Social media practices applied by city hotels: a comparative case study from Turkey

Abstract

Purpose – This study aims to examine various forms of hotel businesses’ social media (SM) practices by analysing TripAdvisor (TA) and examining its critical role in decision-making. As a well-known platform of SM in tourism, TA serves as an independent review site where visitors share their holiday experiences. Design/methodology/approach – The sample for this study includes hotel businesses located in Istanbul, Turkey, and listed in the top grades of TA ratings. Purposive sampling was used to obtain relevant data. A holistic multiple-case study was designed, as sample hotels vary in official class and attributes. Structured interviews were used to collect data from participating managers in each hotel business. Upon creation of the data set, transcripts were used to develop and classify a matrix table (hotels vs questions) and analysed by clustering responses according to the content of questions. Findings – The study findings show that hotels pay significant attention to TA and that it is viewed as an essential tool for various purposes. Hotel businesses benefit from the content of TA for the purpose of marketing and quality management. From a strategic point of view, hotel businesses consider TA as an “ocean of opportunity” that is highly related to service quality, reliable information channels and effective tools to monitor competitors and for undertaking self-review of performance. Research limitations/implications – The sample group represents only hotel businesses in the city, and the study utilizes only qualitative techniques. A similar empirical investigation in a resort destination and a longitudinal comparable study using both qualitative and quantitative techniques may generate more insights relating to the social media practices of hotel businesses. Practical implications – Hotel businesses consider accuracy, transparency and consistency of content and pricing to be essential prerequisites of competitiveness. As a consequence, this study reveals the fact that TA is a critical tool of SM utilized by hotels with different attributes, despite some concerns regarding fake reviews. Originality/value – This is an insightful comparative study of TA practices of hotel businesses with different attributes. The study may inspire further research to study SM practices and related impacts on a longitudinal basis.