Current issue speech about hospitality marketing - Essay Example

Effects of Social Media in the Hospitality Marketing Industry Social media marketing has been on the rise in the recent past. However, there are people who still do not believe in the social media marketing. The truth is, large numbers of people use different social media platforms across the world, but little impact is felt in the hospitality industry. Olenski in his article, “The Impact of Social Media in the Travel Marketing Industry” explains the impact of social media in the hospitality industry.

Olenski asserts that almost one-fifth of leisure travelers utilize social media for their travel planning with Facebook leading as the most popular social media platform.Research conducted by Redshift Research reports that, statistically, hotel uses lead the number of people using social media in the hospitality industry followed by vacation activities, attractions and restaurants. Olenski has used a few examples to drive his point home (Web). He argues that four seasons hotels and resorts band is very famous in the hospitality industry yet promoting it through the social media has never been successful as expected.

Olenski says that an attempt to increase weekend booking through the social media by Maxine saw only a few people visiting the different social media sites such as Facebook, twitter and Instagram (Web). The few people who visited the social media platform did not have a huge impact on the market target. It is apparent that marketing the hospitality industry through the social media is not an easy task. It is indeed challenging for players in the hospitality industry to target the right audience through social media.

Social media marketing also requires highly engaging and interactive platform in order to benefit a given brand. Social media marketing in the hospitality industry therefore, requires improvement on a few areas.A few mistakes are made by different brands who market their products and services in the social media in the hospitality industry. Usually, social media is accompanied with additional pressure on company’s resources including staffs that can make sure a high-level of engagement with social media users.

According to Olenski, social media can only do well when issues such as immediacy, engagement and reliable are maintained (Web). Immediacy, engagement and reliability are the only way hospitality industry can gain from the social media marketing.Internal resources are significant in providing the real benefits of products and services to consumers through interaction and engagement. Social media should be utilized by the internal resources although embracing different kinds of channels at a go may be disadvantageous.

Olenski believes that visibility and high level of engagement as well as understanding the needs of a few social media platforms may be of great use (Web). Attempt of being in almost all channels at once may not, therefore, help the hospitality industry to market their products well. Olenski argues that companies within the hospitality industry should focus on the objectives they want to achieve from the social media (Web).What an organization intends to accomplish with the social media should be clearly identified.

Succeeding in social media requires a high level content that is both authentic and engaging. With that, the hospitality industry can reach the level other industries have reached in terms of marketing through the social media.Works CitedOlenski, Steve. “The Impact of Social Media in the Travel Marketing Industry.” Forbes, 2 July 2014. Web. 18 Oct. 2014.