PROJECT REPORT

ON
Study on Social Media Advertisement in Attracting
Tourists - with special reference to Nainital

submitted to: nchmct-noida

research center- ihmgwalior
Supervisor :-

Mr. Kamal Kant Pant

Researcher:-

AikanshSingh
131935

ACKOWLEDGEMET

I would like to thank Mr, K.K. Pant who guided me for the complication of this project.

He gave us all the important information required for the project. Without his help the project
would not have been possible.

I am grateful to all the people who have given suggestions to improve the project.

GUIDES CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the project work entitled STUDY ON SOCIAL MEDIA
ADVERTISEMENT IN ATTRACTING TOURISTS- WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO
NAINITAL Submitted in partial fulfillment for the award of the degree of B.Sc. in
Hospitality & Hotel Administration by NCHMCT, Noida in collaboration with IGNOU,
New Delhi through IHM Gwalior done by AIKANSH SINGH is an authentic work carried
out by him under my complete guidance.

Supervisor:-

Researcher:-

Mr. K.K. Pant

Aikansh Singh

Place:- IHM GWALIOR

DATE:-

CONTENTS
S.No.

Particulars

1.

Chapter:- 1
Introduction

2.

Chapter:- 2
Research Methodology
Literature Review
Limitations

3.

Chapter:- 3
I.
II.
III.

4.

Theoretical Framework
Growing role of social media on advertisements.
The impact of social media on the increasing rate of tourism in
Nainital
Experience of tourist staying in Nainital during X-Mas and New
Year

Chapter:- 4
Data Analysis
Finding and Suggestions

Page No.

5.

Chapter:- 5
Conclusion
Bibliography
Appendix
Sample Questionnaire

Introduction
The organisation of holidays and services for tourists. oxford dictionary. tourism
revolves around novelty-seeking, and modern technology has made it talismanic
for the tourist to seek out white virginity of the polar regions, to fly into space, and
to discover the exoticism of the other. tourism results in expansion of the mind
and adventure of the soul; it promotes peace and amity in this strife torn world; it is
an exercise in deontology to conserve the resources; an environmental pilgrimage;
and can also work for the benefit of the poor and the destitute. tourism today offers
a strange world of experiences that needs to be studied thoroughly. tourism is a
basic and most desirable human activity deserving the praise and encouragement of
all people and all government. tourism with special reference to Nainital.
Nainital district just 60 km away from Corbett National Park which is aptly called
the land of roar, trumpet and songs. (120km) away set on the banks of the mighty
ram ganga river is dhikala- the main tourist attraction in the world famous and
indai,s first national park- jimcorbett.
Nainital is a bliss for people who love walking. one can go for long walks, breath
fresh air and enjoy the scenic beauty. it offers numerous walkways and authentic
feeling of you being a local yourself. quiet, peaceful and lazy are probably the best
description. nature at its best is the right word to describe the magnificient hill
station. a leisurely walk through the thandisadak would fetch the tourist a soothing
sensation. this is the most alluring spot in this small hill station, which offers a cool
ambience for a perfect walk. thandisadak is lined up with lush greens of pine,
deodar and oaks, which restricts the sunbeams to fall over thandisadak.
Thandisadak presupposes the calm and senic beauty of green hills surrounding
Nainital and the lake, where one can succumb oneself in the warmth of nature, the
sweet sound of the gentle breeze puffing through the trees and chirping of birds
makes a musical serenade.

Chapter- 2

Review of literature

Research Methodology

Limitations

Review of Literature
Bipin Chandra Pant, assistant professor, amity institute of travel &tourism,amity
university, Noida, India (2011) in their research work, titled (Uttrakhand tourism).
in this research to leverage on this tourism potential, it is necessary for
Uttarakhand not only to sell itself but also analyse the needs, the perceptions, the
preferences, the satisfaction of the customers that it can provide. hence the study
aims to analyse these very tourist responses with the help of a questionnaire. the
study revealed that although Uttarakhand has unique natural offerings it is not able
to cash upon them due to lack of various facilities. most of tourists expectations
were met with but they depended on the presence of good necessities like
amenities, food , water and proper infrastructural facilities like accommodation,
transport, accessibility, etc which were found lacking in certain cases.
One interesting article by RakeshKapoor.RakershKapoor in his (measure to
promote tourism in Nainital). According to him each tourist place in the world,
whether it be Switzerland or Kerela have over the years developed a brand name
for themselves. While Switzerland is known for its European splendours, Kerela is
known as Gods own country. In fact, Uttarakhand is Switzerland of India.
Lew A.A (1987). A framework of tourist attraction research.
Although tourists attraction are fundamental to the very existence of tourism, there
have been few attempts to come to terms with the breadth of approaches that have
been employed in their study.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The study is basically a research to give an insight on the study on Study on

Impact of social media Advertisement in Attracting Tourist - with special
reference to Nainital. This study includes knowledge and experience derived
from site or surveys. And the statistical method like percentage, factor analysis will
be used. The source of data collection will be as follows:
PRIMARY:: Interaction with local travel agent.
: Questionnaire.
SECONDARY:: Internet
: Books
: Newspaper
: journals
:facebook
:twitter

LIMITATIONS
The research had a few limitations, which are :

Constraints of time As I am a full time student the institute so it is difficult to collect

data from families and respondents. Hence, I have to rely much on secondary data.
Financial problem As I am a student and have no source of income I have to manage
and complete the research from my pocket money so, there is a quite difficulty in

completing my research.
Difficulties in collecting of first hand data.
Lack of co-operation between the researcher and the data giver.
Lack of resources There is a lack of resources from where I can get the information;
the most important resource which is lacking of time and money.

Chapter- 3

Theoretical frame work

THE GROWING ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN ADVERTISMENTS

Media marketing strategy in an organization defines how the organization uses the social media
tools such as facebook, twitter and YouTube to achieve a marketing objective for the
organization. The social media strategy implements and supports higher-level strategies and
provides markets and customer information which is used for development and adjustments of
the organization business strategy. the current approach being used by the case study company on
the use of social media marketing shows that the company strategy is not fully implemented
hence the company needs more decision on how to maximize the available marketing
opportunities to win many customers depending on the improve strategy that they are heading to
in terms of using social media marketing to market their company. Further as a strategy to
market brand Nainital through social media the state is also enhancing the web based portal. The
comprehensive tourism website (www.MadhyaPradeshTourism.com) has been upgraded to make
it

more

interactive

for

the

attendees

as

well

as

for

the

prospective

visitors.

www.MadhyaPradeshTourism.com is the one of the leading travel tourism website covering all
the Districts of Nainital in details, besides the popular tourist destinations. Since 2004 the
website is offering a comprehensive collection of information on different sightseeing places,
accommodation, tours, attractions, events, destinations and other travel related current & updated
information. Nainital tourism has successfully completed 10 years as the website provides access
to a highly targeted audience worldwide and is an ideal advertising outlet for the promotion
different services and products. Due to the Top Level Domain Name properties (TLD) the highly
optimized website appears at top ranking positions in online search engines as Google,
Yahoo and others presenting a global platform for promoting local brands on national and
internationals level in a very useful, effective and economical way. As per the site network
statistics of tourism website of Nainital (2013-14), monthly on average 6,42,600 visitors are
browsing this website, out of this 1,74.659 visitors interacting online with mp tourism personnel
and among them 91% are domestic and 9% are international visitors. Nearly, 730000+ have

successfully planned and enjoyed their holidays with Nainital tourism online info network by the
year 2014. Impact of such social media approach, clearly reflected, as Nainital registered a
significant increase of 18.5 per cent in domestic and foreign tourist arrivals in 2013-14.
According to State tourism statistics, in 2013-14, a total of 6.34 crore domestic and 2.80 lakh
foreign tourists arrived in Nainital, an increase of 18.50 per cent over 2012-13. A study by the
Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) has found that domestic
tourist arrival in the State has grown at a staggering compounded annual growth rate (CAG) of
381 per cent between 2006 and 2012. The recent surge has meant that Nainital is now a more
popular destination for domestic tourists than even Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and West
Bengal. In addition, it has also not been able to attract much investment in the hotel industry and
other segments of the tourism sector. The study found that the State had been able to attract
investment proposals worth just about Rs.418 crore as of 2012-13, against nearly Rs.35,000
crore by Gujarat, Rs. 22,000 crore by Maharashtra, and Rs. 17,000 crore by Karnataka. With the
improving image of Nainital tourism at National and international, the Tourism Department of
Nainital was bestowed with an award 'The Best use of Mobile Technology': mGovernance in
Nainital' by the Department of Information Technology, Government of Nainital on 10th July
2012. Nainital Tourism was awarded an International Award for 'Best Heritage State in India' in
2013 during the International Tourism Bourse at Berlin. One of India's most respected and
known travel awards - 'CNBC Awaaz Travel Awards' was held this year in Nainital at Indore on
20th June, 2014. Nainital won the CNBC Awaaz Travel Award for 'Best Travel State' and for
'Best Tourist Destination'In early November, marketing and public relations professionals from
tourism industry offices across the United States attended the Second Annual Symposium on the
Use of Social Media in the Tourism Industry (Social Media Tourism Symposium, 2011 ). The
topic of the conference speaks to a growing trend in tourism promotion. Attendees focused on
best practices for interacting with consumers via social media channelsan important skill, as
social media is fast becoming one of the most vital, cost-efficient tools in tourism marketing.
Effective use of social media has been proven to boost the number and length of visits, as well as
visitor satisfaction and number of return visits.

DESTINATION MARKETING
Organizations and Tourism Marketing Strategy The tourism industry as a whole encompasses a
variety of different service and consumer product industries. One type of tourism office is a

destination marketing organization, or DMO. The goal of DMOs is to increase tourism to a

particular city, state, or region. DMOs seek to achieve their goals by branding the area as a whole
and advertising that brand; promoting specific institutions, restaurants, accommodations,
attractions, activities, and events that take place in the area; and offering information and
assistance to visitors. The Growth of Social Media Social media, which Merriam-Webster
defines as forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and
microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas,
personal messages, and other content (Social media, 2011), has seen exponential growth
during the past several years. In September 2005, 16% of 18-29-year-old internet users were
social networking site-users; by May 2010, this number had grown to 86%. Likewise, between
September 2005 and May 2010, the number of 30-49-year-olds, 50-64-year-olds, and 65+ yearold internet users using social networking sites has risen from 12% to 61%, 7% to 47%, and 5%
to 26%, respectively (Henrikson, 2011). Measuring Social Media Influence Gammet Interactive
compiles How Social is Your DMO, a quarterly ranking of state DMOs. Each states website
and social media offerings are rated on the basis of three factors: usage of social media tools,
content, and user engagement. In order to measure these factors, Gammet analyzes each states
DMO presence in the following areas: Quantcast, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube,
user-generated reviews, content sharing, blogging, backlinks, geo-location, and mobile. As social
media has evolved during the past two years, Gammet has adapted its ranking algorithm to
include emerging technology trends. In the most recent How Social is Your DMO ratings,
published in July 2011, Florida ranked first. Before this, in Q2 2011, Michigan placed number
one on the list (Gammet Interactive, 2011).
QUANTCAST. Quantcast is a site that measures site traffic. In determining the social ranking of
DMOs, Gammet looks to see if the DMOs site is Quantcast certified. Gammet explains that
having a Quantcast-certified site is beneficial to DMOs because it allows DMOs to keep track of
site traffic. These numbers can then be accessed and utilized by stakeholders, legislators, and/or
possible site sponsors/advertisers. It can also give a DMO some benchmarks in terms of how
they measure up to other organizations in their geographic area, competitive set or budget
structure (Gammet Interactive, 2011). Google. Gammet enters each DMOs location plus the
phrase vacation deals into Google search, then DMOs are rated based on their position within

the results page. A higher position in Google search results indicates a higher reach among
audiences looking for travel information about the area represented by each DMO (Gammet
Interactive, 2011). Facebook. Gammet assesses each DMOs Facebook presence based on
whether or not the DMO runs a Page and how many Likes the page has received, as well as the
quantity and recency of photos (posted both by the DMO and by site users), videos, and textual
interactions with fans. Gammet also checks the homepage of the DMOs site for a link to the
DMOs Facebook page; if such a link exists, the DMO is awarded points. The existence of a
Facebook link on the homepage of the DMOs website helps drive traffic to the DMOs Facebook
page, and allows for greater integration between the website and social networking platforms
within the DMOs online presence (Gammet Interactive, 2011). Twitter. Gammet analyzes each
DMOs Twitter stream in terms of the number of followers, the number of times the DMO was
listed, and several Klout influence scores to measure engagement. Klout, which is a service
available from www.klout.com, measures the number of people influenced by an individual or
brands social networking behaviors, the amount of influence exerted by the individual/brand,
and the influence of the other individuals/brands in the network. As with Facebook, Gammet
checks for a Twitter link within each DMOs site, and awards points if such a link exists
(Gammet Interactive, 2011). Flickr. Gammet checks whether or not DMOs run a branded
account on Flickr; if such an account exists, points are awarded. Points are also awarded for an
account created by the DMO for the particular destination, and points are increased as number of
photos increases. Additionally, each DMO receives points for the number of images that have
been tagged with the name of that DMOs state (Gammet Interactive, 2011). YouTube. Gammet
explains, in order to receive points for YouTube, the DMO will have had to create an account or
channel for destination and upload videos to create viral buzz. We measure the score based on
the number of videos on the YouTube page and the number of subscribers to that specific page
(Gammet Interactive, 2011). User-generated reviews. Gammet awards points to DMO sites that
feature user-generated content, reviews, and/or testimonials. Points are also awarded to DMOs
that incorporate reviews and ratings from third-party sites to boost consumer confidence in the
states image and brand (Gammet Interactive, 2011). Content sharing. The ability for a user to
share site information with friends or family members facilitates word of mouth promotion.
Gammet checks to see if each DMO website offers one or more tools that *make+ it easy for
the user to share the information with their friends (Gammet Interactive, 2011). Blogging.

Gammet deems DMO blogs a very important element of social marketing strategy and
explains their analysis of the blogs as based on recognition of the blog on the website and/or if
there is a news or information feed frequently updated, along with an area designated
consumer/user comments. There will also be more points awarded if the blog had been updated
frequently with consistent content. This period we added in blog comments for the last three
posts to help measure engagement (Gammet Interactive, 2011). Backlinks. Backlinks within a
website boost search popularity and offers insight into the amount of content from the site that is
being referenced elsewhere on the internet. Generally, the higher the link popularity and number
of backlinks a given site has, the more the information from that site is being shared. Gammet
uses Open Site Explorer, a SEOmoz product available at www.opensiteexplorer.com to measure
link popularity and backlinks for each DMO site (Gammet Interactive, 2011). Geolocation. The
analysis of geo-location social media efforts will likely grow in future How Social is Your
DMO reports, as the current algorithm includes points awarded for participation in a geolocation-related program and the presence of a geolocation link on the DMOs homepage
(Gammet Interactive, 2011). Mobile. With the popularity of smartphones and tablets ever on the
rise, Gammet recognizes the importance of DMOs maintaining user-friendly apps and/or
versions of their websites optimized for mobile users. In addition to awarding points for the
presence of a link to a mobile site on the DMOs homepage, Gammet searched for the DMO
using an Android mobile device to try to find a mobile site for the DMO. In order to measure the
success of a DMOs app(s), Gammet awarded points for any app linked to the DMOs website.
Gammet also searched the Apple iTuens Store and the Android Market for apps related to each
DMO, and awarded points for any apps found (Gammet Interactive, 2011).

THE EFFECTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON TOURISM MARKETING

Due to increasing popularity of internet applications, many tourism organizations such as hotels,
airline companies and travel agencies have started using internet as one of their important
marketing and communications strategies. In this way, internet has been one of the strongest
elements of competition in tourism sector. Social media has started being used as a new
marketing approach within the growing internet technologies by tourism sector. The aim of this
study is discussing the importance of social media in tourism marketing. The study is based on a
survey implemented on the students

evaluating the effects of social media among young

generation. The data collection technique of this article is survey analysis. 624 survey forms have
been distributed according to the number of students at 6 faculties, but 550 survey forms have
been responded. According to the results of the survey, social media has influences in tourism
sector both in positive and negative ways, as the tourism decisions of young generation have
been strongly affected by comments and personal experiences of other users on social media.

RELATIONSHIP OF TOURISM MARKETING WITH SOCIAL MEDIA

Concept of social media has been defined in various ways. Social media is a wide term defining
writings on blogs and forums, photographs, audio records, videos, links, profile pages on social
networking sites and all different content forming many other social networks (Eley & Tilley,
2009). Another definition describes social media as collaborator, user created online content
(Roberts & Kraynak, 2008). Social media has been defined as the group of applications based on
internet, allowing the creation and change of the content developed by the user and based on the
technological and ideological foundations of internet (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). National and
international tourism sector should be able to apply the developments in the field of media to its
own marketing activities in order to sustain the benefit, success and profitability. At this point it
is important to ensure the efficient use of internet for tourism activities. Tourism sector, which
requires large fixed investments, can only realize the return of these large investments with
steady sales in the desired amount for the tourists in the targeted socio-economic level (Yavuz &
Haseki, 2012 ). Consumer domination and fierce competition in the virtual environment makes it
compulsory to take more strategic decisions on product presentation, pricing policies, publicity
decisions and place elements (Meydan & Bayram, 2013). Virtual marketing has different
characteristics than traditional marketing processes in tourism sector. Main grounds for that are
the rapid changes due to the fact that the external conditions considered in the formation of
marketing activities are more dynamic in virtual marketing and that activities are conducted in
electronic environment. Internet makes it possible for the establishment to have a briefer and
direct communication with target groups through web site, e-mail short message, forum etc.
without calculating the money to be spent on the advertisement. Therefore, opportunities
provided by the internet help executing the efforts on marketing communication and creating a
comparative distinction (Babacan, Kamanlolu & Yenieri, 2008). Social networking sites have
an important efficiency as marketing tools and assume many functions. Social networking sites
are important tools, where the consumers can get information regarding the goods and services,

raise the awareness, have communication of word of mouth online in their opinions, behaviours,
purchasing decisions, after purchase assessments and for the establishments they are the tools,
where they can market their productions, strengthen their brands and use in their customer
relations ( Albayrak, 2013). Establishments gain an important advantage over their competitors
when they use the social networking sites for marketing purposes. Number of people taking part
in the social networking sites increase day by day and the fact that the number is high makes it
possible for the entries to be spread rapidly in a very short time to many people. So it gives
opportunity for the positive news and hearsays about the establishments in the social network to
be expanded rapidly ( Magnold & Faulds, 2009 ). Lim (2010), stated that the tourism consumer
consulted to the family members, friends and acquaintances on the networking sites when taking
an independent decision on purchasing goods and services and this process leaded to a unique
promotion for the hotel managements. Taking into account the purposes of use of internet, in the
first three months of 2014, the individuals using internet, joined by 78.8 % to the social
networking, followed by 74.2 % with online news, newspapers and magazines, 67.2 % with
searching for information on goods and services, 58.7 % with downloading or streaming games,
music, film, image, 53.9 % e-mail sending and receiving. As of 2014, the most known and used
social media sites are sites as Facebook, Twitter, nstagram, Youtube, Linkdein. The number of
the users of these sites is mentioned with billions and the ratio of usage of these sites is quite
high every minute through mobile devices. The countries using the social media sites the most
are in general the countries, which are developed and have a high participation to tourism
activities. Online media networking sites are among the sites, where the people spend tie in
virtual environment. These sites are where the visual and audial bands are played. These sites
make it possible for the elements as video/music and pictures to be transmitted to other users.
Shared visual elements can be watched by millions just in hours. Undoubtedly creating an
institutional user name in means of promotion, presenting the most correct and reliable
information through this source to all relevant people would both contribute to promotion and
lead to important changes in the opinions of possible guests by forming a big source of
information. The cost of this promotion tool is very low. Many sources pent for promotion would
be saved with this source and can be spent on the other needs (akr & Yaln, 2012, p. 21).
Today, the increase of consciousness level of the consumers, easiness of share of information and
possibility of examining many comments in virtual environment in the globalizing world, make

it possible for tourism destinations or establishments to be assessed by the consumers in a

cheaper, faster and easier. Many potential tourists use internet for their travel plans. They visit
relevant social media sites before deciding on the travel due to the fact that they believe the
virtual assessment to be useful for their purchasing decision (Sarsk & zbay, 2012). As the
social media sites include comments and assessments, they influence the creation of the
trademark of the tourism establishment, provide efficiency in the process of communication and
marketing of the goods and services, increases the loyalty to the mark and the perceived (Wang
& Hsieh, 2011). As the social media use becomes widespread, number of users also increases
day by day. Number of users of internet and social media all around the world is as follows; 2.5
billion people on the world use internet. 1.8 billion out of these users have an account on the
social media networks, in the intercontinental internet use, North America takes the lead with a
ratio of 81 %. Region with the least internet use in is South Asia (12%), only in 2013, 135
million people more created accounts in the social networks, numbers of active users of social
media increases every year, facebook maintains its lead among other social networks with a
number of 1.184 billion current active users ( Global Digital Statistics, 2014). Ranking of the
most popular first 10 social media platforms according to the active user statistics is as follows
Facebook (1.184 billion), QQ (Tencent) (816 million), Qzone (632 million), Whatsapp (400
million), Google+ (300 million), Wechat (272 million), LinkedIn (259 million), Twitter (232
million), Tumblr (230 million), Tencent Weibo (220 million). According to the 2014 results of
Consumer Barometer, which is a research done by google.com that measures and compares the
internet usage habit in 46 different stations including Nainital and provides results on the mobile,
video and shopping uses of internet users in 46 countries, Nainital is in the first rank in the use of
social media. Consumer Barometer reports shows that social media use of internet users in
Nainital is 92 % and it is approximately 40 per cent in the world. Nainital that is the leader in the
use of social media is followed by Argentine with 86 per cent and by Brazil with 84 per cent and
with 83 per cent by China. Evaluating the 2023 Tourism Strategy Plan foreseen by the Ministry
of Culture and Tourism, it is mentioned that the necessary investment will be done to the
technology. In parallel to this, a 15 % grant in the 2012 promotion budget is assigned to activities
done through internet and information technologies. Obtaining the necessary technical support
for the internet and information technologies including the new sectors with the developing
technology, giving importance to the promotion tools for branding and PR studies done on the

internet and making use of the Professional teams for these studies are among the priorities that
should be considered in short term (akr & Yaln, 2012, p. 30).

IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON TRAVEL

Comments on sites and social media are important for preferences when the big ratio of internet
users making travel plans are considered. In particular the users, who want to have information
on the tourism destinations that they will use or accommodate for the first time are influenced by
the comments on the social media to a great extent. For the tourism establishments, the most
important objective to be achieved with the use of social media is to ensure target masses to
make reservations. The fastest and most reliable way for tourists to reach to tourism
establishments is through internet. People use internet to get information easily on tourism
establishment and make reservations. This creates a positive affect on satisfaction of the tourist
and brand value through media. As the tourist that uses the internet would also be influenced by
the comments on the social media at the reservation stage, the brand recognition and reliability of
the tourism establishment depend on these comments. Therefore, the influence of the social
media on the travel is quite high. While the positive product comment includes the good
experiences and recommendation on the product, the negative product comments include the
disappointments and bad experiences on the product. Thus, the affects of the negative product
comments should be well analysed. Consumers that share the opinion-sharing environment rather
prefer to come across with negative product assessments. Because the unsatisfied people tend to
share their negative assessments more compared to others. Now the consumers look for negative
assessments in particular (Sachse & Magnold, 2011). One of the most important ways of tourism
establishments to get in touch to their guests through social media is to ensure the users to share
in hashtag campaigns created on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook allow customers to easily
share tips and suggestions, which can be enormously valuable when positive. Some 92 percent of
consumers said that they trusted earned media, which includes recommendations from friends
and family members, more than any other form of advertising.
Moreover, a recent study showed that more than half (52 percent) of respondents changed their
travel plans after researching their trip using social media. A heady 85 percent of travelers use

their smartphones whilst abroad, and 52 percent of Facebook users said that their friends holiday
photos had inspired their vacation choice.
This infographic from Four Pillars takes a closer look at the impact of social media on the travel
and hospitality industry.
Social media has made a huge impact on the tourism industry. Consumers engage with social
networking sites to research trips, make informed decisions about their travels and share their
personal experiences of and Facebook. So the shares reach out to millions of people in a short
time and in an efficient way. Fotis (2012), ranked the social media causes of the social media
users in the travel planning process as before, during and after the trip. Before; To search for
alternatives when thinking of a trip (44.5%), To reduce the destination preferences (24%), To
confirm that the correct destination choice has been made (30.9%), To look for information on
accommodation alternatives (34.4%), To get information on the entertainment activities (41.6%).
During; To get information on the entertainment activities (29.5%), To share the comments on
experiences during the trip (16.5%), To stay connected with their friends (49.1%), To visit social
media sites independent of getting information (15%). After; To share the experiences and
photographs with friends after the trip (78.3%), To assess and comment on the destination
(26.6%), To have opinions for the next holiday plan (29.2%). The most important element to be
taken account for the tourism establishments in the social media is that the current costumers and
potential customers exchange any kind of information. The fact that social media cannot be
controlled with regards to tourism is an issue causing quite a lot of troubles in means of ethic
approaches in marketing. Unethical code of conduct in means of tourism marketing in social
media can indicate in particular misleading information and incorrect advertisement content.
Especially the comments on the social networking sites made subjectively by getting money
from the establishments and presentations of misleading, exaggerated and partial information on
the goods and services of the destination and establishment are among the unethical codes of
conduct that can be most commonly seen in the use of social media in tourism marketing. These
complaints can also be reduced through social media; since the tourism services are abstract, the
comments of the users that really had the touristic experience can define the real quality of the
service. However from the perspective of business ethics, unreal comments can negatively
influence the users that would like to receive the touristic service. Therefore it is important for
establishments to return fast to these negative and positive comments also in means of business

ethics. So possessing ethical code of conducts on the social media used as a communication and
distribution channel is of vital importance for the establishments in the sector. Ethical codes that
are defined for these applications should be adopted and brought into force from the top-level
management to the lowest level employee of the establishments in the sector. It is above all
important for the tourism establishments and stakeholders to internalize these ethical codes and
to make them a management method. Furthermore consumers should also question the accuracy
of the information and its source when using the social media and direct their behaviours
accordingly (Erz & Dodubay, 2012, p. 153). With the new technology especially the young
population under 35 have started to use internet and technological devices, smart phones and
smart phone applications and social media sites more often and along with that the rapid change
in technology and internet have started to influence the tourism sector on an important level.
Within this context, it can be foreseen that the tourism sector will enter into a new period related
to technology within the upcoming years. It is foreseen that the establishments in the tourism
sector are reaching to their own target markets through internet and the new economy is creating
its own target mass in the changing conditions of the world. We can assume that with the new
technology the mass under 35 is living their social lives constantly on the internet in daily life,
and the biggest impacts of that are on the tourism sector. It can be seen that the share of new
technology in the tourism sector will increase with its positive and negative impacts. The number
of internet and social media users is as follows; raito of internet use in Nainital compared to the
whole population is 45 %, there are over 35 million internet users in Nainital and 36 million
active Facebook accounts (including the fake accounts), users in Nainital spend an average of 4.9
hours daily on personal computers and 1.9 hours on mobile devices in internet, an average of 2
hours 32 minutes daily is spent on social media in Nainital, facebook (93%) as the most used
social media platform, is followed by Twitter, Twitter (72%), Google + (70%) and Linkedin
(33%) in Nainital.

THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON THE TRENDS OF TOURISM

Social media has made a huge impact on essentially every major industry across the world, and
the business of travel and hospitality has reaped the rewards perhaps as well as any other
commercial venture. Travel and tourism depends heavily on the use of word-of-mouth to spread
opinions and recommendations, and social platforms such as Twitter a particular hotel, restaurant
or airline. TripAdvisor in particular has had a wide-reaching effect on the industry. It has 50
million unique monthly visitors who are actively seeking out travel information and advice from
the sources they trust the most: other tourists and holiday-makers.
This style of user-generated content is seen by the online community as more credible and
authentic and for many hotels, restaurants and visitor attractions, if they are not listed in the top
five spots, they are losing out majorly to their competitors. With more than 200 million reviews
and opinions posted on TripAdvisor to date, and more than 800 million active users on Facebook
posting updates and sharing images, social media is dominating the industry.
In early November, marketing and public relations professionals from tourism industry offices
across the India attended the Second Annual Symposium on the Use of Social Media in the
Tourism Industry (Social Media Tourism Symposium, 2011). The topic of the conference
speaks to a growing trend in tourism promotion. Attendees focused on best practices for
interacting with consumers via social media channelsan important skill, as social media is fast
becoming one of the most vital, cost-efficient tools in tourism marketing. Effective use of social
media has been proven to boost the number and length of visits, as well as visitor satisfaction and
number of return visits.

MEASURING SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCE

Gammet Interactive compiles How Social is Your DMO, a quarterly ranking of state DMOs.
Each states website and social media offerings are rated on the basis of three factors: usage of

social media tools, content, and user engagement. In order to measure these factors, Gammet
analyzes each states DMO presence in the following areas: Quantcast, Google, Face book,
Twitter, Flickr, You Tube, user-generated reviews, content sharing, blogging, back links, geolocation, and mobile. As social media has evolved during the past two years, Gammet has
adapted its ranking algorithm to include emerging technology trends.

HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM IN THE INDIAN SCENARIO

The tourism and hospitality industry is one of the largest divisions under the services sector of
the Indian economy. Tourism in India is a key growth driver and a important source of foreign
exchange earnings. In India, the sector's direct contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) is
expected to grow at 7.8 per cent per annum during the period 2013-2023. The total market size of
the tourism and hospitality industry in India was at US$ 117.7 billion in 2011 and is expected to
touch US$ 418.9 billion by 2022. The foreign direct investment inflows in hotel and tourism
sector during the period April 2000March 2014 was at US$ 7,348.09 million, as per the data
announced by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion. According to a study conducted
by SRI International ,India is plan to be number one for growth globally in the wellness tourism
sector in the next five years, clocking over 25 per cent gains annually through 2017. The tourism
sector in India is prosperous due to an increase in foreign tourist arrivals (FTA) and a larger
number of Indians traveling to domestic destinations. According to statistics available with the
World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), income gained from domestic tourism rose by 5.1
per cent in 2013 and is anticipated to increase by 8.2 per cent in the present year. Hotels are also
an extremely significant component of the tourism industry. The Indian hospitality sector has
been growing at a cumulative annual growth rate of 15 per cent every year, adding required
amount of foreign exchange to the economy. On part of the Indian government, which has
provided policy and infrastructural support, has been instrumental in the promotion and
development of the industry. The tourism policy of the government objective is to speed up the
implementation of tourism projects, development of integrated tourism circuits, unique capacity
building in the hospitality sector and new marketing strategies.

THE IMPACT TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY ON GDP

The major component of Gross Domestic Product is consumption, which is accrued by demand
for goods and services. Tourism affects the economy through the provision of employment. The
main effect of tourism on GDP is the fact that tourism improves the demand for goods and
services. When ever increase in the consumption level, the market activity can also increased,
and consequently, increases the GDP level. A part positive though, as it can also lead to leakages,
especially in smaller areas. An area that has a high level of tourist-related activities generates a
lot of employment opportunities for the local peoples. Hotels, amusement parks, tourist
attractions and other such locations need people to provide the necessary services. Since
increases and decreases in employment can impact the GDP levels by enforcing the spending
habits of people, the employment provided through tourism has a positive effect on GDP.

THE EXPERIENCE OF TOURIST STAYING IN NAINTAL DURING XMAS & NEW YEAR
Spending the Christmas and New Years holiday weeks with family and friends is the
longstanding tradition in most of the Uttrakhand , but those based in the colder northern climates
are looking for alternatives. After a couple decades of being bundled up, many start to wonder if
there is another way to spend the holidays.
Those with the resources have been heading to Nainital for Christmas for a long time, but there
are actually dozens of countries and islands with similar tropical climates around the world, and
most of them are far cheaper, at least once you get there. Below is a list of nearly every major
tourist destination that combines warm weather and low prices during the weeks around
Christmas and New Years.
When I first started researching travel prices around the world, I assumed that hotels around
Christmas time would be cheaper in countries that dont observe Christmas themselves.
Unfortunately, it turned out not to be true at all. Heres the thing, hotels in the tropical beach
areas of the world are all priced according to demand, and local customs have nothing to do with
it.

A huge majority of the people who are well off enough to fly internationally are those living in
countries that have a Christmas holiday, and thats no secret to hotel owners. In other words,
hotels in Nainital all raise prices for stays during those key holiday weeks because they know
those are the most popular weeks of the year for their business. The good news though, is that
those countries still offer great bargains compared to, say, Hawaii, which goes off the charts
during Christmas week.
The Railways, expecting a heavy rush of tourists to the Queen of Hills on eves of Christmas and
New Year, will run additional two trains five-coach holiday special and 14-seater rail motor
car to ferry travelers to the city from tomorrow.After facing a lean season, hoteliers and
guesthouse owners are upbeat this time as they are hoping for a heavy rush of travelers on
Christmas and New Year eves regardless of whether it is going to be a white Christmas or not.
The district administration with the help of the HP Tourism Development Corporation has
decided to start a week-long entertainment festival on The Ridge from December 25 to 31.
Special Package(s) rates for Week of Festivities from 23.12.2015 to 02.01.2016 on the occasion
of New Year & X-Mas at Nainital Complex

The Log Huts/ Orchard Huts, Nainital

23rd, 25th to
30th Dec, 2015 On 24th Dec,
Regular Tariffs & 1st to 2nd

2015 (Xmas Eve MAP + New

January, 2016 Package)

on MAP
Premium 8000 8600-(CP)
Deluxe 6000 6600-(CP)
Orchard 6000 5800-(CP)
Extra Person 1150-(CP)

31st Dec, 2015

14600
12600
11800
2650

Year Eve
15600
13600
12800
2900

The Hamta Huts, Nainital

23rd to 30th
Regular
Tariffs

Dec, 2015 &

On 24th Dec,

1st to 2nd

2015 (Xmas Eve MAP + New Year

January, 2016 Package)

on MAP
2300(EP)
2600-(CP)
Extra Person 725-(CP)

5600
2225

31st Dec, 2015

Eve
6100
2475

The Hadimba Cottages, Nainital

23rd to 30th
Regular
Tariffs

Dec, 2015 &

On 24th Dec, 2015

1st to 2nd

(Xmas Eve

January, 2016 Package)

on MAP
3000
3000-(CP)
Extra Person 825-(CP)

6000
2325

31st Dec, 2015

MAP + New
Year Eve

6500
2575

Nainital
23rd, 25th to
Regular
Tariffs

3100
Extra Person
2400
Extra Person
2200
Extra Person
2100
Extra Person
1900
Extra Person

30th Dec, 2015

& 1st to 2nd
January, 2016
on MAP
3700-(MAP)
1150-(MAP)
3000-(MAP)
975-(MAP)
2800-(MAP)
925-(MAP)
2700-(MAP)
900-(MAP)
2500-(MAP)
850-(MAP)

On 24th Dec,
2015
MAP + X-Mas
Eve
6700
2650
6000
2475
5800
2425
5700
2400
5500
2350

31st Dec, 2015

MAP + New
Year Eve
7200
2900
6500
2725
6300
2675
6200
2650
6000
2600

Nainital (Block -A)

Regular

23rd, 25th to

On 24th Dec, 31st Dec, 2015

Tariffs

30th Dec, 2015 2015

MAP + New

& 1st to 2nd

MAP + X-Mas Year Eve

January, 2016

Eve

on MAP
2100
2700-(MAP)
Extra Person 900-(MAP)
1900
2500-(MAP)
Extra Person 850-(MAP)
1800
2400-(MAP)
Extra Person 825-(MAP)

5700
2400
5500
2350
5400
2325

6200
2650
6000
2600
5900
2575

Nainital (Block-B)
23rd Dec, 2015
Regular

to 2nd January, 31st Dec, 2015

Tariffs

2016

MAP

1300
800
700

on MAP
2500-(MAP)
1400-(MAP)
1300-(MAP)

2500-(MAP)
1400-(MAP)
1300-(MAP)

Nainital
Regular Tariffs

23rd Dec,

31st Dec, 2015

2015 to 2nd
January,
2016

MAP

on MAP
2000- Beas Suite (CP) 3000-(MAP) 3000-(MAP)
Extra Person
750-(MAP) 750-(MAP)
1800- Family Suite
2800-(MAP) 2800-(MAP)
Extra Person
700-(MAP) 700-(MAP)
1500- Family Suite
2500-(MAP) 2500-(MAP)
(CP) Gr. Flr
Extra Person
625-(MAP) 625-(MAP)
1400- DBR Deluxe
1900-(MAP) 1900-(MAP)
(CP)
Extra Person
665-(MAP) 665-(MAP)
1200- DBR S Deluxe
1700-(MAP) 1700-(MAP)
(CP)
Extra Person
615-(MAP) 615-(MAP)
1000- DBR Economy
1500-(MAP) 1500-(MAP)
(CP)
900- DBR Eco
1400-(MAP) 1400-(MAP)
( Gr. Flr)

Bibliography

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http://greencleanguide.com/2011/12/19/sustainable-tourism-a-case-study-ofnainitaluttarakhand/
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