| Organizations use mainly traditional and online marketing strategies to develop their marketing plans. The main problem examined in this qualitative research case study was that hospitality and tourism organizations have not yet integrated their daily marketing activities with social media to promote their products and services. The social media marketers have not fully considered conversion strategies and tactics to reach their existing and prospective customers. As a result, it appears that marketers have not considered marketing plans that would blend traditional marketing strategies with social media marketing strategies. The purpose of this qualitative research case study was to identify and comprehend the factors that drove organizations in the hospitality and tourism sector to consider social media in their marketing strategy. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with seven social media marketing professionals, to determine operating social media marketing strategies. The key results show that the hospitality and tourism organizations recognized several factors that prevented them from considering social media in their marketing activities. More specifically, these factors included the majority of the current nature of their customers, the over-dependence of the hospitality and tourism marketing departments on the proficiency of their external foreign partners, and not clarifying the level of the elements of investment, in terms of money, time, effort, and training. In order to overcome these factors, the marketing professionals noted intentions to expand to other tour destinations, take some specific initiatives to pursue innovative techniques and new communication tools, so as to promote their products and services, and attract new customers. Furthermore, the hospitality and tourism organizations along with their partners will continue sharing social media marketing knowledge, mutual profits and expenses, allowing all to maintain efficient communication and develop a significant level of trust. For future research, other researchers need to investigate whether the elements of money, time, effort, and training could overcome the over dependence on the expertise of hospitality and tourism organizations' partner tour operators and agencies or work collectively with them. |
