Social Media Impact on Customer Hotel Selection: Hotel DE L’EUROPE

This research proposal investigates the influence of social media on customer experiences and hotel selection, using Hotel DE L’EUROPE in Amsterdam as a case study. It addresses the increasing role of social media in shaping customer behavior within the hospitality industry, highlighting the shift from traditional marketing to digital platforms. The study aims to identify factors impacting hotel choices via social media, analyze the positive and negative effects of social media marketing on customer experiences, and provide recommendations for leveraging social media to enhance customer engagement. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques to explore the correlation between social media presence and customer satisfaction in the context of the selected hotel. It considers ethical considerations and acknowledges potential limitations, contributing to a better understanding of social media's impact on the tourism and service sectors.

Running head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL
RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Impact of Social media on Customer Experiences for Choosing Hotels: A Case Study of
Hotel DE L’EUROPE, Amsterdam.
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
Problem statement......................................................................................................................3
Purpose of the study...................................................................................................................3
Research questions.....................................................................................................................4
Sub-research questions...............................................................................................................4
Research aims and objectives.....................................................................................................4
Literature review........................................................................................................................5
Social media and consumer experience.................................................................................5
Hotel DE L’EUROPE, Amsterdam and the pattern of customer experience in using the
social media platforms...........................................................................................................6
Methodology of the research......................................................................................................8
Theoretical framework...........................................................................................................8
Research design......................................................................................................................9
Data collection method..........................................................................................................9
Sample size and analysis technique.....................................................................................10
Research ethical consideration.............................................................................................10
Limitations of the study.......................................................................................................11
Significance of the study......................................................................................................11
Gantt chart................................................................................................................................13
References................................................................................................................................14

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Introduction
The aim of the paper is to prepare the research proposal for the purpose of understanding the
impact of social media in making choices for the selection of hotels. This study will be
conducted in the context of Netherlands. The reason behind the choice of the discussion for
further study is due to the issue that there is a correlation between the process of social media
and the influence it creates in the customers while making choices. It has been previously
noticed that the issue of social media and customer’s experiences is one of the most discussed
and debated issues in the academic and non-academic fields. There is enough evidence that
the hospitality industry has undergone number of changes in the last few years in keeping
their comparative advantages in the market. It has been observed that it is no longer possible
to satisfy the customers by offering them services solely at the hotels, the nature of service
has changed drastically (Ert et al. 2016). According to the expectation of the customers, there
are number of changes required to be brought under the operations and management of the
company. It is to be argued that with the advent of technology, small to large business have
achieved the optimum level of participation to the world of competition through the effective
use of the social media (Gavilan et al. 2018). At this juncture, it has been observed that
social media is likely to influence the choice of the customers in number of ways. There are
number of avenues for the purpose of the business to operate in the social media. According
to the Deloitte report, it has been observed that the consumers spent over 40% of their time
searching for the home furnishing, 30% to the health products and the remaining 30% to the
tourism and service (Ert et al. 2016). This study is significant due to the fact that it will
highlight the influence of the social media on the experiences in case of service and tourism
industry. This paper will be highlighting the areas in which people are highly influenced to

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make choice by being influenced by the social media marketing. This study is significant due
to the fact that social media has become the new avenue of communication and it has been
successfully communicating between the businesses and the ultimate consumers. Hence this
study will be dwelling into the issue of the influence of social media in meaningful choices of
service.
Problem statement
The impact of the social media and marketing is shaping in number of ways, for example, it
is expanding the reach of the smaller services and business to the doorstep of the consumers.
It is also creating the availability of the resources to all the customers in order to attract them
to their services. Moreover it has been observed that social media is more cost –effective than
traditional marketing and it is more feasible for the customers to get an idea of the services
offered. According to the estimation it has been observed that 91% of the population have
their mobile for the purpose of finding the best services (Gursoy et al. 2019). However what
is important to note is that social media is likely to impact and shape the behaviour of the
customers in terms of the products and services they chose, even though it is unclear whether
the impact of social media in the hospitality sector is likely to make any positive relation for
the selection of services (Han et al. 2015). Due to the unavailability of the existing literature
on the topic of social media and consumer experiences, this study will be identifying the gap
to understand the nuances of the issue.
Purpose of the study

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The purpose of the study is to explore the correlation social media and customer experiences
within the context of the hospitality industry. The impact of social media in the tourism
industry has been huge since the new generation customers are keen on making informed
choices, For example, one of the key networking sites operating in this field has been the
“Tripadvisor” which has been a tool for enhancing the customer experiences by sharing hotel
specific information to the customers. What has been noteworthy here is that these spruces of
information are accepted to be authentic and credible. For example, the Dunloe Hotel in Co.
Kerry has created their infographic on the social media platform in order to reach out to the
customers in a wide ranging fashion. Hence this study will be highlighting the two aspects of
social media and that of the hospitality industry by undertaking the issue of customer’s
experiences. It will be also be looking into the ways in which the social media is shaping
experiences choices of the individual in special references to the choices of hotels.
Research questions
RQ1. What are the ways in which social media is making changes in the experiences and
choices of the customers in reference to Hotel DE L’EUROPE, Amsterdam?
Sub-research questions
RQ1. Do social media have been impacting in the choice of hotels and their consumer
experiences?
RQ2. How social media have impact in choices people make in the tourism industry?
RQ3. What are the impacts of social media in customer’s experiences within the context of
Netherlands in special reference to the case study of the Hotel DE L’EUROPE, Amsterdam?

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Research aims and objectives
The aim of this research is to find out the aspects and ways in which the social media can
influence the consumer experiences while making choices for the hotels. The objectives of
the research are as follows:
 To analyse the underlying factors that impact the choice of the customers of hotels in
terms social media
 To understand them positive and negative impact of the social media and marketing in
customers experience within the context of the Hotel DE L’EUROPE, Amsterdam.
 To recommend the ways in which the social media can impact the choices and
experiences of the customers.
Literature review
Social media and consumer experience
There have been number of changes in the way the hospitality industry is operating in
today’s time. The change in the hospitality industry has been driven by the customers due to
the change in their expectations and perceptions towards service (Hernández-Méndez et al.
2015). This has enhanced the pressure on the companies to adopt to the changes in perception
of the customer since they have realised the feasibility and demand of the customers towards
the social media options. The customers are constantly connected and app native which is a
boon to the companies to understand their preference of service. It has been argued by the
scholars that the dean for efficient services are one of the growing demand in the digital

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market(Phillips et al. 2017). There are number of ways in which the digital market help to
provide the customer the luxury feeling of making choices of hotels siting far from the actual
destinations, it has been also observed from the previous research that the behavioural aspects
of the customers have drastically changed in the recent years since they prefer to book
hotels through their official websites(Kim et al. 2018). It has also noted that the customers
have preferred creating the distance from the travel agencies in order to order to give
preference to their expectations and avoid the unnecessary burden of the third party. This has
initiated number of social media campaigns by the companies in the hospitality industry since
it has been observed that 90% of the customers are able to access the social media an find
out the best option(Varkaris et al. 2017). Hence it has been argued by the author that there is
a positive correlation between the social media options of the hospitality industry based
companies and the fulfilment of expectations of the customers. Moreover they have paired up
with number of social media projects in order to make the customer experience a luxury
experience.
Hence it is important to argued from the above discussion that the impact of technology and
social media in the hospitality industry has not only shaped their nature of services, it also
has created number of opportunities for the customers to experience the best services.
However what is crucial here is to understand that previous literature have largely been
restricted to the explanation of the social media system and their advantages, there are
unclear and complex understanding of the correlation between customer experience and the
social media options. This study will be focusing on the issue of gap existing in the previous
body of research in order to create further knowledge in the same.

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Hotel DE L’EUROPE, Amsterdam and the pattern of customer experience in
using the social media platforms
The chosen industry for the discussion is Hotel DE L’EUROPE, Amsterdam has been one of
the luxury hotels of Amsterdam and it is offers one of the finest services to their customers.
However what is important to note is that it has been found social media of the luxury hotels
and customer’s experiences are changing and has already taken a great leap forward. The
correlation of the social media in the hospitality industry and customers experience have been
discussed by measuring the percentage of people booking online(55%)( Tan et al. 2018).
However, it has not been testified whether the data is true on a global scale or is it specific to
the context of Netherlands. It has been observe previously that the dynamic need of the
digital platform to be used by the luxury hotels like the one mentioned here has become the
most important issue post 2016(Varkaris et al. 2017). While the traditional technique of
bookings made previously higher dependence on the word of mouth, it has undertaken a
significant turn in the last few years. For the 21st century travellers, it is more important to
remain connected to the social media to find the best services. For the affluent customers, it
has been argued that is more of the experience they get rather than the items offered and in
most of the cases, it is these experiences of the social media that is likely to shape their
choices and behaviours(Phillips et al. 2017). Hence t is important to understand the ways in
which hospitality industry has made use of the social media to market their services. It has
been argued by the author that with the use of the social media, luxury hotels like the DE
L’EUROPE has been utilising the digital platform to make service more personalised. It is
also substantiated with the best experience of the latest technology in order to make
customer experience a potential one. It is the choice of the content in the right manner that is
impacting the higher output of the customer’s experiences(Tan et al. 2018). They have

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further utilised it make their services mobile friendly in order to make customers better plan
their travel. Hence it is to be noted that the social media and their effective use has
revolutionised the way hospitality is perceived. Through the social media and online
advertisements, hospitality industry is facing the challenge of overcrowding of the
competitors. It is this social media initiative that has been able to create the bet of online
experiences for their customers(Ert et al. 2016). For example, it has been highlighted that one
of the international hotels chain operated and maintained by the Shangri La has highlighted
the need of posting online ad campaign for their resorts in order to create a world class
experience for their customers (Phillips et al. 2017). Hence the role of the social media
cannot be denied when it comes to the consumer experience. It is the approach of the
companies belonging to the hospitality industry to undertake the ground up philosophy for
the purpose of creating the best experiences.
Methodology of the research
Theoretical framework
Research philosophy is the system and process of gathering the data and conducting the
research in a meaningful way. There are three predominant ways of research like the realism
interpretivism and positivism (Vaioleti et al. 2016). For the purpose of this research, this
study would be undertaking the positivism approach in order to understand and investigate he
issue in a logical and critical manner. The positivism approach is research will be helpful in
deriving the following objectives of the research : this research will be useful for the reason
that it focuses on the human behaviour and aspects since the issue of customer behaviour is
inherently based on their choices(Smith 2015). The rationale for the choice of this research is

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that it is structured an ensures minimum room for error. It is expected that the positivism
approach is important to derive the understanding of the correlation of social media and
customer’s experience(Vaioleti et al. 2016). These inherent qualities of the research is the
reason for the rejection of the other two research methodologies since interpretivism and
realism approach of research is not sufficient for the purpose of the study. Hence this research
study would be concluded by undertaking the positivism approach to it.
Research design
For the purpose of this study, the analytical model of research design has been adopted since
it has been identified as the most suitable form of perspective to understand the underlying
nuances of the issues(Vaioleti et al. 2016). The analytical research design is important for the
purpose of the scope it provides to complete the study by critically analysing the themes of
the research. This research design will also be helpful for the purpose of gaining detailed
insight in to the issue of existing theories of the subject and relevant concepts of the study.
Data collection method
For the purpose of the research, it will be undertaking the primary and secondary method of
data collection (Simonsohn et al. 2017). The data collection method required to be completed
by undertaking one of the dominant research frameworks, quantitative and qualitative. For
the purpose of this research study, a mixed method approach would be undertaken since the
qualitative research approach would be helpful in gaining insight into the issue social media
from the point of view of the managers of two hotels. For the quantitative method of data
collection, it will be understanding the survey method of data collection to understand the
level of engagement of consumers with the social media and the possible influence it creates

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in the choices made by them. In addition to the primary data collection, this study will also be
undertaking the secondary data collection based on the review of the peer-reviewed journals
and books. Both the sources of data collection are important for the purpose of the study
since it is important to substantiate the primary data with the theoretical understanding driven
from the secondary data collection.
Sample size and analysis technique
The sampling technique of the research is based on the probability and non-probability
method of sampling (Panneerselvam, 2014). The sample size chosen for the study is two
manager of the reputed hotels in order to understand their stake in social media while for the
survey method of data collection, random sampling would be adopted to derive the
percentage of people depending on the digital platforms for election of their choice of
services. After the due consideration of all the data important for the study, this data would be
analysed undertaking the thematic analysis to categorise each themes individually. The
survey results would be converted into the graphs and pictorial representation in order to use
them systematically in the body of research. This is important to note that for the qualitative
data, results would be represented in nu metrics whole for the quantitative data, the thematic
analysis is undertaken for deriving the desired results. The notion of the thematic analysis is
based on the deliverance of the understanding derived from the analysing the pattern of the
data.
Research ethical consideration
There are number of ethical issues important to be considered in all the research studies.
Similarly, this study would be also concluded undertaking a standard ethical guideline.

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Firstly, during conducting the interview, it will be ensured that there is no use of the symbols
or logo that might create biased understanding of the same most importantly, the participants
will not be forced to undertake the research and their due consent would be taken prior to the
initiation of the research. Secondly, it will also be ensured that the questions prepare for the
purpose of the research is open ended and there are enough options for the respondents to
choose from. In case of their identity related issues, it will be ensured that there is good
amount of confidentiality maintained. In case of the secondary data collection, all the
research information will be duly mentioned in order to avoid plagiarism. It will be ensured
that the research is purely for academic purpose.
Limitations of the study
Limitations are one of the key aspects of every research that limits the nature if research in
different ways (Panneerselvam). For example, the issue of time constraints is restrictive of
the nature of the research since it has been observed that it might become difficult to derive
the required data within the short span. It might also be possible that prior dates for the
interview is not available which might restrict the scope of gaining further insight into the
issue. Moreover the responses from the respondents might be biased in some extent which
can limit the nature of research. There might be issues with the issue of sample size and
selection. It might so happen that the sample size is facing the problem of “selection bias”
which will be reflective on the research results. Getting access to the specific geographic
scope of the respondents of the survey questions might be restrictive of gaining the right
response for the same. Hence it is to be remembered that research has number of limitations
which might restrict the scope of the research to a great extent.

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Significance of the study
This study is important due to the fact that it will provide insights on the correlation between
social media and the customers experience in reference to the hospitality industry. This novel
research will be discussing the underlying nuances of social media, their factors and the
processes through which they are impacting the experience of the customers. Hence this
study is significant due to the fact that customer’s experiences are always shaped by the
external factors of traditional services, it is also shaped by the process of digital marking
which makes their experience better.

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Gantt chart
Activities 1st to
3rd
Week
4th to
10th
week
11th to
13th
Week
14th to
17th
Week
18th to
21st
Week
22nd
to 23rd
Week
24th
Week
Selection of the topic 
Data collection from
secondary sources
 
Creating layout 
Literature review   
Analysis and
interpretation of
collected data
  
Findings of the data  
Conclusion of the
study

Formation of draft  
Submission of final
work

Created by the author

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References
Ert, E. and Fleischer, A., 2016. Mere position effect in booking hotels online. Journal of
Travel Research, 55(3), pp.311-321.
Gavilan, D., Avello, M. and Martinez-Navarro, G., 2018. The influence of online ratings and
reviews on hotel booking consideration. Tourism Management, 66, pp.53-61.
Gursoy, D., 2019. A critical review of determinants of information search behavior and
utilization of online reviews in decision making process (invited paper for ‘luminaries’
special issue of international journal of hospitality management). International Journal of
Hospitality Management, 76, pp.53-60.
Han, H. and Yoon, H.J., 2015. Hotel customers’ environmentally responsible behavioral
intention: Impact of key constructs on decision in green consumerism. International Journal
of Hospitality Management, 45, pp.22-33.
Hernández-Méndez, J., Muñoz-Leiva, F. and Sánchez-Fernández, J., 2015. The influence of
e-word-of-mouth on travel decision-making: consumer profiles. Current issues in
tourism, 18(11), pp.1001-1021.
Kim, J.M., Jun, M. and Kim, C.K., 2018. The Effects of Culture on Consumers' Consumption
and Generation of Online Reviews. Journal of Interactive Marketing, 43, pp.134-150.
Mackey, A. and Gass, S.M., 2015. Second language research: Methodology and design.
Routledge.
Panneerselvam, R., 2014. Research methodology. PHI Learning Pvt.Ltd..

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Phillips, P., Barnes, S., Zigan, K. and Schegg, R., 2017. Understanding the impact of online
reviews on hotel performance: an empirical analysis. Journal of Travel Research, 56(2),
pp.235-249.
Simonsohn, U., Nelson, L. and Simmons, J., 2017. Research Methodology, Design, and
Analysis. Annual Review of Psychology, 69(1).
Smith, J.A. ed., 2015. Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to research methods. Sage.
Tan, H., Lv, X., Liu, X. and Gursoy, D., 2018. Evaluation nudge: Effect of evaluation mode
of online customer reviews on consumers’ preferences. Tourism Management, 65, pp.29-40.
Vaioleti, T.M., 2016. Talanoa research methodology: A developing position on Pacific
research. Waikato Journal of Education, 12(1).
Varkaris, E. and Neuhofer, B., 2017. The influence of social media on the consumers’ hotel
decision journey. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 8(1), pp.101-118.