New University of Georgia research suggests that social media could be influencing people's travel plans.
When people post photos and videos of their trip, they may not be using those posts to just update family and friends on what they're up to. They also love it when their posts get a bunch of likes and comments.
The researchers found that social media influenced travel plans across all age groups, but millennials were the most impacted. They were more likely to say that people who post about their travels are cool, and that this coolness factor motivates them to go to those same places and post about their own travels to boost their social status.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, baby boomers were less drawn in by similar posts and less likely to base their own trips off them.
"Whenever we post something on social media, we expect our peers to respond positively and give likes and comments to create some engagement to our posts," said Sabrina Rahman, the corresponding author of the study and a recent doctoral graduate from UGA's Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources. "That expectation of getting positive feedback is what we call 'social return,' and we practice it in our everyday life without us knowing."
Millennials, Gen Z look for unique destinations
The present publication includes three separate studies. Between all three studies, the research team made of Bynum Boley, Sabrina Rahman and Zachary Russell surveyed more than 2,000 participants across four age groups: baby boomers, Gen X, millennials and Gen Z.
The surveys asked whether people looked cool, popular and unique when they posted about their trips online. Possible destinations ranged from the more mainstream, such as France and spots in the United States, to less common destinations including Cuba and Slovenia. Participants were also asked if they would go to those same vacation destinations based on the posts they saw.
Which destinations people found appealing depended on their age.
Baby boomers were drawn to posts about mainstream destinations such as France. Younger generations, especially Gen Z, gravitated toward posts about less common locales.
"Gen Z won't go with the flow. They're always looking for novelty or adventure," Rahman said. "Social media posts about some conventional destination won't change their travel plans that much."
Social media guides vacation planning in the digital age
Today, social media is entangled with how people plan and share their vacations. Not only can it give inspiration and tips for travel, but it can also motivate where people choose to go.
"It's a relatively new phenomenon, but it's very relevant given that about two-thirds of the world's population are now social media users," Rahman said. "People look into travel blogs, posts and reviews before traveling, so how appealing we find those destinations on social media shapes our travel intentions. And based on what kind of positive feedback I might get, that anticipation sometimes makes us visit some places or try a new restaurant."
This study was led by Bynum Boley, professor of parks, recreation and tourism management at UGA and the director of the UGA Tourism Research Lab. It has been published in Current Issues in Tourism and is co-authored by Zachary Russell.
