So if you wonder about the impact of social media in influencing travel choices, the answer is simple: not much.
Almost six out of ten active travelers have visited a social networking site, according to the results of the most recent travelhorizons survey of just over 2,200 US adults.
Their most popular activities while on these sites include uploading photos/videos (49 percent) and rating products or services (46 percent).
Roughly one-quarter have visited a chat room and/or posted content to a blog. Nearly half (46 percent) check new postings to their site(s) at least once a day.
Facebook enjoys the highest incidence of visitation (almost half of active travelers have visited, and fully one-third have posted a personal page), while roughly one-quarter of active travelers have visited MySpace.
Both percentages are up significantly from just one year ago.
But to what extent does the content found on these sites influence consumer choice when it comes to the evaluation and selection of travel service suppliers?
“Right now, not much, because site visitation for travel planning purposes remains quite low.
By way of illustration, only 1 in 10 Facebook users seek advice about either destinations or travel service suppliers, and just 1 in 20 has joined a community of users who share common travel interests,” says the survey.
By David Wilkening
