Social media impact on leisure travel: The case of the Russian market and the challenges for the Cyprus Tourism Industry. Preliminary Findings

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jfotis@bournemouth.ac.uk
Social media impact on leisure travel:
The case of the Russian market and the challenges for
the Cyprus Tourism Industry
Preliminary Findings
John Fotis, PhD Researcher, PT Lecturer
School of Tourism, Bournemouth University
Dr. Nicos Rossides, Chief Executive Officer
MASMI Research Group
Prof. Dimitrios Buhalis,
Established Chair in Tourism,
School of Tourism, Bournemouth University

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Web 2.0: Users as content creators
Web 2.0 “empowered” consumers by enabling them to generate their own content through a
range of devices and platforms that are easy to use.
A significant number of consumers are now able to use the web, not only as recipients of
information (Web 1.0 era), but also as information and content creators for others.

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Phenomenal success of social media
• Facebook (2010): +517m users
• Twitter (2010): 160m users; 90m tweets/day
• Flickr (2010): 5bn pictures; +3000 pictures /min
• Blogs worldwide: +200m
• Youtube (2010): 2bn videos seen/day; 24hrs of videos
uploaded/min
• Foursquare (2010): 3m users

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Definitions “...online applications, platforms and media
which aim to facilitate
interaction, collaboration and the sharing of content”
(Richter & Koch 2007)
“activities, practices and behaviours
among communities of people who gather online to share information,
knowledge, and opinions using conversational media.
Conversational media are Web-based applications that make it possible
to create and easily transmit content
in the form of words, pictures, videos, and audios.
(Safko and Brake 2009)
”...a group of Internet-based applications
that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,
and that allow the creation and exchange
of User Generated Content”
(Kaplan and Haenlein 2010)

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Source: Cavazza 2009

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Social media and tourism
SM seem to change significantly the way individuals plan and
consume travel:
• 82% of US online consumers have checked online
reviews, blogs and other online feedback for their travel
related purchasing decisions (eMarketer, 2008).
• TripAdvisor (2010), hosts over 40 million user-generated
reviews and opinions, used by more than 40 million
website visitors per month.

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Social media are becoming
increasingly important in tourism
• Experiential nature / complexity / high cost of tourism products
• Potential tourists rely on others’ experiences for their decision
making, decreasing uncertainty and increasing the exchange
utility
• Social media enable storytelling, a usual post-travel
engagement to a larger audience, while providing a sense of
belonging in virtual travel communities.
• The content of on-line communities is perceived as similar to
recommendations provided by friends, family members or even
“like-minded souls” becoming vital information source to
potential tourists.

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Research Purpose
• To investigate the role and impact of social media on how
Russian holidaymakers plan and consume holidays
• To explore determinants of acceptance and usage levels
of SM as marketing and communication tools, by the
Cyprus tourism industry.

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Rationale of context
Russia has the most engaged social networking audience worldwide in
terms of time spent /user (ComScore 2010):
34.5 million Russian internet users (74.5% of the online population)
visited at least one social networking site, spending an average of 9.8
hours /visitor during the month ranking it #1 among all countries in social
networking engagement.
Russia is Cyprus’...
• Second most important incoming holiday market
• Most promising market in terms of per capita tourism receipts

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Research objectives
To measure Russians’ holidaymakers:
1. Exposure to SM before, during and after their trip;
2. Level of influence that SM have on their holiday plans
3. Level of trust / credibility towards SM, in relation to
traditional sources of holiday related information.
Quanti
Quali
To explore among Cyprus tourism industry’s stakeholders
4. The perceived importance of SM as marketing tools,
5. The underlying reasons determining acceptance and
usage level of SM as part of their organization’s
communication tools.

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Design / Methodology / Approach
Two stage research design:
• Quantitative (Objectives #1, #2, #3)
A questionnaire survey to MASMI’s online Russian panel
(n=329)
• Qualitative (Objectives #4, #5)
A number of in-depth semi-structured interviews with key
stakeholders of the Cyprus tourism industry.

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Cyprus 9th in terms of consideration
Q. Which countries did you consider?
48%
37%
24%
18%18%
15%
10%10%10%10% 9% 9% 9% 7% 7% 7% 7% 6% 6% 5% 5% 4% 4% 4%
Base: Travelled P12M

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Turkey, Ukraine, Egypt: top 3 destinations
Cyprus ranked 23rd
Q. Which country did you go to?
22%
16%
12%
5%
4% 4% 3% 3% 3% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1%

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Cyprus possibly missing opportunities
• Cyprus has low conversion rates
• Ukraine, Belarus, Turkey, Egypt have high conversion rates
68%
47% 45%
31%
25%
21% 21% 20%
16% 16% 15% 15%
10%
Ukraine
(24%)
Belarus
(10%)
Turkey
(48%)
Egypt
(37%)
Italy
(15%)
Thailand
(10%)
Czech
Rep
(7%)
Bulgaria
(18%)
Austria
(9%)
Tunisia
(9%)
Greece
(18%)
Spain
(10%)
Cyprus
(9%)
NB. Ratio from consideration to final decision
(in brackets: %age consideration)

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12 days is the average length of stay
Expected high influence from packages offered by travel agents
20%
18%
14%
7%
6%
5% 5%
3%
10 7 14 5 12 8 15 3
Base: All travelled in P12M
Nights stayed

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A high 73% visited SM when planning
Q. Did you visit social media when planning your holidays
73%
10%
17%
Yes No Cannot remember

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63% use SM to find alternatives
Q. Why did you use SM when planning?
63%
33%
45% 47%
56%
To search for
destination ideas
To narrow down
my destination
choice
To confirm that I
made a good
destination choice
To seek ideas &
info on
accommodation
options
To seek ideas &
info on leisure
activities
Base: All who used SM when planning
Before deciding on destination After deciding on destination

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Info from friends & travellers sought
Q. Which of the following did you use, to find info about your holidays …?
4%
7%
11%
12%
17%
36%
39%
40%
41%
41%
45%
64%
76%
Advertisements in radio
Advertisements in newspapers
Advertisements in magazines
Advertisements in TV
Documentaries in radio
Company owned websites
Articles in newspapers
Articles in magazines
Travel agents
Official tourism websites
Shows or documentaries in TV
Suggestions from friends and relatives
Information and reviews provided by other…

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Trust in friends, travellers & SM
Q. How much do you trust holiday info found in …?
23%
31%
34%
47%
57%
69%
92%
Advertisements
Travel agents
Holiday documentaries
Official tourism websites
Social Media
Holiday info from travellers
Holiday info from friends
NB. %age positive responses

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SM influential on destination
Q. How much were you influenced on choice of destination?
7%
5% 5%
15%
32%
22%
14%
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Base: All who used SM when planning NB. 7-point scale
Ave. Score: 4.8 out of 7

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SM influential on accommodation
Q. How much were you influenced on choice of accommodation?
10%
5%
9%
16%
23%
20%
16%
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Base: All who used SM when planning NB. 7-point scale
Ave. Score: 4.7 out of 7

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2 in 3 made changes based on SM info
Q. Did you make any changes to your original holiday plans because of
info you found in social media websites?
48%
15%
35%
2%
Made a few changes Made significant
changes
No changes Not sure

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Experiences fed back to SM – a full circle
Q. After holidays, for what reason did you use any social media websites?
78%
27% 28%
12%
To share
experiences/photos
To provide reviews To get ideas for next
holidays
Did not visit/use any SM

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Important to keep in touch with friends
Q. During holidays, for what reason did you use social media websites?
28%
18%
49%
15%
2%
31%
To find out info
on leisure
activities
To provide
comments on
experiences
To stay
connected with
friends
Used SM but not
related to
holidays
I cannot
remember
Did not visit any
SM

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In conclusion
• Social media play an important role in travel behavior
• Consumers are engaged throughout the process
• Cyprus enjoys high consideration yet can do better in
converting
Pre During Post

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John Fotis
Prof. Dimitrios Buhalis
dbuhalis@bournemouth.ac.uk
Thank you
Dr. Nicos Rossides
nicos.rossides@masmi.com

Social media impact on leisure travel: The case of the Russian market and the challenges for the Cyprus Tourism Industry. Preliminary Findings

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Social media impact on leisure travel: The case of the Russian market and the challenges for the Cyprus Tourism Industry. Preliminary Findings