Rethinking tourism models in the platform era of the sharing economy – Implications for tourism marketing and management

Digital platforms and services have transformed the tourism ecosystem over the last few decades. In fact, these platforms have become direct competitors to traditional suppliers. The tourism sector has been able to adapt quickly to new technologies and the sharing economy has played a key role in this process. However, the term “sharing economy” remains contested and at times confusing for practitioners and academics alike. This chapter provides a better understanding of this concept. It also explores some of its emerging applications and limitations in tourism marketing and management today adopting an ecosystem perspective

Use of the social network analysis methodology to study the image of tourist destinations

This paper analyses the image that European tourists have about a destination (Canary Islands), in order to identify keywords that describe the tourist destination through the free elicitation methodology. A Computer-Aided Web Interview (CAWI) was used to conduct the research in 19 European countries, where through the free elicitation methodology, tourists associated words to destinations (Canary Islands). These association words are classified as push and pull factors, and the present study focuses on push factors. The final sample consisted of 30,094 tourist, and 237 words grouped in 23 associations. These association words are classified as push factors. Through the methodology of Social Network Analysis (SNA), the study focuses on detecting motivational push factors that define the Canary Islands as a destination. The network analysis reveals the structural characteristics of the free elicitations words network. This study helps to a better understanding of the image that a tourist has of the Canary Islands and to make a more appropriate promotion of the Canary Islands destinationinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Analysing European tourists’ use of e-tourism platforms through social networks

This paper analyses the use of the main e-tourism platforms by European tourists. A computer-aided Web interview (CAWI) was used to conduct the research in 19 European countries: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Holland, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Luxemburg, Czech Republic, and the United Kingdom. The final sample consisted of 13,243 tourists. Through the methodology of Social Network Analysis (SNA), the study focuses on detecting key network players (social media, OTAs, etc.) in the e-tourism ecosystem. The network analysis reveals the structural characteristics of the network of networks in the European e-tourism ecosystem: number of platforms (473), centrality degree and betweenness, and the specific characteristics of the networks by country. The results show an e-tourism network of platforms following a pattern known as core-periphery. Four platforms show a predominant role: Facebook, TripAdvisor, Google, and Booking. These ‘big four’ ego-networks are graphically represented to better understand the e-tourism network. The results also show that different networks are formed by country according to the use of e-tourism platforms. This study helps understand in a novel way the behaviour of European tourists when using e-tourism platforms to choose their travel destination. The results obtained are useful for companies and Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), understanding how e-tourism platforms are connected in order to design their segmentation and promotion strategy through e-tourism platforms in the European market