CONSUMER DECISION-MAKING
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Travel-review websites and social-media platforms have usurped traditional brand-building strategies
The influence of eWOM on travel decisions made by consumers Travel-review websites and social-media platforms have usurped traditional brand-building strategies as the ‘go to’ approach for travel marketers, writes Neo Cheda.
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ONSUMER-GENERATED content has rapidly gained traction as a key input into the consumer purchase decision-making process. Modern social and online media allows consumers through electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM) to share information, opinions and purchase experiences about products and services. Critically, consumers are more likely to trust the information that has been shared by other consumers (Varkaris & Neuhofer, 2017). However, there is a relative lack of information regarding the influence of social platforms on consumers’
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strategicmarketingforafrica
purchasing decisions. The travel industry – which attracts a large volume of social media comments and websitebased reviews – is one of the sectors most in need of such information. My research, therefore, aimed to examine the information-sourcing activities of travellers on the internet and social media, and to get a deep understanding of consumer decision-making, paying attention to the factors that influence the buying decision.
RELEVANCE OF TRAVELLER AND TOURIST-GENERATED CONTENT The prominence of social media
Issue 2 2022
platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, plus travel-review websites like TripAdvisor and others, allow consumers to share their opinions, views, and converse extensively with other travellers online. The travel-related content that people create and upload to these platforms is termed ‘Tourist-Generated Content’ and can both shape the overall image of a destination and raise its profile among prospective travellers – thereby motivating (or, of course, discouraging) travel (Gavilan, Avello, & MartinezNavarro, 2018).
