The document summarizes the results of a study on the status of web2.0 usage in the tourism industry in 2011. The study found that: 1) While consumers were adopting web2.0 technologies, many tourism organizations were only beginning to engage with these developments and had yet to realize their full potential online. 2) Basic online activities like websites and email marketing were common, but newer strategies like social media, mobile applications, and location-based services were not widely used. 3) To stay competitive, the tourism industry needs to more actively adopt emerging web2.0 technologies and integrate them into online, mobile, and social media strategies.

1. web2.0 in the tourism industry – status quo 2011Friday, 11th of March 2011 Prof. Dr. Holger Lütters - holger.luetters@htw-berlin.de

2. The Internet is very important… but still developing fast ITB 2010 was full of spectacular web2.0 topics Internet is definitively not to be discussed anymore in terms of its importance for the tourism industry Preparation of a trip (holiday or week-end) is done using the internet Mobile usage is increasing on site web2.0 services have become players in tourism

3. Idea of the study came up during several tourism related projects in Brandenburg > Internet & Mobile use of tourists than of tourism professionals Map from www.reiseland-brandenburg.de

4. Idea of the study: Asking tourism professionals about their web activities and plans to use web2.0 services Goal: status quo of internet activities within the tourism industry (corporate and public organizations) in the field of internet activities web2.0/social media activities internet strategy & budgeting

5. Thanks to the following supporters this research was made possible: ITB Berlinwww.messe-berlin.de/itb BTE Tourismusmanagement, Regionalentwicklungwww.bte-tourismus.de DSFT – Deutsches Seminar fürTourismus Berlinwww.dsft-berlin.de pangea labs – questfox®www.questfox.com

6. Field Report of the Study

7. Field report January 2011 until March 2011 535 online contacts 310 fully completed interviews with questfox® (244 in German / 66 in English) Average Response Time: 14 minutes 21 seconds Recruiting: online riversampling with partners over social media and e-mail Non-monetary incentive to the participant: Promising the results

8. Limitations of the study Mode Bias: Asking over the internet only creates answers from people already online Riversampling approach is not representative for the industry (regional answer pattern) Social desirability seems to be high for everything which is new (“we plan it for the future”) Topic involvement (bias towards interest in technology) tends to overstress the importance of some aspects Only successful companies interviewed (82% see a positive development for themselves)

9. structure of Participants

10. The study only partly represents the tourism organizations present during ITB Berlin 2011 Basis: n=310; single answer

11. The statements in the study are made by experienced representatives of the tourism industry Basis: n=310; single answer

12. The majority of survey participants have a marketing background Basis: n=310; single answer

13. All company sizes are represented Basis: n=310; single answer

14. Most of the answers were gathered from Europe (Germany) Basis: n=310; single answer

15. Internet Activities of the organizations

16. Self-assessment of the online activities Question: How would you characterize the activities of your company/organization on the internet? We use the full potential of the Internet We are not active at all

17. 30% of the interviewed tourism professionals consider themselves as less active on the internet We use the full potential of the Internet We are not active at all Average:64% Basis: n=310

18. Activities From web1.0 to web2.0

19. Example of a question Question: How active is your organization in the following field of online marketing?

20. The organization’s website is the hub for all online activities Basis: n=310; single answer

21. The „classic“ form of e-mail marketing is used intensively Basis: n=310; single answer

22. The classic form of web banner advertising is not used by 60% of the sample Basis: n=310; single answer

23. The opportunities of keyword marketing are only used by half of the sample Basis: n=310; single answer

24. Affiliate marketing is not used by / unknown to the majority of the interviewed tourism professionals Basis: n=310; single answer

25. 33% do not optimize their most important contact to the online world in order to be found Basis: n=310; single answer

26. Social Bookmarking does not play a major role in the online strategy of the tourism professionals (unknown to 20%) Basis: n=310; single answer

27. 35% do already state to work on Social Media Optimization Basis: n=310; single answer

28. Until now only 20% of the sample are actively using digital mobile applications Basis: n=310; single answer

29. The majority of the tourism professionals are not using map services until now Basis: n=310; single answer

30. Location Based Services are still new to the industry which should be leading in this field Basis: n=310; single answer

31. Overall the sample feels quite active in web2.0… even though they only cover parts of the opportunities Basis: n=310; single answer

32. Overview: Website, e-mail and already web2.0 Intensively No activity Own website Affiliate marketing E-mail marketing Keyword marketing Web banner Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Social Media Optimization (SMO) Social Bookmarking Own digital mobile applications (Apps) Integration of own services into Location Based Services Entries of own services in maps Web 2.0 activities

33. Summary of classic internet activities:Industry is neglecting some of the new opportunities The website is still the most important online-channel, followed by classical email marketing The complexity of the new web is not really seen (“one new activity already feels like a lot of web2.0”) The connections between one´s own activity and the outside world is not really understood Existence of a strategy and establisher online budgeting procedure explains more than any other factor

34. Web2.0 Activities

35. Social Media is a major activity in web2.0 activities of the tourism professionals Question: Which web 2.0 services does your organization already incorporate on the web? Basis: n=240 respondents with higher activity level than 50%; multiple answers allowed

36. Active companies incorporate a wider range of services in their online activities 5,5% Social Media play a huge role even for less active companies Basis: n=240 respondents with higher activity level than 50%; without people not answering for budget multiple answers allowed

37. Social Media Usage Picture: www.krawattentraeger.de

38. The self-assessment of activity is lower for Social Media We use the full potential of the Social Media We are not active at all Average:58% Basis: n=310

39. Representatives of the tourism industry have preferences among online social platforms Absolutely unimportant Very important n=310

40. The facebook use is about to become a professional issue n=138 respondents using facebook

41. Facebook for business is already planned… …but not yet established for all members of the industry n=138 respondents using facebook Which are the organizations already having business activities on facebook?

42. Social Media: Chance or risk? 100% Risk 100% Chance Basis: n=303

43. Summary Social Media: The fun becomes professional Facebook is more important to consumers, but businesses are getting involved on a professional level Activities on facebook seem to be a must; the earlier… the cheaper Do not ignore locally more important platforms (Orkut in Brazil; Hyves.NL; China web2.0) It’s a chance.It is only a risk if you start without a strategy and do not know how to integrate it!

44. Map Services

45. Google Maps is the most used instrument among the online map services Question: On which of the following map services is your organization represented with an own entry? Other map services Basis: n=199

46. Future web Activity Mix

47. Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) decision making model used to evaluate future importance

48. The dominance of the website will remain at a lower level Consistency-Ratio : 0,197 n=310; AHP comparisons; groups based on different questions

49. Online Booking of tourism related products

50. Everything can possibly be booked online in the future 0% online booking 100% online booking Package tour Flights Train journeys Hotel accommodation Youth hostel, hostel Private accommodation Rental car On-site transport (Bus, train etc.) Short journeys/weekendtrips Performances/events Basis: n=298

51. Consumer Trust

52. 3 kinds of typical web representations of a Berlin hotel were shown in comparison n=309; AHP comparisons

53. The trustworthiness of personal information is 5 times higher than information from a commercial organization Which form of evaluation will customers consider as more credible? n=309; AHP comparisons

54. Management of Online Activities

55. The website is mainly managed by the organization itself How does your company organize the web site? Basis: n=310; multiple answers allowed

56. 38% percent cannot work with a defined budget for online marketing

57. Only 29% state having a defined Social Media Strategy Basis: n=233

58. Only 24% are working with a Mobile Strategy… but 44% have plans for 2011 Basis: n=133

59. Size of the organization seems to determine the budgeting process Basis: n=310; item list of single answers

60. Online budgets are more used for marketing purposes than for technical issues n=143 with Online Budget n=114 without Online Budget

61. Summary Management of online activities A strategy helps! A defined budget for online activities is the first step Make or buy? Integrate important knowledge! Outsource and crowdsource! Keep an eye on mobile and social media!

62. Future of Online Open Questions:

63. Question: Which web services or applications change the tourism industry the most? Tagcloud powered by wordle.net based on three open answers n=310

64. Question: What social media services will change the tourism industry the most? Tagcloud powered by wordle.net based on three open answers n=310

65. Question: What mobile services will change the tourism industry the most? Tagcloud powered by wordle.net based on three open answers n=310

66. SUMMARY

67. Status quo: web1.5 in the tourism industry web2.0 is happening for consumers, but only parts of the tourism industry tend to follow these developments 50% of the respondents are not willing/able to follow the fast web2.0 development Online still seems to be a topic besides more important things

68. Recommendations to the tourism industry Do not follow any hype cycle……but do not leave out important developments. The internet is going away from the desktop environment to a more personalized location based environment on mobile phones. Not everyone in the tourism sector is joining. Make sure that the tourism industry takes the driver’s seat in the development process.

69. Suggestions for online success of the tourism industry Explanatory variables Recommendation Age or work experience are not explaining differences in online behavior in this study Do not take age as an excuse for not being up-to-date online Technological usage explains the differences in perception of the importance of trends Get your employees a new mobile device and let them officially use facebook and other services Budgeting online activities / Definition of a strategy Have a plan! Give a budget to the responsible people Send your people to ITB 2012! Exhibitors vs. Non-Visitors

70. Special Thanks to Marta Bojkovska-Langer and Thank you for your attention

71. Thank you for your attention and to the companies making this study possible ITB Berlinwww.messe-berlin.de/itb BTE Tourismusmanagement, Regionalentwicklungwww.bte-tourismus.de DSFT – Deutsches Seminar für Tourismus Berlinwww.dsft-berlin.de pangea labs – questfox®www.questfox.com

72. People supporting the study Prof. Dr. Holger Lütters, Professor International Marketing, Hochschule für Technik & Wirtschaft Berlinholger.luetters@htw-berlin.de Marta Bojkovska-Langer, Online Research Consultant,pangea labs mbl@pangealabs.com Prof. Dr. Hartmut Rein, Director BTE Tourismusmanagement & Regionalentwicklung; rein@bte-tourismus.de Juliane Gaebler & Sascha Stange, KompetenzCenter ITB Berlin Rolf Schrader, Director Deutsches Seminar für Tourismus Berlin