LAS REDES SOCIALES COMO MEDIOS PROMOCIÓN TURÍSTICA PARA HOTELES PEQUEÑOS DEL SECTOR NORTE EN LA CIUDAD DE GUAYAQUIL

Abstract

The rapid growth of Information Technology and Communication (ICT) worldwide is clearly the key factor that has led companies and users to discover the importance of being immersed in different social networks and websites to stay connected and competitive in the market. Within the tourism industry, hotels from all sizes have had to change their marketing and promotional strategies and adapt to this new technological era of interactive media that enables to offer a low-cost personalized service for their target market. Nevertheless, by a simple descriptive analysis, this study was able to identify that there are still small hotels at the northern of the city of Guayaquil that are not using social networks as promotional tools; despite the fact that tourists, who commonly visit these types of establishments, consider important the use of social networks for the hotel selection process, as it has generated an impact in their purchase decisions and brand loyalty. This paper offers recommendations on improving the effectiveness of hotels’ promotion through social networks.