TY - JOUR

T1 - Creating UGC areas on official destination websites: Is there a recipe for success? An insight through netnographic research

AU - Osti, Linda

N1 - Cited By :8 Export Date: 17 March 2023

PY - 2009

Y1 - 2009

N2 - An analysis of the existing literature has demonstrated the importance of word ofmouth as a source of information for potential tourists and service consumers. Thegrowth of the Internet and interactive websites has lead to the creation of onlinecommunities that serve as points of reference for word of mouth and in particularfor independent, personal and experiential information. Recent articles have notedthe growing interest of tourism companies and destinations to include UGC areasin their official websites to provide their users with these types of information andinteractivity among each others. However, so far little research has been performedon the success factors of online communities. This paper wants to create a platformfor further research on the topic. If destinations want to boost visits to theirwebsites through UGS areas and create a “buzz” through positive word of mouth,it is necessary to know the correct ingredients for success. Some of theseingredients have been discovered through a netnographic analysis of an Italianvirtual mountaineering community. The analysis has shown that some of the mostimportant issues when creating online communities are the reliability ofinformation, the ease of finding information and creating threads and posts, theconstant appearance of interesting threads and discussions, the respect for othermembers, the passion of all of the active users for the same topics and a certainhomogeneity within the users.

AB - An analysis of the existing literature has demonstrated the importance of word ofmouth as a source of information for potential tourists and service consumers. Thegrowth of the Internet and interactive websites has lead to the creation of onlinecommunities that serve as points of reference for word of mouth and in particularfor independent, personal and experiential information. Recent articles have notedthe growing interest of tourism companies and destinations to include UGC areasin their official websites to provide their users with these types of information andinteractivity among each others. However, so far little research has been performedon the success factors of online communities. This paper wants to create a platformfor further research on the topic. If destinations want to boost visits to theirwebsites through UGS areas and create a “buzz” through positive word of mouth,it is necessary to know the correct ingredients for success. Some of theseingredients have been discovered through a netnographic analysis of an Italianvirtual mountaineering community. The analysis has shown that some of the mostimportant issues when creating online communities are the reliability ofinformation, the ease of finding information and creating threads and posts, theconstant appearance of interesting threads and discussions, the respect for othermembers, the passion of all of the active users for the same topics and a certainhomogeneity within the users.

M3 - Article

VL - 4

SP - 99

EP - 112

JO - Tourismos

JF - Tourismos

IS - 3

ER -