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In a move that highlights a growing trend for travel companies to advertise on social media platforms, Delta Airlines have started letting their customers book their flights for several destinations, including holidays in Spain via the company`s official Facebook page. While other companies, such as the Marriott Hotel chain, are using their new social networking sites to inform their customers of upcoming deals, and Southwest Airlines have recently hired three specially trained staff to respond to consumer queries via their social networking site.
“Social networking sites have become very popular over the past three years,” says Alex Saint, Managing Director of online holiday experts dealchecker.co.uk. “A very high proportion of all people with internet access have a profile on one, they`re user-friendly, easily accessible and fun to use. So it`s no surprise that many well-known companies are choosing to use them for all stages of the holiday process.”
Although many businesses already use social networking to keep in touch with their clients and maintain an online presence, some of the major American holiday firms have realised the potential earning power of these sites, and are very keen to tap into the market, meaning that for customers in the US, booking Turkey holidays could soon be as easy as updating your Facebook status.
“Using websites like Facebook and Twitter to advertise a business is nothing new,” says Saint. “But it`s something that the travel industry has only recently tapped into, and while social media marketing within the travel industry seems to be progressing well in the US, it may be a little longer until the drive comes to the UK, so British holidaymakers may have to stick to searching for cheap holidays from Dealchecker for a little bit longer.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
