Should the Hotel Industry Embrace Social Media Marketing

Social Media Marketing
SHOULD THE HOTEL INDUSTRY EMBRACE
SOCIAL MEDIA?
SAADAOUI Ghizlane
0786724578
gsaadaoui@gmail.com
Thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MBA in
International Business
Minor: International Hospitality Management
March 2011

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
AKNOWLEDGEMENTS.............................................................................................................................................5
METHODOLOGY..........................................................................................................................................................7
INTRODUCTION..........................................................................................................................................................9
CHAPTER I: AN OVERVIEW OF THE NEW SOCIAL MEDIA CONCEPT...............................................12
1) What is social media and why do brands need it? ..........................................................................12
2) What is the common thinking about Social Medias: Myth Vs truth.........................................14
a) Myth 1: Build social online accounts and your clients/prospects will come ..................14
b) Myth 2: Social media will fade away in a few years...................................................................14
c) Myth 3: Social media is free..................................................................................................................14
d) Myth 4: With Social Media, you can’t measure the results .....................................................15
3) Where are we now: Projections of SOCIAL MEDIA (2010-2011 & progression)...............16
4) Change in marketing spending 2011:...................................................................................................18
5) What are the challenges for social media marketers in 2011?..................................................19
6) Where is social media headed?...............................................................................................................22
a) Social commerce.......................................................................................................................................22
b) Group buying .............................................................................................................................................22
c) Q&A sites (questions and answers sites):......................................................................................23
d) Mobile:..........................................................................................................................................................24
e) Video..............................................................................................................................................................24

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7) What is the impact of Social Media on Consumer Behavior (The Funnel Metaphor &
consumer decision journey)..................................................................................................................................26
CHAPTER II: SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE TRAVEL AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY.............................29
1) How did the hospitality and travel industry get to Social Media?............................................29
2) What is the impact of Social Media on the travel and hospitality industry?........................31
4) Should the Hospitality Industry Take Social Media Seriously? .................................................40
Chapter III: what are the suitable social platforms for Hospitality Marketing?............................41
1) The Twitter effect.........................................................................................................................................42
a) Marriott Hotels & Resorts.....................................................................................................................44
b) Ritz Carlton Hotels...................................................................................................................................45
c) Hyatt Hotels & Resorts...........................................................................................................................47
d) Joie de Vivre Hotels.................................................................................................................................48
e) Omni Hotels................................................................................................................................................49
2) Facebook as a distribution possibility .................................................................................................51
a) Hilton Hotels & Resorts .........................................................................................................................53
b) Sheraton Hotels and Resorts...............................................................................................................56
c) Mandarin Oriental Hotel: ......................................................................................................................58
3) YouTube channel for online visibility ..................................................................................................61
a) The Roger Smith Hotel...........................................................................................................................63
b) The San Juan Marriott Hotel................................................................................................................65
4) Flickr for informational images..............................................................................................................68
a) Four Seasons Hotels (Denver)............................................................................................................69
b) Hyatt Hotels & Resorts...........................................................................................................................70

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4) Foursquare: a location-based opportunity........................................................................................71
a) Hotel Max (Seattle)..................................................................................................................................74
b) Wynn Hotel and Casino (Las Vegas) ................................................................................................75
CHAPTER IV: HOW CAN SOCIAL MEDIA NEGATIVELY AFFECT THE HOSPITALITY
INDUSTRY?........................................................................................................................................................................77
1) Golden Beach Hotel ( Blackpool - England).......................................................................................77
2) Hans Brinker Budget Hotel (Amsterdam)..........................................................................................79
3) Langham Hotels (Hong Kong):................................................................................................................81
4) The Hotel’s Fake out photos: oyster.com............................................................................................83
CHAPTER V: SOCIAL MEDIA MONITORING - TOOLS OF MEASUREMENT .....................................87
1) ReviewPro (case study: The Landmark London Hotel)................................................................87
2) Klout...................................................................................................................................................................90
3) Socialmention.................................................................................................................................................92
4) Marginize..........................................................................................................................................................93
5) Addictomatic...................................................................................................................................................94
6) Google analytics.............................................................................................................................................96
CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................................................... 102
BIBLIOGRAPHY..................................................................................................................................................... 104
WEBREFERENCES ............................................................................................................................................... 105

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AKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my gratitude to Ms. Liz Craig who assisted me with the
variety of data analysis options and tools as they represented a beneficial part in
my thesis. I would like to thank her for her support and comments throughout this
work.
I also would like to thank all of my colleagues at Oneglobenetwork for all their
support during this process. I cannot fully express how fortunate I feel working with
such a wonderful team!
My warmest thanks are directed to my parents, my brother Khalid and his wife
Asmaa and friends, for being so understanding and supportive, even if I have not
been very accessible during the last year.
Finally this thesis would never have been accomplished without the huge
support of Angel and Maxime Ferri, to whom I dedicate this paper.

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“A not quite long time ago in a faraway land, there existed a feudal system of
Publishers who sought to control the largest number of Users as their loyal
subjects. (Archeologists would later refer to this prehistoric era as web 1.0.) Users
were happy for a while until one day they discovered that they, too, could
become Publishers – quite
They created a new land where content is democratized and where each User
could become their own king. New social websites and services soon enabled
them to publish royal decrees (called Blogs and Podcasts), vote for content they
Digg, discover old friends on Social Networks, Poke each other, become Internet
Famous, gain Followers, and in a few cases, become even larger and more
powerful than the great Publisher kingdoms of yore. They named this new utopia
Web 2.0 and immediately started to blog about how cliché the name was […]
Importantly, it’s not that any website or technology is enabling this change, but
rather that there’s a growing intersection of many different social websites and
services that are focused on making it easy for users to easily express themselves
(publishing), enabling them to rapidly connect with others and interact with
content (participation) and putting the user as the center of attention
(personalization). ”
Freddy Mini – Netvibes1
1 The internet case study book, ed Ford/Julius Wiedmann – Taschen, 2010 (p. 234)

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METHODOLOGY
Given the hotel industry’s continuing interaction with social media and other online
media, Liz Craig, CEO of Oneglobenetwork, strongly recommended me a research
goal of exploring different facets of social media as they evolve. During my
internship, I started examining how our clients used social media, tested different
tools and studied the traveler’s interactions online in order to discuss with our clients
what they really want to achieve using social media and what strategy can be
suitable for them. I began then my exploration of social media online by setting a first
experiment for our hotels http://ogn-hotels-social.blogspot.com.
Then, I decided to dedicate my thesis to the latter research effort and continue
delving in the hospitality social media era. I based my research on Cornell Hospitality
and Comscore recent reports regarding the US (my core focus) and worldwide travel
Market. CMO’s reports (cmosurvey.org) were also of a great help. The CMO Survey
collects the studies and opinions of top marketers in order to predict the future of
markets, and track marketing excellence.
More particular, the benchmarking approach I did for Oneglobe agency helped
me to evaluate the quality and the technological standards of different hotel Web
sites and social media channels used by the latter. I included in this thesis different
case studies to assess online strategies hotel companies have adopted to implement
their online marketing strategies.
Overall, the study has revealed that the level of awareness for both the online
marketing and the Internet usage among the French hotel market is a moderate one
with a very little improvement during the last two years. While the international
groups and USA travel market are moving very fast towards digital development and
social media accomplishment. Therefore, my research method was based on the
gaps observed and identified between different hotels in order to come up with a
fruitful approach for the hospitality industry:
Define and emphasize the benefits of social media
Determine the level of awareness, impact and usage of social media
Marketing

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Include interactive examples of successful hotel strategies as well as
unsuccessful ones
Identify main techniques and tools of enhancing Internet Marketing in the
hospitality industry
While recognizing the complexities and ambiguities surrounding social media data,
ratings and statistics, I have also set up for almost 10 months Google alerts and news
feed registrations in order to get the latest and updated information about my
subject and to be able to compare different surveys.

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INTRODUCTION
We have all heard about Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, Viadeo and the
seemingly thousands of other social networks that are usually focused on connecting
people to people, involving people to causes, relating people to industries, brands
and businesses. It is widely agreed that Social media is a set of various online
technology tools and channels that allow massive community of participants to
productively collaborate, communicate and share information, perspectives and
experiences via internet (for more details please see appendix I and appendix II). It
can also include text, audio, video, images, podcasts, and other multimedia
communications that evolve day by day. According to Sham Hyder Kabani, author
of The Zen Of Social Media Marketing, social media is a ―multiple online mediums all
controlled by the people participating within them […] social media is full of constant
activity controlled by no one individual in particular.‖
The Universal Mc Cann’s wave 32 report (released in mid 2008) states that social
media is rising and will continue to increase more and more for the next years.
Among all Internet Users between the ages of 16 and 54 globally, the Wave 3 report
suggests the following:
394 million users watch video clips online
346 million users read blogs
307 million users visit friend’s social network profile pages
303 million users share video clips
202 million users manage profiles on social networks
215 million users download video podcasts
160 million users subscribe to RSS feeds
For online marketing, social media has become a process that empowers
individuals to promote their ideas, services, websites and products through online
channels and communicate with a larger community that may not have been
available by traditional advertising3. It also helps brands discover, in real time, who is
2 www.universalmccann.com
3 Wenberg , Tamar.The New Community Rules: Marketing on the Social Web , O’Reilly , 2009 (p. 3)

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saying what online and where the conversations are happening so they can respond
effectively. Thus with a well structured social and compelling internet strategy,
brands may lead customers to purchase the desired product or service or at least
talk about via internet. It has even become a major tool to famous political
campaign internet strategy; like Obama’s elections in 2008. ―Thanks to a
groundbreaking election strategy with the Internet and social websites such as
MySpace and Facebook being its center point, Obama’s campaign starts off
with only 21 million dollars in May 2007 and was able to collect over 150 million
dollars by September 2008 through small donations made via the Internet.‖
Moreover, the ―Neighbor-to-Neighbor‖ tool on My.BarackObama.com has enabled
supporting volunteers to reach far more people within their community in much less
time than before. This selective deployment of e-mails and text messages not only
turn him into the most innovative, but also the ―hippest‖ president.4
In fact, social media has played an influential role not only in politics but also in
business and marketing decision-making process to drive more visibility and more
revenues. With the arrival of Google in 1998, marketing teams started to focus on
search engine optimization, Adwords campaigns, pay-per-click, e-mail marketing,
organic and paid advertising to drive traffic to their business or website. After the
boom of Social Media in 2003, the traditional online marketing is still very much a part
of the marketing mix, but social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare,
YouTube and SlideShare drive a large share of interactions between companies and
their customers on the web.
Yet, any online marketer still asks the following questions before getting to the
online social environment on which I will base my research: How to target consumers
on location, and wherever they’re going to be next? What social media strategies
should we take? How can we engage and trigger conversation with clients online?
How can we protect our reputation online? What are the best practices, and what
are the tools to help measure and analyze the metrics? What is the future of social
media, and what will be the next evolution?
Indeed, Social Media is rising and includes many business fields including the
hospitality industry. In these difficult economic times when many hotels are left with
4 http://www.slideshare.net/samismail/oh-4507421

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empty rooms, the most successful ones will take the opportunity of social media
channels to create brand awareness, to grab the attention of new visitors, keep in
touch with their loyal client base and why not add a new source of revenue. Social
media is a must-have in any communication initiatives to boost business.
Until now, many hotel groups still have not jumped in to leverage the influence of
social media in order to engage and integrate it with the rest of their marketing
initiatives. For hoteliers and marketers that are unfamiliar with the social media
subject and who are willing to become part of the conversation, my research will
focus on how is the hospitality industry embracing social media.
My first chapter introduces the concept of social media marketing, explains its role
in today’s online marketing initiatives and discusses the challenges and hurdles
marketers will have to face. It covers also various 2010/11 key statistics and
projections regarding the role of social media and how it influences the consumer’s
behavior.
My second chapter is a further step towards the hospitality online marketing. It
discusses the impact of social media on the travel and hotel industry and how
travelers use online and social media channels to make hotel choice decisions.
The third chapter can be considered as a social media guideline in order to know
what platforms are being used in the hotel industry. It explains also the various ways
to leverage social media to achieve specific goals. This chapter is reinforced by
flourishing hotel case studies highlighting the success of small and large worldwide
hotels in the social media era.
Since social media does not only mean success, the fourth chapter covers the
negative aspects of social media and how it can be a double edged sword for
hotels. It also features hotel case studies of and marketers who failed to effectively
monitor the social media campaigns.
Last but not least, the last chapter outlines the effective tools for monitoring social
media strategies and explains the various ways of measuring brands’ online
reputation and their success online.

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CHAPTER I: AN OVERVIEW OF THE NEW SOCIAL MEDIA CONCEPT
1) What is social media and why do brands need it?
Before Google, marketing focused on brand building and awareness, using formal
mass advertising, newsletters, Press release distribution, print media, direct mail and
calling. With the arrival of Google in 1998, companies started to focus on search
engine optimization, pay-per-click advertising and e-mail marketing to drive traffic to
their website. The best marketers realized that their leads were often sent too early to
sales, and invested in lead scoring and lead nurturing to find the hot leads and
develop the rest.5 Today with the arrival of Social Media, people around the world
are transforming how news is broadcasted throughout the world. Social networking
sites, such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Digg, etc, are providing live exchange
and broadcasting personal opinions.
Those that are receiving the information can then disseminate the information
further to their own friends or followers, which has put a lot of financial pressure on
5 www.marketo.com/library/Guide-B2B-Social-Media.pdf

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traditional media market. In this way, social media becomes a huge opportunity.
From the time when clients define and distribute their own content, the marketers are
taking advantage of the situation to market their products using social networking
sites and get higher engagement. The latter ―informal‖ engagement as shown in the
graphic below is based on dialogue and interaction with client.
This is how social media penetrated the online marketing to be called Social
Media Marketing (SMM) which by definition connects a service provider, brands or
companies with a wide consumers or audience of influencers via different social
networks and platforms. Thanks to SMM companies can gain brand awareness, more
clients, loyal customers, traffic, etc
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) focuses on on-site factors including tags,
metatags, keyword research, etc; but still remains a basis of online marketing and
goes hand in hand with SMM. SEO is also a part of a larger picture of Search Engine
Marketing (SEM).
The latter (SEM) includes SEO components, social media campaigns, pay-per-click
and advertising campaigns. To summarize the three major components (SEO, SEM
and SMO) are highly interlinked, as shown in the graphic bellow, and empower
brands to promote their websites, products or services online.

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2) What is the common thinking about Social Medias: Myth Vs truth
Many companies still believe that social media is just a trendy way to chat and be
social with friends and that it will soon fade away with time. While in fact, it is a
fundamental approach to interact with clients, and can generate leads when it is
used effectively and strategically. In order to decipher fact from myth, we’ll uncover
some of the myths and truths that have been evoked by online marketers.
a) Myth 1: Build social online accounts and your clients/prospects will come6.
The truth is: achieving success in social media requires relationship building, which
takes time and energy. Moreover, finding the right attendees to build effective
relationships is a hard task. Thus, to be successful, social media needs to be aligned
with a company's strategic priorities and be taken seriously.
b) Myth 2: Social media will fade away in a few years.7
It is evident that the social media landscape is evolving and is a constantly
changing environment with new features and tools being added and developed
continuously. As a matter of fact, social networks ―will only grow in importance as the
millennial generation becomes 50 percent of the workplace by 2020‖. Brands will
have to get a better appreciation of what's really involved and how social media
can be integrated into their marketing plans.
c) Myth 3: Social media is free8.
In fact, most of the platforms are free like: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Flickr,
YouTube, Ning, FriendFeed. But to create social online profiles, you devote a
substantial amount of time; and as time is money, there is a cost for integrating social
media work into your marketing mix. Therefore, it is interesting to note that ―A
significant 56% of marketers are using social media for 6 hours or more each week
and 30% for 11 or more hours weekly […] 12.5% of marketers spend more than 20
6 http://cgtmarketing.com/advertising-communications-blog/marketing/socialmedia
7 http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_6768/is_3_33/ai_n56219807/

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hours each week on social media. The largest group was 1 to 5 hours per week. 76%
of marketers are spending at least 4 hours each week on their social media
marketing efforts.‖9
d) Myth 4: With Social Media, you can’t measure the results10
With the right social media strategy, the results can be delivered thanks
measurable metrics, ROI acronyms and Return on Influence tools that are set and
included in the SM plan before the campaign. Yet, it still depends on the social
media platforms that are used during the campaign and to whom it is addressed.
However, the problem with trying to determine ROI for social media is ―trying to put
numeric quantities around human interactions and conversations, which are not
quantifiable‖11 says social media strategist Jason Falls. This is quite true, but we all
wonder: is the number of tweets, Facebook likes, or friend requests enough to
measure success? According to Jacob Morgan, Co-Founder of Chess Media Group,
social media marketing can be measured and here are the elements that can be
considered during and after a SM campaign:
―Traffic to a site, there are many ways to measure this i.e. referral sites, organic
listings, etc.
Amount of conversation/number of comments that you receive
Overall brand image, if one month ago people were slamming your brand
and are now singing praises about it, that’s a success
Amount of times something is shared with other people
The number of sales or increase in revenue, you can track this by using
analytics programs and setting up funnels/goals to track conversion paths
Number of rss subscribers/followers/people that want to engage and interact
with you or your brand
9 http://socialmediadudes.com/social-media/myth-social-media-is-free/
11 http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/is-social-media-marketing-measurable-the-big-debate/

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Number of inbound links to a page or site, which can subsequently affect the
search rankings‖12
3) Where are we now: Projections of SOCIAL MEDIA (2010-2011 & progression)
It is widely agreed that the web is undoubtedly changing the way we deal with
online marketing. From small corporations to big companies, every business seems to
be implementing the web for almost every step they take to promote their brands.
Yet, over the past 5 years the worldwide web has experienced the switch from
expensive and overpriced internet advertising and marketing to social media
marketing including Facebook, twitter and other social media major components.
We have officially entered the communication era of sharing good quality
content. SMO (social media optimization) has become a major component of online
marketing helping you rank well in search engines; achieve a long-term online
presence and thus taking complete advantage of the largest social network; going
above and beyond having a corporate page
Since Facebook has deepened its ties with a search engine like Microsoft's Bing,
SMO has reached a whole new level creating diverse web-marketing opportunities.
―So much specific content is now available on personalized pages, which is more
attractive to audiences that struggle to navigate a sea of information on Google.
This personalized approach to matching the right audience with the most interesting
content is changing the way information is placed on the web, and audiences like
it‖13.
Facebook 14 is now the third largest website in the world, according to comScore15.
It drew an estimated 648 million unique visitors from across the globe in November,
2010 and has shown an incredible run for the last 6 years:
12 http://www.jmorganmarketing.com/social-media-more-measurable-than-traditional-media/
13 http://mediamarketing-news.blogspot.com/2011/01/why-social-media-optimization-is-
new.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+media-and-
marketing+%28media++and+marketing%29
14 http://www.seomoz.org/blog/social-media-marketing-facebook-twitter-arent-enough
15 http://www.comscore.com

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With the growing popularity of Twitter in mainstream, recent studies imply that 51%
of Twitter users reported that they follow companies, brands or products on social
networks16. With $360 million in total funding and a $3.7 billion valuation, a further
growth is expected. As stated in their blog and shown in the graphic below: ―Growth
is fun. In the past 12 months, Twitter users sent an astonishing 25 billion Tweets and we
added more than 100 million new registered accounts.‖17
16 http://mediamarketing-news.blogspot.com/2011/01/2011-year-to-evolve-or-become-
extinct.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+media-and-
marketing+%28media++and+marketing%29
17 http://blog.twitter.com/2010/12/stocking-stuffer.html

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4) Change in marketing spending 2011:
Since Social Media has delivered satisfying results, the spending and budgets
allocated on marketing campaigns has utterly changed. Previously companies have
consecrated thousands of dollars on organic and link building strategies or pay per
click strategies to have their brands well visible in the search engines.
Though constructing back links and organic plans remains an essential component
of online marketing, getting a well structured social media marketing strategy is now
a crucial component to ones companies success on the web. Brands are more
determined than ever to take advantage of internet marketing technologies such as
social media, video, email and search engine optimization.
As stated by the CMO Survey by Duke University, Internet marketing spending has
shown a growth from 12.2% on February 2010 to 13.60% on August 2010 and is still
increasing for the next coming years18 (US Market):
Concerning Social media spending, the growth is even more significant. Within one
year, it is expected to be 10% of all marketing budgets and 18% in 5 years19:
18 http://faculty.fuqua.duke.edu/cmosurvey/survey_results/
19 Ibid

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5) What are the challenges for social media marketers in 2011?
As we have seen above, companies have started to allocate increasingly bigger
budgets to integrate social media into all aspects of their marketing campaigns and
customer service. According to a report by L2ThinkTank on GenY affluents’ digital
habits20: ―63% use social media to engage with brands, more than 50% say that
Facebook, blogs, and brand videos affect their opinions about products.‖ Hence,
from a business perspective, it’s exciting as well as crucial to keep pace with the
latest changes on the social media front.
Yet, with thousands of brands that are trying to communicate online, sale online,
promote online and engage with their clients online; clients become skeptical. The
plethora of social networks will not only confuse the consumer but will make it harder
for marketers to monitor content and find new ways to provide their customers with
appealing online experiences. As Don Harrill, President & CEO, Orange Lake Resorts
stated ―Making the decision as a company to enter into social media is not an easy
one. But when considering the number of conversations that are taking place and
the opportunity to be a part of them, then the value of engaging with social media
20 http://l2thinktank.com/?tag=gen-y

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becomes clear. Once a company decides to participate in these conversations, it’s
important that the organization as a whole is ready to embrace it, and that the
company’s voice will be both genuine and consistent‖21.
In a recent report ―2011: Now Social Media Marketing Gets Tough‖ achieved by
The Forrester team marketing team22, social media marketing won’t get any easier
for several reasons:
―New social spam filters will stop many of your tweets and status updates from
reaching consumers. Social networks will in fact implement and tighten social
spam filters. These won’t just filter marketer-to-consumer messaging but also
marketing messages passed peer-to-peer.
Growing mistrust will make it harder to gather friends and followers or get them
engaged in your social programs. With concerns growing about privacy and
companies’ access to personally identifiable data, marketers will have to work
harder to earn confidence, follows and involvement from consumers. It will
take more than a ―Like‖ or ―Follow Us‖ button on a website to get consumers
involved in brands’ social programs this next year.‖23
Moreover, marketers should take into consideration the influence factor of Social
Media on their clients. It is stated by Brian Solis that as 2011 progresses, influence
factors will become a very significant element to companies, as evidenced by the
recent growth in tools such as Socialmention, PeerIndex, Marginize and Klout.24 The
latter will make it difficult for brands to control their image online.
21 http://www.hotelmarketingstrategies.com/smartbrief-social-media-study-analysis/
22 http://blogs.forrester.com/augie_ray/11-01-04-
2011_social_media_predictions_now_social_media_marketing_gets_tough
23 http://blogs.forrester.com
24 http://www.briansolis.com/2010/12/best-of-2010-the-year-of-understanding-influence/

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6) Where is social media headed?
Hundreds of bloggers and online marketing agencies are publishing diverse reports
about social media trends for 201125. Here are the four major trends that come up
several times during my research:
a) Social commerce: Many brands already rely heavily on online conversations to
drive sales. Marketers use Facebook as a dominant social platform to offer their
services and thus letting their customers or fans buy their products directly on
Facebook and share the products or appreciations with friends. That is the case of
Maxfactor, a worldwide makeup brand, which have set up a page on Facebook to
sell their products, keep their clients ahead of the latest trends and most importantly
get their feedback on their latest products:
b) Group buying: in which consumers efficiently band together to get better deals or
discounts when purchasing products or services. Sites like Groupon, LivingSocial,
YouSwoop, and ScoutMom tend to offer localized deals and discounts in specific
cities and for groups of people. Consumers should urge their friends via social online
platforms to register quickly since promotion only becomes valid if enough members
sign up for it.
25 http://www.spinsucks.com/social-media/eight-social-media-trends-for-2011/

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c) Q&A sites (questions and answers sites): customers will base their decisions on
recommendations from virtual users or friends. Sites like ―yahoo answers‖,
―JustAnswer‖, or ―wikianswers‖, that have grown quite popular over the past 3 years,
are the social Q&A websites where participants can post questions, answer other
members' questions, and rate other members' answers to their questions, or share
their appreciations on different social websites, as shown in the figure below:

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d) Mobile: In 2011, iPad sales are projected to grow by 127% and consumers are likely
to reach for their phones instead of their wallets when making payments. As the
mobile arena grows significantly, technology consumers will move toward
abandoning their laptops for smart phones and thus will probably come one step
closer to being frequently connected to communicate, connect with their brands,
share information or find locations. Thanks to that, local based services like Facebook
places, Foursquare and Gowalla will continue to grow and be adopted by a larger
audience of consumers. Social networking will also be on the go, out of the house, in
the subway or out of the office:
e) Video: Video will become a powerful tool to enhance content to consumers and
will naturally become a key component of social commerce to be watched and
shared. “Tools like video galleries not only keep visitors on sites an average of two
minutes longer than pages without video, they support inbound traffic efforts with
powerful SEO juice.‖26 By creating and sharing videos, marketers can significantly
grow the presence of their brands in the online arena. Due to its great potential, the
online videos have, for instance, reinforced the success of ―Blendtec‖, which
manufactures grade-blenders. They started their business by creating a channel on
26 http://www.reelseo.com/ecommerce-video-2011/

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YouTube with a mere 50$ marketing budget. Yet, by creating and sharing videos of
people blending toys and electronics to show how robust its blenders were,
―Blendtec‖ became the biggest presence among blender producers in the online
arena.27
27 Wenberg , Tamar.The New Community Rules: Marketing on the Social Web , O’Reilly , 2009 (p. 285)

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7) What is the impact of Social Media on Consumer Behavior (The Funnel Metaphor &
consumer decision journey)
The increasing usage of internet and social media networks has changed the way
customers engage with brands. Conversations have shifted online and people are
discussing about their brands via social platforms. They also rely on various types of
social networks that have become a serious information source before they make
their purchase decisions (including blogs, chat rooms, message boards or forums,
video sharing, etc). Thus, it becomes pertinent to delve deep to understand how
social media impacts the consumer’s behavior and in turn purchasing action.
According to the Harvard Business Review’s report by David C. Edelman28, today
consumers are ―promiscuous in their brand relationships: They connect with myriad of
brands – through new media channels beyond the manufacturer’s and the retailer’s
control or even knowledge‖. Indeed, to realign their strategy and budget with
where consumers are spending their time, marketers have identified different touch
points clients are most open to influence. To build the brand’s awareness, drive
consideration and inspire purchase, they used the very well known funnel metaphor
that highlights the fact that consumers would start at the wide end of the funnel with
many brands in mind and winnow them down to a final choice, as shown in the
graphic below:
28 http://hbr.org/2010/12/branding-in-the-digital-age/ar/1

27
Nowadays, on account of the explosion of product choices, digital channels and
thus resulting well-informed consumer, the funnel metaphor theory fails to capture all
the touch points and key buying factors. In the June 2009 issue of McKinsey
Quarterly, David Court and three coauthors introduced a new approach of how
clients engage with brands that they named ―consumer decision journey‖29. What is
interesting in their new concept is the fact that it is applicable to any geographic
market and any field that has direct relationship with their customers. They stated
that ―rather than narrowing their choices, consumers add and subtract brands from
a group under consideration during an extended evaluation phase. After purchase,
they often enter into an open-ended relationship with the brand, sharing their
experience with it online‖.
That is to say, people form impressions of brands from touch points such as
advertisements, forums on product experiences and conversations with family and
friends on different social channels. Those accumulated impressions then become
crucial and they shape a more circular journey:
Consider: As shown by the graphic above, the journey begins with the
consideration set. From this starting point, brand awareness matters. Before making
his/her choice of purchasing, the consumer will immediately be able to name an
―initial-consideration set of brands to purchase‖ assembled from different stimuli like:
exposure to advertising, products displays, an encounter in the street, work place or
at a friend’s house, etc; ―with the proliferation of products have actually made them
reduce the number of brands they consider at the outset‖30.
29 http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/The_consumer_decision_journey_2373
30 http://www.docstoc.com/docs/8373901/The-consumer-decision-journey

28
Evaluate: At that time, comes the evaluation or in other words: the consumer’s
information gathering step. The latter includes the consumers enlarging the number
of products and brands they might consider by reading web site reviews, consulting
forums or talking to friends and family. This step usually culminates in a decision to
buy. Consequently, the customers’ ―outreach to marketers and other sources of
information is much more likely to shape their ensuing choices than marketer’s push
to persuade them‖.
Buy: The Evaluation set is followed by the purchasing experience. According to
David Court at that moment consumers may be easily dissuaded at that point which
exploits ―placement, packaging, availability, pricing, and sales interactions‖.
Enjoy, Advocate, Bond: After the purchase, begins the loyalty loop experience
which is considered as a deep connection that begins when the consumer starts
interacting with the product and with new online touch points. As soon as the
consumers enjoy what they have purchased, they will advocate for it online or word
of mouth building expectations based on their own experience.
In short, consumers’ purchase decisions are increasingly being formulated by
exposure to different levels of experience and mostly driven by online
communication including: searching information, connecting with different brands, ,
reading reviews, consulting comments on brands, sharing content, experience and
opinions on a large panel of social platforms . Thus, understanding ―the consumer
decision journey‖ concept, marketers can take a great chance of reaching
consumers in the right place at the right time with the right message. It is no longer
sufficient to push aggressively the consumers into the purchase stage, since there are
so many different steps before and after the purchase that brands should take into
consideration and to exploit.

29
CHAPTER II: SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE TRAVEL AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
1) How did the hospitality and travel industry get to Social Media?
It all began in 2006 with the explosion of the online travel agencies. The core
business of the travel and tourism industry has utterly changed and increasingly
shifted to the Internet. A few years ago, families flipped through brochures at travel
agency offices, searching for guidance and personal advice. After 2006, an
estimated 70 million internet users went online to find good deals and gather
information about their next hotel stay or holiday trip.
Since then, with the rapid growth in usage of internet, it has positively affected the
online European travel and hospitality industry in terms of revenue generation.
Surveys show that online travel industry is growing since 2006 at an increasing rate:31
―Online travel sales increased by 24% from 2006 to 2007 and reached EUR 49.4
billion in the European market in 2007
Online travel market in Europe is expected to grow to about EUR 58.4 billion in
2008
The European online travel market is expected to reach EUR 67 billion in 2009
UK accounted for 30% of the European online travel market in 2007, with
Germany in second place at 19%. The direct sellers accounted for 65% of
online sales in the European market in 2007, intermediaries 35%‖
31 http://www.emarketingeye.com/online-travel-industry.html

30
Further to the latter graphic, a large-scale of hotel and travel industry needed to
―embrace technology to keep up with consumer demand as it continues to lag
other sectors in terms of investment, says Deloitte, an international financial
consultancy‖32. Hundreds of Hotels and travel companies have turned to internet to
facilitate their clients’ life and used Social Media like Twitter and other related sites to
communicate about their properties/brands. In fact, the proliferation of social media
have captured the imagination of travel industry marketers who are now
experimenting with innovative ways to "join the conversation" and, where
appropriate, try to sell something in the process and reinforce their ability to reach
large numbers of travelers. In other words, hotels can interact with their customers on
websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Tripadvisor and YouTube, by sharing
information, watching for service failures to correct, and to look for a better way to
interact with their clients.
One good example is Hyatt group that is using Twitter as a concierge platform.
Gone are those days of making a single stop at the concierge desk to collect
brochures and ask for some tips. Clients could ask questions before their journey in
32 http://www.thenational.ae/business/travel-tourism

31
the hotel, from their rooms, or while they’re out exploring. They would also have easy
access to the questions other guests asked and past recommendations.33
All in all, social media has changed the manner travelers determine where they will
stay principally leisure travelers and has created a new distribution channel.
Hospitality and travel marketers need to understand consumers’ position online, and
find ways to use the power of information available on social media sites; since their
impact on the travel and hospitality industry is very significant as we will see in the
next part.
2) What is the impact of Social Media on the travel and hospitality industry?
The growing importance and seemingly reliance on technology had marketers
wondering what role social networking played in the hospitality and travel industry.
Nowadays, they usually argue if social media and online communities are well suited
to the travel and hospitality industry. People usually share an experience or situation
and this provides a reason for them to connect and engage with each other or with
their favorite brands. In this way, social media becomes a great customer service
device since not only it allows travel brands to connect and engage with customers
online, but it also means that when they solve ones query, they do so publicly (for
instance on Twitter for all to see and for all to share).
33 http://mashable.com/2010/10/18/hotel-industry-social-media/

32
The weather, the traffic, the good plans are good points for being able to transmit
information in real time .One good example to illustrate the latter statement is
Expedia which has a vigorous Twitter profile with over 9000 followers. Every client’s
query that is solved by Expedia on twitter can be seen and shared by all the
followers. It even appears on Google search results as a real time twitter feed, as
shown by the graphic below:
Secondly, social media can also be an effective tool for real time experience and
the perfect medium that allows clients to express their feelings in the moment. Usually
people share their holiday’s pictures on social networks such as Flickr or Facebook or
leave their comments either on review sites or directly on their Hotel or online agency
website. Here is an example of a luxury Hotel that takes advantage of people’s
comments as a tool for real time information sharing. The Landmark London Hotel is
effectively using ―ReviewPro‖, a web-based analytical tool that manages and
gathers updates daily from leading review websites directly on the Hotel website:

33
Yet, social media is not completely about people and the information they
possess, it is also a way to engage with people and clients online to let them know
about your initiatives, recommendations and exclusive offers. In fact, social media
has helped in bringing customer base into business processes itself thereby
enhancing customer satisfaction and gaining consumer loyalty.34
The Ritz Carlton for instance launched a World-Class Loyalty Program Offering
Unique Global Travel Experiences. The Group’s executive explained that his guests
are rather looking for ―a meaningful experience and than an insignificant discount. In
their Loyalty Program they established value adds partnerships, such as a
complimentary access to the casino of Monte Carlo and the privileged use of a
luxury car or private jet charter. Through this program they created the unique
opportunity to create brand advocates and deepen relationships; bridging its
products or services and its customers by focusing on its guests’ lifestyle needs.‖35
Indeed, A hotel marketers’ ambition is not just aspiring for more bookings; it is mostly
about creating a meaningful correlation, engaging clients and so creating brand
loyalty.
34 http://www.businessreviewindia.in/business-features/operations/social-media-new-way-engage-
customers
35 http://montesantoalgarve.blogspot.com/2010/12/can-social-media-be-useful-in-creating.html

34
Yet, to what extent are travelers affected by social networks? Do they consult
the content of travel industries sites when evaluating their travel decisions? Do they
report the content of what they find on social sites? Does social networking influence
their actual behavior towards travel industries?

35
3) How does Social Media Influence Travel and Hotel choice decisions?
According to Peter Yesawich, chairman and CEO of the Ypartnership, a major
industry research firm: ―Among all active travelers in the U.S. (those who took at least
one trip that required overnight accommodations during the previous 12 months),
just under half (an estimated 46%) have a page posted on a social site. Facebook
has achieved the highest rate of market penetration (91%), followed by LinkedIn
(24%) and MySpace (23%).‖36
However, the perceived credibility of the content of social media is low in
comparison with the degree of confidence ascribed in other sources of information
travelers on average seek advice from when making destination and travel service
supplier decisions or media sources as shown by the graph below:
36 http://www.realestatechannel.com/us-markets/vacation-leisure-real-estate-1/real-estate-us-
hotel-trends-social-media-trends-facebook-twitter-myspace-social-media-travel-ypartnership-
peter-yesawich-2011-tourism-trends-3561.php

36
Whereas Sheraton Hotels & Resorts released a new survey conducted by
Studylogic37 which surveyed 4,204 people via phone in the U.S., U.K. and China and
that stated:
―More than 60% of respondents in the global social media study use social
media to stay in touch with family and friends while traveling; more than a
third (36%) say they’d rather log on than make a call to share good news‖38.
64% said they use social media to make their travel plans and within the 25-34
year old participant group, the number is even higher; 76% look to popular
social media sites to plan their next getaway.
Four-fifths of respondents said they access social networking sites throughout
the day, while 39% said they ―could not live without‖ social media sites.
According to a Cornell Hospitality Report (December 2010)39, that highlights a
survey conducted of a balanced sample of 4,000 business and leisure hotel
customers within the United States, the social media’s influence on travelers is very
significant. The report explores the impact of social media on evolving customer
preferences within the hospitality industry and presents selected results that are
associated to social media (pre-purchase and post-stay), and how customers look
for information related to hotels during their shopping experience.
The graphics below signify that individuals exploit different information sources
when planning travel for business and leisure reasons. What is striking is the difference
between leisure and business travelers when planning for a journey.
As suggested below, the leisure respondents look first to recommendations from
friends and family (or word-of-mouth) as the most used information source, especially
for female travelers. Moreover, a considerably higher number of travelers employ
search engines (notably, Google, Yahoo, and Bing), travel related websites, and
meta-search web-sites (such as Expedia, Priceline, and Kayak) as other possible
reliable information sources. In general, a leisure traveler regularly consults all other
37http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/about/news/news_release_detail.html?obj_id=0900c7b
980d2c439
38 Ibid
39 http://www.hotelschool.cornell.edu

37
sources which also indicates that he/she on average uses many more sources for
hotel information than do business travelers.40
Regarding the business travelers, they visibly rely primary on their company’s
recommendations. It appears that approximately 40% of travelers select the hotels
recommended by their organizations. Then, many of them check with search
engines as shown in the graphic below. While there are minor differences between
the relative attractiveness of other sources, there is no other clear preferred source
for business travel information search.41
41 Ibid

38
The proliferation of social media has changed customer preferences in the
hospitality industry. The respondents were asked to indicate which social media
platforms or customer review sites they consult when searching for information about
hotels. As shown in the exhibit below, women are considerably more likely to read
reviews on TripAdvisor compared to men who rely more on the professional reviews42.
It is also important to note that Facebook is being consulted in the same frequency
as Forbes Travel Guide which is considered as a serious source of travel information
and that was launched 50 years ago. Unexpectedly, Forbes Travel Guide is about to
launch its Web 3.0 travel platform, which combines social media with search engine
optimized travel content. The new platform aims at bringing the voice of the
hospitality world back into the online conversation and place them as experts in
conversation about travel, rather than operating in a reactive mode.43
43 http://www.hotelnewsnow.com/Articles.aspx/3651/Cornell-Summit-to-feature-social-media-tips

39
It is evident that social media and customer reviews are an essential part of many
travelers’ information gathering process. Indeed, customers’ choices for hotels are
being influenced by information (both negative and positive) presented through
social network websites, hospitality rating websites, and internet search engines.
That’s the reason why the hotel industry must apply new thinking to the new online
media. Ironically, it is still far from being strategic in terms of social media marketing.
Looking at Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube, Peter O’Connor, professor at Essec
Business School, pointed out that in terms of the number of hits, none of the world top
fifty hotel chains was consistently strong in all four media sites; while Lady Gaga beat
them all in terms of mentions across the four sites.44
44 http://www.hotelschool.cornell.edu/research/chr/pubs/reports/abstract-15359.html

40
4) Should the Hospitality Industry Take Social Media Seriously?
A significant number of hotels are still skeptical, viewing social media as just a
buzzword or a young generation environment which they think is not ideal to
represent their brands. The same scenario happened not long ago, most hotels
didn’t even have their own websites, but by 2008 nearly 70% of reservations were
booked online and hotels were urged to be online and adopt the new internet era.
Though relatively new on the scene, the statistics we have seen so far show that
social media is too big to be ignored. Consumers, fans and buyers are spending a lot
more time on the web doing independent research, getting information from their
brands or peers and experimenting with social networks, forums and microblogging.
In the past consumers would simply soak up what they read in print media or
watched on commercials and had limited ways to give feedback. This old way of
communication has changed and social media has facilitated two-way
conversation. Even if some hotel groups refuse to take part of the online discussion,
conversations are happening online regardless of whether or not hotels are
participating in them. Adopting the sit back method and waiting for the wave of
complaints to stop is not the right way.
The social media phenomenon offers a host of benefits for hotels and more touch
points to spread their messages and drive people to their websites. Social media has
also the potential to influence the clients long before the purchase deepening the
relationship with customers and their social connections on many levels and over
time at a remarkably little cost. Hotels will only have to seize the opportunity and join
the conversation.

41
Chapter III: what are the suitable social platforms for Hospitality Marketing?
Since social media is ―a platform for the customer’s voice — and that voice can be
heard by anyone in the world‖45, the hospitality industry as a whole has understood
the power of the social network and embraced social media in a huge way. Not
only can hotels take full benefit of Social Media trends in terms of online placement
and revenue, but also they can get to customers and potential guests on a more
personal level than the traditional press. Hotels can for instance build a relationship
with guests before they arrive, find out what they need so as to meet their needs
effectively once they are at the hotel. But there are hundreds of popular networks as
you can see in the graphic below. Yet, many hoteliers still wonder what can be the
suitable social platforms to improve their customer service efforts and better meet
the needs of their guests. This is the question I am going to analyze in the next part.
45 http://mashable.com/2010/05/24/hospitality-social-media/

42
1) The Twitter effect
Twitter is one of the fastest-growing social media networks that allows its users to
communicate with each other and make text-based posts to answer the question
―what are you doing‖ in 140 characters in length. Almost 5.5 million people now use
the service, with website traffic up 573% over the past years46. Twitter provides
vigorous tools for users to share their thoughts and feelings about their favorite
restaurants, their holidays or their favorite places to let their followers know exactly
what is important to them. At the very beginning, it was perceived as a boring tool
that served no purpose, and became later a real purpose in the business world.
46 http://www.hotelmarketingstrategies.com/twitter-hospitality-business/

43
Customer service is the most obvious way for the hospitality industry to use social
media, and Twitter is the perfect vehicle to resolve clients’ issues, to improve the
customer service efforts to better meet the needs of guests or just make a client’s
day with a simple ―thanks for visiting‖ tweet. It has even become an online species of
word-of-mouth-marketing for the hotel industry. Ron Callari, a social media specialist,
has published an interesting article47 about the top ten hotel brands that excel at
Twitter, and that are doing the best job in providing customer service, building brand
loyalty and engaging their followers with appealing tweets. Let’s evaluate how some
of the Hotels of the list are engaging with their guests on Twitter.
47 http://inventorspot.com/articles/top_ten_hotel_brands_tweet_above_rest_30174

44
a) Marriott Hotels & Resorts
Bill Marriott was one of the first CEOs to jump onto the Social Media era when
he started his 'On the Move' blog in 2007. In 2009 Marriott Hotels and Resorts
launched ―Deal of the Day‖ on Twitter with a promo accessible to their followers. The
core focus of the promo is to announce every day both on the Marriott Twitter and
on MarriottDealoftheDay.com a deal, for 24 hours only, offering up to 60% off at
resorts in the Caribbean, Hawaii and California48:
Since then, they have got a high number of almost 12,000 followers; they in
turn are following 9400 Twitter accounts and have computed 2162 updates on July
12, 2009. With the usage of Twitterfeed, Twhirl and other Twitter apps, Marriott's staff
48http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/6/1/84144/74863/hotels/Marriott_Launches_Deal_of_t
he_Day_Both_On_and_Off_Twitter

45
invested and still invested more than just their time in communicating with their
guests. John Wolf, senior director of public relations for Marriott International,
highlighted the importance of Twitter for the hotel brand: "Creating brand awareness
and maintaining guest loyalty are the platform's most important purposes. It’s not
about return on investment—it’s about return on engagement.‖49
In 2009, the Marriott Hotels and Resorts recruited Loyal and high performing guests
on Twitter for new advertising campaign.50 ―We chose focused, demanding, on-the-
go professionals to tell their story of Marriott Hotels & Resorts because they represent
our core customer. No one can speak to the experience and benefits at Marriott
better than the customers themselves. That’s what this campaign is all about,‖ said
Deborah Fell, senior vice president, Marketing Strategy and Integration.
Though the use of real clients is an emergent trend in marketing campaigns, it is
still a rarity in the hotel industry, let alone via Twitter. The Twitter campaign included
fast-paced videos narrated by the featured guests who take viewers through the
changes occurring at hotels worldwide. The campaign went globally and allowed
guests to participate in future ads by signing up at yourmarriottstory.com.51
b) Ritz Carlton Hotels
With a start-up date of April 2009 and only 1148 followers and based on the quality
of its 179 updates, it is evident that the Ritz Carlton is a new comer to the Twitter
scene. As one of Marriott's most prestigious brands, the group has titled their Twitter
50http://www.hotelmarketing.com/index.php/content/article/marriott_recruits_real_guestson_twitte
r_for_new_campaign/
51http://www.hotelmarketing.com/index.php/content/article/marriott_recruits_real_guestson_twitte
r_for_new_campaign/

46
profile: 'RitzCarltonPR.' While 'public relations' is not the most endearing of terms for
an account on Twitter, the brand does offset this corporate label with the
involvement of Allison Sitch, senior corporate director of public relations. She lends a
personal and hospitable touch as the account's spokesperson.52 While other hotels
are using Twitter as a second concierge, Simon Cooper, president and chief
operations officer of the luxury travel brand Ritz-Carlton, has a different vision of how
to use Twitter: ―I am looking forward to sharing my thoughts on how the luxury
hospitality sector is changing and shifting its point of reference. […]I will provide a
candid view of global travel today and observations about the trends that are
emerging.‖53
The group has also set up another Twitter profile ―RitzCarltonClub‖ not just
respond to customer queries but also to raise brand awareness and reach new
exclusive customers and potential members for their club. The Group visibly wants
also to base their Twitter profile on the client’s experience and loyalty, an
exceptional way to make it seem like a private club, as stated on their twitter page
―Latest news on the deeded, Ritz-Carlton Destination Club. As only The Ritz-Carlton
can, The Club is redefining the Member experience.‖54
53 http://travel.latimes.com/daily-deal-blog/index.php/qa-with-ritz-carlton-4567/
54 http://twitter.com/#!/RitzCarltonClub

47
c) Hyatt Hotels & Resorts
"Hyatt Concierge", launched on 2009, has been considered in the hospitality
industry as the first global, 24/7 dedicated concierge service on Twitter. The account
is a ―service‖ platform designed to enhance the ability to deliver Hyatt’s very own
authentic hospitality. It is not a promotional vehicle, stresses Farley Kern, Hyatt's
director of brand public relations: "We wanted to have a presence on Twitter that
was about our guests and for our guests and designed around our guests, as
opposed to having a presence on Twitter just for the sake of being on Twitter"55.
The new HyattConcierge strategy is to use Twitter as a service channel where
guests will ask questions, book spa appointments or dinner reservations, and make
special requests; in a way that enables them to be more responsive, enrich the guest
experience and deepen guest preference for Hyatt: 56
―Visible in the public stream at HyattConcierge are endless examples of
purposeful tweeting in action. A guest with a complaint, earlier this month, received
this brief tweet response: ―I spoke to Clifford, the front office manager, and he will be
contacting you shortly.‖ Another guest, perhaps newly arrived in town, learned from
the virtual concierge that, ―There’s a number of restaurants less than a mile from the
hotel. They have a courtesy shuttle that can take you to them.‖57
The number of updates that they address to specific followers using the @reply
greeting and then following up with an ongoing dialogue is impressive and requires a
56 http://travel.usatoday.com/hotels/legacy/2009/05/66927973/1
57 http://www.hotelinteractive.com/article.aspx?articleid=19224

48
great effort and a big number of staff. Any inquiries involving further follow-up are
taken to direct messaging or offline, knowing in advance that the brand reaches
their clients by answering their questions 140 characters at a time. ―The tweeting staff
at each of the three central locations reaches out to the hotel in question, doing the
local research and relaying the questions on behalf of each inquiring guest‖58. Their
actual stats show they have displayed almost 4 051 Tweets and are following 7 443
members and have 13 867 followers:
d) Joie de Vivre Hotels
Joie De Vivre’s Twitter strategy is to communicate exclusive last minute deals and
time limited offers to its Twitter followers (for instance: luxury rooms for less than $100
per night). Every Tuesday, the company, that operates 33 luxury hotels in California,
Tweets an exclusive deal to its approximately 10,000 followers on Twitter providing a
promotional code to book the deal on summercalifornia.com during a specified
hour.
Joie De Vivre claims that its social media strategy has generated in bookings for
more than 1,000 room nights, and ―despite the heavy discounts, Joie De Vivre says
that, given the current economic conditions, those rooms would have otherwise
58 Ibid

49
remained vacant.‖59 In fact the twitter strategy efforts have demonstrated to be a
great way to both drive sales and build loyalty.
It is important to note that Joie de Vivre group has won in 2009 the eMarketer of
the Year award thanks to its success on twitter and a creative combination of social
and online marketing development, including ―integrated brand campaigns,
alternate channels, social marketing, search engine optimization, and pay-per-click
advertising—coupled with an enhanced web platform and booking engine, and
strong relationships with third-party sites—Joie de Vivre has demonstrated
extraordinary success in driving demand and converting bookings online‖60.
e) Omni Hotels
Omni Hotels are using Twitter as a focus on the customer service driven culture
and as a tool to engage customers on a proactive level from brand offers to limited
time sales conveniently in one place. As stated in their website, twitter will be the
ideal platform to make it easier for clients to find fabulous packages available from
coast to coast:
59 http://www.kikabink.com/news/twitter-facebook-social-media-drive-bookings-for-california
luxury-hotel-chain-joie-de-vivre/
60 http://hsmai-europe.com/2010/02/02/joie-de-vivre-hospitality-as-2009-emarketer-of-the-year/

50
Buy two nights and get the third night free at the Omni Houston Hotel with the
Red, White and Cool Package starting from $99 per night.
―Enjoy your choice of 18 holes of golf or a 50-minute spa treatment at the
Omni Interlocken Resort in Denver with the resort’s Links or Leisure Package
starting from $195 per night.
Stay two nights and enjoy a second room for 50% off at the Omni Orlando
Resort with the Orlando Family Escape Package starting from $299 per night.
Stay three nights and save 30% off the best available rate at the Omni
Bedford Springs Resort in Bedford, PA when you book the property’s July
Fourth Package.‖61
The group wants also to meet the needs of guests staying at her hotel before
their arrival. The latter can follow the group updates and see how they engage well
with their audience "Thanks! We are looking forward to your arrival!‖ or ―Let us know if
we can help you further!" demonstrates again that hotels can use Twitter as an
extension of their customer service desk.
We have seen so far that the Hotels’ Twitter goal is not just aiming for increasing
revenues or getting more bookings a reservation; it is about making an appealing
connection, earning the guests’ expectation and so creating brand loyalty. Indeed,
there is no specific recipe to establish a successful Twitter account and attract more
clients, as we have seen above, in the Hospitality industry Twitter has been used for
different goals, values and priorities:
61 http://www.omnihotels.com/AboutOmniHotels/Press/PressReleases/090629PressRelease.aspx

51
Given the rapid growth of Twitter, it is no surprise that Hotels are striving hard to
have an active presence on Twitter and monitoring it effectively. Getting customer
service, satisfaction, and loyalty and thus increasing revenues and profits is a hard
task, since the service became saturated with hundreds of Hotel brands. The most
successful Hotel Twitter users are those who in-depth engage in innovating and
constantly making a difference in comparison with their competitors. They also
actively monitor the conversation, show concern for the well-being of their guests,
provide quick customer service and thus create a value to their brands. On top of
that, when hotels provide value to followers, guests become systematically aware of
them and this can utterly help hotels to be successful in Twitter.
2) Facebook as a distribution possibility
While Twitter seems to be one of the favorite popular networks for hotels, in
terms of traffic, Facebook reaches four times as many people as Twitter. Hotels that
take advantage of this emerging trend are seeing significant benefits in terms of
online placement and revenue. Facebook has become known as an exclusive
community, presenting authentic audiences and viral marketing opportunities for
those willing to promote their hotels. In a recent report about Facebook Statistics,
Twitter
Solve
customers
query
Share
quality
content
Extending
concierge
services
Last
minute
deals
Promotes
services
Reach
new
members
(e-club)
Build
Loyalty

52
Stats & Facts For 2011, it is stated that over 700 Billion minutes a month are spent on
Facebook, almost 20 million applications are installed per day by the users and over
250 million people interact with Facebook from outside the official website on a
monthly basis (mostly from mobile devices). Moreover, in just 20 minutes on
Facebook over 1 million links are shared, 2 million friend requests are accepted and
almost 3 million messages are sent.62
Contrary to Twitter that is limited to a certain number of characters, Facebook
offers diverse options to hotels to customize their page. In fact, the Facebook tabs
can be tailored by hotels to their specific needs: integrate reservation widgets,
create event pages, share photos and videos, share hotel information, grow a fan
base, offer multimedia content, invite clients to share their experiences, create
custom tabs to highlight hotel specific items such as meetings and conferences,
import news feed, promote services, etc. Hotels can also gain loyal fans to the point
they create fun, positive and engaging application experiences. Several Hotel
groups knew how to benefit from Facebook pages as promotional and operational
channels to win and retain clients, in different and innovative ways.
62 http://www.digitalbuzzblog.com/facebook-statistics-stats-facts-
2011/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DigitalBuzzBlog+%
28Digital+Buzz+Blog%29

53
a) Hilton Hotels & Resorts
Prior to their June 2009 international development, the Hilton relied exclusively on
traditional marketing mediums such as: radio promotions, Web and print
advertisements. But as the property expanded, their management teams realized
that if the Hilton didn't develop a social media presence to engage their clients,
comments and complaints in online conversations would happen anyway and there
would be no way to control what is said about the property.63 Twitter, Flickr, youtube
and Facebook profiles were all set up and increasingly provided exciting and
engaging content which brought them a considerable number of fans and followers.
For instance, it seems that Hilton's Facebook presence is largely driven by their fans:
almost 80,369 who are free to post their comments, experiences and even their own
photos. The statistics64 about the fan growth regarding the Hilton group is impressive
and demonstrates that the group has an affluent Facebook page:
63 http://hospitalitytechnology.edgl.com/case-studies/Social-Media-Savvy-Helps-Hilton-Hotel-
Convert-Facebook-Fans-into-Brand-Ambassadors54765
64 http://www.socialbakers.com/facebook-pages/125762892900-hilton-hotels-resorts

54
Up till now, the only place to book a hotel room online was at the hotel's official
website or via online travel agencies. Now hotels can engage customers via several
Facebook applications that can be included to bring more sales and revenues to
the properties. In the graphic below, we can see that the Hilton group has also
developed a Facebook booking widget as a way to extend reach beyond their
Websites, and where customers can actually book their rooms without ever leaving
the page.

55
When it comes to online exclusive contests and promotions for different properties;
the Hilton group usually creates diverse Facebook pages which allow them to
determine what is successful and what isn't. Like the campaign HiltonGardenInn
Facebook sweepstakes that gave to loyal fans a chance to win a free-two-night
weekend stay at their choice of more than 510 locations globally. To be a member
of the competition, Facebook users must click on the ―like‖ Hilton Garden Inn button
and be older than 18. The five winners were chosen at random; which has been
considered as a great online success for the group.
It is important to note that to monitor their social media activities, a monthly
productivity report is delivered, with areas of improvement highlighted and
addressed prior to the next month's outreach. The group recognizes that social
media is an ever changing and a fundamental part of their overall marketing
campaign. It is the online relationships that they cultivate, which transform fans and
followers into ―much-coveted brand ambassadors‖. Based on current momentum,
Hilton group is continually supervising TripAdvisor reviews, blogs and any additional
online social media conversations. As a result of their social network engagement,

56
the group has become increasingly visible, they're able to identify problems or
concerns and address them almost immediately.65
b) Sheraton Hotels and Resorts
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts has launched in 2009 a new social media platform
"Sheraton Shared Moments". The new site is the first Hotel website to feature
Facebook connect in a whole new way. The new site enables Facebook members
to interact through sheraton.com over travel experiences by sharing stories, tips and
photos about their best travel finds, destination favorites and passion for travel. Those
who sign up to the portal and share their moments also have the chance to win one
of five week-long stays in a Sheraton hotel best suited to their travel preferences.
Susanne Barfoed, Vice President Brand Management, Sheraton Hotels & Resorts
explained:
"Today's traveler is part of an online digital community and Sheraton is
committed to helping guests stay connected to friends, family and
colleagues whilst on the road. Sheraton has launched a range of
initiatives including a lobby-based signature communications hub,
Link@Sheraton experienced with Microsoft(SM), which provides internet
enabled PC work stations and free WI-FI so guests can remain fully
productive and connected to what matter most to them whilst away
from home. In addition, through Facebook Connect and now Shared
Moments, Sheraton is empowering travelers to share and inspire each
other in a new and exciting way."66
66 http://blogit.realwire.com/?ReleaseID=14648

57
The Sheraton social network experience is still a great success and has added
another important element, to clients: ―All of the stories are also searchable across 9
different categories, including sports, business, family or weddings, and there’s a
keyword search to help further pare down the posts.
There are three different ways to submit stories, all of which can be searched
individually or together: stories logged directly from Sheraton hotels, community
stories, and stories filed through Facebook Connect integration. Icons appear on the
map to denote each story type.‖67
The ―better when shared‖ strategy has allowed the Sheraton group to bring a huge
traffic to their website and gather all the Facebook fans and guests reviews in one
place in order to better control their image and interact effectively with them. As a
result, clients can be able to make connections with each other and with the Hotel
group at more than 400 hotels in 75 countries around the world. By sharing their
experiences, the guests become in a way the brand ambassadors.

58
c) Mandarin Oriental Hotel:
Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong is one of the group’s hotels that have built an
appealing Facebook page. By continually updating the page, and introducing new
content and updates such as photos and videos concerning different subject
matters (not necessarily about the hotel), the group is keeping its clients engaged.
Their Facebook profile is also highly interactive enabling the community to offer
direct free feedback. Facebook allows the group to gain a deeper understanding of
how the hotel is perceived online in order for them to build better relationships with
target audiences and current customers. Not only users can comment on or share
content with other friends, but they are invited to leave their reviews directly on
TripAdvisor; which can represent a risk to the brand to manage their image
effectively:
Due to the variety of features and available on Facebook, the Mandarin Oriental
Hotel, Hong Kong is actually using its Facebook page to launch an exclusive offer
regarding Valentine’s celebrations and is looking for submissions with the theme of
"Most Romantic Place in Hong Kong". Indeed, international travelers and
photography enthusiasts can show off their skills to the hotel during their Facebook

59
Valentine's Photo Competition. All the photos selected will be uploaded to the
Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong's Facebook page photo album and the entry winners
will be determined by the total number of "likes" received for each photo. The
contest runs until February 11, 2011 at 5pm and the group is giving away a number of
prizes, including a romantic two-night stay.
―Hong Kong is our most favorite city in the world and one that people love to
photograph, which is why we have introduced this photography contest to
showcase some of Hong Kong’s most romantic places.‖ says General Manager,
Jonas A Schuermann . ―The growing importance of social media in Asia is on a rapid
rise, and without doubt this will be a fun-filled competition on our Facebook page
whereby anyone with wonderful photography skills can win our spectacular prize
offerings this Valentines.‖68
In fact, the group’s benefit from this competition is to engage with the Facebook
community certainly after realizing that there is a whole advertising potential on this
valentine’s campaign. Knowing that the best-performing Facebook Pages are those
that provide compelling and engaging content (the Valentine’s campaign) in order
68 http://www.examiner.com/international-travel-in-national/mandarin-oriental-hong-kong-
launches-facebook-valentine-s-photo-competition

60
to increase the group’s exposure on Facebook in particular and on the web in
general.
All in all, the most successful hotel pages can not only be measured by the number
of fans they have got but also by their level of interaction with the Facebook users
and the quality of content they monitor; mainly regarding the hotels that successfully
cultivate and encourage customer comments as a way to monitor their online
visibility and reputation. We all know that the Facebook’s members are a dynamic
audience that can influence each other on how they make their travel decisions.
Facebook represents a part of their life; where they express their opinions, talk about
their favorite brands and share interesting content. That’s the reason why Facebook
is key to engaging with travel consumers in different manners to sum up what we
have seen so far in this chapter:
Facebook
Offer a
special
deal
Launch
online
competitio
n
Convert
fans to
ambassadors
Get
clients'
feedback
Drive
webtraffic
Interact/
engage
guests
Introduce
new
content/
news feed

61
3) YouTube channel for online visibility
According to ComScore, a leader in measuring the digital world, YouTube is still in
total command of video watching on the internet. YouTube is the second largest
search engine–second only to Google and achieved ―record levels of viewing
activity in May 2010 with an all-time high of 14.6 billion videos viewed and surpassing
the threshold of 100 videos per viewer for the first time‖ 69. Moreover, YouTube still
leads when it comes to uploading and watching videos. Which means that video is
starting to increasingly take an important place in the online community, as shown in
the graphics70 below:
69 http://techcrunch.com/2010/06/24/comscore-youtube-reaches-all-time-high-of-14-6-billion-
videos-viewed-in-may/
70 http://www.website-monitoring.com/blog/2010/05/17/youtube-facts-and-figures-history-
statistics/

62
After Google acquired YouTube in 2006, it was evident that video was on an incline
level. People watch an average of ―two hours a month online and referrals from
YouTube to the online travel channel are up 84% on 2010.Most importantly, 72% of US
Internet users view video online on the same scale as network television and 89% of
users surveyed said video influenced their booking decision (PhoCusWright).
No wonder almost all major hotel brands, OTA's, luxury hotel and resort brands
have invested heavily in the creation of online videos about their product and
services and created YouTube and Facebook video channels‖71. But much like
Facebook and Twitter, YouTube has always posed the question: How do you use it
effectively and make it profitable? How can you leverage your YouTube Branded
channel, and increase your online visibility?
Hoteliers need to be there right away for their customers where they are since
clients won’t necessarily come to hotels directly with their questions and
appreciations. The most popular videos are the ones that are informative, engaging
or funny. Creating an appealing content and video on YouTube is like creating an
appealing content on Facebook or Twitter. Hoteliers need to create a following of
people where exclusivity may be king.
Hotels thrive on displaying videos no one else has done before; that help them
become more interesting today than they were yesterday. Some small hotels, for
instance, have used YouTube in a whole new artistic way to reach their customers
without a national advertising budget; and here is an example of a boutique hotel
located in Midtown Manhattan (New York) that has been nicknamed ―the social
media hotel‖ due to its proficient use of online social platforms like YouTube.
71 http://hotel.ibooking.com/product/2010.asp

63
a) The Roger Smith Hotel
In an interview with Bizsugar72, Adam Wallace, the Director of Digital Marketing at
the Roger Smith Hotel, has stated that the social media program at the Roger Smith
Hotel started in 2006 with a video based website that they built called Roger Smith
Life.
The latter is a new live broadcasting and blogging platform based out of the
Roger Smith Hotel. He explained that: ―this project brought a new element to the
marketing of the hotel that was not focused on product, but rather stories and
identity. From this we built a network on Facebook and Twitter, which allowed us to
communicate directly with current and potential customers and provided a venue
for others to share stories from our hotel‖73. Here is a graphic that shows the social
network platforms and accounts the Roger Smith are using for their hotel:
72 http://www.bizsugar.com/blog/2011/01/26/social-media-with-the-roger-smith-hotel/
73 Ibid

64
The Video strategy was their core strategy that they used to get into social media
and attract more and more clients. If we take a look at their YouTube Channel, their
videos (with a total of 335954 views) focus essentially on stories, people and
relationships rather than just talking about their hotel; this is the reason why they
named them ―the Roger Smith Shorts Series‖. This makes their position much more
fun, more interesting and in many ways more effective than a traditional
advertisement that costs thousands of dollars:

65
As stated on their YouTube profile, ―The Roger Smith Shorts Series started in 2009 as
a short film festival was designed to facilitate filmmaking opportunities for up and
coming directors‖. Thanks to that, the hotel has not only attracted more guests but
has become the ideal setting for filmmakers as they put their creative talents to the
test74.
After their online great success, the hotel shared compelling early ROI statistics
(2010):
―Food and Beverage Sales, up 32%
Event revenues, up 37%
Estimated 75 – 175 rooms per month filled directly due to social media efforts.
Yes — small compared to the 3 – 4000 usual room bookings, but these 75-175
tend to be social media enthusiasts who then talk about the hotel to their
audience — either on blogs, Twitter, Facebook, photo sharing platforms,
YouTube, or other channels. Even when they aren’t comped.‖75
Roger Smith is attracting a significant bunch of new clients who have raved about
the hotel’s environment and the company’s video accessibility online. The Hotel has
successfully taken social media to the next level to amplify brand awareness and
offer enhanced customer service. By using a range of video channels, including
YouTube to propose a real picture about the hotel's culture, it has proven that small,
independent businesses have the power to compete with bigger corporations.
b) The San Juan Marriott Hotel
In fact, many big Hotel groups consider YouTube as a video site where they can
upload their videos without reaching out users with appealing and entertaining
video content. It is important to recognize that YouTube is a social networking site
that big chains and Hotels can exploit to their advantage and use it wisely and
properly. Let’s take for instance the San Juan Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino that
74 http://www.youtube.com/user/rogersmithnews
75 http://blog.businesssocialmediasolutions.com/roger-smith-hotel/

66
launched in 2009 an outstanding service gathering their clients’ vacation videos (or
YouTube postcards) that are available on their YouTube Channel76.
The hotel has even introduced a new position to the hotel industry that they called
―the YouTube Concierge‖. The latter will roam the property selecting ―willing
participants to smile for the camera, show off their tan and tell friends back home
just how much fun they’re having – in 30 seconds or less. The YTC will then take the
footage back ―behind the scenes,‖ format it with an opening, closing and music and
post it on the San Juan Marriott You Tube Channel (after participants have provided
written consent.)‖77
―Take a look at the video we shot poolside on our last day‖, this is how can clients
share the Hotel’s videos with friends and relatives. In fact, The hotel’s YouTube
Concierge offers guests a chance to star in a ―30-second video postcard‖. The latter
is then uploaded to YouTube and available for guest to share with friends and family
back home. The free service allows them to avoid worrying about buying postcards
or stamps, or whether bringing a camera to the pool or beach.
76 http://www.youtube.com/user/sanjuanmarriottlive
77http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/10/8/234650/979/hotels/The_San_Juan_Marriott_s_Yo
u_Tube_Concierge_Makes_Virtual_Bragging_Easy

67
―Most of us have posted a picture to Facebook with a camera phone or recorded
a quick video on their digital camera while on vacation to show family and friends,‖
commented Director of Marketing Julian Cable-Treadwell. ―We wanted to find a
way to help guests chronicle the great time they are having without having to worry
about bringing a camera to the pool or the beach and make it simple for them to
share this experience through the popularity of an on-line web channel.‖78
All in all, as the Internet continues to evolve and grow, YouTube stands as one of
the most popular social networks platforms in the hospitality industry. Hundreds of
humorous, intriguing or appealing videos are uploaded, hosted and viewed million
of times. Hotels start to recognize the advertising potential of YouTube. Yet, many of
them promote themselves in a traditional way and do not really exploit the viral
marketing potential offered by YouTube to their hotel’s fullest advantage: promote
and develop your business, enhance your brand awareness, attract new guests and
catch the attention of an tremendously large number of people through well-
produced and creative videos covering major events at your hotel.
78 http://www.prlog.org/10368978-san-juan-marriott-introduces-youtube-concierge.html

68
4) Flickr for informational images
Social media empowers pictures and can turn them into content creators. With
tagging, commenting and embedding capacities, photography sites are emerging
as social communities and can help build awareness of your hotel. Flickr, for
instance, is an online photography community, and is built as a photo sharing social
platform; a place for people from all over the world to upload and share their
pictures. This focus on sharing and distribution makes it ideal for hotel marketers
looking to build their web media presence. With simple features and remarkable
flexibility, Flickr is a great place to store, share, and showcase your hotel.
According to Josiah Mackenzie, a Hotel Marketing publisher, the five most
compelling reasons for hotels to use Flickr in their web marketing are:
1. ―Flickr increases your web presence, building awareness among potential
guests and travel planners

69
2. Flickr can link back to your hotel website, encouraging direct bookings and
helping your search engine position
3. Flickr hosts your images for free
4. Flickr syndicates your photos across other websites (important in Google’s
universal search – which includes media)
5. Flickr provides the opportunity to build relationships in your online
community‖79
Others use Flickr to generate buzz around a new product, service or property.
a) Four Seasons Hotels (Denver)
The Four Seasons Denver is using a Flickr group ―Denver's 1111 Tower‖80 in August
2010 to create a pre-opening buzz for its luxury hotel and private residence. The 45-
story tower is scheduled to open this fall as part of the Four Seasons Hotel and Private
Residences, 1111 Tower combines active urban vibrancy with kaleidoscopic views
and the youthful culture of the Rocky Mountains. The 45-story tower comprises 102
private residences and 240 guest accommodations. At $350 million, it the most
expensive privately-owned building ever constructed in Denver.81
Amateur photographers have been invited to take pictures of the construction and
to post them to the 1111 Tower Group photo pool on Flickr. In this case, the photos
represent a kind of feedback displayed by the users and also a way to spread the
word about the new hotel in Denver. Giving the chance to amateurs to display the
photos regarding the construction of the hotel is a clever way to urge them to talk
about, share their work of art with other users and thus build a community around the
new Hotel and create an effective crowd sourcing.
79 http://www.hotelmarketingstrategies.com/hotel-guide-for-using-flickr/
80 http://www.flickr.com/groups/1111tower
81 Ibid

70
Crowd sourcing illustrates the practice in which the purpose is to motivate people
in order to ensue on actions that finally serve promotional needs. Photo contests and
other types of contests in general are less aggressive forms of advertising that can be
very valuable in social media and that can bring results in a short period of time.82
b) Hyatt Hotels & Resorts
It is well known that a picture is worth a thousand words, some hotel groups
basically turn Flick to an open travel book where clients post photos about their
travel experiences. Others use Flickr in a whole different manner; flick represents a
platform where they can organize the photos in diverse categories in order to
enhance their brand visibility; which is the case of Hyatt Hotels and resorts. The latter
have collected all its properties under one Flickr account. The photos are also
themed around different categories or topics so that when the Flickr members can
relate to a certain property or topic and participate in relevant discussions. This Flickr
strategy exposes the group Flickr users and provides useful content to external
people researching a trip in a definite destination and that might end up choosing
one of the group’s properties.
82 http://www.webseoanalytics.com/blog/social-media-case-study/

71
Being one of the popular online image platforms, Flickr has enabled Hotels to
monitor and share digital photos easily and thus enhance their online visibility. Yet, if
Flickr is used effectively it becomes more than a basic image management website.
It’s a basis of creativity, and fun and interesting place for hotels to reach a huge
community of photographers (amateurs and professionals). The latter can provide
(for free) great photos concerning your hotel or property for the world to see and
share. All in all, Flickr offers the ability to engage clients, add notes to pictures and
form groups based on a multitude of themes/topics that provide discussion forums.
By monitoring the Flickr platform, hotels learn how to be more personal with customer
interactions and to get information out there that maybe doesn’t have a place on
their official website.
4) Foursquare: a location-based opportunity
"Location is a key factor in the future of search, social, commerce, and media,
among a lot of other things," Federated Media founder John Battelle has said. "Local
is the most important signal to emerge in the database of intentions since the link."83
Since location has become one of the major components of social networks, it is
important to analyze how Location-based social networks (like Foursquare) have
83 http://battellemedia.com/archives/2010/10/mayer_to_location_big_

72
been used by Hotels as an opportunity to develop their online presence and brand
awareness.
To begin with, Location-based social networks are social networks that use GPS
features to locate their members and let them broadcast their location and other
content online (for a top tier location based platforms please see Appendix III).
Usually, users checking in when they arrive in a place to reveal their location to their
network contacts and let them know where they are and what they are doing.
Location-based services have been a popular topic lately, as Twitter enables geo-
location features and Facebook announces Facebook places.
Foursquare, another location-based tool, encourages users to communicate
their locations and the places they’re visiting or activities they’re doing in specific
neighborhoods. Users can coordinate their journeys, meet-ups, recommend
restaurants, and find out what their friends or relatives are exploring. Here are some
remarkable statistics84 about foursquare (USA 2010):
84 http://foursquare.com/2010infographic

73
It is also important to note that the main source of traffic to Foursquare is Facebook,
which accounted for 33% of the upstream visits. Google and Twitter followed with
22% and 8%, respectively; knowing in advance that those top 3 websites are
accounting for nearly 2/3 of all traffic. Users are able to link both Facebook and
Twitter to include check-ins in updates and tweets.85
For businesses, Foursquare has launched a free analytics tool and dashboard
giving business owners access to a variety of information and statistics about their
visitors. With the new tool, businesses are able to see a range of real-time data about
Foursquare usage, including ―who has ―checked in‖ to the place via Foursquare,
when they arrived, the male-to-female customer ratio and which times of day are
more active for certain customers‖. Business owners will also be able to offer instant
promotions to try to engage new customers and keep current ones. ―If a restaurant
can see one of its loyal customers has dropped off the map and is no longer
checking in, the owner could offer them incentives to come back,‖ said Mr. Walker.
86
85 http://weblogs.hitwise.com/heather-dougherty/2010/03/1_year_anniversary_for_foursqu_1.html
86 http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/09/foursquare-introduces-new-tools-for-businesses/

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