Social Media Usage for Tourism: A Case of Rajasthan Tourism

Abstract

This paper highlights the role of social media in the tourism industry. The conventional models used to reach potential tourists are having geographical and content related constraints. Social media provides various platforms to different stakeholders to communicate and exchange information among them. Due to its dynamics and viral capability, tourism businesses need to formulate some guideline or framework before start using Social Media. This study includes two-way methodological approach; primary and secondary as well. The primary study involves the in-depth interviews with the key stakeholders, and secondary part is based on the existing literature and portal of Department of Tourism (DoT), Rajasthan. Findings facilitate various challenges of social media use such as legal and administrative compliance faced by usual providers of tourist-related information. It further provides a better overview of tourist’s use of social media and their characteristics, in order to acclimatize online marketing strategies by Rajasthan tourism.