Accor, in its inaugural Accor Hotels Asia Pacific Social Media Monitor, reveals that Thai and Chinese travellers are most active online, while Australians and New Zealanders are the least social media users.

Singaporeans are also very active in the social media space, with 84% interacting online with they travel. They love to share photos of their trips, and are among the highest users of Instagram in Asia Pacific (APAC). They, along with Hong Kong guests, are the least likely to complain in person. For 67% of them, the most important factor when choosing a hotel is location. And while online reviews rank third in importance (34%), this is the highest level of usage in the region.

“Accor wanted to establish which social media channels are most important for travellers in the region, and understand how guests from different countries interact with hotels online and document their travels,” Jens Uwe Parkitny, Accor’s Vice President of Digital Marketing & Distribution – Asia Pacific (pictured right).

“For example, the survey showed us that 59% of respondents would like to have a smartphone app to book hotels directly, but only 14% are interested in ordering room service via their smartphone or tablet. This helps us to better invest our efforts in online distribution and communication to suit our guests’ needs and requirements.”

Other key findings:

Most plugged in

The most active social media users during their last trip were the Thais and Chinese, with 95% and 91% respectively having interacted in some way.
32% of New Zealanders and 25% of Australians surveyed said they did not interact at all during their last trip — the least active of all the countries surveyed.

Facebook is king

Facebook is the most universally used social network in APAC, with the top users being Thailand (72%), the Philippines (60%) and Singapore (55%). It is only challenged by WeChat and Sina Weibo in China, and Line in Thailand. Even in China where Facebook is not readily accessible, 15% of respondents said they used it and checked it several times a day, almost as often as local site RenRen.
Google+ is gaining traction in APAC and is second place, with 24% of respondents using it multiple times daily. Despite this overall growth, its usage remains very limited during (13%) and after (4%) trips.
Instagram scores the lowest, with only 12% of respondents saying they use it at least once a day.

Brand friendship

In terms of brands followed online, hotels, airlines and travel-related brands are the most popular in the region, with Chinese and Thai respondents the most fervent fans and the most likely to follow several brands.
The key motivation to follow hotel brands online is to get discounts and special offers (77%), especially for respondents from the Pacific, China and Singapore.

Customer trust

Across all countries and age groups, travellers favoured hotel websites (57%) for pricing and location information over online travel agencies.
When considering reviews, social media sites and online travel agencies are equally trusted (40%); far beyond hotel supplier sites (13%).

Sharing experiences

Half of respondents post status updates when they travel, with 36% of travellers posting photos of their hotel room. By far the most voracious sharers are the snap-happy Thais at 51%. Across the board uploading pictures is the number one activity when back home

Connectivity is key

During their trip respondents rely heavily on hotel Wi-Fi (52%) to get online, preferring it to using data roaming or a local SIM card (both 15%).

Interaction with hotels

Chinese guests are the most likely to interact with hotels after their stay (74%), while people from North Asia, Hong Kong and the Pacific are the least likely.
Completing guest satisfaction surveys is still the most popular after-stay interaction (29%), with comment cards at 19%, especially for older guests. Only 14% of respondents actually posted a review online, with Indians and Singaporeans the most likely to do so.
Overall though, direct communication with hotel staff is the preferred way of interaction with hotels, whether for a negative (34%) or positive (28%) experience.

Travel trends uncovered

Chinese respondents travelled least for leisure purposes,
Indonesians are the most price-sensitive and most likely to stay in economy hotels (47% vs 31% overall), and are the most likely to research and plan their trips online (67%).
Thai travellers are the most interested in the latest design trends (53% vs 38% overall).
Indian and Chinese travellers are the most likely to pay more for environmentally friendlier hotels (both at 29%) while only 5% of New Zealanders said they would pay more for a ‘green’ hotel.
New Zealanders are the most likely to go with the flow, with only 37% saying they plan their sightseeing and activities online.
Food features high on the list of APAC travellers, with 40% saying they wanted to discover local gastronomy – especially the Chinese, 59% of whom say food discoveries are a key consideration for them when choosing a hotel.

The survey was carried out by Accor and ORC International among 5,400 travellers across 11 countries in APAC who had stayed in a hotel at least once in the past 12 months, and who use social media at least once a week. The research sought to discover how social media impacts the way people research, experience and review their travel, before, during and after their trips.

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