Facebook as international eMarketing strategy of Taiwan hotels

Taiwan hotels need to focus on international eMarketing because these cater to international travelers, especially with leisure travelers expected to increase in the coming years. Facebook offers a wide range of opportunities for the international eMarketing of hotels. Investigation of the current use of Facebook, as an international eMarketing tool, by six large hotels in Taiwan showed presence in Facebook and use of basic features. However, the use of different Facebook features varied. While the hotels were able to connect with international leisure travelers via Facebook for the communication of marketing messages, the reach is limited to Chinese-speaking users using Chinese as the primary language, even for hotel pages accessible through English accounts. Language use also limited interaction in spreading the message virally to the wider international leisure travelers. Employing options to accommodate English and even other languages by selecting from available language support options can enhance international eMarketing via Facebook of hotels. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.