Facebook's Role: Tourism and Crisis Communication in Fiji Hotels

This presentation examines the use of Facebook as a tourism and crisis communication tool in Fiji, particularly within the hotel industry following natural disasters like Tropical Cyclone Winston. It highlights how Facebook is used for disaster management, raising funds, and improving customer satisfaction through fast and reliable communication. The research, based on data collected from Fiji with 91000 respondents, interviews, and questionnaires, identifies the strengths and weaknesses of using Facebook in this context. Key concepts discussed include the use of smartphones, internet access, and the quality of information shared. The presentation also addresses the technological ways of disaster recovery and social media's role as a marketing strategy, while acknowledging limitations such as the detail about the Facebook application and potential inaccuracies in data collection. The objective of the research was to study the relationship between tourist satisfaction and the perceived Facebook application for Disaster and crisis recovery in Fiji and to recommend Facebook as a major communication tool for disaster and crisis management.

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Tourism Management
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Facebook as a Tourism and crisis
communication tool in Fiji
>Facebook is a well-known social media platform used by
several people across the world.
>Despite the fact that it was initially started as a social
network, so many people have turned it a business
environment.
>As Houston et al.(2015) shows, social media can be utilize
to raise awareness of the impact of a disaster and motivate
individuals to donate or volunteer.

Introduction
New technologies have emerged increasingly in various
parts of the world. Facebook was developed purposely to
connect people across the world. Upon the launch of
Facebook, things have changed. Through it, enhanced
communication has been achieved. Anything to be
communicated can spread very fast. According to the
research Fiji hotels, with their mobilized digital teams and
resources, seemed to perform better, concerns are still
raised about the overall lack of being prepared.
(Lee, Lim, & Chun, 2013)

Background of the Research
“ Facebook is a technology that has allowed faster
management of the disaster and crisis because many
people have migrated online. Posting a message which
is so sensitive through social media will attract so many
people available over the internet. These will
automatically lead to a quicker action done to it”

Disaster Management
Facebook is a social media platform which has over 1.4
trillion users all over the world. Every time there is a
disaster, we find people updating over the Facebook
within the shortest time possible

Facebook Key Concepts
Smart phones. (Access is remote , requires a browser
downloaded in your smart phone, GPS is integrated to it)
Browser (installed in your smart phone)
Internet (internet is a necessity for you to access this
social media platform)
Facebook
Internet
Content/information quality
user

Key concepts
Overall client satisfaction and the impact on the environment
General satisfaction overtime
Theoretical process
Facebook is commonly use to connect people and make them interact
as if they are on a single village (Urista, Dong, & Day, 2009).
Individual ideologies
Some individuals are resistance to changes. New technologies may at
some point encounter a strong resistances from the users.

Research Framework
(Aral, Dellarocas, &
Godes, 2013).

>Data collection was done all over Fiji with a total of
91000 respondents in
>The data collected were analyzed and the results
were recorded.
>Interviews and questionnaires were carried out
during data collection.
>Collected data is the analyzed and the projected
results were recorded
Methods of Data Collection
(Delone, & McLean, 2013).

Research Findings
>The best hotels are those which have mobilized and
implement new technologies in their taskforce. Facebook
is their major social media platform through which they
carry out communication regarding disaster management.
The customers are satisfied since they received fast
service deliver indicating that communication is reliable.
>This study also confirms Hosany and Witham’s(2010)
research on tourists’ cruise experience, which showed the
strong influence of satisfaction on the behavioral
intention to recommend Facebook application.

Strengths of the Research
>Research Contribution
• Technological ways of disaster recovery e.g. social media
applications
• Effects of new technologies on the tourist industry and how
it has assisted in gaping the cases of disasters in different
parts of the world.
• Experimental Contribution
• Social media as a marketing strategy for tourists to fill the
gaps in various hotels across the world.
(Yaakop, Anuar, & Omar, 2013).

Weaknesses of the Research
>Practical limitation
• The detail about the Facebook application were less
• Question used to collect data may not show accurately about
what was required from the survey.
>Research limitation
• The site which was used to collect data may not be accurate
enough to produce the best
• The responds may have given out wrong information
• The data collected are not enough for the whole Fiji land
(Chang, & Heo, 2014).