Information Needs in Online Social Networks

Social Media Use and Impact during the Holiday Travel Planning Process

“…Ad-ology supports that 23% of US Internet users were "somewhat" or "significantly influenced" by social media for their travel / holiday related decisions (eMarketer, 2010). Social media are therefore becoming increasingly important in travel planning, primarily for their function as vital information sources providing access to other travellers' experiences (Chung & Buhalis, 2008;Yoo et al, 2011). At the same time, apart from their function as information sources, social media enable storytelling, a usual post-travel activity, on a '24/7' basis to large audiences, and also provide a sense of belonging into virtual travel communities (Gretzel, Fesenmaier, & O'Leary, 2006).…”

Explaining travellers online information satisfaction: A complexity theory approach on information needs, barriers, sources and personal characteristics

“…All three constructs are developed as latent reflective variables. More specifically, pleasure and logistics comprise six indicators, transportation and weather five indicators, and testimonials two indicators [19]. Respondents were asked to evaluate on a nine-point Likert scale (1-not at all, 9-totally) the degree to which they expected their various information needs to be fulfilled through online sources.…”

“…Extant tourism information-seeking studies have concluded that information search may be conceptualized as a series of interrelated activities (e.g. [14,19,20]); nevertheless, modelling the interrelationships of these factors and exploring their combined effects on information satisfaction remains largely unexplored.…”

The effects of online social media on tourism websites

“…Many tourism businesses are, in one way or another, changing their approach to the manners of presenting themselves online (Au, 2010;Jones & Yu, 2010;Schegg et al, 2008). However, most of the studies have assesses so far mainly the social and psychological effects, and have well confirmed the role played as sources of information and areas in which discussing various issues related to travels or stays (Chung & Buhalis, 2008;Kasavana et al, 2010;Parra-Lopez et al, 2010;Schmallegger & Carson, 2008;Xiang & Gretzel, 2010). Some works have also discussed the effects of these tools on the image and the popularity of destinations or other tourism operators, mainly in the hospitality sector, in which the direct contact, real or virtual, with the customer and their crucial role for the good health of the companies (Burgess et al, 2009;Matloka & Buhalis, 2010;Sigala, 2010).…”