Dr. Mathew McDougall CEO, Founder; Digital Jungle  

Technology  in  Tourism  

Social media is impacting tourism in increasing ways- as an industry we must embrace new technologies to understand this powerful

medium

There is a lot of technology in tourism! …. so what are we going to focus on?

China has a rich and diverse set of social media sites

Chinese Social Media Universe Fast Facts

(Source: China Internet Network Information Center June, 2011)

As of the end of June 2011, Chinese netizens reached to 485 Million Internet Users

Average duration for netizens to surf internet is18.7 hours per week- an increase of 0.4 hour compared to the end of 2010

There were 318 million users of blogs, increased 23.18 million compared with those at the end of 2010

301 million users of online video sharing sites.

Netizens accessing the Internet at Internet café 33.76 million

In the first half of 2011, Chinese microblog users increased from 63.11 million to 195 million rapidly, increasing 132 million

in half a year, with a growth rate as high as 208.9%

my weibo ID: sinotechian

There are 318 million mobile phone netizens with an increase of 14.94 million compared to the end of 2010

Online shopping users had reached 173 million. Chinese users of group buying grew from 18.75 million at the end of

2010 to 42.20 million in middle 2011

By the end of Jun 2011, Chinese users of travel booking engines increased to 36.86 million

ctrip.com  47%  

elong.com  8%  

118114.cn  8%  

huitongke.com  7%  

mangocity.com  7%  

12580.10085.cn  3%  

17u.com  2%  

others  18%  

Top online travel booking websites (by revenue)

China  Internet  Marke=ng  News,  Sta=s=cs  &  Insights

Interesting Chinese usage information

So… are there some tips we can use to leverage Chinese social media for Tourism

•  Monitor the channels they’re using.

•  What are they saying about your brand?

•  What are they saying about competitors’ brands?

•  Pre-empt reputational crises. Be ready to respond when necessary.

1. Listen to them

•  Remember our Chinese netizens are different in behavior and in online intent

•  Consider what are their motivations for using social media (are you wanting to reach a broad or narrow demographic)?

•  How do they interact with different social media channels?

•  How to they interact with each other across these channels?

•  What drives them to participate and spread messages?

•  What kinds of messages will they be receptive to?

2. Understand them

•  Don’t simply jump on the social media bandwagon.

•  When engaging Chinese through social media you must know which medium is right for your message and your objective

•  i.e. when to use corporate blogs vs. forums vs. social networking sites.

•  After selecting your channels, make sure your brand is highly visible to the public.

3. Be visible to them

•  Why should Chinese netizens engage with your brand and spread your message?

•  Is it a social currency?

•  Does it leverage opinion leadership among their peers?

•  Timely and compelling content?

•  Access to exclusive promotions?

•  Incorporate incentives that will drive interest and participation.

4. Know what incentives work for them

•  Be authentic and transparent in communicating across social media.

•  Try to add legitimate value to netizens’ online experiences.

•  Most importantly, don’t try to deceive this group– they are smart and it will only lead to backlash and reputational damage.

5. Gain and maintain their trust

Gaining insights from Chinese social media using technology

Leading Chinese Social Media platforms

SIP：Enterprise

Determine online buzz by competitor

Buzz by time then by destination

Today’s social media technology

What do people think?

Where are people talking?

Which channels are people talking in?

Understanding your Weibo account

Weibo Analysis

•  Fans •  Followers •  Content •  Geography •  Comment Age •  Demographics

Competitive analysis

Using technology to gain greater understanding

Destinations can understand how they compare in key areas

5 Parting Thoughts

In China, we have a rich Social Media environment

Also, impacting business like never before. Destinations must look at their online brand health, online reputation and product

promotions

Tools & Technologies are available for monitoring and analyzing your Chinese social media programs (however, not as many as for

Western social media)

Social media is not simply random posting on various media’s but using conscious engagement strategies targeting specific netizens

Chinese online user behavior is different to the West – Chinese are more social, trusting and entertainment oriented

Chief  Execu=ve  Officer  

Dr. Mathew McDougall!

My presentations on Slideshare: www.slideshare.net/digitaljungle

Follow on Twitter: @sinotechian

Connect on Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/drmathewmcdougall

Read my blog: www.dmic.asia

Connect on Facebook: www.facebook.com.sinotechian

Follow on Weibo: sinotechian

Also, don’t miss out on my new book! “The Chinese Social Media Universe” !