Exploring Sustainability in Tourism Marketing Through Digital and Social Networks: A Literature Review

Introduction

Over the last ten years, the tourism sector has experienced a steady expansion. This development is essentially due to its interconnectivity with other economic sectors such as transport, culture, accommodation and other economic axes, which has given the tourism sector an important place in the global economy. Today, the sector is seen as a lever for socio-economic and environmental development, actively contributing to the economic dynamism of countries. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), by 2022, the tourism sector's contribution to global GDP will have risen to 7.6%, with an increase of over 22% compared to 2021. Again, the sector has contributed to the creation of 22 million new jobs, up 7.9% on 2021, and is expected to generate profits of up to 500 billion US dollars by 2029 (Alnajim and Fakieh, 2023). However, the tourism sector was faced with a difficult situation following the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, forcing it to change strategy and adapt to the situation. This change found its impetus in exploiting digital developments by implementing a marketing strategy based on digital and information and communication technologies (ICT's).

The significant development of the digital world has had a positive impact on all sectors of economic activity, including tourism. Internet connectivity, for example, has grown at an annual rate of 62.5%. By 2021, Internet users had reached nearly 4.9 billion, while networking platforms had reached nearly 3.8 billion (Balatska et al., 2023). Indeed, the rapid progress of the Internet has influenced the travel and hospitality market, providing tourists with highly effective digital tools. This has given rise to a new relationship between consumers of tourism products and the tourism industry. Today, the Internet is undoubtedly the most important source of information, especially for the tourism industry. Social networks and various digital applications have revolutionized the tourism market, giving consumers the power to demand the best product at the right price. This feat has been reinforced by the abundance of internet and digital applications, their ease of use and low cost (Myat et al., 2023).

The digitalization of the tourism industry has contributed to the transparency and clarity of tourism services presented online, notably by eliminating barriers to accessing information, enabling price consultation and comparison, diversifying marketing channels, and increasing the competitiveness of the products on offer. This new trend has been amplified by the assured access to digital tourism applications via smartphones and other electronic devices (Carlisle et al., 2023). In addition, (Gutierriz et al., 2023) consider that the digitalization of tourism products has helped to make tourism services one of the best-selling products online, prompting professionals to give greater importance to e-marketing by remaining constantly attentive to changing customer needs.

Thanks to the Internet, the tourism sector has taken on a new face, enabling tourists to organize and plan their trip without actually testing the product on offer. In fact, with the digitalization of tourism services, consumers can now plan all stages of their trip online (buying plane tickets, booking hotels and excursions, renting cars, etc.). Consumers can also ask other tourists for their opinions on a tourist product. Basically, the Internet has contributed to the emergence of a new commerce based on technology and digital (Alnajim and Fakieh, 2023). Sin et al. (2020), reveal that 40% of travelers change their travel plans following recommendations available on social networks and the Internet. And that 70% of tourists use social networks for obtaining product information, rather than consulting the supplier directly. This points to the power of social networks and specialized applications in guiding travel decisions. Online reviews and comments on one product or another have more credibility and importance than you might imagine, especially when it concerns official sites (Sakas et al., 2022).