Social media usage and organizational performance among travel agencies
List of Authors
  • Marwan A. A. Marzooqi

Keyword
  • Social Media Usage, Performance, Travel Agencies, UAE

Abstract
  • The scientific research study scrutinized the correlation between social media and organizational performance among travel agencies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The research empirical study utilized a descriptive research design with a quantitative approach. A sample size of 358 participants were determined from 1320 people as study population. Data was gathered using survey questionnaires and examined using descriptive statistics such as tables, frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviation. The researcher also used inferential statistics such as Structural Equation modelling (SEM) for establishing the relationship between the study variables. The SEM was used while using standardized coefficients (betas) to denote the relative strength of the statistical relationships in the study. The research findings established that there was a significant effect between social media usage and organizational performance among travel agencies in the UAE. The study concluded that the emergence of social media sites and widespread usage has changed the way businesses operate, especially in the marketing sector of organizational performance. The media usage has compelled travel and tour companies to embrace the change that has also created a better platform for them to market and advertise their services. From the study findings, the researcher recommended that the management of travel agencies in UAE can consider improving the performance of their organization by improving on the orientation efforts offered to their customers through feasible discussion sessions where customers can actually tailor their worries using media that do not expose negative perceptions recorded to the public. This can include messages through emails and close private chats in Facebook.

Reference
  • 1. Amin, E. (2005). Social Research. Makerere University, Kampala. 12(4), 84-93.

    2. Carim, S. & Warwick, H. (2020). The importance of customer focus for organizational performance: a study of Chinese companies. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 26(4), 369–379.

    3. Campbell, R. B., & Anistsal, C. W. (2022). Measuring organizational performance: Metrics for entrepreneurship and strategic management research. Cheltenham, U.K: Edward Elgar.

    4. Elena, C. A. (2016). Social media – a strategy in developing customer relationship management. Procedia Economics and Finance, 39, 785–790. doi:10.1016/s2212-5671(16)30266-0

    5. Fotis, H, Trueman, M., Bulhalis, K.& Nicos D. (2019). E-marketing and small business enterprises: A review of the methodologies. Journal of Business and Public Policy, 2(2), 64-93.

    6. Gefen, L. et al. (2000). Educational research: competencies for analysis and application. Merrill Pub. Co., Columbus.

    7. Gordon, M. et al. (2017). The Rise of Social Media Influencer Marketing on Lifestyle Branding: A Case Study of Lucie Fink. Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications, 8(2), 77-87.

    8. Gundala, R. R. & Khawaja, H. (2014). Brand Management in Small and Medium Enterprise: Evidence from Dubai, UAE. Global journal of business research, 8(1), 27-38.

    9. Gros, S. (2012). Social Networking Usage Questionnaire: Development and Validation in an Indian Higher Education Context. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, 19(4), 214-227. https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/556241

    10. Jin, P. K., Mugaddam, A. & Ruy (2019). Digital marketing: A framework, review and research agenda. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 34(1), 22-45.

    11. Kaplan, R. S., & Norton, D. P. (2010). Using the balanced scorecard as a strategic management system. Harvard Business Review, 71(5), 134-148.

    12. Morgan, X., & Krejcie, M. (1970). Determining sample size: a Comparative Study Table. Facilities, 29(11/12). http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/02632771111157141

    13. Nelson, C. (2016). UAE’s global top spot in Smartphone use gives local SMEs huge opportunities. [Accessed on 27 May 2018]. Online available at: https://www.thenational.ae/business/technology/uae-s-global-top-spot-in-smartphone-use-gives-local-smes-huge-opportunities-1.175824

    14. Reyaee, S. & Ahmed, A. (2015). Growth Pattern of Social Media Usage in Arab Gulf States: An Analytical Study. Social Networking, 4(2), 23-31.

    15. Taylor, F. P. (2019). Role of social media on information accessibility. Pacific Asia Journal of the Association for Information Systems 8(4), 33-52.

    16. Vij, A. (2017). Adoption of Social Media Marketing - An Overview of UAE Service Firms. International Journal of Business Administration and Management Research, 3(2), 23-28. Vinka Filipović, Vesna Milićević, Nevenka Zarkić-Joksimović,2000. CUSTOMER ORIENTED MARKETING CONCEPT AND STRATEGIC ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT IN BALKAN ECONOMIES. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/43c6/9bc164259df0b433adbb099982c30ab519b3.pdf

    17. Yfantidou, I., Riskos, K. & Tsourvakas, G. (2017). Advertising message strategy analysis for award-winning digital ads. International Journal of Technology Marketing, 12(4), 340-355.

    18. Zhou, G. W., & Wang, J. (2014). The reinforcing effect of a firm's customer orientation and supply-base orientation on performance. Industrial marketing management, 52, 18-26.