A Report on Social Media Marketing Strategies in Adventure Tourism

This report explores the significant impact of social media on the adventure tourism industry. It investigates how social media platforms influence marketing strategies, consumer behavior, and the overall growth of adventure sports. The research examines various social media tools used by tourism organizations to attract consumers and fulfill their needs, highlighting the shift from traditional marketing methods to digital platforms. It critically analyzes the strengths and deficiencies of using social media for adventure sports marketing, including the ability to reach a global audience and the challenges of managing online reputation. The report also reviews key references in the field, discussing how adventure sports have become a subculture influenced by social media and how digital marketing has facilitated the exploration of previously inaccessible destinations. Furthermore, it delves into the research philosophy and approach used, including positivism, interpretivism, inductive, and deductive methods, to provide a comprehensive understanding of the subject matter. Desklib offers students access to this report along with a wide array of study resources including past papers and solved assignments.

The impact of social media on Adventure Tourism
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Table of Contents
Task 1...............................................................................................................................................3
Task 2.............................................................................................................................................11
Task 3.............................................................................................................................................18
Task 4.............................................................................................................................................30
Reference.......................................................................................................................................31
Appendix........................................................................................................................................32
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Task 1
1.1. Formulate and record possible research project outline specifications
Aims of the research
This research project aims to find out how the social media has an immense impact on adventure
tourism, and how the adventure tourism has become one of the major attractive sports among the
young age of the society.
Objectives of Research
 To know the impact of the research, the researcher has specific objectives, which help in
getting distinct results.
 To analyze critically how the social media has influenced hugely in the mechanism of
tourism industry
 To determine Special social media tools which used by organization for the marketing of
the tourism industry
 To understand How these tourism industries use the platform of social media to fulfil the
requirement of the consumers
Rationale of research
Due to the advancement of digital technology, social media has stretched its influence in each
industry. This research looks after how the impact of social media has influenced the marketing
strategies of the tourism industry a lot. Social media has been used as the new age platform for
advertising and promoting purposes (Immomen et al., 2017). Through this medium, the industry
can reach out to larger masses. Adventure sports always have visual effects to the spectators.
Many adventure lovers want to explore this adventure in lives by influenced from the social
media platform. Each organization uses different strategies of marketing to make the services
more attractive to the tourists. It depends on the management of the organization how the impact
of the social media has shaped the paradigm of this tourism industry.
Questionnaire
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The research aims in finding out the objectives by using specific questionnaire
 How the social media marketing has influenced marketing procedures of the tourism
industry?
 In which directions the new social media marketing is going and how that has affected
the tourism industry?
 Why adventure sports are being popular among specific ages, and why people are getting
attracted to adventure sports so much?
 What kind of specific strategy can be taken for the promotion of adventure sports by
using digital platforms?
 How the consumers are visually attracted to this specific form of sports by using social
media platform?
 Is it only the social media platform, which influences the adventure sports to be loved
among the consumers?
1.2 Identify the factors that contribute to the process of research project selection
The impact of adventure sports have become a subculture among the individuals for the last few
decades. Media studies have tried to analyze critically how the subculture of adventure sports has
been influenced by the active use of social media. John Hargreaves postulated it in his book
“Sport, Power and Culture: A social and historical analysis of popular sports in Britain (1986)”
that sports has been always institutionalized since ages, to express a class struggle in the society.
With the coming of social media, the sports have become more receptive and inclusive in nature.
It provides people coming from different strata of the society to explore such sports irrespective
of the economic or social status. Social media marketing has become one of the integral part in
the marketing strategy across industries. Presently tourism industry has initialized such
innovative strategies for adventure sports to make the users or adventure sports lover to be well
aware about the exploration of the field (Collins and Collins, 2016). This research project
critically analyzes different aspects of tourism industry in adventure sports and what kind of
social media strategies taken by the organization for the marketing of adventure sports among the
consumers.
Strength of using social medial marketing for adventure sports
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Social media has become an integral part of our daily lives. With the globalization, it is noticed
that the individuals use this active social media platform for getting positive and negative
reviews of everything. With this platform, the organization can analyze about the specificity of
the products according to the requirements of the consumers.
Each company has used the platform for making it accessed to the consumers in proper way to
reach out the prospective consumers. With social media, it will be helpful for the industry to
make it products or services globally acclaimed.
Deficiency in using social media marketing for adventure sports
Usually the travel sector uses these platforms by sharing products videos, or notifies the
consumers with the news and activities of adventure sports. However, the esteemed enterprise
can change the format of their strategies by using the medium.
This social media has made it possible for the consumers to share their valuable opinions about
the services, which can be both negative and positive. As the social media make it available
globally, so the reputation of any particular organization will be available widely.
1.3 Undertake a critical review of key references
Adventure sports have attracted many adventure sports lovers by using social media platform.
Surfing, kayaking, bungee jumping, or skiing has appealed to the sport lovers majorly. This
media has been used to reach out the users more easily with proper demonstrations (Rickly and
Vidon, 2017). Unlike other conventional sports, these kinds of sports have been less explored by
most of the individuals. The competition around this field is comparatively less as the concept of
adventure sports is emerging among the users. Social media platform is just a proper way
channelizing such new exploration in extreme sports to the internet users.
To promote such unconventional sports among the users, social media is one of the popular
medium to expand, as this kind of sports never makes news headlines, as the adventure sports
lovers are into the field due to their ardent love for the sports. With the social media, it is easy for
these kind of athletes to reach out the fans. With the globalization it has been easy for the users
to connect with the users.
With the digital technology, it is easy for any globetrotter to choose a specific place to explore.
Not only places, one can easily follow specific activities can be done in such places. Adventure
sports have been promoted among the users mainly through the platforms like Snapchat, Travel
blog, Twitter and Facebook (Smith et al., 2017). This onset of media platform has shaped in
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finding the right choices of the places to be explored for the users. This kind of digital marketing
has become so much active, that it promotes the tourism marketing by offering alluring
discounts. This platform of marketing can understand the consumer’s concern and it can help in
materializing such demands with the help of tourism industry. The entire process of marketing is
functioning on a symbiotic relationship. The travel industry has noticed a rise in sales with the
use of technology in a specific manner. The marketing strategies have been taken based on the
demands of the consumers, this kind of digital marketing has always influenced in shaping the
perception of the consumers (Doorey et al., 2017).
Adventure sports is all about taking risks, and following passions. Previously due to political
issues, or environmental issues there are many destinations which are not accessible to the
travellers but with the onset of digital marketing it is possible to explore those places more
easily. Each adventure tourism packages follow a certain policy for environmental issues. For the
adventure sports lovers it is necessary to understand the possible cultural context of any specific
destinations (Buckley, 2017). Adventure tourism can be both hard and soft activity type. In case
of any kind of commercial tourism it is all about the luxury of the tourists whereas the adventure
tourism always encourages taking such activities which offers unlimited adventure in one’s life.
Adventure tourism is always about the personal experience, how an individual documents such
experiences with others. This kind of extreme sport always put forward completely different
geographic, physical, or cultural limits to the travel enthusiast (Giddy and Webb, 2018).
In comparison with the commercial tourism, this kind of tourism always promotes to conserve all
the resources related to environment. This tourism includes communities, which can think about
the values of culture and nature. This has become an ever-growing industry, as it attracts many
sports lovers to explore the sector. With the help of social media, this tourism has only extended
its aspects to be expanded across the people (Harrigan et al., 2017). This media clearly explains
how risk taking this sport can be, in spite of such risks the adventure sport lover explore this
sector of the industry. It is due to such hazardous structure in this tourism has attracted many
enthusiasts to explore the adventure sport. The social media marketing is based on strategies
taken by the industry. Social media marketing strategies apprehend positive opinions from the
users, but there are drawbacks in this kind of marketing (Kavitha et al., 2017). The objective of
the social media marketing is to open a global market for each user, but there are other users who
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cannot be reached out with the social media. What kind of marketing strategies would be taken
for those sports lovers who are inactive in social media platform?
The marketing policy is hugely dependent on the perception of the consumer. The non-ethical
behaviour of any customers can affect this industry. Therefore, the adventure tourism should
meet up the demands of the consumers firstly because they are the biggest stakeholders of this
industry. It has the aim to connect with all like-minded users who have passion for adventures.
Such ideas can be attained only by following certain strategies like providing offers, or
promoting the activities through various social media platform. Mostly these explorations are
first-hand experiences, which will be helpful to realize the risk of carrying out such ventures.
1.4. Produce a research project specification
Research Philosophy
Research philosophy plays a role with objective in shaping the structure of any research work. It
guides a researcher the proper way to execute the project. The three main sub categories in
research philosophies are
Positivism: in this approach the researcher depends mainly on the data collected and how that
data has helped in shaping the structure of the research project
Interpretivisim: this approach can be read how in the way about the secondary data collected
from the reviews of the customers, and how the customer’s behaviour are affecting in shaping
the body of the research (Ryan, 2018)
Descriptive: here the researcher critically analyzes the factors, which are helping out in shaping
the structure of the research work.
For the successful research project, it is necessary to incorporate canon of philosophy, which are
relevant for the research. The researcher analyzes critically to understand different social media
factors required in marketing the adventure tourism among the users. Here the researcher
intervenes in the specific field of research to have proper idea about the ongoing research on the
specific topic, how that research project helps in adding new dimension in the field. In this
specific media research project the researcher has to study critically all the dimensions of the
social media and how that media strategies have affected in shaping the consumer’s perception
about the particular industry (Cazeaux, 2017).
Research Approach
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For getting a justified result from the research work, the researcher has to take an approach,
which makes a formal framework of the research. The researcher always has to incorporate such
ideas, which are creative and inventive in nature. The two main approaches used by the
researcher in the project are
Inductive approach: the researcher produces a new thought in the field by rationalising the
existing theories related to the field
Deductive approach: here the researcher uses the references of existing research projects for
better understanding of the industry. Through this approach, the researcher gets the better idea
about the theories for development of the project.
Gantt Chart given below with the timeline for the research project
Record of the
important activities that
were carried out
Week 1
and 2
Week
3 and
4
Week 5
and 6
Week 7
and 8
Week 9 and
12
Week 13
and 15
Selection of Research
Topic
Secondary Data
Compilation
Making of the research
framework
Critical literature
review
Research strategy
Choice of research
techniques to cover
research statement
Primary data
compilation
Detection of the
compiled data and
analysis
conclusion
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Making a rough draft
Research submission
Figure: Gantt Chart
1.5 Provide an appropriate plan and procedures for the agreed research specifications
Research Essentials Resources for executing the project
Research philosophy applied Positivism research philosophy
Method of collecting data Primary data collection
Specific research approach Deductive approach, by using existing works
in the fields
Research design for the project Exploratory research
Sampling Use of probability sampling for executing the
project
The researcher has used exploratory methods for using relevant canons of existing works for
executing the project in proper manner. Such methods of sampling and data collection help in
shaping the research project in convenient way.
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Ethical consideration
The researcher always uses the methods, which are helpful in executing the project in
appropriate manner without manipulating the collected data. The researcher reaches
appropriateness in research handling the data in a proper way. The researcher uses the
information that is available on different platforms (Creswell and Creswell, 2017). Social media
is a platform, which makes the information globally accessed by anyone across the world. So the
researcher always analyzes the data in different perspective to make critical analysis of the
content without making any biasness. The researcher makes such questionnaires that are relevant
for the research project without influencing anyone’s decisions. In this kind data collection, the
researcher gets varieties in opinions so the research can be done based on different
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Task 2
2.1. Match resources efficiently to the research question or hypothesis
Area of research Relevant sources
 the impact of the research, the
researcher has specific objectives,
which help in getting distinct results.

Ary, D., Jacobs, L.C., Irvine, C.K.S. and
Walker, D., 2018. Introduction to research in
education. Cengage Learning
Nardi, P.M., 2018. Doing survey research: A
guide to quantitative methods. Routledge.
 critically how the social media has
influenced hugely in the mechanism of
tourism industry

Altinay, L., Sigala, M. and Waligo, V., 2016.
Social value creation through tourism
enterprise. Tourism Management, 54, pp.404-
417.
Altinay, L., Sigala, M. and Waligo, V., 2016.
Social value creation through tourism
enterprise. Tourism Management, 54, pp.404-
417.
 Special social media tools which used
by organization for the marketing of the
tourism industry
 How these tourism industries use the
platform of social media to fulfil the
requirement of the consumers
Gilchrist, P. and Wheaton, B., 2016. Lifestyle
and adventure sport among youth.
Horner, S. and Swarbrooke, J.,
2016. Consumer behaviour in tourism.
Routledge.
Al-Badi, A., Tarhini, A. and Al-Sawaei, S.,
2017. Utilizing Social Media to Encourage
Domestic Tourism in Oman. International
Journal of Business and Management, 12(4),
p.84.
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2.2. Undertake the proposed research investigation in accordance with the agreed
specification and procedures.
1. What is your Age?
Options Number of responses Percentage of
respondents
Total number of
respondents
15-20 20 20% 100
21-30 40 40% 100
31-40 30 30% 100
41-50 20 20% 100
Table 1: Age of Respondent
(Source: Created by the learner)
2. What is your Gender?
Options Number of responses Percentage of
respondents
Total number of
respondents
Male 60 60% 100
Female 30 30% 100
Others 10 10% 100
Table 2: Gender of Respondent
(Source: Created by the learner)
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