The answer to the question 'why should you use social media to
tap into the backpacker market' is pretty obvious - because they
expect it!
The backpacker sector is the most web-savvy of all the tourism
sectors. Referred to as "digital natives", by the time this
generation has turned 21 they will have spent 100,000 hours playing
computer games, received and sent 250,000 emails, spent 10,000
hours on phones and watched 21,000 hours of television. The
Internet has become simply ingrained in their everyday life.
Backpackers are digitally wired such that they use the Internet
and, in particular, social media sites such as Facebook, to:
communicate with friends and family; as a notice-board for staying
in touch with one another as they meet 'on the road'; and as a tool
for research and information gathering.
It's a horrible cliche - but it's true - fish where the fish
are! Backpackers are on
Facebook, community question sites such as www.Travellr.com, travel planning sites such as
www.travelgeneration.com, and blog sites such
as www.travellerspoint.com. A sample of one
crowded Internet Cafe from Khao San Road to Queenstown will provide
more than enough evidence that the backpacker travel ethos is
entrenched in collaborative Web 2.0 technologies.
Backpackers talk
Let's make one point clear - a point that is often overlooked -
backpackers have always been social, collaborative, and opinion
sharing. The hostel common space was just like Twitter - travellers
sharing snippets of information and advice: "stay here in Rotorua";
"use this operator on the West Coast"; "get cheaper beer at this
bar"; and so on. The hostel notice-board was Facebook. If you
wanted to reach backpackers you went to the hostel bar and met them
or put posters by the notice-boards.
The change in the digital landscape has only accelerated the
speed with which these digital natives receive their advice, spread
their opinion and communicate with one another.
Here is one example I randomly picked off Twitter:
...and 5 hours later:
If you had a backpacking business in Rome you would want to be
there offering
assistance.
More mobile
Many commentators believe that the infiltration of social media
will be the catalyst for everyday use of the 'mobile web'. Mobile
phones and social media will be the primary medium that consumers
use to interact and connect with brands. There is no doubt that the
already Internet-enabled backpacker will be ready to embrace this
technology.
Fair in love and war
Search engine optimisation is a war; rating higher in searches
than your competitors is about always looking at what they are
doing and what keywords they are rating highly for. Social media
marketing is absolutely the opposite.
Ignore your competitors and listen to your customers. Ask
yourself - "what do my customers expect from my brand on the web?"
And as US social media guru Chris Brogan once said, "(they are)
dialling the social phone (and you) better have some operators
standing by".
Dan Roberts is a Director of Xebidy Social Web Design
based in Queenstown