Social Media and Tourism: A Digital Investment for Thessaly?

Abstract

The development of social media has been reported to have reshaped the tourism industry, as in general revolutionary information and communication technologies have deeply affected the society and its overall functioning. Facebook and Tripadvisor are two of the applications mostly discussed that do have an important impact on the image of the companies associated with the sector. The contribution of Greek tourism in the country’s economy has been highlighted several times over the years. However, not all the regions contribute equally. More specific, coastal areas and islands that represent the core Greek tourist product, sea and sun, are the most popular ones. Others, like Thessaly, despite their potential, are struggling to maintain a piece of the pie. Through this study is attempted, two hot issues, such as social media and tourism, to be approached and to conclude in whether a digital investment for the region of Thessaly would be a valuable one. In order to answer that, relevant literature has been reviewed. The current situation has been described, involving the promotion of both Thessaly as destination and tourism-related enterprises using ICTs and social media. The factors affecting the effectiveness of the investment, like economic circumstances, the geography and culture of the region are also examined. © 2016, Springer International Publishing Switzerland.