This document provides an overview of social media strategy and channels for tourism businesses. It discusses the importance of social media for destinations in travel research, recommendations, customer service, and as a source of inspiration. Popular social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter are described in terms of how they can be used to promote destinations. The document also covers travel blogs and TripAdvisor as additional marketing channels.
Instruction:
Explain the learning content to the participants (see also word document)
Time frame: 5 minutes
Learning content
Importance of internet and social media for tourism marketing.
Understand the digital consumer.
Most popular social media channels and other online marketing tools, like blogs or travel review pages.
Learning target
To understand….
that online and social media marketing are essential these days for tourism businesses and destinations to reach their consumers.
consumers follow a digital customer journey where marketing activties can target them at different „touch points“
characteristics, differences and use of most popular social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and Twitter. Also the characteristics and use of blogs and travel review pages.
The slide describes the importance of internet and social media in the daily life of the people.
Instruction:
Explain that social media has a high priority in today’s life of people.
Time frame: 2 minutes
Instruction:
Ask:
Who of you shares their holiday experiences on social media?
What do you like about it?
Explanation for the trainer: These questions should help to understand the customers point of view regarding sharing travel experiences on social media.
Explain that:
People love sharing new experiences and travel is full of them.
They love telling their networks about upcoming travel plans and recall travel experiences after return.
Travel photos and videos are among the most popular types of content shared online.
Time frame: 5 minutes
This slide points out the importance of social media marketing for destinations and tourism businesses.
Time frame: 3 minutes
This slide shows an overview of the customer journey of a (potential) guest and the five different „touch points“ that characterise a customer‘s interction throughout his travel.
Instruction:
Ask: Can somebody explain this picture?
Explain:
Customer Journey is the name given to the way a customer follows via so-called touchpoints before making a purchase decision. This path can be recorded visually in a customer journey map – see picture.
Time frame: 5 minutes
This picture shows the connection between the customer journey and social media.
Instruction:
Explain the digital customer journey: The digitalization refers to the entire Customer Journey.
INSPIRATION: With the help of Internet, the journey for the guest begins long before the stay. Guests inspire each other via websites, blogs or social media channels.
INORMATION: If the guest has been interested in a trip, you have to choose the right information is easily accessible. This can be covered primarily by an Internet presence of the destination, and via blogs.
BOOKING: To the booking the guest arrives via booking platforms, which ideally can be integrated into the own Homepage.
EXPERIENCE: Then nothing is left to the experience on site. In order to create a digital offer here as well, various travel guides, tours, games and exploration apps can be offered. Photos or comments of the experiences will be shared through social media as facebook, twitter, Instagram, etc. good local Internet access is important.
REFLEXION: Arriving home, feedback and pictures are provided via various social media platforms, blogs, review pages, and forums, which in turn leads to the inspiration of new guests.
Time frame: 5 minutes
Instruction:
Ask:
Do you know these social media pages?
Who is using social media already?
Explain:
Most used social media channels are for example…
Facebook
Instagram
Youtube
Twitter can also be of relevance for tourism marketing.
With social media you can reach your target tourist audience and convert „followers“ into visitors.
Time frame: 20 minutes (slide 8-17)
This slide shows a screenshot of Facebook.
Instruction:
Explain:
Facebook is a popular social media webpage. It is mainly used for networking and connecting with other people. In your case with (potential) visitors.
Ask:
Is somebody alreday using facebook to promote their business/ destination?
Open the link:
https://www.facebook.com/tourismmalawi/
Ask:
Can one participant explain Facebook with this example of Malawi tourism? (Add important information to participant‘s explanation)
Registration (you have to register, the service is free, you can create a business profile)
What you can do with facebook (e.g. use it as a webpage, describe your destination and business, put photos, videos, texts, news, connect with people, send messages).
About (name, location of business, email contact)
How to „like“ and what „follower“ means (visitors can like your profile and get regularly your posts about your business, destination and events)
This slide shows for which purposes Facebook can be used.
This slide shows a screenshot of Instagram.
Instruction:
Explain:
Instagram is a popular social media service with functionality optimized for the smart phone. It is mainly visual and used for inspiration. You can share own photos and short videos.
You can display Instagram on the computer.
You can explain the features only with the smart phone.
A picture conveys more than a 1000 words.
Ask:
Is somebody alreday using Instagram to promote their business/ destination?
Open the link: https://www.instagram.com/malawitourism/?hl=de
Ask:
Can one participant explain Instagram briefly with this example of Malawi tourism? (Add important information to participant‘s explanation)
Registration (you have to register, the service is free, you can create a business profile when you connect it with Facebook).
What you can do with Instagram (post and see photos and videos, you can use your smartphone to take photos of locations, activities, upload the photos to Instagram. Instagram helps you raise awareness about your destination.
Follow (visitors can follow your Instagram page and see your photos and videos about your business and your locations, activities etc.)
This slide shows for which purposes Instagram can be used.
This slide shows a screenshot of Youtube.
Instruction:
Explain:
YouTube is a free video sharing website.
You can upload, view and share videos.
Great platform to convey experiences.
A video conveys more than a 1000 pictures.
This slide shows for which purposes Youtube can be used.
Instruction:
Watch the video with participants.
Ask participants what they think and felt about this video and if they think it is a successful marketing video. Why?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZbZz13breQ
This slide displays a screenshot of Twitter.
Instruction:
Explain:
Twitter is a social networking and microblogging service.
People use mobile phones or computers to send and to read messages (max. 140 characters).
They are called "tweets“.
Ask:
Is somebody alredy using Twitter to promote their business/ destination?
Open the link: https://twitter.com/tourismmalawi?lang=de
Ask:
Can one participant explain Twitter briefly with this example of Malawi tourism? (Add important information to participant‘s explanation)
Registration (you have to register, the service is free, you can create a business profile).
What you can do with Twitter (twitter texts, photos and videos, „re-tweet“ (reshare of the original tweet) content from others.
People can follow you and read your tweets.
This slide shows for which purposes Twitter can be used.
This slide shows the main features of Facebook.
Instruction:
Explain:
The following slides will point out the differences between the most popular social media channels.
Ask:
Can somebody explain the main features of Facebook?
Explain:
Facebook is mainly used for connecting and networking with people.
Facebook is also good when you want to use different media like photos, videos, articles etc.
It is the most universal of all social media channels, and also the one with the highest acceptance around the world.
Time frame: 10 minutes (slide 18-21)
This slide shows the main features of Instagram.
Instruction:
Ask:
Can somebody explain what you can do with Instagram?
Explain:
Instagram can mainly be used for posting own photos and videos.
This slide shows the main features of Youtube.
Instruction:
Ask:
Can somebody explain what you can do with Youtube?
This slide shows the main features of Twitter.
Instruction:
Ask:
Can somebody explain what you can do with Twitter?
Explain:
Twitter is very useful for providing real time information about your business/ detsination and provide online advice to your guests.
This slide shows criteria by which participants can choose a social media channel.
Instruction:
Explain:
It is important to focus on suitable social media channels to be successfull in social media tourism marketing.
Do not try to do everything at once, especially when only limited human resources are available.
Time frame: 2 minutes
This is an exercise for participants to find out which social media channel is most suitable for their purposes.
Instruction:
Ask:
Ask participants to select the most relevant social media channel for their purposes.
For those who already have a social media profile, can you share your experience?
Who wants to create a social media profile? Can you support the others?
Time frame: 8 minutes
This slide shows a screenshot of a travel blog called “uncornered market“. It explains what a travel blog is and their purpose for tourism marketing.
Instruction:
Read and explain what travel blogs are helpful for.
Blog posts can be shared via social media and therefore compliment a social media strategy.
Time frame: 20 minutes
This slide displays a screenshot of a travel blog.
Instruction:
Explain:
With blog content you can create quality content and provide basic information about your travel destination.
Open the link: www.thefunkycichlid.com/blog/
Explain:
The funky cichlid, backpacker and bar in Cape Maclear, is running their own blog.
They provide their own quality content and share content (travel experiences and storys) from guests also.
This slide explains how participants can use blogs for their tourism marketing.
Instruction:
Explain:
You can create your own blog, like funky cichlid, or cooperate with people who blog (bloggers).
This slide presents a screenshot of Trip Advisor for the destination Malawi.
Instruction:
Ask:
Do you know Trip Advisor?
Can somebody explain what Trip Advisor is?
Open the link: https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Home-g293810
Explain:
There are pages where people can review a tourism destination including activities, sights and accommodation online, for example Trip Advisor.
Trip Advisor is the world’s largest travel review website.
Point out that visitors consider reading reviews important when planning trips and booking hotels.
Here participants can see a screenshot of registered accommodations in Cape Maclear.
Instruction:
Explain:
You can register your business and get rated. Positive ratings increase the probability to be booked.
Instruction:
Open the link: https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g666537-d1673642-Reviews-Mgoza_Lodge-Cape_Maclear_Lake_Malawi_National_Park.html
Explain:
Explain different features that are of importance in Trip Advisor.