Power of Social Media in Travel; An intrusion OR gateway to aspirational travel?
In the new age world of connectivity and communication, Social media has become an integral part of our lives almost to the level of being our DNA. We live and breathe digital & social media in conduct, business and interaction becoming our currency to express candid views and opinions on anything & everything.
Credit to the raw power of the medium, it has taken Travel and Tourism to unknown territories and boundaries beyond the human imagination. Come to think of it, how often did we depend on an agent or a travel consultant to figure out a potential itinerary for us.
Today, the intrinsic strength of this medium gives us insights, reflection and knowledge of places that we haven’t dreamt of in our wildest imagination. The world is up, close and personal in its purest, wildest and adventurous form. Technology has risen from the cusp of being just a hand tool to a mind tool via the brute, intrusive force of social media platforms and the advent of Artificial Intelligence & Virtual reality that has shaken the very basis of travel.
Insta pics, travel blogs, influencer communities, social conversations, travel communities, Vlogs have brought a new dimension to travel bringing aspirations to the forefront and making distant dreams a reality. As traffic grows on popular social platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, and Twitter, most users have transformed into content creators & storytellers themselves, curating and crafting their own stories, photos, and videos for others to see, follow and get inspired.
Macha Pichu (Peru), Ibiza and Andalusia (Spain), Cecilia (Italy), Batumi (Georgia), Macedonia (Greece), Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Cappadocia (Turkey) are just examples of gems resulting from the outburst of social media and influencer marketing. Today’s smart traveller is looking to move beyond the ordinary and explore places that bring knowledge, excitement, exploration and most importantly, value. User-generated content on digital & social media has become a popular source of inspiration for modern travellers and often impacts the initial decision to make a trip among the younger generation. Due to the authenticity of user-generated or earned content, there has been a transformation in not only the travel buying process, but also in the post travel experience. In a nutshell, social media has become a holiday browsing hotspot and commentary hive to inspire travellers globally which has made the quintessential travel B2B marketplace think about their approach and reinvent the wheel to stay relevant in the travellers’ mind space.
So, while we may believe that social media has intruded our personal lives ever than before, the reality is that it has exploded like a powerhouse of information to realize our aspirations of travelling and exploring the globe. It has truly become our gateway to the world, just a click away!
What’s your take- do you see it as a boon or bane?
