10% 26%



Race/EthnicitySocial Media


Users

Race

White 72% 76%

Black 10% 11%

Other 18% 13%

Hispanic

Yes 8% 7%

No 92% 93%

Sexual Orientation Social Media Users


Heterosexual 90% 90%

GLBT 8% 5%

The Demographics of Social Media Users vs. Non-users: Generations

Age plays a role: Not surprisingly GenX and Millennial travelers are more likely to use social media sites.

Generations Total Social Media Users


Millennials 20% 27% 13%

GenX 28% 33% 22%

Boomers 33% 29% 37%

Silent/G.I. 19% 11% 28%

Generations Total Social Media Users


Millennials 20% 27% 13%

GenX 28% 33% 22%

Boomers 33% 29% 37%

Silent/G.I. 19% 11% 28%

The Demographics of Social Media Users vs. Non-users: Education

There are no statistically significant differences between social media users and non social media users regarding education.

Education Total Social Media Users


HS/GED or Less 14% 14% 14%

2 Year Degree or Some College 41% 41% 43%

4 Year Degree 27% 27% 26%

Graduate Professional 17% 17% 16%

Education Total Social Media Users


HS/GED or Less 14% 14% 14%

2 Year Degree or Some College 41% 41% 43%

4 Year Degree 27% 27% 26%

Graduate Professional 17% 17% 16%

Psychographics of Social Media Users vs. Non Users

Social media users and non social media users are fairly similaron the psychographics asked in this study.

About half of each said they would pay more for travel experiences that do not “harm the environment.” And nearly two-fifths say they often give back to cultural/heritage destinations they visit while traveling.

Most leisure travelers say they prefer trips that are a combination of a “wide variety of activities. “

Social media users are more likely to say they want to peruse a life “challenge, novelty and change” and more likely to want to bring back local products from the destination and share them with family and friends.

The Distribution of Leisure Trips and Business Trips

Increasingly business travel is being combined with leisure travel or includes some leisure activities. Leisure travelers of all kinds report on average that nearly one of their trips in the past 12 months was a combined business/leisure trip. And more than a third of travelers say that 50% or more of their business travel includes personal, leisure activities.

Percentage of Domestic Business Travel that included personal, leisure Activities

28%

12%

9% 7% 8%8%

6% 6% 6%

9%

28%

11%

8% 7% 8% 9%7% 6%

8%6%

27%

12%

11%

8% 9%7%

5% 4% 4%

13%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

0% to 10% 11% to 20% 21% to 30% 31% to 40% 41% to 50% 51% to 60% 61% to 70% 71% to 80% 81% to 90% 91% to 100%

Total Social Media Users Non Social Media Users

More than a third say that 50% or more of business trips include leisure activities

Average number of trips in past 12 months that was combined business and leisure trip

The Distances They Travel

Travelers who use social media tend to travel farther distances (861 miles) on their leisure trips than travelers who do not use social media (734 miles). Part of this may be due to the higher incidence of air travel among these social media users.

Miles Average Miles Traveled

Number of Miles Traveled Away From Home

Social media users have traveled further on their most recent trip (an average of 861 miles), while non social media users have traveled 734 miles on average.

Miles Traveled

Sharing Their Experiences

Total Social Media Users


Met in person to talk about the trip 39% 43% 36%

Cell phone 43% 46% 40%

Text messaging 21% 26% 15%

Email 44% 49% 40%

Hosted a party 1% 1% 1%

Online social community (Facebook, MySpace, etc.) 20% 35% 4%

Shared photographs via Kodak, snapfish, etc. 18% 21% 15%

Shared photographs via my email account 24% 30% 19%

Telephone 42% 44% 39%

Posted a review on a travel website (TripAdvisor, Expedia, etc.)

3% 3% 3%

Posted on a personal blog/website 6% 9% 2%

Other, please specify 2% 2% 3%

I did not share my travel experiences with family, friends and/or others

16% 13% 20%

Total Social Media Users


Met in person to talk about the trip 39% 43% 36%

Cell phone 43% 46% 40%

Text messaging 21% 26% 15%

Email 44% 49% 40%

Hosted a party 1% 1% 1%

Online social community (Facebook, MySpace, etc.) 20% 35% 4%

Shared photographs via Kodak, snapfish, etc. 18% 21% 15%

Shared photographs via my email account 24% 30% 19%

Telephone 42% 44% 39%

Posted a review on a travel website (TripAdvisor, Expedia, etc.)

3% 3% 3%

Posted on a personal blog/website 6% 9% 2%

Other, please specify 2% 2% 3%

I did not share my travel experiences with family, friends and/or others

16% 13% 20%

Important Factors in Choosing Leisure Activities

Top 2 Box(Very Important/Somewhat Important)

Total Leisure Travelers

Social Media Users Non Social Media Users

Relaxing and relieving stress 94% 94% 94%

Creating lasting memories 92% 96% 88%

Enriching my relationship with my spouse/partner/children 88% 89% 85%

Trying a new experience 87% 91% 82%

To stimulate your mind/be intellectually challenged 75% 78% 73%

Learning more about history and local cultures 73% 76% 70%

Having stories to share back home 72% 77% 67%

Explore a different culture 70% 75% 66%

Pampering yourself 66% 70% 60%

Providing educational experiences for my children 61% 66% 54%

Seeking out solitude and isolation 53% 56% 51%

Pursuing a hobby 53% 58% 46%

Challenging myself physically, to feel physically energized 51% 56% 44%

Top 2 Box(Very Important/Somewhat Important)

Total Leisure Travelers

Social Media Users Non Social Media Users

Relaxing and relieving stress 94% 94% 94%

Creating lasting memories 92% 96% 88%

Enriching my relationship with my spouse/partner/children 88% 89% 85%

Trying a new experience 87% 91% 82%

To stimulate your mind/be intellectually challenged 75% 78% 73%

Learning more about history and local cultures 73% 76% 70%

Having stories to share back home 72% 77% 67%

Explore a different culture 70% 75% 66%

Pampering yourself 66% 70% 60%

Providing educational experiences for my children 61% 66% 54%

Seeking out solitude and isolation 53% 56% 51%

Pursuing a hobby 53% 58% 46%

Challenging myself physically, to feel physically energized 51% 56% 44%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Time Share

Other

Recreational vehicle, camper, tent

Bed and Breakfast

Rental condo/townhome/house

Owned home/condo/townhome/apartment

Stayed w/ family/friend

Hotel/Motel/Resort

Time Share OtherRecreational vehicle,

camper, tent

Bed and Breakfast

Rental condo/townhome/house

Owned home/condo/townhome/apart

ment

Stayed w/ family/friend

Hotel/Motel/Resort

Total 4% 4% 5% 4% 5% 5% 35% 61%

Non Social Media Users 4% 4% 5% 3% 4% 4% 34% 63%

Social Media Users 3% 4% 4% 5% 5% 6% 36% 60%

Accommodations On Most Recent Trip

Overnight accommodations are similar for both users and non users of social media. Paid accommodations are most common, with over a third of all travelers staying with family and friends.

Accommodation Type

Stayed in an historical property during most recent trip

Staying at Historical Properties

The majority of respondents who stayed in a hotel, motel or resort did not stay in a historical property. Only 8% (N=23) of them stayed in a historical property. Social media users were more likely than non social media users to indicate that they didn’t know if the property was historical and/or they’d rather not say.

Research and Information Sources

Types of Publications Read by Leisure Travelers:Sports, Fashion,Entertainment, news magazines and newspapers

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

Sports related magazines

Hobby related magazines

Food/Wine related magazines

Fashion/homemaking magazines

National newspapers

Travel related magazines

General interest, city life, or regional magazines

Entertainment magazines

News magazines

Community newspapers

Total 21% 20% 22% 22% 26% 27% 29% 29% 34% 39%

Non Social Media Users 18% 19% 21% 15% 23% 25% 28% 18% 29% 39%

Social Media Users 23% 21% 24% 28% 29% 29% 29% 39% 39% 40%

Sports

related

magazin

Hobby

related

magazin

Food/Wi

ne

related

Fashion/

homema

king

National

newspap

ers

Travel

related

magazin

General

interest,

city life,

Entertai

nment

magazin

News

magazin

es

Commun

ity

newspap

While social media networks are getting a great deal of attention lately, only a small share of travelers actually use them to obtain leisure travel information (20%) and, excluding Trip Advisor and Travel Blogs, an even smaller number consider them dependable.

All the buzz but is it working…

Trends in Leisure Travel and Social Media

In April 2010, Facebook overtook Google as the most popular site on the Internet.

As computers revolutionized travel and tourism planning, the Smart Phone is poised to do the same for reservations, accommodations, navigation

A whole new meaning of taking advice from friends and family – our travel site fans of just a year ago are now “friending” destinations but…

Friends and family on social media were trusted for product recommendations far more than brand-originated content or people consumers did not know

Trusting content of social networks

Level of trust with sources for travel information

• Unsurprisingly, opinions of family members and friends have the highest levels of trust among all groups.

• In addition, people place a high level of trust in the destination’s official website as a source for travel information. Online reviews, on the other hand, only received a high level of trust when the reviews are from know experts. Reviews by other consumers, editors, bloggers, or through chat rooms or discussion boards do not rate highly on the trust level.

• The level of trust also varies across age groups, with Gen Y and Gen X appearing more trusting overall than Boomers and people over 64 years old.

Dependability: Websites are most used and most dependable, social networks are least

Dependability: Higher income travelers find all sources of information more dependable than do lower income travelers

Dependability: Hotel and destination websites are most used and most dependable

Recent Industry Information

• 17% of respondents said they allocated only 1% of their annual marketing budget to social media

• 16% said they allocate 4-5%

• When asked what percentage of their company's overall marketing budget is spent on social media, the largest group, covering 24% of survey takers, selected "don't know“

• Smaller companies with tighter budgets are significantly more likely than large companies to say they spend almost 50% of their marketing budget on social media.

Travelindustrywire.com, September 201The Watch is based on a national random survey of 750 small business owners. It is commissioned by Discover Business card, and is conducted by Rasmussen Reports, LLC

Spending on Social Media marketing is low

Lack of metrics for Success

• No effective measures for understanding the ROI of social media efforts

• When asked to identify the most important measure of social media success, nearly two-thirds of respondents selected "don't know“

• Of those who identified a measurement, the largest group, covering 20%, said engaging customers to respond and provide feedback

• 65% of respondents said they're not using any listening tools to monitor what their customers are saying about their brand.

Travelindustrywire.com, September 201The Watch is based on a national random survey of 750 small business owners. It is commissioned by Discover Business card, and is conducted by Rasmussen Reports, LLC

0)

69% of companies are spending 10 hours per week or less on their social media programs,

48% of North American travel tour operators participate in social media on a daily basis,

77% participate in social media at least weekly,

despite widespread usage of social media, operators are uncertain about its impacts on business, with only 43% of respondents citing social media as quite or extremely important to business success

Source: Adventure Travel & Trade Association

SN usage among tour operators

SN usage among operators

• 18% reporting they do not know yet whether social media has bottom-line impact,

• just 13% of companies cite social media as generating 10% or more of their revenue,

• blogs remain an important, yet under utilized tool,

• uploading videos to YouTube is a growing trend among those embracing social media,

• monitoring, ‘listening’ and responding to traveler review sites appear to be lagging behind what would be expected, though tour operators outside North America are more prone to do so,

• 75% of respondents indicate that their budgets (including human resource wages) for social media will increase in the next 12 months.

• Source Adventure Travel & Trade Assoc.

• Nearly 70% of US hoteliers responding to the April 2010 study reported online was the marketing channel with the greatest return on investment, and the majority are using a variety of online channels to reach potential customers, including 69% marketing via social media.

• They are also ahead in their usage of that tactic: 60% told HSMAI and VIZERGY that they had a social media marketing strategy.

• For many hotels, guest reviews are an important part of that strategy. Half said they proactively encouraged guests to post reviews of their hotel, and even those that did not encourage reviews saw the importance of monitoring them. Nearly seven in 10 did so at least weekly.

Usage among hoteliers

Usage among hoteliers

• Social marketing strategies will help the travel industry reach more than just those planning a vacation. According to American Express Business Travel eXpert insights "Social Media in Business Travel Management" report, half of US businesses use social media to support business travel management.

• Keeping abreast of the latest travel info was the top benefit cited, by 44% of respondents. They also used social media to reduce costs, look for preferred vendors and analyze travel pattern

The Take Away

Credibility and dependability

are critical.

An extension of Word of Mouth

Market segmentation and

precision targeting will make the

difference between successful

social media strategy and just

another click on the web.

Thank You!

www.MandalaResearch.com

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[email protected]

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